Team - Campbell, Lyth, Robinson, Hassan (White – 67 mins), Burgess, McTiernan (Martin – 84 mins), Appleby, Beadle, Clarke, Portas, Smith Subs not used: Tymon, Leeson, Williams
Report - by Andy Baxter - Whitby Town player/manager, Darren Williams, summed up this match by saying that with no disrespect to the opposition, but even though Whitby were the better over all, his side made 3 sloppy defensive errors which gifted the Sheffield based visitors their 3 goals. He added that it felt more like a defeat and that he didn’t see it as one point gained but very much two points lost. He said that Whitby should have put more balls in to the box for the bigger players, like Jamie Clarke and that it was a catalogue of wrong decisions in the last third of the pitch that cost the team a much needed win and sees Town now at the bottom of the league table.
Whitby started this game with the welcome return of Jimmy Beadle and others making their home debuts included Andy Appleby, Jamie Clarke and Tom Portas. The home side starting positively until the first of their night’s defensive blunders following a wayward back pass from Portas which gave the visitors a corner. This was flicked on and scuffed over the line from the unchallenged Brian Cusworth with only 6 minutes gone.
Although Whitby lifted themselves and played some very attractive passing football their first notable effort fell in the 15th minute with a free kick from Jimmy Beadle headed over the bar by Kevin Burgess. The new look Whitby team were starting to gel and having most of the play and were rewarded in the 23rd minute when Stocksbridge defender and captain, Brett Lovell, tripped forward in the area and handled the ball, only to see referee Matt McGrath point to the penalty spot and book the player. The resultant spot kick from Mark Robinson sent keeper Ben Scott the wrong way and gave the home side an equaliser.
Shortly after the restart the ball ended at the feet of Jimmy Beadle on the half way line who spotted the Steels keeper slightly out of his goal and Beadle struck a “Beckham-esque” long range effort at goal seeing the ball touched by the keeper but not enough to stop it going in the net for a 2-1 lead.
But Whitby let their guard down in the 29th minute when once again, non existent defending saw Cusworth strike from the edge of the Whitby area through a crowd of players and in for an equaliser. The only other notable effort of the half fell to Whitby’s Dave McTiernan whose 20 yard effort on the stroke of half time went close.
Almost straight from the start of the second half Steels forced a corner and the low, powerful cross which should have been cleared, went into 4 or 5 statue like Whitby defenders and allowing Jack Muldoon to tap in unhindered from close range, much to the disgust of Whitby keeper, Dave Campbell, who justifiably would have expected the ball cleared earlier. Stocksbridge then seemed to get the run of luck and Whitby couldn’t get close to goal, until a well struck 20 yard effort from Jamie Clarke forced keeper Scott into a full stretch save. In the 67th minute, Ibby Hassan limped off the field with an ankle injury to be replaced by Alex White who after arriving on the field saw more poor defending by his team result in Cusworth striking a shot across goal narrowly wide.
But, with 74 minutes gone, Whitby got a lifeline as Kevin Davies was judged to handle the ball in his area and the Whitby captain, Mark Robinson placed the ball for his second penalty. This time, much to the joy of the meagre number of visiting supporters, he blasted the spot kick 2 yards over the bar.
For those that have seen Whitby on other occasions this season, their “second half syndrome” was once again evident, whereby Whitby looked the weaker of the 2 teams, particularly with some erratic passing and needless errors. But despite their poor 2nd half showing, they did get an equaliser in the 84th minute, again from a corner which found Appleby at the back of the area and he struck the ball low in to the visitors net.
The final whistle ended a game in which, Whitby should have ended up winning if it had not been for their charitable donation of 3 sloppy goals to the visitors and based on their first half performance, this was a much better team performance than of late as long as they can stopping giving away goals needlessly.
