South Yorkshire Ability Counts League one minute silence for Remembrance Day
SYorksACL clubs commemorate Remembrance Sunday at Concord
Catch-up Barton just behind Sheffield FC (Red) in the Premier Division
Brunsmeer & Rotherham head Championship traffic jam
Sheffield FC (White) and Dooley (Orange) ahead in League One
Sixteen matches in the SYACL 7-a-side leagues at Concord Sports Centre on Sunday afternoon as the players moved into match day two of the competition.
Before the 1.45 pm kick off, players, coaches and officials observed a minute’s silence to commemorate Remembrance Sunday.
Then, when the action got under way, the real quality and competitiveness of all three Divisions shone through. As always, www.SYorksACL.com had its trusty team of reporters on hand to give readers a taste of the action.
In the Premier Division, Barton Inclusive were playing catch-up after their enforced absence from the opening match day. They enjoyed an excellent afternoon, taking two wins, a draw and one narrow defeat from a busy four-game afternoon.
Their games were followed closely by Barton’s Aaron Walton, who produced a fantastic report on his team’s afternoon, which www.southyorkshireabilitycountsleague.com is delighted to reproduce in full.
A grey day lightened up by sky blue Barton
A rather dark and dreary afternoon welcomed the lads from Barton to the Concord Leisure facility in Sheffield, Aaron reported.
Apprehensive was the word in relation to Athletics first venture in their new premiership league after a successful campaign last season which saw them crowned division champions.
Coach Richard Day had a full squad to choose from with the obvious niggles and lack of real game time on his mind for selecting a team for the first test.
Tougher prospects lay ahead with this step up in class, and Athletics first game was against tough opposition in Sheffield FC Blues.
The blues were getting room down the left with the first good save from Athletics keeper Jay Crawshaw Walton (possibly one of the best keepers in the league).
Shaun Kirman took a nasty one to the inside of his thigh, slightly high that one, he got up and soldiered on.
Athletic again giving a little bit too much room and respect to the blues, then Athletics’ first chance bringing a good double save from the blues keeper from Andrew Gregory.
Then a shot from the edge of the area through heavy traffic plus a deflection beat the Athletic keeper, 1-0 to the blues.
Jamie Dunlin started to feel his feet and ran at the blues defence firing a venomous shot into the bottom corner, 1-1
The second half Athletic grew in confidence with Seb Cooper shooting into the side netting and Reece showing some nice touches.
First game Sheffield Blues 1 – 1 Barton Athletic
Game 2 v Sheffield FC Reds
This was going to be Athletics toughest game on paper, and it turned out to be however Athletic were certainly not outplayed.
Dunlin had the first shot which the reds keeper turned over, great link up play with Dunlin, Bentinio and Gregory to put pressure on the reds.
Then a bit of pressure from the reds however great defending from Kirman and Matt Richardson.
A run from Kirman passed to Cooper, shot just over the bar, then Athletic didn’t pick up the Sheffield player on the right side, passed from the wing into feet, shot bottom corner 1-0 to the reds.
A great one on one save by Crawshaw Walton to keep Athletic in the game.
Harsh on Athletic as they had more of the ball and some neat play.
The second half was frustrating for Athletic as they broke out well from defence and a combination of great defending, missed passes, ricochets, rebounds and a couple of good saves kept Athletic from scoring.
A 1-0 loss but a tight one, not out played, unlucky
Game 3 pitted the Athletic against Aston Swallownest and this game signalled Dave’s first game, our talisman forward. Athletic started on the front foot, 2 corners and 2 quality saves from the Swallownest keeper, I had a feeling he was going to be busy as Athletic were firing on all cylinders.
Like many games, when a team is under the cosh there is always a chance of a breakaway and Swallownest broke, however Keeper Crawshaw Walton saved low.
Great passing from Gregory, Dunlin and Ryan Norton with Athletic in the mood to pass the ball around and stretch their opponents, light are now on so we can see better.
Then disaster, a mistake in defence lets Swallownest in for a cheap goal 1-0, however its 1-1 straight from the K.O.
