Liskeard 3 Foxhole 3

[Darin Morse]

Liskeard 3 Foxhole 3

Wednesday 22nd July 2009

Despite racing into a three goal lead within half an hour and squandering numerous opportunities down the Lux Park slope to kill the game, ultimately new look Foxhole were happy to escape with a draw in an admittedly entertaining affair, and were again indebted to Ryan Holland for a succession of fine saves. Rowe opened the scoring on six minutes after Bainbridge had parried his initial effort, and then added a second eleven minutes later, direct from a free-kick awarded after Moon had clumsily fouled Nicholls. Rowe completed his hat-trick with a tidy finish from Nicholls' clever assist, but he should have added to his tally, shooting weakly from Chris Grose's centre and reacting too slowly after good work by Hazeldine, while Adam Holland twice went close from distance. However, Liskeard's sprightly attackers had often looked threatening and, after heading a cross from the dangerous Flintoff narrowly wide and rounding Holland only to be denied by the covering David Grose, Bradshaw finally found the net on 35 from Thorogood's left wing centre.

A furiously backpedalling Holland's desperate finger-tip over from Flintoff's free-kick moments before the break was a sure indication that he'd be kept busy after the restart and so it proved, as the tiring Foxes, without even a substitute after Johns' early injury, were given a right chasing. Hooper was especially profligate, while the pace of the diminutive Kennedy created openings that Thorogood twice was unable to capitalise on. Although Carpenter was unlucky to see a header drop just over the bar, and Nicholls fired an effort inches past the post, the mauvais quart d'heure endured by the sparse Foxhole travelling support did not bode well for the forthcoming season. On 69, the badly exposed Trethewey hauled down Flintoff, who thumped home the penalty. Three minutes later Rendle crossed for Kennedy to crash a volley against an upright as the visitors struggled to get a touch of the ball, so Kennedy's close-range equaliser after Holland had somehow kept out a header from the unmarked Rendle was inevitable. Foxhole managed to avoid succumbing to an embarrassing defeat in the final ten minutes but the arrival of reinforcements to replace the innumerable departees can't come soon enough.

Foxhole (3-5-2): Ryan Holland 8; Richard Faircloth 6, David Grose 7, Matt Trethewey 7; Chris Grose 5, Sam Kenny 6, Bobbylee Johns 5 (sub. Nick Carpenter 6), Lee Hazeldine 7, Adam Holland 7; Mark Rowe 7, Liam Nicholls 6.

Liskeard (4-4-2): Adam Bainbridge; David Bowman, Ian Stacey, Andrew Moon, Daniel Sharp; Steve Denton, Carl Flintoff, Bradley Richardson, Karl Saunders; Ed Bradshaw, Steve Rendle.

Subs: Jamie Hampshire, Ryan Thorogood, Joe Kennedy, Dale Hooper, Jason King.

Referee: Mr Steve Nute (Saltash) 7.