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Latest PMF Match Headlines
Division 3
Blackburn Rovers V Bradford City An expectant looking crowd packed Ewood Park for the opening game of the PMF season, a number of away fans had made the journey down and seemed in good voice as the teams took to the field. Blackburn had been quietly preparing for the new season, playing a couple of friendlies behind closed doors, whilst Bradford had been keen to get the team gelling by playing a number of games already. It was clear from the whistle that this game was going to be played in the middle of the park, Blackburn started the game in a 4-5-1 formation, whilst Bradford adopted a 3-5-2. After the first 15 minutes it seemed as though Blackburn were treating this like a warm up match, happily keeping the ball and in no rush to build on any attacks. This led to some frustration for the away team and a few rash challenges brought bookings for Whalley and Mustoe. The first half was a dull affair on the whole, Bradford were looking for openings but their wide men were instantly pushed off the ball by the Blackburn defence. Marlet and Ward looked lively upfront but were unable to create any chances due to the frustrating Blackburn style. The only notable chance of the half did fall for the home side though, Duff seemed to be the only player keen to bring the ball forward for Blackburn, and he found himself with a decent crossing opportunity, only for the ball to be too high for Ostenstad to reach. As the half time whistle blew, any impartial viewer may have been tempted to go home. With the midfield being so packed, and Blackburn's strong defensive work it had produced very little to write home about. Much to the dismay of the crowd, the second half started with very much of the same. Bradford were increasingly being frustrated by the home sides negative style, and in the 58th minute they were nearly punished, as Bradford became more adventurous in coming forward, Blackburn almost caught them on the break. A neat interception by McAteer set the midfielder on his way, and he managed to find Ostenstad with a one-on-one with the keeper, however Ostenstad's weak shot was hit straight into Walshs’ arms. On 70 minutes both teams decided it was time for a change, Jess came on for Ward for the visitors, and Blackburn made a triple substitution, Dunn, Jansen and Flitcroft all came on for Bjornebye, Grayson and Taylor. Immediately this had an impact on the game, Blackburn moved into a 3-4-3 formation and for the first time in the game looked as though they were trying to take their home advantage, and go for the three points. Immediately the change worked against them. On 75 minutes, Ostenstad was barged off the ball by Wetherall and he immediately whipped the ball through to Jorgensen, up until this point he was getting little change from Curtis, but this time he managed to turn him and slide the ball into the box. Marlet picked up the ball and turned Short and blasted the ball home, 0-1. The final 15 minutes were a blur of excitement, Blackburn were keen to press forward and Bradford were finding more space to build in. An equaliser should have come in the 83rd minute but Dunn’s strong shot smashed against the post before going out. Just three minutes later the game was over, Blackburn were again caught by a quick break from Bradford. Jorgsensen was again involved, cutting inside to set Mustoe free, the ex-Boro star was unchallenged as he threaded the ball through to Marlet again to thunder home his second. The Blackburn back line were demanding offside, but it was clearly a cleverly timed pass. Blackburn frustrated the away team and home support for 70 minutes and left too many gaps for the final 20. Bradford were frustrated today, and picked up some unnecessary cards, but they'll be delighted with the hard earned 3 points. Blackburn Rovers 0 - 2 Bradford City Blackburn Team: Brad Friedel 6, Stig Bjornebye 6 (David Dunn 6), Henning Berg (c) 7, Craig Short 6, Martin Taylor 5 (Gary Flitcroft 5), John Curtis 7, Damien Duff 9, Craig Hignett 6, Jason McAteer 7, Simon Grayson 6 (Matt Jansen 5), Egil Ostenstad 5 Subs not used: John Filan, Marcus Bent Scorers: None Injuries: None Bookings: None Sendings off: None Bradford Team: Gary Walsh 8, David Wetherall (c) 8, Robert Molenaar 6, Gunnar Halle 6, Claus Jorgensen 8, Bjarne Goldbaek 6, Lee Makel 6 (Andy Todd 6), Gareth Whalley 6, Robbie Mustoe 7, Steve Marlet 9, Ashley Ward 7 (Eoin Jess 7) Subs not used: Aidan Davison, Gary Locke, Lee Sharpe Scorers: Marlet '75, '86 Injuries: None Bookings: Molenaar, Goldbaek, Makel, Whalley, Mustoe Sendings off: None Shots on target: Blackburn 3-4 Bradford Shots off target: 4-6 Corners: 1-1 Possession: 60%-40% Attendance: 25, 374 Referee: Graham Polygon - 6/1 Man of the match: Steve Marlet – Scored two on his debut against a packed Blackburn defence, should send warning signals around the division.
