A member of the St Piran Football League

Match Report

Grampound 2-0 Southgate Seniors

22nd October 2022

Cornwall Junior Cup

The first half began with both sides being a little cagey and there were very few real chances for either team.  Grampound were pleased to have moved to the top of Duchy Div 2 the previous week and were determined to give the visiting Duchy Premier League leaders a tough game.  Grampound's defensive record has been outstanding but could they maintain it against such opposition?  The answer was a resounding YES.  There were few chances for either side but Grampound did not look out of their depth and passed the ball tidily without creating too many opportunities to really stretch the visitors.  The sides turned around at the break and Grampound knew they were in with a good chance of a surprising result.  Southgate began to find their feet though and Grampound found retaining the ball required a little more finesse and composure than in the first half.  Southgate looked sound until they reached the final third but then began to launch high crosses into the Grampound defensive area.  This continued for almost all of the second half and Grampound's solid defence  coped well with this type of onslaught. Southgate did not have it all their own way however and Danny Austin got on the end of a neat move down the left but  his good shot was well-saved by the visiting goalkeeper.  At Grampound's end a diving Dan Riley's fingertips diverted the ball onto the post to then be scrambled away to safety.  A Grampound corner on about 65 minutes led to a bit of a scramble with a rushed clearance being accidentally diverted into the net to give Grampound the lead.  The home side was not going to give that slender lead away without a real fight and the team became even more resolute in defending their goal.  A Southgate goal kick was taken indecisively and the goalkeeper decided to kick it again before a Grampound striker could reach the ball. The referee correctly awarded an indirect free kick to Grampoiund quite close in and the ball was slipped to Danny Austin who hit a firm shot into the top corner to extend Grampound's lead.  Grampound had to survive for about 15 minutes and did so comfortably to record the taking of a significant scalp, the most significant for Grampound for a number of years,  and to move into the third round draw for the Cornwall Junior Cup but most importantly to confirm that Grampound are serious in making a challenge for this prestigious competition.