2013/14
Worcester City v Brackley Town – Saturday 19th April 2014
Moore Makes the Point
For an end of season stroll in the sun between two teams with little to play for, this was a far from dull game, enlivened by some interesting decisions by the referee. The first came early in the game as City scored what many thought to be a perfectly good goal only to see the effort chalked out by the referee who had spotted a foul in the build-up. City were swiftly into their stride and soon Billy Turley in the visitors goal was busy dealing with a plethora of shots on target and even more just wide.
Little was seen of the Brackley attack except for the odd breakaway or set piece. It was from one of the latter that the visitors took the lead. A neat diving header beat the City defence to hand the lead to the visitors. Undaunted City re-doubled their efforts and the game took on a bizarre twist when the Brackley manager got involved with Tyler Weir who had gone over to take a throw-in. Wayne Thomas waded in to separate the parties but found himself booked whilst the Brackley manager was sent to the stands, this being interpreted as about two yards from where he had been stood before. Eventually after much hilarity he was escorted to the rear of the stand.
Things got even more bizarre soon after as City equalised in very controversial fashion. Billy Turley had made a good save but the ball ran straight to Ethan Moore, who with the goal at his mercy, drove a powerful ground shot towards the goal. Brett Solkhon threw himself in the way of the ball and prevented a certain goal, however instead of being the hero of the moment he rose to his feet to see the referee pointing to the penalty spot. Worse still, to his evident disbelief, he was sent off for his troubles. Moore took the kick himself and although Turley got a hand to the shot it crept over the line to give City a point.
Worcester City v Barrow – Tuesday 8th April 2014
Devaney Strikes
A superbly struck Martin Devaney free kick midway through the second half handed Worcester the perfect tonic after Saturday’s disappointing defeat at Leamington. This win caps a fine start to 2014 which has seen Worcester move strongly away from the bottom of the table and finally banish any lingering doubts about relegation.
Although City won by the narrowest of margins they were by far the better of the two teams with Barrow offering nothing but a string of bad tackles that brought forth only an armful of yellow cards.
It will be a relaxing Easter for City’s long suffering supporters and in the context of the dire predictions floating around when the curtain finally fell at the Lane a year ago, City have defied the odds and retained their status in Conference North.
Worcester City v Vauxhall Motors – Sunday 23rd March 2014
Sunday Satisfaction
The importance of this match was not lost on players and fans alike as the game was played in a nervy atmosphere, only partly relieved when Ellis Deeney struck half way through the first half to give Worcester the lead. It was a lovely goal setup by a neat pass from Daniel Nti. Overall though the first half lacked quality and passion with Vauxhalls’ attacking efforts being limited to one shot, high and wide of the net, as the game near half time.
City were far more positive at the start of the second half and created but then missed three golden opportunities, the best ending with the ball rebounding to safety from the inside of the post.
It could have proved costly as Vauxhall finally got into their stride, but the City defence held firm and the nerves were settled two minutes from time when Daniel Nti made it five goals from five games with a fine strike to give Worcester three precious points in the continuing pursuit of avoiding relegation.
Since the last report City has produced many fine performances and moved strongly up the league to 14th place. Sad to report that owing to the high costs of fielding a team at this level Vauxhall have announced they will be moving to a different league next season. Vauxhall was always a nice place to visit with good social facilities and it is sad to see them leave in these circumstances.
Worcester City v Colwyn Bay - Saturday 18th January 2014
Windy Day Mastery
Worcester City mastered not just their opponents and the officials but also a strong wind blowing in from the south. City had the wind in their face in the first half but still created the best two chances with only stunning saves from Chris Sanna (a one-time City keeper) preventing the home team from going in at the break with a good lead. Main talking point though was the stunningly poor performance by the referee who got worse and worse as the game went on.
Although Sanna was the hero of the first half he made a bad mistake in the second when failing to hold a strong shot from Brown allowing Daniel Nti to fire in a strong shot which was powered into his own net by a hapless Bay defender for the City opener.
