Game 5: Pewsey Vale 1.2 Wootton Bassett Town (Friendly) 27.07.10

A late change of plan found me driving up the A345 to Pewsey on a Tuesday evening. I originally planned a quick trip to Downton for their friendly against Brockenhurst but I noticed this game while browsing the internet at lunchtime. It had the added attraction of being a new ground and a visit would mean ticking off the Wessex League grounds for another season.

I arranged to meet Paul at the ground and took his advice to park up in the Co-op carpark on the High Street. Just as I parked up I saw him arrive so we wandered past the tennis courts and into the ground. There was no collection or programme for tonight's game and some cars had taken the brave step of parking inside the ground, within firing distance of any wayward shots.

Pewsey Vale have been playing in the Wiltshire League, finishing in 3rd place last season. Their application for promotion to Wessex 1 was approved over the summer. A quick stop off in the bar showed the ambition at the club which has plans to build a new clubhouse on display.

Tonight's opponents Wootton Bassett Town were also promoted at the end of last season. They will now be playing in the Hellenic League's Premier Division, one step up from Pewsey's level, so we were both interested to see how well the home team would perform against higher opposition.

Wootton Bassett didn't waste much time in getting stuck into their opponents. In the 10th minute a good move down the right led to a pass into the penalty area which found its intended target. The Wootton player who received the ball let fly with an fierce shot that flew into the top of the net.

The visitors should have extended their lead eight minutes later when the Pewsey keeper crashed into an opponent and conceded a penalty. The penalty was hit low but fairly straight and the keeper was able to get down and block it on the line.

Most of the play was towards the Pewsey goal but the home team made the most of an advantage call by the referee on the halfway line in the 40th minute. As the Wootton Bassett defence tried to get back a Pewsey player advanced through the middle of the pitch and tried to chip the goalkeeper. He managed to get the ball over the keeper and on target, only to see it cleared off the line by a covering header.

Wootton Bassett were made to pay for wasting chances in the last minute of normal time when the referee spotted a handball in the penalty area and pointed to the spot. This time the penalty was well struck and found the bottom left corner as the keeper dived the opposite way to make the score 1.1 at halftime.

The officials decided on a quick turnaround so the teams only had a five minute half time break. As in the first half, Wootton came out in an attacking mindset and after a couple of half chances managed to retake the lead in the 55th minute. A quick low cross found Wootton's Green in the penalty area and his sliding shot gave the keeper no chance.

After the goal Wootton seemed content to sit back and the tempo of the game slowed. Pewsey had a good chance to equalise in the 68th minute when the visitor's keeper missed a cross and was out of position - so were the Pewsey players so the ball was scrambled away.

Wootton seemed to want to take an extra touch each time they had the ball which meant that Pewsey were able to defend and grow in confidence. When they had a decent shooting opportunity with a free kick on the edge of the area it was wasted with an overhit pass. Several shots were hit over or wide from good positions.

Pewsey tried hard to pull a goal back in the final few minutes but didn't managed to trouble the keeper. On the evidence of tonight they should hold their own in the Wessex League and it will be interesting to see how they get on at this level.