U13s v Spen Valley – Double Header

Spen Valley 0-4 York

Scorers : Ben Garbutt-Smith, Harry Fort, Lleyton Brown, Adi Bajaziti

York 3-0 Spen Valley

Scorers : Leo Littlewood, Lleyton Brown, Joe Meek

York visited Spen Valley and, due to a backlog of fixtures, agreed with their opponents to play a double-header – two back-to-back fixtures – to help ease congestion for both teams.

Game 1 kicked off with York flying out of the traps, Adi Bajaziti taking on the full back and whipping in a decent cross which was cleared to safety. They maintained the pressure and scored on 2 minutes – Ben Garbutt-Smith with a header from around six yards out. The lead was doubled soon after as Harry Fort ran into the box and finished with a left foot strike which went in off the crossbar. York were dominant. Garbutt-Smith broke clear, only to see his clipped attempt roll just wide of the post. Lleyton Brown scored a third, controlling and finishing well, having been found by a cross from Garbutt-Smith. Cameron Wakerley looked lively on the left, looking to create openings for his team. He sent a lovely cross-shot across the Spen goal, but the keeper got a finger tip to it to send it wide. Spen showed that they weren’t willing to lie down and started to put together a couple of attacks of their own. They found that Billy Dickinson and Leo Littlewood were on form in the midfield areas and continuing their good work from the previous week – both players looked strong and offered protection to York’s defensive unit. Behind them, Jack Cottam took charge to win his headers and organise those around him, Jack Redman partnered him to form a dominant presence for York. York completed the scoring when Bajaziti cut in from the right wing to hit a left footed shot that went in off the bar.

Final score 4-0 to York.

Scorers : Ben Garbutt-Smith, Harry Fort, Lleyton Brown, Adi Bajaziti MOM : Leo Littlewood – showed good control in tight areas, covered the ground well and had a calming influence on those around him.

Game 2 kicked off but York’s energy seemed to have dipped slightly. Their passing wasn’t quite as crisp as it could have been. However, they worked hard and began to create chances but found the Spen keeper pulling off saves, the defence blocking shots or their own shooting missing the target. They broke the deadlock when a teasing, floating corner from Ben Whitehead landed right in the danger area. Littlewood controlled and finished from close range to claim a deserved goal. Brown grabbed a second with a delicious chip over the keeper from distance which nestled in the bottom corner. Spen, again, showed that they had a fighting spirit and wanted to take something from the game. They tested the York defence on a number of occasions and found Billy Hobson showing his versatility in the left centre back role, using his pace and positional sense to sweep up danger and then play the ball into midfield to push his team forward. Dickinson and Redman were forced to stay alert as York found themselves under a number of Spen attacks. Without fully getting into top gear, York always felt in charge. Fort looked confident and assured in midfield, positioning himself in the right place to win a number of duels and using the ball smartly, playing it forward and out wide. With around 5 minutes of the game remaining, Spen went close to pulling a goal back.  A free kick from outside the area was pushed onto the underside of the bar by York keeper, Jacob Bryant. Spen reacted quickest and the rebound was bundled into net, only for the referee to rule out the effort for offside. York completed the scoring to take the points with a 3-0 win, Joe Meek controlling the ball in the opponents’ area and steering it past the goalie.

Final score : 3-0 to York.

Scorers : Leo Littlewood, Lleyton Brown, Joe Meek MOM : Harry Fort – a confident display in the midfield area; positive passing to help push the team to victory.