Aaron Williams thought he had added a second with a strong header but the linesman's flag ruled it out. Perhaps offside or the ball went out for a goal kick? Williams was not to be denied though striking a fine shot as City played some of their best football of the season. The Bay fought back hard and gained a penalty, one of the few decisions that was unarguable, but they was no time left for them and City ran out worthy winners.
Below: City's first goal against Colwyn Bay.
Worcester City v Gloucester City - Saturday 28th December 2013
New Year Blues
Just when Worcester City seemed to be making one step they produced a horror show that took them back to square one. It seemed that they forgot the golden rule that "if you can't score then make sure the opposition doesn't". City were under pressure for the first twenty minutes but the defence should have been up to the task of keeping out a decidedly modest attack. Alas it was not to be once once they had conceded a soft goal there was no way back.
Gloucester, having taken the lead, sat back on defence and invited City to attack. It is for good reason that Worcester have the worst "goals for" in the league and this lack of cutting edge in front of goal was plain for all to see. What few chances created were wasted and so 2013 ended on a diasppointing note.
Worcester City v Harrogate Town - Saturday 21st December 2013
Christmas Cracker
Worcester City gave their long suffering fans an early Christmas present with a well-deserved win against in-form Harrogate Town. City got off to a perfect start when Ethan Morre's excellent pass found Ebby Nelson-Addy in space on the right-hand side of the penalty area. He delivered a perfect low shot across the face of the defence and was delighted to see the ball scream into the far corner of the net. It was a stunning goal and well worthy of winning any game.
Harrogate never got close to getting back into the game and on this showing it was hard to see how the visitors had racked up seven wins in their last eight games.
City were impressive and wanted this win much more than the visitors and it showed as City won the contest for just about every ball.
It may only have been the third league win of the season but there were signs all over the park that 2014 will bring better things to come.
Worcester City v Oxford City - Sunday 8th December 2013
Sunday Blues
It was certainly a case of Sunday Blues as Worcester City tamely surrendered their five match unbeaten run in a game that few home supporters will remember for very long. City just could not get to grip with Oxford's strong defenders and once they had conceded two early goals there was never any way back. Altogether a deeply disappointing afternoon.
Worcester City v AFC Telford United - Saturday 30th November 2013
All Square
Worcester City took their unbeaten run to four after a highly entertaining but goalless FA trophy fixture at Kidderminster.
Both sides went all out for victory in this game which was packed with incident and chances on both sides. There was barely a foul in the game which was superbly handled by the referee.
Both keepers had magnificent games and stopped anything that came their way as the action flew from one end to the other with barely a break.
No goals could be fashioned from all this action and the teams must do it all again on Tuesday. So City at least have the satisfaction of being the only team from the two counties still in the draw for the next round.
Worcester City v Ramsbottom United - Sunday 17th November 2013
More Slices than a Loaf of Bread
Since the last report City have gone through a very lean spell with only a win in the FA Cup third round replay and a home draw to Lincoln in the fourth round to show for their efforts. Today's game was therefore a "must win" for City and they duly obliged through "Hat-Trick " hero Ethan Moore.
City's victory came by using very simple route one attacking straight down the middle of the visitors shaky defence. The best chance that Ramsbottom were ever going to get in this game was to take an early lead but City's defence was equal to the task and with solidity at the back the midfield was able to get into some good positions to feed a hungry looking attack.
The decisive first goal came following a stunning run through the middle by Niall Thompson and a pinpoint pass to Ethan Moore for a stunning opening goal.
City never looked to be in any danger of conceding an equaliser and as the game went on it became obvious that City well in command. Two comical defence errors in the visitors defence let in Ethan Moore to complete City's first hat-trick of the season.
There was much relief in the stands once the final whistle went.
