A Match Made In Devon

The Season So Far:

Every year I hope for a Christmas miracle, and this year it looks to have happened; 2nd placed Plymouth Parkway at home to Devon rivals Tavistock on Boxing Day! Parkway find themselves 3 points behind Bradford Town with a game in hand and a superior goal difference. Behind them, Clevedon Town are just a point behind in 3rd, but have played 5 more matches. The home side have not played a match since the 7th December due to their last two games falling foul of the weather. An impressive season so far has seen Parkway lose only once in the league and rack up impressive wins including a 10-0 thumping of Odd Down. They also have an FA Vase 4th Round game to look forward to against Woodbridge Town of the Eastern Counties Premier.

Today’s visitors joined the Western League at the beginning of the season from the South West Peninsula League. Currently in 10th place, but with a good few games in hand over almost everyone around them, they’ll feel confident of climbing up the league in the near future. Like the hosts, Tavvy’s last two games were rained off, and their last game on the 14th was a hard-fought 4-3 victory over bottom side Chipping Sodbury. They were knocked out of the Vase by another Devon club Buckland Athletic in the 3rd round, so will look to focus their attentions on improving their league position and possibly claiming promotion to the Southern League.

The Visit:

With this being Christmas, this match was a bit different to the others i’ve been to so far this season – a drive from one family home in Plymouth to another took me close enough to Bolitho Park to amble the rest of the way through the relatively newly-built housing estate and up to the ground. I joined the queue for the turnstile (a rarity for me, and a sign of the impressive attendance!) at around 11:40am and was in the ground with 10 minutes to spare. The sun was shining and the players had already finished their warm ups so I found a spot halfway down the far side. Bolitho Park benefits from lying pretty centrally in Plymouth between several largely residential areas. A new-looking sports/community centre and a modern club house/bar are evidence of the way this club is moving (and if the planning permission notices are anything to go by, they’re not stopping at that). The joined the Western League at the start of the 18/19 season, and their opponents today did the same at the start of this, taking the total of Devon clubs in the Premier Division up to four. The ground has a small seated stand on either side, providing just about the only shelter. The bar at the near end gives a good amount of standing room, with not much behind the opposite goal.

The game kicked off in glorious sunshine. I was expecting goals, given both teams’ reputations so far this season, and was not to be disappointed. Less than 2 minutes played and Tavistock stormed into the lead. Some early pressure lead to a corner which found the head of defender Dan Evans. With 10 minutes played it got even better for the neighbours from up the road. They broke, two-on-one, the ball squared at the last minute to Liam Prynne who had the easy job of passing into an empty net – keeper Kyle Moore left exposed and given little chance. Parkway didn’t know what hit them but managed their first shot courtesy of captain Shane Krac, but his shot flew harmlessly high and wide. The visitors were a threat from out wide and it was a cross from the right which almost gave them a three goal lead. Prynne’s first time shot saved well this time by Moore. A third goal did come, but it was a confidence-booster for the home team. A free kick out wide was taken to the goal line and crossed low into the danger area. Bodies flew in and the ball nestled in the back of the net. To me it looked like an own goal, but it was initially given to Parkway’s Tegan Rosenquest. Tavistock fans and players were up in arms – convinced the ball had crossed the line for a goal kick.

Regardless, the Yellows were back in the match and they should have been level on 26 minutes. Mikey Williams beating the offside trap, rounded the keeper but somehow contrived to not properly hit the ball into the open net, and it was cleared by a grateful Tavvy defender. At the other end, the visitor’s Jordan Annear skied from distance with the goal at his mercy. Another open goal miss, but this time from a lot further out. Parkway continued to probe for the leveller – a shot deflected wide, possibly via a hand, followed by a good cross but no one there to turn it home. A free kick cleverly predicted the wall jumping and drew a smart save from Tavistock’s Josh Oak low to his right. The first yellow (of many, it would turn out) went to Parkway’s Nick Milton for a cynical tackle from behind, as the half petered out. The referee’s whistle signalled the end of the half, and the beginning of the deluge… 1-2 after 45.

So while the first half started in glorious sunshine, the second began in fairly torrential rain which meant it took a while to really get going. On 64 minutes, a loose ball was picked up by Annear who found himself one-on-one with Moore who was beaten with a side-footed finish into the corner. 3-1 to the visitors and Parkway were left needing a quick response…. and that is what they provided. A corner driven into the 6 yard box ended up at the feet of Williams who atoned for his earlier miss with a smashed shot into the roof of the net from 2 yards. Not failing to connect properly this time! A few minutes later and substitute Bradley Ausden nearly equalised, were it not for a superb block tackle as he was about to pull the trigger. The game was somewhat hampered by the terrible conditions – with players losing their footing, and passes going astray. Parkway were baying for blood when Moore was caught late in the face after successfully hoofing a clearance to safety. Jack Crago perhaps lucky to only see yellow. By this point, my pen was losing the ability to write, but the remaining 15 minutes saw a couple of chances for the home team to pull level – Jordan Copp and Krac both narrowly missing the target. Annear was also denied a brace by excellent defending from home defender Jack Calver who slid in in the nick of time when Moore was beaten to the ball. To the relief of the by now soaked crowd, the referee brought this riveting game to a close. A great 3-2 win for the Lambs who will hope to push on up the league, and a disappointing defeat for the home side who now find themselves 6 points behind leaders Bradford Town, albeit with a game in hand.

My first visit to Bolitho Park was a memorable one – a great game, massive crowd and friendly welcome. I’m sure i’ll be back at some point!

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

•