Roundshaw 1 - 1 Ironsides

They say when Napoleon used to select his generals and officers for war he used to ask not " are they good? " but " are they lucky?" Words which seem prophetically fitting for this second chapter between Roundshaw and Ironsides. Ironsides were not "good" but by contrast lucky to come out of this fixture with any result or credibility to their name while their opponents showed skill, desire and guile which could not be faulted except for the fact that it only yielded one goal, a feat that would ultimately be our undoing in the race for three points.

Injury meant Dyer had to be content with a place on the metaphorical substitutes bench which meant Tommy had to pit his wits as an emergency central defender ( a task which he duly took in his stride in two seperate spells in the match. ) E-man came in at right back for his first game for a few weeks and Bizzy took the left back spot. Midfield was Rich, Josh, Juan and Jamie with Al and Macca leading the line. Carl, Mike and the aforementioned Adam took their places in the refs notebook as named subs.

The ever dependable ( Druce almighty ) Wayne kept his position between the sticks.

From the very start we looked the more dominant team. Good passing and closing down meant unlike last week, the defence were not made to be put under constant, unnecessary pressure. When the back line was called upon though, it stood firm like an old English oak tree rooted to its foundations and impossible to penetrate. The midfield seemed a lot more balanced then last week. Rich in the middle giving it easy and simple whilst the more mobile players set the wheels in motion for countless attacks. However, Ironsides although under pressure for long periods, were able to cope with our spirited display making it 0-0 at half time.

The second half saw E-man come off for Ad which pushed Tommy into Right-back giving the defence a more natural look. Straight away we continued to build momentum and keep pushing the tempo in our favour. By this point the heavens had opened leaving the subs, manager and supporters (me and si ) looking like we had been involved in trench warfare. This however, didn't appear to dampen the spirits of the team and our hard work and perseverance was duly rewarded with a goal from Macca of the highest quality. A chipped ball from ( i think ) Alan put the ball on the wrong side of the defender for our super striker to take one touch and hit through the 'keeper for 1-0. This was surely our day?

No. Missed chances fell to Macca again, Jamie and Al before Ironsides managed to claw their way undeservedly back into the game. Wayne parried a shot into the path of an oncoming ironsider who placed into an empty net.

Many felt there was a foul on Josh in the build up. The protests fell on the deaf ears of the ref who sent Jamie off for his conduct when protesting the goal. With time running out and Adam going off with an injury to his back, ( Hope that's ok now? ) the game started to look evenly poised. In fact, Ironsides clipped the bar with a long range effort. Josh had a shot just seconds before the final whistle which was saved by a goalkeeper who deserves the plaudits of his teammates for a fantastic individual display