Men's 1sts keep up their challenge with a fine win against Cambridge City 4

South moved back into second place after a hard-earned victory against a City side who belied their status as bottom markers and who could, without too much luck, have snatched something from the game at the death.

In the event, South were grateful for a decisive start which saw Mark Pears net on the three-minute mark after Rob Garrett and Lukas Snetler's fast approach work had sliced the defence well and truly open. No less important in creating the early advantage was South's ability to read City's well-taken short corners, with both Steve Parker and Chris Graveling dealing firmly with high and low flicks. The balance of the play was in South's favour for much of the first half and all the best chances fell their way, Keith Hewitt smashing high into the side-netting from a tight angle and Snetler unluckily clanging the post with a rasping shot after burgling the ball at the edge of the D. After City were temporarily reduced to ten men through injury, South continued to force the pace, Rob Garrett being denied by the keeper's stick and Pears doing well to get in a first-time shot which also found the goalie. The pressure eventually told on the home side, however, and, on 23 minutes, an after-you-Cecil-no-after-you-Claude moment deep in the City circle allowed Snetler to race in and pick his spot for a well-deserved personal marker.

Neat footwork from Chris Baker at right-half and Al Sinclair's gift for finding a gap and storming into it threatened to derail City's defence but, after Snetler's crisp strike at the first short had been well saved by the keeper and the second had run through plans A, B and C and ended up on the half-way line, the hosts organised themselves more efficiently and started to exert some pressure themselves. Eliot Read, Nick Young and Matt Readman - the latter eventually cottoning on to the new self-pass rule and making some great moves to himself - all put in key tackles and Graveling's omnipresence was reassuring. Sinclair was blocked twice in the opposition D after hot chases near the whistle but South appeared to be in good order at half-time.

Restored to numerical parity, City redoubled their efforts on the restart. Urged on by sensible advice from their coach and the tireless efforts of their veteran striker, whose perennial jousts with Graveling formed an entertaining fil rouge, the hosts threw their weight around, barging over Read and Garrett, and shrugged off near-misses by Sinclair, Baker and Russell Johnson to reduce the deficit after 46 minutes when the South defence went AWOL and a loose forward leathered home from space on the right.

A certain degree of hairiness took over as City caught the scent and South were grateful for the umpire's vigilance in ruling out a home goal after a pinball effort following Parker's fine diving save from a flicked penalty corner had been bundled in through a forest of bodies. Hewitt then attempted to restore the two-goal cushion with a self-sacrificial dive on City's left post but his despairing reverse shot just went wide. After failing to convert a third short through lack of ball speed, South then concentrated on building up moves from deep but were apt to be dispossessed before getting into the danger area, though Read managed to get a brace of neat crosses in before City recovered themselves.

A pivotal moment came in the 57th minute when City, seeking the equaliser, engineered a quick two-on-one just inside the South 25 but Parker foiled the bid with a decisive spread tackle to his right and South breathed again, reorganising calmly to put together some solid moves round the back and then up the left through Garrett, Sinclair and Snetler. The final critical pass remained elusive, however, until Sinclair robbed a City defender moving aggressively upfield and hared away to feed the waiting Hewitt. Pears, meanwhile, had broken away from his marker and was in perfect position to put away an exquisite one-timer under the keeper when Hewitt judged the moment to pass.

To their credit, City still came on strong and it required a concerted effort from the South defence to hold on to their lead. Garrett boosted the immune system with some great low tackles and Leo Tomita, whose well-disguised distribution from right defence had been a key factor in gaining South ground throughout the game, put in a determined reverse slide to clear in a tricky situation. Nevertheless, City still won three late short corners and South were again indebted to a pair of excellent saves from Parker, the second a telescopic diving effort away to his right, to avert late embarrassment. The third whistled just wide and, as Hewitt and Young banged the ball upfield to a grateful Snetler, South whistled with relief as the final whistle sounded.

Though South tended to give the ball away in midfield too much in the second half, many of the basics on which the team is trying to build were effectively executed. Stabilised by the twin defensive bulwarks of Readman and Graveling and benefiting from a little more zing up front than last week, South gave themselves enough solidity at the back to reap the full benefit of the chances they manufactured at the other end. A good result.

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Steve Parker
Player of the Match

Matt Readman
Player of the Match