Third Team – Page 2 – Tuffley Rovers AFC

The Sunday Summary is back!

Our weekly review of the week’s action is back for the start of the 2020/21 playing season although it would be easy to hide it, given the results over the weekend!

The only midweek fixture was the highlight of the week, with the U18s recording a fantastic 6-3 FA Youth Cup win, away at Bitton AFC on Thursday evening. A high quality display of football from Mike Palmer’s side saw Rudi McKinnon net a hat-trick and James Sunley a brace, alongside a debut goal from Alex Roder, and although the sending-off of another debutant, goalkeeper Louis Evans, provided a disappointing end to the evening, there was nothing to take the shine off the evening’s entertainment.

Over the weekend there were games for all three Stroud League sides, with two of the games held at Glevum Park on Saturday afternoon, but defeats for the Thirds (4-1 against Upton St. Leonards Reserves), for whom Josh Webb scored the only goal, and Fourths (3-0 at Longlevens) followed and the only competitive point came for the Fifths, who drew 1-1 against Randwick Reserves. Another Josh (Pitt) had given Will Cronshaw’s side the lead, but Randwick found an equaliser to secure a point.

In the day’s Uhlsport Hellenic League fixture, the first team lost 1-0 at Virginia Water, with an 80th minute goal enough to beat Rich Cox’s side. A match report is available here.

This week will see the First XI making the short trip to face Brimscombe & Thrupp (7:45pm on Wednesday evening) ahead of scheduled games for all teams, save for the Development Squad, due at the weekend.

Here is hoping for better fortunes to report next Sunday….

New Football Chair appointed

Tuffley Rovers have a new Football Chair, with the appointment of Dan Boon, as Interim Chair, following the decision of the previous incumbent, Neil Spiller, to step down from the role two weeks ago.

Spiller, who will remain at the club, had been holding a dual responsibility as Chairman and Football Secretary, but decided to call time on one of those roles, which created a vacancy and this has been filled, at least in the short-term, by 36-year-old Boon, who has been involved with the club since 2011.

The new Chair will now work alongside his predecessor, as well as Ken Blackburn, the Head of Football Development, as they look to shape the future of the club, with any ambitions for success undented by the recent change in leadership.

“The club has been moving in the right direction for some time, and so I’d like to pick up where Neil has left off, but working with him and the rest of the committee to put Tuffley Rovers in a position where we can offer facilities and a club culture that we can be proud of”, confirmed Boon.

“We need to look at creating an environment where all of our teams, coaches, spectators and anyone connected to the club enjoy their football, whilst we also become as competitive as possible, challenging for silverware in as many competitions as possible”, he added. “However, we also need to focus on player development and retention, so individuals can see a pathway to whichever level they aspire to play at, as well as establishing a much stronger community presence, creating partnerships with the local community and then with more organisations across Gloucester.”

The outgoing Chair, Spiller, was quick to welcome the appointment.

“I am delighted Dan, who is someone who has become increasingly involved in the club, has stepped up to take on this role”, he said. “I think we’ve made great progress in recent years, but I felt that we need to spread the load by stepping back from some of the responsibilities that come with being the Chairman”, he confirmed. “With Ken Blackburn’s role now clearly established, I thought it was a good time to hand over the reins and Dan is, in my view, the right person to take this forward.”

With plans to start the 2020/21 season still very much up in the air, Boon might have to wait a while for his first competitive football as Chairman, with none of the nine sides he’ll now lead yet clear on when their respective campaigns will start.

No football today! All games off…

There will be no football at Glevum Park or for any Tuffley Rovers team today, after all four scheduled games were postponed following the heavy rainfall experiences over the past few days.

The Hellenic League game against Burnham was postponed following a 10am inspection, before the Fourths’ away game at Stonehouse Town 3rds succumbed moments later.

The final two games looked to be going ahead, but a torrential downpour in the hour between 10-11am ended those hopes and the games were called off just after 11am.

So, no action today. Next up is the first team visit to Bishops Cleeve, in the Bluefin Sports Challenge Cup on Tuesday evening (7:45pm). Weather permitting….

Sunday Summary – 14th & 15th September….

Once again, this Sunday Summary is a look back at the past seven days and what a week it was….goals, goals, goals!!

The week started with a flurry of goals in a first team fixture, as Mark Pritchett’s side won their Banbury Litho Floodlit Cup tie 6-1 against Hellenic League, Division One (West) side Thornbury Town. Ross Langworthy and Jack Beardsell both had a brace within 24 minutes, before second half-goals from Pritchett and seventeen-year-old Niall Priday saw us to a comfortable win.