Bolton wanderers V Coventry City A packed Reebok Stadium was the location of Bolton and Coventry's opening game of the campaign. Bolton were under new management, since the shock departure of fan favourite, Ruud Rijkaard, and many home fans didn’t look too keen to be facing title hopefuls Coventry so early. From the opening whistle it was clear to see that Coventry were a much more organised unit than Bolton, the home side seemed too keen to impress new boss, Abu Gardee, and were caught out on a number of occasions by the tight Coventry midfield. Despite riding some early pressure, neither team looked confident in going forward. A lot of Coventry’s promise ended up falling short in the opponents half, as Coventry’s solid midfield wall was stopped from playing by good Bolton zonal marking. Bolton also looked in disarray when coming forward, they seemed keen to play down the flanks, but their wing men were simply played off the ball by good Coventry play. The first half was also marred by some eager tackling from both sides, and it was no surprise that both teams went in at half time goal-less, but with 2 bookings each, Wiekens and Bergsson for the home team, and Thompson and O’Neill for the visitors. The second half started more brightly for Coventry, a half time rant may have done the trick as they started the second half looking like the team many expected. Fluency, quick passing and pressure led to the opening goal after 48 minutes, Kinkladze was played off the ball by Thompson, who’s clever thinking set Joachim free. Some wonderful work by Hughes found him in acres of space, and Joachims pinpoint pass found Hughes to tap home, 0-1. Coventry were on a roll now, and should have made it 2 moments later, again Thompson was involved, jigging past Whitlows’ outstretched foot before crossing beautifully in the area, the ball was met superbly on the head of O’Neill, but a remarkable reaction save from Banks sent the ball over. On 60 minutes Bolton brought on Hansen for the ineffective Frandsen, and he was immediately involved. A quick ball from Farrelly found Hansen deep in the Coventry half, and a high two footed challenge from Thompson brought the home fans to their feet. The referee immediately held up the red card, and the best player on the pitch so far was sent for an early bath. Coventry still looked the brighter side though, and even with 10 men the Bolton team were finding it difficult to get through the Coventry midfield. Kinkladze was ineffective at getting forward, and he was simply pushed aside by the physical Coventry side. Frustration began to set in with the home fans, and the home side began to react with a more urgent display. This led to more bookings, first Wallace then Hansen. The whistles were going around the ground from the away support, when a momentary lapse brought a remarkable incident at the dead of the game. Breen’s backpass fell short of the keeper, and Ricketts reacted immediately. He latched onto the ball and tried to take it around the keeper. Hedman reacted late and his outstretched arm brought Ricketts to the floor. The referee immediately pointed to the spot, and produced the yellow card for Hedman, much to the dismay of the home support. Kinkladze stepped up to the spot, and neatly slotted the ball home after 89 minutes. The game ended soon after, a poor display from the home side, and Coventry will be looking at this as two points dropped. Bolton Wanderers 1 - 1 Coventry City Bolton Team: Steve Banks 8, Anthony Barness 6, Gerard Wiekens 7, Gudni Bergsson 7, Mike Whitlow 6, Jermaine Johnson 5, Georgiou Kinkladze (c) 6, Per Frandsen 5 (Bo Hansen 7), Gareth Farrelly 5, Rod Wallace 6 (David Norris 6), Michael Ricketts 6 Subs not used: Jussi Jaaskelainen, Colin Hendry, Paul Warhurst Scorers: Kinkladze (pen) '89 Injuries: None Bookings: Wiekens, Bergsson, Wallace, Hansen Sendings off: None Coventry City Team: Magnus Hedman (c) 6, Marc Edworthy 6, Paul Williams 6, Gary Breen 6, Marcus Hall 6, Paul Telfer 7 (Lee Carsley 7), Youseff Chippo 7, David Thompson 8, Keith O’Neill 8, Julian Joachim 8, Lee Hughes 7 (Jairo Martinez 6) Subs not used: Barry Quinn, Andy Goram, John Eustace Scorers: Hughes '48 Injuries: None Bookings: Thompson, O’Neill, Hedman Sendings off: Thompson
Shots on target: Bolton 3-7 Coventry Shots off target: 4-9 Corners: 2-4 Possession: 40%-60% Attendance: 21, 038 Referee: Fred Booked - 6/10 Man of the match: Keith O’Neill – Solid midfield display from all, he gets the award as he managed to stay on the pitch.
