Vase dreams broken for Ashton as Nostell make the most of their lifeline

FA VASE 1st Round Proper REPLAY

Nostell MW 3 Ashton Athletic 1

Ashton’s progress in this year’s FA Vase ended in controversial fashion in deepest Yorkshire and unfortunately refereeing decisions were at the heart of it, as was the case in the original match last Saturday.

Both Ashton and Nostell were aggrieved in this first encounter as erroneous decisions in the eyes of Nostell and bad timekeeping from Ashton’s perspective blighted a terrific cup tie played in good spirit throughout. Ashton bemoaned the copious amounts of added time at the end of 90 minutes, and even more so when 3 minutes of overtime at the end of extra time (despite the lack of interruptions in play) and during which Nostell grabbed last gasp equalisers. Meanwhile Nostell complained about an early penalty awarded and converted by Ashton, and particularly the red carding in the second period of extra time of defender Matthew Denton for persistent foul and abusive language, despite the fact that both incidents seemed blatant in the extreme.

The replay on Tuesday night got underway with Ashton once again out of the blocks quickest forcing the home team onto the back foot, with wingmen Steve Bennett and Tom Potter particularly prominent. On the break Nostell then had a claim for a penalty as Ashton keeper collided with an onrushing striker, and although there was contact between the players Brobbin slight touch on the ball before the contact with Dave Nicholas combined with the theatrical dive by the striker were probably the deciding factors for the referee who waved play on.

In the 7^th minute Ashton’s Bennett chased down a hopeful through ball which seemed comfortable for Nostell keeper Sam Dobbs however a momentary hesitation by Dobbs allowed Bennett to dispossess him and as he advanced on an open goal Dobbs dragged him to the floor - an automatic penalty, and everyone just waited for the red card for Dobbs.

In the spirit of the “Respect” campaign for referees to a man the Ashton players and management uttered not a word about the expected dismissal of the goalkeeper however to the amazement of all in attendance (and I include the Nostell camp in this) Dobbs was reprieved and Nostell remained with their full quota of players. Will Ryder made no mistake with the spot kick to give Ashton a deserved lead but everyone was left perplexed at the leniency of the referee towards the Nostell keeper.

Ashton continued to dominate the opening exchanges with Tom Potter driving a shot over the bar before Dave Sherlock set Will Ryder clear on goal, but his powerful drive also fizzed over the bar. The speed of Ashton’s players was causing great unease amongst the Nostell ranks, and several late challenges went unpunished by the man in black, giving encouragement to the home side and allowing them a foothold in the game.

Then in the 14th minute a long throw from the Nostell left was all too easily flicked on to the back post by skipper Dave Watts, turned back into the six yard box by Barry Rankin and then poked home by the unmarked Craig Stephens.

The goal gave the home side a massive boost and with good movement off the ball started to ask questions of the Ashton defence in open play. However it was a set piece two minutes later that was Ashton’s undoing again, as a free kick from the right wing by Paul Bedford flew over Ashton keeper Brobbin and into the corner of the net to give Nostell an undeserved advantage.

Nostell’s physical approach left Ashton skipper Rothwell, defender Mike Burke and influential midfielder Will Ryder all nursing knocks following late challenges on them, which had occurred without any words of caution from the referee to the Nostell players, or in some instances without even the award of a free kick.

Ashton stood up to the challenge and fought back, but frustratingly found that their physical challenges got instantly penalized.

As half time approach one of many surging runs through the Nostell defence by Will Ryder seemed to have drawn another penalty as the Ashton midfielder was clearly taken out in the box, but this time the referee waved play on. Ashton continued to cause problems down the flanks but the massively influential figure of Nostell Captain Dave Watts always seemed to be on hand to prevent a clear strike on goal by Ashton.

The loss of the injured Ryder at half time was a blow for Ashton but with Simon Gallanders dropping deeper and live wire Paul Hynes joining Dave Sherlock up top Ashton kept up their momentum and pinned the home team back for the early part of the second half, probing for the equalizer.

The Nostell defence was unrelenting however, superbly marshaled by man of the Match Dave Watts. Meanwhile Nostell were dangerous on the break and as Ashton started to commit more men forward in search of the equalizer the 73^rd minute saw yet another controversial decision as left winger Dave Nicholas and Ashton centre back Mike Burke competed for a long ball into the box. With both players tussling with each other in one of those “six of one and half a dozen of the other” moments, referee Holmes incensed the away side by pointing to the spot despite both he and his assistant being at least 25 yards from the incident, and on the blind side of the coming together. Nicholas stepped up, gleefully converted the spot kick to give his team a two goal cushion.

For the last 20 minutes Ashton threw caution to the wind but could not unlock the home defence, the nearest effort falling to Steve Bennett as a lob over keeper Dobbs from 25 yards beat the keeper but it also floated agonisingly over the bar.

Nostell killed the game with some aplomb not hesitating to stop any Ashton advances as high up the field as possible, getting away with spoiling tactics that the officials failed to control. This match and the original tie were generally played in good spirit by both teams but in the closing stages some tackles started to fly in with both sides unsure of the boundaries they were working too as a result of the variance in standards being applied by the officials. A quick flurry of cards in the last throws of the match created something of a negative end to the game which did not reflect the two excellent matches between fully committed teams.

After the whistle there was Respect a plenty between the two sets of players and management however for both sides came a feeling that the quality and consistency of refereeing must be improved upon if the current “Respect” campaign is to bear real fruit. In most people’s eyes Respect must be earned not given.

It is however Nostell that progress to the second round and a trip to the North East to face Ryton of the Northern League in November.

Ashton’s next match will be another Cup encounter against Nelson FC in the first round of the Vodkat Cup.

Photos of both games are available to view on the Nostell web site - www.pitchero.com/clubs/nostellminerswelfare