On Thursday, it felt a little like deja vu! Priday scored again (three times, in fact!) in a thumping 6-1 win for the U18s over Cinderford Town. The other goals came courtesy of Kai Jordan, Kyle Rogers and a sumptuous Charlie Holliday free-kick. A great start to the league season for our remodelled U18s squad.

The weekend’s action started with four games on Saturday and it was a generally disappointing day for the club. The Reserves’ good run came to an end, as Cam Bulldogs left Glevum Park with all three points, courtesy of a 3-2 win, after Mike Palmer’s squad had led 2-1 at the interval, thanks to goals from Priday (again!!) and a first Rovers goal for Xander Jones. That wasn’t the only disappointing result, as the Fourths lost 4-0, at home to North Nibley, and the Fifths succumbed to a 6-0 reverse at Chalford 3rds. The bright spot for Saturday came from the Thirds, who won 3-2 at home to Tibberton United – continuing their unbeaten start to the season – thanks to goals from Miracle Osabuohien, Alfie Fortey and Cory Anderson.

If Saturday was a little disappointing, Sunday was altogether different and full of goals!

The opening game on Sunday saw a first win for our new Veterans Reserves side, with Dave Cornock scoring four times in a 5-3 win over Grays Athletic. Debutant Chris Gooch got the other goal, as Rob Wordley’s side recovered from 3-1 down, with less than fifteen minutes remaining!

Our final game of the week/weekend saw a moment of history, with a first ever open-aged Women’s team playing under the Rovers banner…and what a way to start! The newest of all the Rovers teams travelled to Winchcombe Town and won 14-0 in a superb performance. Chloe Taylor and Holly Kay scored five apiece, whilst Jayne Papps got a brace, to go with goals from Jade Papps and Lizzie Barstow in a fantastic opening day victory. If that wasn’t a good way to end a goal-filled week, albeit one with mixed results, what more could you want? #uptherovers

Sunday Summary – 7th & 8th September 2019…or that was the week that was!

Various commitments have meant that we haven’t posted our usual summary over the past two weekends, so it seems right to spend a little time looking back at the last week, rather than simply confining this update to the weekend alone. Not a hugely successful week, but quite a few positives amidst all the positives!

A win, at last, for the first team on Tuesday evening, as a Ross Langworthy brace and a goal from Brett James proved enough to secure a 3-2 win over Shrivenham at Barrington Park. The game seemed to be going comfortably in Rovers’ favour, but a late Antonio Gerrish goal made it 3-2 and by the time the official’s whistle sounded, we were probably glad the game was over!

The Reserves then provided another positive on Wednesday evening, as the young squad held one of the Gloucestershire Northern Senior League title favourites, Chalford, to a 0-0 draw. Brad Newman made a couple of great saves, whilst debutant Xander Jones went close to scoring a winner.

Unfortunately, the U18s couldn’t keep the positive streak going and lost their FA Youth Cup tie 3-1. The hosts had led 2-0 but a late, late Niall Priday goal gave Rovers hope, before Cinderford Town scored in the dying seconds of the game.

When Saturday came, we had a real mixed bag of performances. The worst result of the day saw the Fifths thumped 5-0 by Minchinhampton Reserves, in Stroud League Division Five, although Will Cronshaw’s young team competed well after trailing 4-0 at half-time.

There were wins for the Fourths (Matt Stevens and Jake Anderson with the goals in a 2-1 victory at Alkerton Rangers) and the Reserves, with Ash Bird getting a GNSL hat-trick as Mike Palmer’s side triumphed 6-0 away at Taverners.

The other two Saturday games ended in a draw. Dan Boon’s third team led through Alfie Fortey’s first-half goal, before a late equaliser for hosts Wickwar Wanderers, but the real drama was at Glevum Park. The first team went 3-1 down after 81 minutes and their hopes of a result against Windsor looked dashed, until Tyreece Briscoe and Langworthy managed to conjure up goals in the 84th and 97th minute to make it 3-3.

With the Ladies’ game lost from Sunday’s schedule, after opponents Cribbs withdraw from the league, there was only one game on Sunday and it ended in a convincing win for Mark Patterson’s Veterans’ side, who beat Cheltenham Civil Service 4-1 at All Saints Academy.

That was the week that was….

…the last of the full, competitive 2018/19 season and we had a relatively decent week, as it happens!

The week started with the final Uhlsport Hellenic League, Premier Division fixture for the first team, and it was a great day for the club, as the GroundhopUK group made our game the 12th (or 13) of their groundhopping weekend. The consequence was that we had a crowd of 221 to watch us record an excellent 3-0 win over Fairford Town, not only a great way to end the competitive season, but also enough to secure a 15th place finish that looked incredibly unlikely earlier in the season. Kieran Alder netted his 13th of the season, after Adam Bloomfield had scored twice in the first half to put Pritch’s side in charge of the game.

