Grampound Reserves welcomed a St Columb Major side fresh from an excellent
Junior Cup victory over a good Week St Mary side the previous week. Player manager Tim Topham decided to start with a 4-5-1
formation, which included skipper Dave Juleff at the heart of the defence
after a 2-match absence.
The visitors were very physical from theoutset, but were more that matched
by Grampound in what turned out to be a rather bruising encounter. After 10
minutes Topham was clattered near the right hand touchline. Topham floated
in the resulting free kick into a dangerous area; Alister Berry managed to
get in front on his marker and after getting the ball out from underneath
his feet knocked the ball underneath the visiting keeper to give
Grampound the lead.
Grampound's commitment was superb with St
Columb Major players given very little time on the ball. Cooke's handling in
goal was faultless, with the Grampound back four keeping things tight with
the visiting side restricted to long-range efforts. Grampound's
best effort came from the right boot of Joe Dunn, but his well struck shot
was hit straight at the visiting keeper.
Stuart Harris replaced Dunn in Grampound's midfield at half-time.
There were very few clear-cut chances in the second half, lthough Major did
strike the bar with a thunderous volley from the edge of the area following
a corner. Every ball was being fiercely contested and Berry was booked for a late challenge on Mark
Coleman although referee Dave Roberts let the game flow throughout.
Topham almost made the points safe for Grampound but his strike from distance forced a
good save from the Major keeper. Moments later Cooke made a good save from a Major shot from the corner of the penalty area but the
rebound fell to Coleman who slid in to make it 1-1.
Both teams kept going to the whistle although the visitors were getting
increasingly frustrated and not being able to break down a resolute
Grampound defence. A Major player was booked for a shove on the Grampound
lineman and Coleman saw red after the final whistle for comments made to the
referee.
Overall player-manager Tim Topham was delighted with the side's performance,
and although it is difficult to single out individual players after such an
excellent team performance, Cooke's handling in goal was excellent, with Toms working hard up front on his own all afternoon and Berry
capping off a fine display in midfield with a well taken goal.