Worcester City v Rugby Town - Saturday 12th October 2013
Bore Draw
All the pre-match talk on the terraces was the overnight departure of Exodus Geohagen following a dispute over team selection, providing the worst possible buld-up to this important FA Cup game. City's revised defense took twenty minutes to find an understanding and by this time Rugby had created and missed several good chances. It was as near as the visitors came to a shock win as City soon took control of the midfield. After the initial surge by the visitors they showed little up front and were forced back on the defensive. City though missed several good chances to score and it would have been hard on Rugby if Nti's injury time header had handed City the win. As it was the game ended goalless and the teams will try again on Tuesday.
Worcester City v Coventry Sphinx- Saturday 28th September 2013
City hit four more
City returned to Kidderminster after an impressive point at Telford in mid-week and scoring four goals at home is becoming a habit for City as they settle in at the new temporary home. Although the visitors from Coventry were from a much lower league they were a more formidable proposition than Workington. Indeed City were on the defensive for much of the first half which saw the ball twice rebound to safety from City's woodwork. Much against the run of play though City took the lead with their first real attack. A stunning shot from outside the box by Richard Taundry settled the City nerves.
The visitors chances of taking anything from the game vanished in a moment of madness as they were reduced to ten men after a stupid kick on Taundry.
City ended the game with a flourish scoring three goals in the last ten minutes. On-loan winger Niall Thompson started the goal fest with a fine solo effort, Daniel Nti added the third, and the fourth came from debutant striker, James Lemmon.
City therefore made it five games without defeat and no goals conceded in the last four.
Worcester City v Workington Town – Saturday 21st September 2013
City score four
It has been a long time coming but Worcester City finally ended their winless streak with a solid performance against shell-shocked opponents. It took City less than fifteen minutes to put the game beyond the reach of the visitors. Two goals from Ethan Moore gave City the start they needed. Moore scored with a quick thinking shot after a weak clearance by the Workington keeper had been charged down and followed up to convert an inviting low cross from Danny Glover who was City’s man of the match.
Any chance that there might be a second half fight back were rapidly extinguished as first Exodus Geohagen scored after making a quick break into the visitors half and then Glover mashed in a low volley from the edge of "D".
All in all this was as good as a performance as anything seen last season and on this performance things might not be as bad as many have predicted.
This is City's second goal:
Worcester City v Gainsborough Trinity - Tuesday 18th September 2013
CITY ROBBED
Having returned from Colwyn Bay with a point only an astonishingly poor decision by the referee was all that separated City from their first victory of the season. With less than a minute of the game left City's Daniel Nti burst through a static defence and was grabbed by the ankles by the visiting keeper. It was a clear penalty but the referee brushed aside the penalty shouts.
City were the best team in the first quarter of the game but a blunder by Exodus Geohagen handed the visitors an unlikely lead after 25 minutes. City's defence seemed all at sea for a period and the visitors should have added to their slender lead. City's best efforts coming from Danny Glover and Nathan Rooney which produced good saves.
City could have been been awarded a penalty early in the second half when a defender handled the ball as he diverted it out for a corner but the referee was unsighted and what was obvious from the stands was not seen by him. It did not matter though as Exodus casually nodded the corner into the net to go from zero to hero. He almost repeated the move a few minutes later but this time his header hit the bar - the sixth time this season City have hit the woodwork.
The visitors regained the lead when a swift break down the left hand side ended with City's keeper being beaten at his near post. Gainsborough tried their best to run the time off the clock but all it led to was five minutes of stoppage time. The first two were spent largely in the City half of the field before they broke forward in numbers and Ethan Moore drove into the box. His run was stopped when he was hauled to the deck. A penalty to City was the inevitable result and to the delight of the home fans Moore ensured a point for the City. It should have got even better as straight from the restart City gained possession and Daniel Nti burst into the box where he was grabbed around the ankles by the visiting keeper. An even more obvious penalty but the blundering referee was unmoved to leave a final score of 2 goals each.
Worcester City v Bradford Park Avenue - Saturday 7th September 2013
City fans' long wait for a win goes on after a disappointing performance at Aggborough saw another three points thrown away. City had more than enough chances in the first half an hour of the game to have established a comfortable lead but poor finishing again let them down. Little was seen of Bradford's attack until a comical defensive mix up handed the visitors the lead. City were guilty throughout the first half of playing too far up the park leaving large gaps for the fast-moving visiting forwards to run though them on to goal.
