Droylsden F.C.-The bloods on the net!

DROYLSDEN 2 – 3 HYDE

Blue Square Bet North – Tuesday 13 September 2011

Report by Gary Owen

This was a rip-roaring Tameside derby, with five goals - and three yellow cards, all for a frustrated Bloods’ side in the final fifteen minutes.

The first shot on goal came just before the quarter hour when Droylsden midfielder Dan Gardner gave himself too much to do with the angle, and Dave Carnell gathered safely into his midriff.

The hosts broke the deadlock on 25 minutes when Carlos Logan skipped past Mike Aspin to drive the ball at Carnell. It looked as though the Tigers’ stopper would save, but he failed to hold onto the ball under pressure from Dale Johnson, and it squirmed from his grip to bobble over the line.

Ex-Tiger, Johnson then showed clever feet to leave three defenders in his wake in one movement and have Carnell at full stretch to tip away for a corner, from which Danny Rowe flashed an effort across the face of goal and just beyond the far post.

In between those moments, Hyde’s quick passing game at times caused problems for the home midfield, but their play was breaking up in the final third. However, they finally got their act together five minutes before the break, and what a strike it proved to be when Callum Byrne pulled the trigger from just outside the box to send the ball crashing in off the underside of the bar with Paul Phillips beaten all ends up.

With the wind in their tales, the Tigers upped the ante after the re-start with Ryan Crowther benefitting from a slip by Ricky Anane, but the Hyde winger pulled his effort wide of the upright with only Phillips to beat.

Moments later, Byrne again tried his luck and again found the woodwork, but this time his effort cannoned off the bar to safety.

Home skipper Ciaran Kilheeney shot straight into Carnell’s arms, and at the other end Scott Spencer pulled a shot wide.

However, Hyde took the lead on 58 minutes when a super pass inside the Droylsden defence released Spencer, whose shot struck the charging John Hardiker to take a wicked spin beyond Phillips and into the net, but there was no denying it was Spencer’s goal.

It was a lead that Hyde never really looked like relinquishing as the game progressed, although Kilheeney was denied by the crossbar just three minutes later.

With 13 minutes remaining, Hyde won a free kick, which was delivered into the Droylsden box and eluded everyone bar Danny Hall, who slid in to steer the ball into the bottom corner.

Spencer tried to add to Hyde’s lead, but could only shoot wide after outstripping Nat Kerr, and Carnell then grasped a curling effort from Kilheeney out of the night air, as Droylsden never gave up, although time was clearly against them.

With the 90 minutes almost up, The Bloods did score through David Poole, after he had exchanged passes with Johnson, but if the hosts thought that would set-up a nail-biting four minutes of added time, Hyde had other ideas as they won a series of free-kicks and a corner to successfully run the clock down and record a deserved victory.

On this display, it’s not too difficult to see why Gary Lowe’s boys have made such an impressive start to the season.

TEAMS

Droylsden:

Phillips, Anane, Logan (Brown, 79’), Kerr, Hardiker, Hall S. (Gerrard, 71’), Gardner (Poole, 54’), Killeen, Kilheeney, Rowe, Johnson.

Subs. not used: Vaughan, Lake.

Hyde:

Carnell, Aspin, Griffin, Pearson, Hall D., Birch, Birchall, Byrne, Spencer (Mack, 88’), Broadbent (Berkeley, 73’), Crowther.

Subs. not used: Richardson, Moses, Havern.

ATTENDANCE: 625

REFEREE: Mr. Paul Hodkinson