Crawshaw Walton to Dunlin to Dave back to Dunlin, bottom corner, what a slick goal.
The second half and another slip in Athletics defence allows the opponents to slot a simple goal in 2-1 down.
Then Gregory feeds Dunlin, bottom corner 2-2, Ryan is strong in defence this second half and has three strong headers and one creates a chance for Dave who delicately chips the keeper 3-2.
Pressure from Dave, shoots, just wide, Ryan cutting out through balls, were getting stretched and a through ball for Swallownest. Crawshaw Walton 1-1 saves, brave and keeps the score at 3-2.
Dunlin to Bentinio to Dave back to Dunlin, goal 4-2.
Gregory to Dave, just over the bar, Dunlin turns to shoot, just wide, Seb Cooper back post, keeper saves, Gregory shot, and keeper saves, the whistle is blown, Athletic have their first win and its deserved, a great team effort.
Barton Athletic 4 -2 Aston Swallownest
Athletics final game was against City Knights who took to the field depleted in numbers, could this lull Athletic into a false sense of security?
With confidence high, Athletic started brightly with Matt Richardson stroking the ball about from the back. Athletic had to keep an eye on City Knights captain who is one of the strongest players in the league, he was largely nullified by Matt and Ryan.
Athletic were peppering the Knights goal and the pressure finally told with Dunlin rifling in the bottom corner 1- 0.
A bit of sloppy play led to a Knights free kick; a rasping shot turned over by Crawshaw Walton.
Some stout defending by the depleted knights as Athletics intensity dropped.
The second half saw Reece running around like a wasp near a jam jar, a free kick deflected in by Bentinio 2- 0 with a city Knights player off for a slide tackle (harsh, but fair).
Bentino shot just over, City Knights all behind the ball now, but a break by the knights and Athletics keeper pushing the ball firmly around the post.
Dave is unmarked in the box, 3-0 he doesn’t miss them, now its two touch for Athletic which in all honesty brought the best out of them, stroking the ball around finding space and with a 1-2 from Gregory and Dave, then back to Dave to finish 4 – 0.
I think if the City Knights had a full team, it would be a different proposition however you can only play against what’s in front of you and Athletic have had days were they have struggled for numbers.
Barton Athletic 4 – 0 City Knights
A great start in the Premier league for Barton Inclusive FC ‘Athletic.’
Final words form coach Richard Day “so proud of the boys today especially when they went behind, they stuck at it and gave a great account of themselves.”
Sheffield FC Disability (Red) established a one point advantage in the Premier Division with that win over Barton, and a share of the points after a fiery local derby with Sheffield FC (Blue) which ended goalless. The bragging rights are shared at the Coach and Horses ground-for now!
Aston Swallownest were convincing winners over City Knights Black who arrived at Concord with only five players due to absence and suspension.
After four games each, it’s Sheffield FC (Red) who lead the way by just one point from Barton Athletic. Sheffield FC (Blue) is a further point behind, with Aston Swallownest Red on five points.
City Knights Black will be hoping to be back to full strength for the December round of matches.
This would seem to be an incredibly competitive Division which is likely to go down to the wire.
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | GD | PTS |
| 1 | Sheffield FC Red (Disability) | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 |
| 2 | Barton Inclusive Football Club Barton At | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| 3 | Sheffield FC Blue (Disability) | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| 4 | Aston Swallownest Juniors Disability Red | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| 5 | City Knights Black | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -4 | 0 |
In the Championship, Brunsmeer Athletic got the action under way on Pitch 2 with a narrow win over a battling Bradford Amber. They followed this up with a draw against a really impressive Rotherham United Community Sports Trust FC, with both teams playing excellent football.
Next up, Bradford Amber edged past Derek Dooley Red, in a match watched by Dooley’s Claire Cowlishaw.