We then saw the Reserves, Thirds and Fifths all end their seasons on Saturday, with one win, one draw and one defeat to show for the day’s endeavours.

Dan Gillespie, Russ Williams and Phil Ryder-Jones signed off their time with the Reserves with a disappointing result, albeit a 3-1 reverse away at title challengers Chalford. Will Emery’s sixth goal of the season wasn’t enough to secure any points, as the second team finished with three consecutive defeats, albeit after a string of good results that had taken the squad up the table, ultimately securing them a creditable fifth place finish.

The Thirds went better than that, finishing third in their division, as Dan Boon’s side came from behind to beat Upton St. Leonards Reserves 3-1. The visitors took a first half lead, before Andy Meek, Mark Pritchett (making a very rare Stroud League appearance) and Chris Giddy scored to make it a good end to the season.

A full set of results was complete when the Fifths got a point, courtesy of a 1-1 draw, away at Champions Cashes Green. Alfie Fortey’s goal, equalising after the hosts had taken the lead, meant that Will Cronshaw’s side finished fourth in Division Six, only a year after promotion.

On Sunday, the Vets completed their season, too, and they held title challengers Quedgeley Wanderers to a 3-3 draw, despite playing much of the second half with only ten players, after a threadbare squad lost a couple of players to injuries. A brace from Shayne Bradley and another from Gary Cornwall were enough to help secure a third place finish for Mark Patterson’s team.

Third team result the rose amongst some thorns!

A weekend that saw Tuffley Rovers’ sides playing four games ended with just one victory, with the third team’s convincing win in Stroud League, Division Three the highlight of a difficult day.

Dan Boon’s squad recorded a fine 5-1 win at Beaufort Playing fields – a result that secured third place in their division – courtesy of goals from Martin Kent, Iain Buckingham, Lee Brinkworth and a brace from Chris Giddy, with their second half performance decisive, after they held a slim 1-0 advantage at the break.

The First XI came back from their final Hellenic League away game of the season without any points, having lost 2-1 at Flackwell Heath, despite a decent performance. Flackwell Heath opened the scoring through Simeon Weekes, before Aaron Layne scored their second, eleven minutes after the interval. When Dominik Kent pulled a goal back 23 minutes from time, his eighth of the season, there were hopes of a comeback but a late Tyreece Briscoe free-kick which hit the post was the closest they came. The second half saw a debut for Jack Ellis, after a good season in the U18s and Reserves squads.

In Dan Gillespie’s final home game as reserve team manager, following his recent decision to stand-down at the end of the season, his side went down by the same 2-1 scoreline, despite leading early on. A much-changed side included several U18s players, with Kane Hyett and Ethan Ravenhill making full-debuts, had led through Ryan Dobbins’ goal but the opposition, Berkeley Town, scored twice in the second period to take the three points away from Glevum Park.

The other game of the day saw a 10-goal thriller, as the Fifths went down 6-4 away at Minchinhampton Reserves, with the hosts winning both halves 3-2! Will Cronshaw’s charges worked hard in their penultimate game of a solid season, but despite goals from Rudran Rutnanandan, James Hawley, Alfie Fortey and Jake Anderson, weren’t enough to secure any points, leaving the Thirds as the club’s most (and only) successful side on Saturday!

Win one, draw one, lose two…

Looking back at the weekend, a little later than planned, and although the results weren’t great, there were a few positives. Now, if we start with the negatives, it will probably feel less painful!

A thumping 3-0 defeat, in a fairly drab affair, saw the first team fail to achieve mathematical certainty of their place in the 2019/20 Hellenic League Premier Division. Antonio Gerrish scored twice for the visitors – who extended their unbeaten league run to 17 games – and Nathan Blackford got the other, in front of a crowd of 79 at Glevum Park.

The Veterans were the victims of an even heavier defeat, going down 5-0 against Shurdington Rovers on Sunday, with that victory putting Shurdy in pole position to secure the Gloucestershire FA Veterans League, Division One (North) title.

It does start to get a little more positive from here….

First, we had the Fifths securing an excellent 0-0 draw at home to Cashes Green, which keeps them up and around the top teams in Stroud League Division Six. Youngsters Alex Whiffen and William Cronshaw Jnr continue to impress for the side, with the blend of youth and veteran players proving a real success.

