Friday. 11th May. Somerset Junior Cup Final
Frome Collegians 2-0 Middlezoy Rovers reserves
FROME Collegians tasted more success on Friday 11th May, with a victory against Middlezoy Rovers Reserves in the Somerset Junior Cup final at Wells City, and in the process completing their treble winning season.
It was a pulsating encounter between two teams who had both won their respective league titles, with Collegians coming out on top after producing a complete performance on the night.
The first half was played at a frantic pace with both sides showing attacking intent. Middlezoy were looking to play off their target man, whilst Frome looked to break quickly using their pace out wide. It was from one of these encounters that saw Collegians go in front, Sing bursting down the right wing and finding Marsh in space, who settled himself before applying a composed finish to open the scoring.
Collegians had two further opportunities to increase their lead soon after, firstly Sandquest’s lofted attempt was kept out, before Hounsell was also thwarted by a superb stop. Following this, Middlezoy had their most threatening period of the match and from an in-swinging free kick, saw a looping header connect with the top of the cross bar. Collegians were thankful to the woodwork once again when another ball into the area was flicked on towards goal, resulting in a Middlezoy attacker crashing his strike off the bar.
As the half drew to a close, Collegians themselves were cursing their luck when Marsh’s 35-yard free kick looked to be destined for the top corner, only to curl away onto the post.
The second period was played at a more steady pace, with Collegians probing for the elusive second goal. It was the man for the big occasion, Sandquest, who grabbed it, breaking the offside trap with a surging run from midfield and seeing his shot take a slight deflection, lifting it over the keeper and into the net. From this point, Collegians managed the game superbly with the defence, led by centre half pairing Parsons and Ludgate, repelling everything Middlezoy threw at them.
The Frome side could have increased their advantage further when Lock, who led the line impressively all night, shifted the ball onto his right foot, only to see his effort curl the wrong side of the post. As the game became stretched, the industrious Hounsell was getting a lot of joy on the left, and after brushing off a couple of crude challenges, saw one of his mazy runs result in a cross which flashed across the face of goal, when only a touch was needed to convert.
Middlezoy themselves persevered up until the final whistle and could have reduced the deficit from a long range strike which was palmed away by keeper Wilkinson to keep his clean sheet intact and allow Collegians to see out the final few minutes before club captain, Rushmere, was able to lift another piece of silverware to cap off a fine season.
Collegians would like to thank the Somerset F.A. and Wells City FC for the hospitality provided on the night, and to all club volunteers who have contributed off the field this season.
Report by Lee Seviour