Derby County V Sheffield Wednesday Pride Park was packed to the rafters ready for the opening game of the PMF season. Damian Rix had managed to assemble a strong looking squad, and many are tipping them as challengers for the division 3 title. Wednesday are under solid leadership, but on paper started the game underdogs. The game started brightly for the home side, Korsten and Fortune were freely switching down the wings and created opportunities right from the whistle. Ricard had a shot superbly saved after only 3 minutes, and on the 8th minute Yorke should have put the home team in front but he scuffed his shot wide. Derby tactically looked impressive, a number of forward players were creating areas and the Wednesday defence just weren’t prepared for this. Morrison was regularly trying to break for the visitors, but even though he managed to pass by Dixon on a number of occasions in the opening 25 minutes, he was quickly stopped by another covering defender. As the half progressed, neither team could really put a stamp of the game. Some quick passing from both sides led to some balls being given away to the opposition, and this almost led to a goal on 38 minutes. A poor pass from Maddix went straight to Diomede who immediately shot, only to find Pressman had got back well to knock the ball over. The half ended 0-0 in this balanced affair. Derby were perhaps the better side, and had managed to stop most Wednesday attacks before they even started. In the second half Wednesday almost got a break, Korsten was passed by Hinchcliffe and he looked to have overrun the ball, Dixon tried to get there first, but Hinchcliffe managed to feed the ball through to Morrison before the two collided. Morrison slid the ball into the area, and Sibon missed the ball by inches. Unfortunately for Hinchcliffe and Dixon the collision didn’t do either of them any good, and both players were quickly substituted, Geary for Hinchcliffe, and Grimandi for Dixon. As both teams seemed to be canceling each other out, it was again Wednesday who had the next great chance, Quinn who replaced Morrison found acres of space on the right and slid the ball in for debutant Ashton, on for Bonvin, to neatly latch onto the ball. However, a last gasp tackle from Elliott saw the ball behind for a corner. Derby almost grabbed the full three points at the end though, a Fortune cross met perfectly by Ravanelli, only for the Derby captain to see the Wednesday stickman slap the ball wide. Both teams look very competent, and if Derby’s stars settle then they could easily challenge this season. Wilkins should also be happy with his teams performance, as they managed to get a difficult point away from home. Derby County 0 - 0 Sheffield Wednesday Derby County Team: Mart Poom 7, Lee Dixon 6 (inj) (Gilles Grimandi 6), Steve Elliott 7, Igors Stepanovs 7, Horacio Carbonari 6, Willem Korsten 7, Bernard Diomede 6, Dwight Yorke 6, Hamilton Ricard 6, Fabrizio Ravanelli (c) 7, Quinton Fortune 7 Subs not used: Andy Oakes, Marvin Robinson, Dmiji Traore, Branco Strupar Scorers: None Injuries: Dixon (bruised shin – 7th Nov) Bookings: None Sendings off: None Sheffield Wednesday Team: Kevin Pressman (c) 9, Ian Hendon 6, Andy Hinchcliffe 7 (inj) (Derek Geary 6), Danny Maddix 6, David Weir 7, Simon Donnelly 6, Owen Morrison 8 (Alan Quinn 7), Scott Gemmill 7, Trond Egil Soltvedt 7, Gerald Sibon 7, Pablo Facundo Bonvin 6 (Dean Ashton 7) Subs not used: Chris Stringer, Leigh Bromby Scorers: None Injuries: Hinchcliffe (dead leg – 7th Nov) Bookings: Weir, Soltvedt Sendings off: None Shots on target: Derby 6-3 Sheffield Wednesday Shots off target: 5-4 Corners: 3-2 Possession: 52%-48% Attendance: 31, 974 Referee: Reg Blind - 7/10 Man of the match: Kevin Pressman – Captains performance by the Wednesday keeper, kept Derby frustrated all day.