The result of the weekend went to the Thirds, who defeated their Quedgeley Wanderers counterparts 2-0, thanks to goals from Josh Webb and Niall Priday making the difference. One notable event was the selection of Ethan Ravenhill as captain for the game; the seventeen year old surely becoming one of the youngest ever players to captain a senior side.

Ethan was congratulated on this achievement by third team manager, Dan Boon.

The other highlight of the weekend was the Tuffley Rovers U8s visit to our first team fixture. What a great bunch of youngsters and thanks to Jason Merrett for helping to organise their attendance at the game. Hopefully one or two of them will be playing at Glevum Park in ten years’ time!

Versatility the key, as Rovers prepare for in-form visitors

Tuffley Rovers are within touching distance of securing their place in the 2019/20 Hellenic League Premier Division, with only a disastrous series of results in the closing weeks of the season capable of pushing them back into the relegation places, as they welcome the division’s form team, Shrivenham, to Glevum Park tomorrow.

When Mark Pritchett’s side travelled to tomorrow’s visitors in late-October, the two sides looked set for a tough season, with Gareth Davies’ side bottom of the table and Rovers two points ahead of them. By the end of that game, a late Sean McKeon winner, gave ten-man Shrivenham the three points, pushing them above Rovers and they’ve moved steadily up the table ever since. Both sides now have three games to play and a remarkable run of form – fourteen wins from their last sixteen games and no defeats – has propelled Shrivenham to fifth place, 27 points clear of Rovers, who lie in 16^th place.

That gap will tell Pritchett that his side, who need a point to achieve mathematical certainty that they are safe from the drop, are in for a tough challenge, but Pritchett still believes his charges can gain revenge for that earlier defeat and achieve safety at the same time.

“Shrivenham have been on a brilliant run, going sixteen unbeaten, having been bottom when we played them last”, he confirmed. “Despite that, I believe we are in good form ourselves and are capable of putting an end to their long unbeaten run. As we aren’t 100% safe, we know we need the points, so there is a real incentive to perform and get a result.”

Injuries and non-availability have forced Pritchett to regularly change his line-up during the season but they have collected fifteen points from their last seven home games, an unbeaten run dating back to the start of the New Year, and the Rovers boss owes much of that excellent form to an increasing level of versatility in his squad.

Luke Payne, Rhys Davies and Luke Troke have all joined the squad since the October defeat against Shrivenham and all three have shown a capability to play in numerous positions, giving Pritchett plenty of options when selecting his squad.

Payne should be back in the squad for Saturday’s game, after missing the win against Binfield last time out, although another player who has filled a number of positions, Sam Hill, is unavailable. Brad Loveridge is also absent, whilst Dominik Kent is back in the frame, after a couple of outings for the Reserves since he too missed that win against Binfield.

With the opportunity to shape their own destiny – as well as the potential to finish as high as 12^th still a possibility – Rovers have plenty to play for and when the game kicks off at Glevum Park (3pm), Pritchett will almost certainly field a squad versatile and capable enough to leave him confident that they’ll rise to meet the challenge posed by Davies’ visiting team.

Other games on Saturday, 13 April:

Thirds v Quedgeley Wanderers 3rds, Beaufort, 2:30pm

Fifths v Cashes Green, Winget, 2:30pm

Sunday, 14 April:

Shurdington Rovers v Veterans, 10am, All Saints Academy

NB: Photographs courtesy of Brian Rossiter

A look back: No first team game & no fifth team final, but otherwise…

…it was a good weekend!

Although the first team weren’t in action, they edged closer to Hellenic League Premier Division safety (courtesy of Reading City’s defeat at Bishops Cleeve) and barring a disaster over the last three games, they should have done enough to retain their place in the division for 2019/20.

On the field, the Reserves recorded an emphatic win over FC Barometrics, although the game was marred by an incident late on, which resulted in a melee and the dismissal of a Barometrics player. That aside, the performance was very positive and Dan Gillespie’s side recorded another victory that puts them within touching distance of a top four finish in the league. A late first half goal from Will Emery gave the second team a half-time advantage, after Barometrics had equalised Dom Kent’s early goal, but second half strikes from Luke Troke and a penalty from Ryan Dobbins made sure the three points stayed at Glevum Park.

Earlier in the afternoon, the fifth team lost in a cup semi-final for the second time in recent weeks, as they succumbed to a 3-0 defeat against Cotswold Rangers in a fixture played at Quedgeley Wanderers’ home, Waterwells.

There was better news from the day’s early kick-off (11am), with a solitary Andy Meek goal proving sufficient to see off the persistence of Thornbury Town Reserves.

So, the first team almost safe; the Reserves continuing their good run of results; and the Thirds getting three points and a clean sheet. Not too bad a weekend.