SWAN NORTHALL 1- 0 PLOUGH EATON BRAY

Plough Eaton Bray crashed to a derby day defeat at the hands of local rivals Swan Northall. In a very physical contest, the young Plough side were out muscled and out battled and the Swan deserved their win in a game that they slightly edged.

Plough went into the game slightly under strength but they did have the bonus of Mark Chambers returning to the side to renew his partnership at the back with veteran Kevin Reddington. With Jaco Jacobs missing, Ben Tye went between the sticks for the Plough.

The game started at a very quick rate and it took a while for both sides to settle. The first chance came when Rob Johnstone broke down the left handside of the pitch and drove into the area. Just as he got to 10 yards out he got caught in two minds of whether to shoot or cross and in the end he just fluffed the ball to the keeper. Lee Loasby also went close when he beat 3 swan midfielders before shooting straight at the keeper.

Whilst the Plough looked dangerous at one end, they were defending very well at the other as the Swan looked to use their physical element by winning a number of throws around the area. Long throws seemed to bombard the Plough area for nearly 5 minutes with Deciacco, Chamber, Reddington and Howard all making key headers to clear the ball. The Swan then almost took the lead from a corner when Rob Johnstone headed the ball off the line. The Swan striker had the whole goal to put the ball in but he picked out Johnstone who got the ball clear more by luck than judgment.

Plough kept going close at the other end but without really testing the keeper. Johnstone curled a freekick just over the bar and Hillier also went close. The best chance of the half fell to Phil Allen who bundled his way into the box. He unfortunately delayed his shot which allowed the Swan defender to get back and make a goal saving challenge.

The Plough started to wish that they had taken some of these chances as the Swan went straight up the other end and took the lead. After another series of long throws, the Plough finally thought they had cleared the ball as Chambers again made an excellent header. However, Plough failed to pick up the second ball and allowed it to played back into the danger area. After a moments hesitation in the Plough defence, the Swan striker was able to nip in and loft the ball over the advancing Ben Tye who was left helpless.

Hillier almost equalised within a minute as he latched onto Alex Howells through ball only to smash his shot against the advancing keeper.

Half time came with the Plough a goal down.

The second half started with the Plough instantly getting on the attack. A corner led to Chambers heading just over the top. Although the Plough seemed as if they could push on and grab an equaliser, they always had to be aware of the Swan's ability to break quickly. The more the Plough pushed forward, the more this threat increased however the defence of Deciacco, Reddington, Chambers and Perkins stood strong and protected Tye in the Plough goal.

As the game went on and the Plough got more desperate to get the equaliser, they started to push more men forward. Loasby again went close with a long range effort after he had taken a short corner with Johnstone. Howard went close with a header and Deciacco saw his long range effort go just over the bar.

But as the game went on, the equaliser look less likely to come and as the frustration grew, the Plough began to give the ball away more and more. By this time, the Swan were winning the majority of the second balls and started keeping possession quite well.

The referee called a halt to proceedings and a halt to good game of football. The Swan deserved their win over the whole game and the Plough will need to improve if they want to get back to winning ways next week against Loyal Luton.

Man of the Match - Lee Loasby

BEN TYE - 7

Didn't stand a chance with the goal. Showed good hands to claim a number of crosses.

CHRIS DECIACCO - 6

Wasted a little at right back as he couldn't really influence the game. Finished the game strongly.

NICK PERKINS - 7

Encouraging full debut. Adapted to the position well and was very vocal which helped get an understanding with fellow defenders.

KEVIN REDDINGTON - 7

Pretty solid throughout. Marked the main Swan threat out of the game. Won a number of balls in the air.

MARK CHAMBERS - 7

Sets the standards that all defenders look to match. Great distribution, strong in the air and mean in the tackle.

ALEX HOWELLS - 6

LEE LOASBY - 8 - MOM

The most dangerous Plough player. Looked to try and take the fight to the Swan but was rarely backed up.

ROB JOHNSTONE - 6

Had a good first half but faded in the second when the ball tended to stay out on the right.

NICK HOWARD - 6

Worked hard to win the ball but tended to give it away too easily. Should have been booked for nasty tackle ion the first half.

PHIL ALLEN - 6

Not as influential as in the first game. Struggled to combine with Hillier.

ANDREW HILLIER - 6

Shows a lot of promise but ruins it by bottling tackles. Pace was always an escape route for the Plough.