Match Report | Kettering Town (A)
Late drama denies Halesowen a crucial winner at Kettering to leave the play-off in others hands
Match Report
The Yeltz started the contest in fine fashion, which largely set the tone for the remainder of the match. Inside the first five minutes, Ben Cassidy found Todd Parker, who tried to find Jason Cowley in the middle, but he failed to trap the ball. The first shot of the game fell to the Yeltz on seven minutes, as a ball forward from Parker found Cowley. The latter volleyed the ball to Jim Kellermann, before the midfielder swiftly returned the ball to the Yeltz number 9, whose shot was saved by Paul White.
Slap bang on the 10 minute mark, Kellermann tried to find Cowley down the left, but the ball cleared off Harvey Peters for a corner. The Kellermann delivery was headed out to Milan Butterfield, whose shot was blocked. It took the hosts nearly a quarter of an hour to craft anything at the other end. When the eventual chance came, Blaine Rowe placed a ball through to Ed Panter down the right, before a corner was won. The Andi Thanoj delivery was flicked on by Rowe towards goal, but Cowley cleared.
The remaining half an hour of the first 45 was mainly dominated by Russ Penn’s side. On 17 minutes, White hit the ball off Jordan Ponticelli from a goalkeeping clearance, which resulted in a Yeltz free kick as Cowley was fouled by Will Van Lier. The delivery from Kellermann was cleared by Thanoj. Minutes later, a Rob Evans long throw caused confusion, as Ponticelli guarded the ball away from White, who manhandled the Yeltz loanee to ground, but a goal kick was the outcome.
Just before the half hour mark, a Josh Smile shot was dragged wide from outside the box, before two shots just after the 30 minute mark went begging for the Yeltz in the last action of the first half before a quiet and drab end to the 45. An Evans throw was headed out by Carl Mensah to Cowley, whose overhead kick was blocked, before a Kellermann effort was blocked out by Rowe. The resulting corner delivery from Mitch Roberts was flicked wide by Ryan Wollacott.
In mirrored fashion to the latter stages of the first half, the second 45 started very slowly as well. The only chance created in the 15 after the restart, saw another Evans long throw, fired towards Butterfield, before the ball was punched by White to Kellermann. The latter went for goal, but had his shot blocked by Preston Bitemo. The latter was soon in the thick of the action himself, as bang on the hour mark, he received two yellow cards in as many minutes, the second for bringing Evans down recklessly in our half.
10v11 it was to end in our favour, although many will remember the collapse suffered against Spalding United last month when we were in the same situation, but instead two goals to the good. That 3-2 defeat with the man advantage must have lingered in Yeltz fans minds, but in all honesty, the Poppies never really looked like creating anything even before the sending off.
Just after the 70 minute mark, another Evans throw, yes another, was headed out by Rowe for a corner. Our seventh of the game, Kellermann’s delivery found Cowley coming across to the near post, whose header found the feet of Peters, before Mensah cleared. Straight up the other end, we endured an incredibly nervy moment, as a ball forward from Rowe searched for Panter. The lively forward with 17 goals in 22 games this season for Kettering, raced to the ball with Dan Platt, who came out in the nick of time, and cleared the ball away from outside his area.
The game edged closer and closer to second half stoppage time, and as it did, so did the tension in the crowd, and the intensity on the pitch. A Yeltz break, five minutes before the 90 saw substitute Fin Holmes find Ponticelli, before three Yeltz corners followed in the same period Ty Barnett arrived onto the pitch. The first was headed high into the air by Barnettt, before the second saw the latter force White into a superb stop down low.
That was far from the last action, even before stoppage time, as an 88th minute Jak Hickman free kick was taken quickly to Cowley, who dragged an effort wide of the left post. The game did eventually crawl into the infamous six minutes of additional time. Two minutes in, it was another rare heart in mouth moment, as Panter was brought down by Hickman for a free kick. The resulting delivery found Peters at the back post, who headed the ball across goal, which caused a slight goal mouth scramble we thankfully came out on the right end off.
That was far from it, a 93rd minute Holmes cross was directed towards fellow sub Kyle Finn just inside the area, whose shot was expertly tipped behind down low by White. Two minutes later, Holmes snatched the ball on the edge, found Finn again, but this time with more height on the ball, it made it easy catching practise for the Kettering number one. That was all just building to the mammoth drama that was to follow. A minute over the allotted additional time, Butterfield found Holmes on the left, who returned the ball to the midfielder. Butterfield found Hickman in the box, who cut inside into the D, shot with his right foot towards Finn, whose touch on the ball was diverted into his own net by Mensah, but the offside flag is raised.
That was it, one of the more remarkable ends to a 0-0 stalemate you will see for a long while. The result unsurprisingly benefits the hosts more than us, but with home advantage over the Poppies on the final day, you just never know. All we can do is our job, and hope results elsewhere go in our favour, but if not, we’ll enjoy our last Saturday at The Grove until July, and spend time off in the sun to get ready to go all over again when the league resumes in August.
Attendance: 1,732
Teams
Kettering XI: Paul White (GK), Levi Andoh, Ben Isaacson, Carl Mensah (C), Harvey Peters, Andi Thanoj, Ed Panter, Blaine Rowe (Wes York 86′), Ismael Fatadjo (Nathan Jeche 78′), Will Van Lier, Preston Bitemo (🟥 60′)
Unused Subs: Jay Alexander (GK), Kai Williams, Kai Fifield
Yeltz XI: Dan Platt (GK), Ben Cassidy (Jak Hickman 46′), Josh Smile (C) (Fin Holmes 68′), Ryan Wollacott, Mitch Roberts (Reece Mitchell 78′), Todd Parker (Ty Barnett 84′), Jason Cowley, Milan Butterfield, Jim Kellermann (Kyle Finn 78′), Jordan Ponticelli, Rob Evans
Unused Subs: None