Junior Soccer Scene

SWIFTS, who are sponsored by Three Counties Fisheries, failed to scale any heights in this match and threw away a two goal lead only to snatch a last-minute draw.

The Ledbury side started well and took the lead on three minutes when Alex Edwards and Tom Powell combined on the left. Powell's cross found Sam Crichard at the far post to rifle home.

Swifts continued to press and this time Crichard turned provider when his cross was tapped home by Adam Davis.

For some reason, Swifts stepped off the gas and allowed Bromyard to take control of the game and they were made to pay when, in the last 10 minutes of the half, Bromyard grabbed two goals to go in at half-time level.

The second-half was a very scrappy affair, which wasn't helped by the state of the pitch. But Swifts should have made sure of the win after a hatful of chances in the last 15 minutes.

With two minutes left, it looked as though Bromyard had snatched victory when Joe Markiewicz was robbed of the ball on the left. The player then crossed for a simple tap-in.

Then, with time nearly up, Crichard's cross found Craig Johns who chested down and volleyed over the 'keeper from 20 yards to snatch a dramatic draw.

LEDBURY SWIFTS U11S 5, KINGTON TOWN U11s 0

LEDBURY Swifts made the long journey to Kington for a league match on Saturday. After all of the rain in recent weeks, it was a pleasure to play in dry conditions and on an excellent pitch.

As in the previous match, the Swifts started brightly with Daniel Sewell testing the Kington goalkeeper with a firm shot. Thomas Coleman also almost opened the scoring when he glanced a header wide from a well-taken corner.

However, Kington then enjoyed a very good 10-minute period of play in the Swifts' half of the pitch. The Swifts managed to survive this period with two good saves from Jonathan Gooch and impressive clearances from Joseph Morris and Joe Llewellin. However, the Swifts were unable to impose themselves on the game in their normal way.

As the mid-point in the first-half approached, the match turned when James Charlesworth launched a trademark long throw down the right wing which Jack Pritchard collected and ran towards the Kington goal. The Kington 'keeper was able to just fend away Charlesworth's close-range shot, but William Notley was on hand to force the ball over the line and give the Swifts a 1-0 lead.

Ledbury's first goal was quickly followed by a second when Mathew Pickering made a strong run down the left wing and crossed early for Sewell to guide the ball home with a firm deflection.

As the Swifts pressed forward in search of a third goal, Kington made a number of counter attacks. However, they found the speed and commitment of the Swifts defenders difficult to overcome. Kasihta Machae had a very solid game at the heart of the Swifts defence and Tom Brain continued his development at left back with another solid all round performance.

As half-time approached, Ben Butler, playing in a more advanced role than normal, won the ball in midfield, took it forward into the Kington half and released it just in time for Sewell to register his second goal of the game with a well-taken shot.

In the second-half, the Swifts made regular substitutions to maintain fresh legs and give people experience in different positions. During this passage of play, it was pleasing to see the way in which the Swifts players continually looked for the best passing option.

Indeed, within five minutes of the re-start, Charlie McCarthy collected the ball in midfield and immediately threaded it through to Coleman who took the ball forward purposefully and drove it past the advancing goalkeeper to give the Swifts a 4-0 need.

Pickering made a number of strong runs down the left wing and almost scored on two occasions. Toby Lee, on the right wing also initiated a number of positive moves and Daniel O'Neill was a continuous threat from his central midfield position.

With 10 minutes to go, the Swifts got the ball in the net for a fifth time when Notley set up Pritchard for a simple tap in only to see a goal ruled off side for the third match in succession.

However, the Swifts maintained their commitment and their efforts were rewarded with two minutes to go when Pritchard forced the ball high into the net after the Kington goalkeeper had only been able to parry a shot from Sewell.

BARTESTREE BULLS U9s 0, LEDBURY SWIFTS U9s 1

LEDBURY Swifts travelled to Bartestree Bulls on Saturday to play their final league game of the season. The game turned out to be a day of missed chances for Ledbury as they dominated both halves.

The highlights of the first-half were Max Coleman's well-timed tackles and Dan Batty's thunderous shot that rattled the crossbar before bouncing down on the goal line.

The second-half was again one-way traffic with the Bulls goalkeeper having an outstanding game as Ledbury surged forward.

The Bulls, to their credit, defended well and looked to be heading for a point, but with four minutes remaining a goalmouth scramble led to the ball coming off Jake Robson and falling kindly to Harvey Moss, who nodded into the open net giving Ledbury all the points.

Ledbury finished the league season dropping only one point and now look forward to the end of season play-offs against Bartestree A'.

LEDBURY SWIFTS U8s 4, PHOENIX U8s 1

With the floodwaters receded, the Swifts entertained Phoenix and played some impressive football.

Kieran Loveridge opened the scoring mid-way through the first-half with a well-taken strike, but Phoenix levelled the scores before the break just managing to beat Mathew Holder in the Swifts' goal at the near post.

The second-half saw the Swifts dominate and after a goalmouth scramble Joshua Phillips reacted quickest to stab the ball home.

With Edward Bennion and Joseph Bullock in the Swifts' defence thwarting any Phoenix attack their dominance paid dividends again as James Howells scored with a low, driven shot and top-scorer Loveridge had the final word after beating two defenders and sliding the ball past the 'keeper.

HEREFORD JUNIOR DYNAMOES U10s 0, BROMSBERROW UNITED U10s 11

BROMSBERROW got back to league action with an emphatic victory at Hereford Junior Dynamos.

In the seventh minute, Ben Miller scored with a header from a corner.

Six minutes later, Tom Skittery fired home a shot to make it 2-0. Bromsberrow continued to push the opposition back and two goals in two minutes, one each from the same two players, made it 4-0.

Their opponents had no answer to the way Bromsberrow were playing and in the last five minutes of the half Miller scored twice more to make it 6-0.

The second-half started off with Hereford Junior Dynamos determined to make a game of it and although they got into some promising openings they were snuffed out in the last third by some excellent defending by Miles Cafful, Ryan Gobey and Ryan Jones.

Mid-way through the half, Bromsberrow made it 7-0 when Harrison Oakshott-Francis scored with a low drive.

In the 61st minute Scott Brown scored a bullet header from a corner. As the opposition struggled to cope, Bromsberrow scored three more goals in the last seven minutes from Skittery, Miller and Oakshott-Francis to complete a convincing 11-0 score.

CRADLEY SPORTS U9S 2, WELLAND U9S 0

Cradley started brightly with neat passing and good movement and some battling work from Ben Finch in midfield creating chances for Thomas Fairclough and Josh Davies.

Welland also provided some good play but their efforts were dealt with by Cradley's solid defence of Isaac George and Max Middlebrook.

Nearing half-time, Welland had a chance which was well saved by Piers Kirkpatrick-Jones who was quick off his line and made an excellent save at the player's feet.

Cradley were awarded a free-kick on the edge of the box and it was taken by Finch. The effort was blocked but fell back to Finch who found Fairclough, who in turn rifled it into the back of the net.

Cradley came close to making it two but were denied by a good save from the Welland 'keeper.

The second-half saw Cradley create some good chances and they were rewarded when from a corner Fairclough received the ball and, from a tight angle, finished well to make it 2-0.

Both sides provided a good, entertaining display of football with further chances at either end.

Cradley are sponsored by John Goodwin Estate Agents.