Norton OBC 4-1 Crescent Rovers

Man of the Match: 10. Paul Lewis

'MORE LIKE IT'

OBC's best result. Nobody had a bad game and the attitude was spot on. Pete Joicey's 4-4-2 fought for each other all over the pitch and communication was good. Effort was shared in the early stages, and it took a spot-kick to break the dead-lock. Joicey caught one of Crescent's men in the box, and the pen was well buried to Mel's left. 0-1. Norton heads stayed high though, and the fight continued.

Mel had a decisive game and was protected by a solid back-four. Liam led the line with composure and communicated well. Pete Joicey and Al Clarke were committed, held good positions, and rarely got turned. Barry Jones improved throughout, had a great second-half and made numerous incisive tackles. Our midfield used height and strength to good effect when challenging and holding off opponents. We also played some good football, linked well, and made quality forward passes. Tom Black demanded posession and improved his defensive game on the left, and Andy Tate had noticeable creative impact on the right.

While defence and mid-field did well, the front two were outstanding. Steve Fowers and Paul Lewis dropped to help mid-field when needed and ruffled Crescent's build-up from the back. They made good runs and constantly showed for the ball. Our first goal came as a result of winning possession in mid-field and hitting the forwards quickly. I passed to Steve Fowers on the right and he did a great job of drawing the keeper before crossing to Paul Lewis, who tucked it away for a deserved equalizer. 1-1.

1-1 soon became 3-1 with Steve Fowers netting a quality second from Tatey's pass, and Paul Lewis got his second and our third - a lovely dinked finish over the oncoming keeper that had enough pace to cross the line, but was slow enough to invite two defenders to chase and end up on their arses in the goal-mouth for their efforts. Tatey, Johan Baker and Pete Joicey also went close. 3-1 at the break.

The second-half wasn't quite as entertaining, but OBC's still had the better chances. A repeating pattern saw Crescent's 9, 14 & 17 trying to pull strings in the middle, with Norton defending in numbers and hitting them on the break. As the ref said, 'they played some great stuff, but it was all in front of you'.

Johan capped a typical battling display when he scored our fourth. He slotted home Steve Fowers' pass, making it a hat-trick of assists for the skipper. They combined again when Johan found Steve with a fine curling pass and he set Paul Lewis up to score his third, but the final ball was ruled off-side.

Towards the end Ricky Richardson and Joseph Muvunyi replaced Paul Lewis and Marc Stewart, and Steve Fower dropped to midfield. As time ran down Crescent increased the pressure, but Norton held firm. Final score 4-1.

Man of the match: Paul Lewis - Excellent game. Led the fight with commitment and great tackling. Tracked back when needed and took his goals well. Steve Fowers also played a blinder, scoring one and making three. Andy Tate was highly effective on the right and Barry Jones had his best game.

Cheers,
Marc