FA Vase

Shortwood United 1

Cribbs 5

After the 0-9 cup defeat to the same opposition just a few days earlier, progressing in the Vase against Cribbs on Saturday seemed unlikely, but at least Shortwood reduced the margin of victory for the visitors, writes Harry Ash.

The first ten minutes were worrying from a Shortwood point of view, as Cribbs threw men forward from the start. Six minutes in, George Kellow’s weak shot was controlled by Charlie Aldom, but he struck over from a few yards out. Shortwood rode their luck before venturing forward with just over ten minutes played, when Marcus Bebbington’s cross had to be tipped over by Archie Watts. From the resulting corner, Yacine Benchikh headed over from close range. Two minutes later, Cribbs opened the scoring; Jack McKenna drove into space between Shortwood’s midfield and defence, before unleashing a low shot from the edge of the box which found the bottom corner.

Midway through the half, Sol Wanjou-Smith’s low cross was turned into his own net by Bebbington, who had to intervene or it would have been a tap-in for a Cribbs forward at the far post. Shortwood scored a very good counter-attacking goal in the thirty-first minute. The move started with Danny King picking the ball up just outside his own penalty area, before dribbling forward and squaring to Josh Beadle. He stroked the ball out to Jamie Walker on the right hand-side, who whipped a cross into the near-post, where Benchikh was on hand to smash the ball into the net past the helpless Watts. However, Shortwood were unable to gain any sort of momentum from the goal, because Aldom made it 1-3 two minutes later when he latched onto Nathan Trueman’s cross and fired a shot under the dive of Peter Davies.

Shortwood competed pretty well for the forty or so minutes between Cribbs’ third and fourth goals, and Walker could have made it 2-3 with twenty-five minutes to play. He was found by King on the right hand side, before he burst into the box and forced a good save out of Watts at his near post. Seventy-one minutes in, Levi Mathews’ cross was met by the head of Beadle, but a combination of Watts and a defender on the line just about kept the ball out. A minute later, Cribbs had a fourth after Marcus Kelly bundled the ball in at the far post after Matthew Spiller’s cross. The scoring was rounded off with just over five minutes to play, with Aldom getting his second of the game when he smashed Wanjou-Smith’s cross into the top corner from a tight angle.

Shortwood: Davies, Bebbington, Wright, Tustain (C), Pulman, King, Walker, Beadle (Newman 84’), Mathews, Benchikh (Gardner 63’), Scrivens (Williams 68’)