Due to the originally scheduled opponents Bedlington Terriers no longer being available, Redcar Athletic of the Wearside League stepped in to provide the opposition for this friendly.

Heaton kicked off and were first to test the Redcar goal after sixteen minutes when a shot from outside the area by Wright was well saved by the keeper. Redcar replied two minutes later with a shot which hit the post. On twenty minutes another shot by Wright was turned round the post.

An injury to Dodsworth on the half hour resulted in him being replaced by Imray. An increase in petty fouls and subsequent dissent resulted in the referee inviting two of the Redcar players to leave the pitch temporarily to cool off’’. When play resumed, a shot by Redcar from six yards struck the underside of the bar. The rebound fell to another Redcar player who shot wide.

Eight minutes into the second half an attack by the Stan saw Wright break clear but he failed to take the ball past the keeper. With fifteen minutes to go, Wright had another opportunity when he lobbed the keeper but his effort went wide.

Stan’s defence were restricting Redcar’s attack to long range efforts with Wear and Morrison in commanding form. Quine joined Wright up front and following some forward runs up the left wing a goal resulted when Quine pounced on a goalkeeping error and slotted home from close range to make it 1-0 to the Stan.

Wright had shown some neat touches, passing moves and lay-offs all game but had no luck in front of goal. His best chance occurred in the dying seconds when he was put clear but his attempt to lob the keeper failed.

Although both sides showed skill and dealt well with the windy conditions, the game was spoilt to an extent when Redcar forgot it was a friendly match and spent too much time with petty fouls and verbal dissent. Redcar missed four chances to the Stan’s seven and the best team won!

Stan Team: Rule; Stoddart; Axon; Ray; Quine; Bailey; Telford; Dodsworth; Wright; Grievson; Watson.

Subs (all used): Backhouse; Wear; Imray;Campania; Morrison.

Attendance:

Mike Chell