“This was a very even match with Bradford,” Claire reports. “There was some good passing from defenders Jack & Adam to Lewis in the middle and up front to Stephen, Aiden and Brad. Elliott was brave to take on the goalkeeping duties for this match and wasn’t troubled too much at the beginning, until they broke up front and he cut the angle down, but it went in to put them in the lead. The lads kept on trying and showed some good passing from Nick to Aiden who shot over. There was some good work from Brad to go past a player but shot wide. Dom had a good run up the left, passed over to Brad but shot over. Bradford broke through again but some great defending from Jack to save the shot getting through. Jack passed to Lewis in the middle who passed to the right to Aiden but shot over again. Bradford had a run up and shot past Elliott, but the lads kept going and repaid their belief and Aiden managed to score bringing them back into the game. It was a shame to lose the game, with Dooley must have had 6 shots but not on target.”
Newly-promoted Wheatley Wanderers opened up their afternoon against Dooley Red. Here’s Claire’s take on the match.
“The team were straight back on, and Nick took his turn in the net,” Claire told SYorksACL.com “The team started positively with some good defending leaving Nick not having much to do. There was some good passing from Adam to Lewis who took it up, passed to Brad but he shot over. There was good passing between Adam to Jack and Dom, but his shot was saved. Stephen passed from the left to the middle and Aiden scored and this lifted the lads. 1-0. Daz swapped the subs over to give everyone the chance to play and Lewis went in the net and let Nick have a run up the pitch. All the play was Dooley with some good passing between all players with Lewis just making 1 save.”
“Jack went up front with the ball passed to Stephen who turned and scored taking them into a 2-0 lead. Elliott went up front and did some good work but shot over.
A good day without their star goalkeeper Nathan.”
Wheatley’s Chris Pow gave us his take on the match.
“We defended hard against Dooley, especially in the first half,” Chris said. “They deserved their two goals, though the second was a mix up between our defence and our keeper. In fact, it was our no.1 Justin who kept the score down.”
Club Doncaster Titans began with a narrow defeat to the excellent Rotherham United Community Sports Trust, watched by Head Coach Martin Taylor.
“Both teams started well, and some lovely football was played by both sides and Rotherham took a lucky lead in the game. Both teams carry on playing a brilliant game and the game got to half time with Rotherham winning by the single goal. The second half started like the first half and Titans were unlucky not to equalise. Then the game step up another level. It was end to end stuff then Rotherham scored again to make it 2 – 0.”
“Both teams played the game in the proper way a football match should be,” Martin concluded, “and it was an entertaining game to watch.”
Titans (White) rounded off the Championship afternoon with their 4.15 kick off against Wheatley, and it was the Wanderers who took the points with a 3-1 win.
Here’s Chris Pow. “Titans got an early goal, but we kept our composure and started to play with confidence. Steve got the first two goals, and Sean slotted in the third. Credit to Titans though, as they played well.”
“See you next time.”
Titans Head Coach Martin Taylor gave www.southyorkshireabilitycountsleague.com his reflections on the Wheatley game.
“Titans started the game like they finished the last one. Titans had chance after chance to score but couldn’t finish. Titans scored from a lovely through ball from Danny Grubb to Liam Taylor to finish it off,1 – 0. Then Titans turned the screw up a notch and another through ball from Phil Siddons fell to Liam again but this time the keeper cleared the ball away.”
“Then Wheatley went up the other end of the pitch to score making it 1 – 1 at halftime. In the second half both teams stepped up a gear and both teams were playing end to end football. You could see the team which scored the next goal was going to win. Unfortunately, it was against Titans and Wheatley made at 2 – 1. The Titans heads went down, and Wheatley used this to their advantage to score a third goal, making the final score 3 – 1 to Wheatley.”
It’s all to play for after four games each in the Championship, with the top five clubs covered by just one point. Brunsmeer Awareness and Rotherham United share the lead on even points, with Bradford City Amber, Titans (White) and Dooley Red all on six Wheatley are just one win behind the pack.
It’s another incredibly tight division with all games played to a really high standard.