Fulham V Wimbledon A sold out Craven Cottage looked on expectedly to witness the opening game of the PMF season. Fulham boss, Ruan Daniels has been fairly active on the transfer market, and his new look Fulham team looked keen to impress, darting out of the tunnel to a warm welcome. In complete contrast, Wimbledon's preparations were hampered after Okechukwo’s disastrous two weeks in charge. Caretaker manager, David Newton, led the team out and they lined up in a defensive 4-1-4-1 formation. As expected by many, the game started very brightly for the home team with Wimbledon happy to sit back and contain the Fulham pressure. Good early chances fell to Clark and Viduka, but poor control outside of the area allowed for Anderson to clear both times. It wasn’t until the 22nd minute that Wimbledon managed to get a decent looking break together, a wayward pass from Finnan was picked up by Anderson who hit the ball long towards lone striker, Connolly. A clever pass back to Ardley was met perfectly, but the shot just soured over the bar. Fulham always looked in control though, and broke the deadlock just minutes later. Harley, with a sudden burst of pace found himself unchallenged down the left wing, and a clever cross into the box found Stolcers unmarked, and he blasted the ball on the volley past the outstretched fingers of Kelvin Davis, 1-0. Despite the relentless Fulham pressure after the initial goal, the half time whistle came without any more notable events. As the teams lined up for the second half, goalscorer Stolcers was substituted for new boy Benito Carbone. Wimbledon lined up unchanged and started the second half with some renewed vision. Connolly was tireless upfront and was very unlucky not to equalise after 50 minutes, a poor quick pass from Legwinski was almost picked up by Connolly but Van Der Saar managed to race from his area to clear. Moments after Fulham took control again, Stanic cleverly riding through a number of tackles before whipping the ball into the area to be met by Clark to make it 2-0. On 60 minutes, Neil Shipperley entered the fray, and replaced the tired looking Trond Anderson. Wimbledon immediately started launching the high balls up to try and catch Fulham off balance. Fulham, however were competent to deal with this renewed attack, and a clearance from Hreidarsson found Carbone on his own on the halfway line. Carbone darted forward and just as he was about to shoot he found himself caught in two minds and ended up tamely hitting the ball at the keeper. It was going to be Carbones’ day though, an impressive second half display was topped off with an injury time goal to make it 3-0, a nice flick from Clark set Carbone on his way to edge past a couple of defenders before slotting the ball home, 3-0. On the whole the result was flattering to Fulham, despite some good individual performances there were some scary moments for the defence. Wimbledon showed some good spirit, and Connolly deserved a goal for his performance. Fulham 3-0 Wimbledon Fulham Team: Edwin Van Der Saar 6, Jon Harley 7, Steve Finnan 6 (Chris Makin 6), Hermann Hreidarsson 7, Andy Melville (c) 7, Eddie Lewis 6, Mario Stanic 8, Sylvian Legwinski 6, Lee Clark 8 (Chris Llewellyn 6), Mark Viduka 6, Andrejs Stolcers 6 (Benito Carbone 7) Subs not used: Michael Ingham, Alain Goma Scorers: Stolcers '25, Clark '56, Carbone '90 Injuries: None Bookings: None Sendings off: None Wimbledon Team: Kelvin Davis 6, Kenny Cunningham 6, Alan Kimble 6, Dean Blackwell 6, Darren Holloway 5, Trond Anderson 7 (Neil Shipperley 7), Neil Ardley (c) 7, Michael Hughes 5, Gareth Ainsworth 6, Andy Roberts 6, David Connolly 8. Subs not used: Ian Feuer, Ian Selley, Mikele Leigertwood, Mark Williams Scorers: None Injuries: None Bookings: Holloway Sendings off: None Shots on target: Fulham 6-3 Wimbledon Shots off target: 8-3 Corners: 4-2 Possession: 58%-42% Attendance: 18, 807 Referee: Alex Notebook - 7/10 Man of the match: David Connolly – Tireless display, didn’t deserve to be on the losing side today.
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