Vale County 1-1 Harbut Rovers (19/08/19)

Vale County FC’s first 11 aside match since May 2016 ended in a promising 1-1 draw against League 5 opposition Harbut Rovers, with Clements grabbing the goal for Vale.

The starting line up had an unfamiliar feel to it, with debutant Peattie in behind Clements at the top of the pitch, supplemented out wide by two trialists. In the engine room, Humphrey and Given gave the midfield a 2013 feel, with Woodbridge, Strang, Beck and Beer sitting in front of Cheshire in the Vale goal.

The first 20 minutes of the match were largely played in the Vale half, albeit without much goal threat from Harbut - Beck and Strang provided solidity at the back in the air, as you might hope for with their lanky frames. As the half progressed, Vale came into the game more, with Given and Humphrey keeping possession in the middle. A ball from Peattie led to a penalty shout from Clements which was waved away by Craig Kissi, much to the dismay of Vale’s number 8. Towards the end of the first 45, Cheshire was (we think) called into action, tipping a long range effort onto the bar and out for a corner.

HT: 0-0

The second half saw Beer move to centre back, following a promising half at left back, with Beck leading the line up top (much to his delight). Vale started the second 45 in the way they’d ended the first, putting the pressure on Harbut and playing in their half. Following a succession of near misses from corners, however, Harbut then took the lead (0-1). A long throw wasn’t fully cleared, and the ball was curled into the top corner from outside of the box.   

Understandably, when the majority of the team had either been on holiday or simply just lazy for a large portion of the year, as the half progressed, only having one substitute became an issue - with Vale dropping deeper and becoming more susceptible on the counter. Beck, Peattie and Clements continued to create half chances up top, giving Vale hope of an equaliser - which duly came with around 10 minutes to go. Woodbridge galloped down the right having captured a loose ball, and following a neat interchange, gave the ball back to Peattie on the edge of the Harbut box. Peattie cut the ball back to the waiting Beck, who promptly miscued his shot into the path of Clements - who cut in and curled a delightful finish into the top right (1-1). The main take from the goal was that assist stats can sometimes be misleading. The final knockings of the game produced little for either, and a draw was a fair result given the match.

FT: 1-1 (Clements, Beck ‘assist’)