Sharp reality check for Luffs
LEICESTERSHIRE SENIOR LEAGUE DIVISION ONE INGLES RES 3 LOUGHBOROUGH FC 1
THE Luffs were brought down to earth on Saturday after a couple of good weeks by an Ingles side who demonstrated what was required to win a Senior League game.
After two games at home where playing the ball around was a way to play the Loughborough side found themselves trying to do the same on the cramped Little Haw lane ground and were regularly smothered out with no space to play.
Even so it was a good competition with Jordan Cufflin-Stableford hitting the Ingles bar from a free kick in the opening minute while the home side broke away to force a save from the Loughborough keeper Ben Dibden. Jack Crabtree tested the Ingles keeper Oliver Buchanan and Mayokun Okunsanya had the ball in the net for Loughborough but it was ruled offside and The Luffs were on top and deserving a goal at this stage.
The Luffs then paid the penalty for over commitment as Ingles Ryan Hardy ran through for a long ball was forced wide but managed to get his shot away at a narrow angle and the ball strickled in off the post and the home side were 1-0 up against the run of play.
The referee blew for half time a few minutes early to allow attention to a serious injury to an Ingles player and the game was delayed for a while with an elongated half time break.
The second half began badly for the Loughborough side the defence looked to b confused and Shaun Martin took advantage to nip in give Ingles a 2-0 lead.
It took a while for the Loughborough side to regain the ascendency and might well have gone further behind but eventually pressure was put on the Ingles defence. Crabtree was brought down in full flight and the referee pointed to the spot. Brian Bubi stepped up to take the kick but made the mistake of trying to trick Ingles keeper Buchanan but he was having none of it and dived to his left to push the ball to safety.
Ingles shut up shop at 2-0 and try as they did Loughborough could not break down their resistance until a strange decision gave them an indirect free kick on the six yard line. The Ingles team, to a man lined up on the goal line but a touch to Cufflin-Stableford saw the ball fly into the top corner and at 2-1 the Loughborough side could have got something from the game.
Ingles finished the game with nine men but still The Luffs couldn’t break them down and Ingles scored a third through Isaac Hetierley.
So the Luffs remain riveted to the bottom of the league and on Saturday take on fellow strugglers Kibworth Town at The Drome kick off 2pm in a ‘six-pointer’.