City gained the equaliser after Ethan Moore had won the ball in midfield and was then in the right place to tap Danny Glover's cross into the net from close range. It should have been the signal for City to move on and win the game but instead it was Bradford who were set alight and it was of little surprise when they took all three points with a fine haded goal.
Two points from six games is poor reward for City faithful.
Worcester City v Hednesford Town - Monday 26th August 2013
After taking Brackley's 100% record on Saturday City followed up by doing the same to Hednesford Town in the second "home" game of the season.
City had plenty of chances to double their lead but the finishing was not and the visitors took full advantage to equalise from close range and then take the lead courtesy of a very soft free penalty award.
The family atmosphere that has been a feature of City's previous game this season was undone by a small group of obviously drunk foul-mouthed louts. City's players answered the abuse in the only way possible with a superb move that saw Danny Glover's shot rebound to Nti for his second goal of the game to leave a final score of two goals each.
Brackley v Worcester City - Saturday 24th August 2013
Worcester City turned in an exemplary display to take deservedly their first point of the season against last season's promotion play-off runners up. The City defence turned in a faultless performance as indeed did the rest of the team who grew in confidence as the game went on. In their new keeper, Jose Veiga, City may have found an answer to one position that has been a problem for several years. On the few instances that Brackley threatened to break the deadlock he was swiftly out of his goal to smother the danger. As the game grew on City became more adventurous and launched a number of threatening raids, four of which were ended by poor fouls by the over-worked defence resulting in three of the home teams high-priced squad going into the referee's book. Although City could not breach the Brackley defence this was perhaps the best away performance for at least two seasons.
Gloucester City v Worcester City - Tuesday 20th August 2013
This local derby between two sides who do not play in their respective cities was marred by the most ugly of incidents mid-way through a pulsating second half.
The first half was a dull affair with neither side showing much in the way of attacking prowess but which ended with Gloucester leading by courtesy of an unfortunate own goal.
The second half started brightly and the home fans at last found something to cheer about when Gloucester's best move of the match ended with the ball in the back of the City net. Almost immediately Worcester struck back with a superb headed goal of their own and the stage was set for an exciting finish to the game. City were swarming all over the Gloucester defence when, as a Gloucester defender made a routine clearance, the assistant on the far side of the ground raised his flag indicating that he had spotted something wrong. The referee was rapidly surrounded by players. Whilst all this was occurring there was another incident on the other side of the ground and this was clearly seen by the City fans in the main stand who were nearest to the incident. A Gloucester player fell to the floor apparently suffering a serious facial injury and the trainer was soon in attendance. Whilst Worcester's Shabir Khan was being shown a red card on the far side of the field the City fans were chanting "cheat" "cheat" as the Gloucester player walked to the sidelines, clutching his head in agony.
As the City player made his way off the pitch something caused Worcester officials and players to erupt. The referee then produced the red card again and this time the injured Gloucester player was sent off. Unseen by those fans in the main stand there was an altercation in the tunnel and it was a little time before calm was restored.
By now all the passion had gone out of the game and Gloucester simply resorted to more and more time-wasting as they ran down the clock. Worcester came very close to a deserved equaliser but were denied by the width of the post.
Both sides must now await the verdict of the FA after they receive the report of the referee.
City v Altincham - Saturday 17th August 2013
Those amongst the 714 spectators at Aggborough who expected City to roll over and lose by a cricket score were eating their words at half time as a vibrant City turned in a superb 45 minutes to lead by a superb Danny Glover volley that gave the Alty keeper no chance.
There was more than a hint of desperation about Alty's double substitution a few minutes into the second half, but it paid immediate dividends as the visitors got the equaliser and then went into the lead as City were caught flat-footed. The third goal was more than the visitors deserved from their visit.