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | GD | PTS |
| 1 | Brunsmeer Awareness Awarness | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| 2 | Rotherham United Community Sports Trust | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| 3 | Bradford City FITC Disability Amber | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 |
| 4 | Club Doncaster Titans FC (Adult) White | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 |
| 5 | Derek Dooley Football Academy RED | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 |
| 6 | Wheatley Wanderers SYACL | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -2 | 3 |
Just four games in League One this weekend, with Sheffield White winning their opening game against Titans (Red) Titans’ Coach Dannyl Hall watched the game for SYorksACL.com.
“The game started out great, but we lost positioning,” Dannyl told us. “This led Sheff to score twice, in our game, and we couldn’t break to equalise. 2 – 0 Sheff FC was the result.”
In game two, Derek Dooley (Orange) suffered a narrow defeat to Sheffield FC (White). Dooley’s Claire takes up the story.
“They started well with just 7 players so they had to be on the top of their game with coach Brad on the side-lines with advice,” Claire explained. “The team had Gregg in the goal with Clark and John at the back, Nathan, Jamie Lee and Josh in the middle with Dean up front. The team did well with them all showing commitment. Sheffield team were strong and there was some good defending from Clark and John, who passed to Nathan who turned and passed to Josh who shot over. The game was end to end with chances at both ends with some good saves from Gregg. Nathan took control in the middle passing to Jamie Lee on the right whose shot was saved. It was all level at half time. The second half started at the same pace with full effort from all the lads. Dean passed up front to Jamie Lee who ran up the wing but shot wide. Josh did a lot of running the length of the pitch to help defend and try and score. It was looking as if it would end as a draw, but a mix up at the back leaving a player free on the right and Sheffield scored. The lads kept trying to the end but lost narrowly.”
Dooley Orange stayed on Pitch 3 for their next fixture, and this time they took the points in a 4-2 win over Aston Blue in a cracking game.
“The lads were tired, and they were straight back on and started with 6,” Dooley’s Claire told us. “Clark came back and was raring to go. The team worked well together passing and solid defending from John who took the ball and passed to Nathan who took it up the middle passing 2 players and passing to Jamie Lee on the right who shot over. Gregg saved a shot, passed to the side to John who passed to Dean in the middle who toe poked to Josh who took a run and shot passed the goalkeeper taking them into the lead. Aston came back but the lads stood strong, and Nathan passed to Jamie Lee on the right and he shot, and it went in taking them into 2-0 lead. Aston kept trying with solid defending from Clark stopped them on the left. Nathan took the ball from the defence and ran the length of the pitch and shot in the left side of the goal making a convincing 3-0 lead. This took its toll on Nathan, and he needed a break for his inhaler. Aston added another player and came back scoring a goal back, 3-1. Nathan re-joined the game and the team communicated well with each other, having a shot saved. Aston came back strong and got another back 3-2. Dooley finished off with a pass to Jamie Lee on the right and his shot bounced and went past the goalkeeper, finishing 4-2.”
“It was a great -but tiring- afternoon for the Oranges!”
In the final League One game of the day, Aston Swallownest Blue defeated Club Doncaster Titans (Red) to take the three points, watched by Titan’s Dannyl Hall.
“We started out strong, but Swallownest hit the target to break the deadlock,” Dannyl admitted. “We at Titans just couldn’t seem to connect today, as we did have key players missing with only one sub, which was a big let-down.”
“We nearly scored twice, but it just wasn’t happening for us today.”
Sheffield F (White) lead the way, but again, their advantage is a narrow one; just one point ahead of Derek Dooley (Orange). Aston Swallownest (Blue) and Titans Red are well in touch.
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | GD | PTS |
| 1 | Sheffield FC White (Disability) | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 |
| 2 | Derek Dooley Football Academy Orange | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| 3 | Aston Swallownest Juniors Disability Blu | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 4 |
| 4 | Club Doncaster Titans FC (Adult) Red | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -2 | 2 |
We’ll catch up with the fierce competition across all three divisions when the 7-a -side squads head back to Concord Sports Centre on the 11th of December. Many thanks to all our excellent reporters for their contributions.
Next week, our open-age 5-a side teams return to Goals Sheffield for Match Day 2. We’ll see you there, and here at www.southyorkshireabilitycountsleague.com
South Yorkshire Ability Counts League 