WOODBRIDGE TOWN 0 Wroxham 1
	13 May 2009
	Woodbridge Town Under 18s suffered the heart-ache of losing to a 108th minute goal by Wroxham’s Jordan Rocastle in Wednesday evenings Ridgeons Youth League Cup final at Diss FC.
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It was particularly harsh on the young Woodpeckers, who had controlled the majority of the game & created the greater number of chances, but failed to breach the Wroxham defence, goalkeeper & woodwork. Jack Lawrence forced the Wroxham keeper to tip a long-range effort onto the bar in the opening minutes, while at the other end Lewis Rhodes saw a 20 yard strike go past his post, as did a header from a corner in a lively opening spell. It was Woodbridge who took control of the game for the remainder of the half as Lawrence screwed an effort across the face of goal just beyond the reach of Jack Severy, Matt Rutterford stung the keepers’ hands from distance & following a goalmouth scramble David Kempson saw his header tipped over the crossbar. Wroxham were limited to long range efforts which were either off target or were easily dealt with by Rhodes. The 2nd half followed the same pattern with Rhodes a virtual spectator as Wroxham were forced to defend deep. Lawrence was left to curse the woodwork again as his left foot volley struck the post. Leading scorer, Jordan Seaman was denied from close range by a last-gasp clearance & Rutterford’s close range header was superbly tipped over the bar. Severy came the closest to breaking the deadlock when his 30 yarder slipped through the grasp of the Wroxham keeper, who managed to recover to claw the ball back from the goal-line. Wroxham began extra time by applying pressure & Rhodes had to be alert to dive at feet, but was relieved to see the rebound go wide of his post. James Churchill, on as a substitute, forced the Wroxham keeper to save with his legs in what was a reasonably quiet opening period. The key goal came 3 minutes into the 2nd period of extra time when a Wroxham corner wasn’t cleared & led to a goalmouth scramble, from which JORDAN ROCASTLE poked the ball in from close range. This didn’t dampen Woodbridge spirits as they camped in & around the Wroxham penalty area for the remaining minutes, but couldn’t find a way through. Woodbridge had strong appeals for handball turned aside & then saw the Wroxham keeper produce an outstanding low save to deny 16 year old Franco Mallardo & from the resultant corner Kempson’s header was scrambled off the goal-line again, but all to no avail & it was the Norfolk team, who were left to collect the League Cup after the referee’s whistle had sounded. Team: Lewis Rhodes, Ryan Stafford, Gianfranco Mallardo, James Wright, David Kempson, James Fulker (Ross Nicklin 111), Matt Rutterford, Danny Tatum (Luke Ingram 95), Jack Lawrence (James Churchill 95), Jordan Seaman & Jack Severy. Unused subs: Nathan Allison & Fabian Ambrose Departing Manager, Sean Thacker spoke after the game; “Last week some of these lads were involved in a school cup final, which they ultimately won on penalties, but didn’t perform & it all felt a bit hollow. Tonight, they have produced a terrific performance & shown the right attitude from start to finish & strangely, I feel more proud tonight.” “We controlled the majority of the game, forced very good opponents to sit deep & rely on counter-attacks, so good was our possession, but in the end just couldn’t get that vital 1st goal. We did everything but score, hitting the woodwork twice, while a former player of mine at Ipswich Town, Kai Hewitt produced a number of top saves on a difficult night for keepers, none better than from Franco mallard in the dying minutes.” “Everybody is worthy of praise tonight! I congratulate Wroxham on their victory in what I would think was an entertaining cup final for spectators, my own players on their performance & conduct, while the young officials did a fantastic job & contributed to a free-flowing game.” “This game marks the end of my time managing Woodbridge Town Under 18s & during those 4 years the club has achieved positions of 4th, 1st, 2nd & 2nd in the Central Division, reached the 1st round proper of the FA Youth Cup & the Youth League Cup Final on two occasions. More importantly however, the players have done this playing entertaining / attacking football & winning plaudits from opposition players & managers, spectators & officials.” “Now, I move over to Coplestonians FC with the SETEC players & hope to continue to witness youngsters playing the game in the same manner as the Woodbridge Town Under 18s did during those 4 seasons & I wish Chris Bruce the best of luck as he takes on the manager’s role at WTFC”