Sandbach United 4 Avro 2

Sandbach faced Division one North runners up Avro in the final of First Division Cup. United has beaten Division North side Carlisle City in the semi final, after recording a 9-3 aggregate win.

After finishing seventh in the league Sandbach would have liked to add some silverware to what has been a decent season in Division One South.

Going into the game Avro were slight favourites based on their final league position and I think it’s fair to say that they started the brighter of the two sides, they were playing the better football and looked the less nervous of the two sides. They had the first strike on goal as Joe Bevan took aim from distance but Sandbach keeper Matt Green was on hand to claim at the second attempt.

Sandbach has played some good stuff towards the back end of the season. They seemed to be a lot more direct and Hockenhull had injected pace into his side, in the early minutes of the first half United’s pace was causing chaos and Avro had two players booked as they hacked down both Harry Cain and Billy Buckley.

The first half was very srappy, referee Yasmin Saeed had a lot to do as both teams were guilty of giving away needless fouls in daft areas of the field. It was a half that was limited on chances, but Sandbach had the first real opportunity with ten minutes of the half left as Harry Cain drove down the right before playing a teasing ball in behind the defence which top scorer James Kirby who was at full stretch was just able to reach but he poked just wide of the bottom left corner.

The game looked as though it was going to be level at the break, which in all honesty would have probably been a fair result, however just when the referee was about to put the whistle to her mouth, Avro left back Kane Wallwork picked up the ball on right side before rifling into the bottom right corner, in off the post and into the net. It was a goal that came out of nothing and with it being the last kick of the half, it was a perfect time to score for Avro.

At half time Sandbach were a goal down, and it put a downer on the mood for all the team. However there was plenty of time to get back Into the game.

The second half began and Sandbach knew they had it all to go if they wanted to take some silverware back to South Cheshire. Hockenhull told his boys at half time to keep it tight for the first ten minutes. So he would have been disappointed when his team conceded another goal moments into the second half, after committing a soft foul on the edge of the box, Pollard whipped in an in swinging free kick that was perfect for Micheal Stockdale who was unmarked and he placed the ball past Green in the Sandbach goal who was helpless.

A 2-0 the game looked all but over for Sandbach, but moments after doubling the lead Avro were then forced to play the last half an hour with 10 men . Joseph Rathbone was cautioned in the first half for a tackle on Harry Cain and after conceding another foul Rathbone showed his frustration by booting the ball out of the ground and onto the neighbouring rugby pitch, the referee showed no hesitation when reaching to her top pocket to produce the yellow card, and then her back pocket to show the dreaded red card.

This gave Sandbach a lifeline, they knew that getting the next goal would be so important and it could have a huge impact on the result. Five minutes after going down to ten men, Avro conceded a penalty as Harry Cain was bought down in the box. The ever reliable Billy Buckley steppes up for Sandbach and slotted his penalty into bottom left corner, sending the keeper the wrong way.

After scoring Sandbach got the ball and raced back into position, they knew that with 25 minutes still to go they had the momentum.
Four minutes later Billy Buckley did what he does best and scored a worldie. After picking up the ball on halfway, he drove into the Avro half before striking low and into the bottom right corner of the net. Levelling the game and showing the 350 people in attendance just how good he really is.

Sandbach has gained a habit of turning games on their heads, and wouldn’t you know, in the 72nd minute Sandbach took the lead. Harry Cain raised down the left side before crossing outrageously with the outside of his right boot, his cross fell to Garner-Knapper at the back post who did well to keep the ball down after catching it at the top of the bounce. It was a superb move from Sandbach who had scored three in seven minutes and turned the game around.

With ten minutes to go it was still tense and despite taking the lead Sandbach were now on the back foot, however the inclusion of Tom Williams and Lucas Baker has injected some pace into the United side and it was Williams who looked to counter after Rowntree won the ball back in the Sandbach half, Williams’ pace was so hard to deal with and when he found Kirby who broke the offside trap and raced in behind I think everyone in attendance new what the end result would be. As Kirby got into the box, the keeper came out but Kirby had the confidence to audaciously lift the ball over the keeper and into the net, sparking scenes of delirium on the Sandbach bench.

Manager Andy Hockenhull would have been delighted and said he was very proud of his boys as they showed a lot of character and fight in the second half, he added “At 2-0 we could have gone the other way and conceded five, but we didn’t, we kept to our plan and kept trying to get through the middle of their defence and this paid off”

With only minutes to go Sandbach looked comfortable and they came close to adding a fifth when Williams played Harry Cain in behind but his shot was well saved by the keepers legs from close range.

An eventful game ended 4-2 to Sandbach, and it was a superb turnaround from United who showed fight, passion and a lot of character to get back in the game and take the lead.

Hockenhull added after the game “It gives us a good boost and everyone at the club deserves this. I'm sure we will improve things again next season, when you win things people want to come, and hopefully we will be there or thereabouts next year