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Town goes head to head with a Scarborough defender

Scarborough 2-2 Pilgrims

Nationwide Conference

Football, as the saying goes, is a game of two halves, and this game was a prime example. Scarborough dominated the first half and went in at half-time two goals in front. The second half was all Boston, and they were unlucky not to take all three points after being awarded three penalties, but could only convert two of them and ended up sharing the points. It was typical bank holiday weather, cloudy with a bitterly cold wind and a touch of drizzle in the air. With the wind behind them, the Scarborough front-line were getting that extra yard of pace and were causing real problems for the Boston defence. The first Scarborough goal came after just twelve minutes when a quick raiding attack culminated in Jamie BURT slotting the ball home with a well placed shot. Eight minutes later Boro were two up when another quick break ended with David POUNDER firing a low shot into the bottom left corner of the net. Boston's only chances of the first half were a long-range shot by Jim Dick that was embarrassingly high and wide, and a curler by Simon Weatherstone that was much closer to the target. Andrew Stanhope came on for Simon Rusk at half time and his presence seemed to add the extra attacking ingredient that Boston had been so lacking in the first half.

The Scarborough defence was now being breached at regular intervals, and both Town and Costello in particular were looking threatening. Boston soon got a penalty when Costello was brought down as he ran into the area, but Ken Charlery's spot-kick lacked power and was easily saved by Andy Woods in the Scarborough goal. A nice combination by Stanhope and Costello then set Costello free, but his shot was blocked by the keeper and Town just failed to latch on to the rebound in time. Ten minutes later Boston got a goal back when COSTELLO dispatched a penalty after he had been fouled inside the area. Fifteen minutes from time, Andy Lodge came on for the tiring Jamie Cook. The Boston equaliser arrived five minutes later when COSTELLO scored from the spot again, this time the offence being for handball. Much to the disgust of most of the Boston fans, David Town was taken off and replaced by Anthony Elding for the last five minutes - they thought that it should have been Charlery who was replaced following a lack-lustre performance.

United team: 1. Bastock, 2. Rusk (Stanhope 45), 3. Lucas, 4. Gowshall, 5. Howarth, 6. Costello, 7. S. Weatherstone, 8. Charlery, 9. Town (Elding 85), 10. Cook (Lodge 75), 11. Dick. Subs (not used): Nuttell, Conroy.


Match report and photo by Ken Fox.