Bishop’s Stortford 3-0 Lowestoft Town Match Report

Bishop’s Stortford 3-0 Lowestoft Town Match Report 4/9/21

 

Bishop’s Stortford’s first win of the season in all competitions came in the FA Cup First Qualifying Round at home to Lowestoft Town. Jake Cass scored a hattrick as the Blues kept only a second clean sheet of the campaign, with a performance and result that Steve Smith hopes can kick-start some form in the Pitching In Isthmian League Premier Division. The visiting Trawlerboys have three points from five matches, losing four of those, in the Southern League Premier Central Division, sitting in 19th position. They were reduced to 10 players in the first half when Travis Cole saw red for a second bookable offence. The Blues exacted revenge for the only previous meeting between the sides, which was played at the most Easterly football club in the country, as Lowestoft Town won 2-0 on 5 November 1977 in the FA Cup Fourth Qualifying Round.

 

Jonny Giles took a free kick in a wide position after Cole had a handful of Cass’ shirt, it was cleared as far as Anthony Church on the edge of the box whose low effort was saved by Luis Tibbles. Giles had a shot blocked before being fouled in the next attack. From the free kick, in a central position, Giles curled it round the wall but Tibbles was able to parry it away from danger. Both Frankie Merrifield and Cass jumped for the header from Giles’ corner, but the former could only get a glancing blow on the ball and it went out for a throw. At the other end, Ryan Hawkins fired goalwards from 18 yards, but was denied by Archie Edwards who conceded a corner, from which a goalmouth scramble threatened the Blues goal, before Church cleared the danger. Calls for a penalty after a tackle by Tommy Smith on Merrifield were denied by referee Murray Grant, before Hawkins tried to chip Jack Giddens from the edge of the box, but his shot was too high. Cass turned and shot from a tight angle but won a corner when his effort was blocked. From the corner, Henshaw got his head to it but couldn’t find the target. Soon after, Giles changed his corner strategy, passing it short to Edwards who played an early cross to Cass in the middle whose header was only denied by Tibbles’ full length diving stop. That brilliant save proved to be in vain, as from the next attack, Cass found the back of the net, Merrifield made a great run down the left and cut it back to the striker in the middle, who tapped home into an open goal from 10 yards. With the Blues looking comfortable and pushing for more goals before the break, Cole was then dismissed after a foul on Cass, and Giles had a low shot saved by Tibbles on the stroke of half time.

 

HT 1-0

 

The Blues started the second half in the same way as they first, on the front foot with Cass chasing down a poorly judged back pass towards Tibbles, forcing the keeper to clear for a throw-in. Cass then doubled the lead with a close range finish, with Merrifield the provider again with a volleyed pass across goal after Edwards’ cross from the left. Ryan Charles returned to the team after an injury lay off, and nearly got a goal to show for a good performance as he twisted and turned on the edge of the box but fired wide. The Lowestoft Town defence failed to clear a cross from Merrifield and Cass volleyed home for his third, before Giddens was required to make a double save, denying Hawkins with a dive to his right before tipping Tai Fleming’s shot over the bar. Substitute Bobby Unwin played an entertaining cameo late on once again, playing with energy against the tired and dejected Trawlerboys’ team, he cut the ball back to Merrifield who could only fire wide from a tight angle, before Tibbles denied Giles’ low and powerful effort from the left side of the box. A misplaced clearance by Giddens gave Hawkins the chance to score a long range consolation with the keeper out of his goal, but he couldn’t keep his shot on target, before Charlie Allum – who captained the Blues Academy to a win in the FA Youth Cup in midweek ad scored the winning goal – tried his luck with a long range effort that just went high of the goal.

 

FT 3-0

 

The Blues must wait until Monday to find out the next opponents in the FA Cup, but will next play at home to Hornchurch on Saturday 11 September in a return to league action.

 

TEAMS

Blues XI

1 Jack Giddens

3 Archie Edwards

4 Anthony Church (Sub Thomas 63’)

5 Sam Robbins

6 Ryan Henshaw (c)

7 Jonny Giles

9 Jake Cass (Goal 24’ 48’ 60’)

10 Frankie Merrifield

14 Archie Jones (Sub Allum 73’)

15 Ryan Charles (Sub Unwin 63’)

17 Mark Haines

Subs

8 Yasseir Nazor

11 Bobby Unwin

12 Jack Thomas

16 Charlie Allum

18 Reiss Chandler

19 Joe Gardner

20 Jimmy Wallace

 

Lowestoft Town XI

1 Luis Tibbles

2 Tai Fleming

3 Tommy Smith

4 Ryan Jarvis (c)

5 Travis Cole (Red card 38’)

6 Sam Johnson

7 Ryan Hawkins

8 Owen Murphy

9 Jake Reed (Sub Higgs 63’)

10 Colin Oppong (Sub Knight 41’)

11 Chris Henderson (Sub M Wilkinson 55’)

Subs

12 Adam Tann

14 Dylan Ruffles

15 Jack Wilkinson

16 Louis McIntosh

17 Marcus Wilkinson

18 Kieran Higgs

19 Harry Knights

 

Attendance 380