12/12/15: Despite the best efforts of the West Somerset tourist board it appears that the coastal town of Minehead is not considered to be an attractive place to visit in the middle of winter or so it would seem as after exhausting all available options the Mendip skipper could only muster a sum total of 9 players for their trip to face the top of the table seasiders.
It was always going to be difficult from the outset but Mendip set themselves up into 2 banks of 4 and keeping their shape and discipline and with lots of hard work managed to contain the opposition for the opening quarter of the match. Things were going pretty well for the most part but with such a numerical disadvantage eventually Mendip yielded to a well worked goal as the hosts switched the ball across their already stretched defence and a winger got to the back line and fired a cross into the D where a forward was well placed to sweep home in one fluid movement.
It was not all defending and when they gained possession Mendip did have a go at attacking but were obviously cautious about committing too many players so chances were limited. However, Oli, Steve, Liam and Will held onto the ball well enough in the midfield and broke forward in intelligent phases of play that made Minehead mindful of their own defending, which they also did to good effect. On the whole the hosts could afford to be patient and continued to probe for an opening in the Mendip solid defensive line but when the opportunity presented itself the attack was both swift and incisive as a strong pass was whipped into the D and an alert forward nipped in front of his marker and used the pace of the ball to deflect into the corner of the goal. Both goals were exceptionally well taken and Mendip could do little to defend against them but every one of the Mendip players stuck manfully to the job in hand for the remainder of the half and went into the break only 2 – 0 down.
Mendip came out in the 2nd half with nothing to lose and were far more adventurous going forward with both full backs pushing on and supporting down the flanks. Without the benefit of an out and out forward the visitor’s play was very neat and tidy with short passes being interchanged all over the pitch and with little or no expectation they started to enjoy themselves while the hosts became more and more frustrated as time ebbed away. Mendip did ride their luck on occasions and could easily have gone further behind when an excellent passing move finished with a shot whistling past the post but on the whole Leigh in goal had things pretty much under control, making some crucial saves when called upon and man-of-the-match James England was magnificent, not putting a foot wrong all afternoon and was always on hand in the centre of defence to snuff out any danger. As the half went on Mendip’s cavalier style appeared to have the hosts rattled as the individual skills of Oli, Will and James Lovell in particular started to give their defence cause for concern but despite winning a number of short corners the visitors could just not get the goal that would have been the icing on the cake. Having defended like Trojans and stopping Minehead from scoring in open play, midway through the half they finally got their 3rd goal from a short corner and on the balance of play was probably no more than they deserved. To be honest with 2 men short this was a game that Mendip were never going to win but on a positive note at the end every member of the team was absolutely buzzing and it was a thoroughly entertaining and team building experience for all.
The team was: Leigh Taylor, Andy Flint (Capt.), Giles Denning, James England, James Lovell, Oli Beechener, Will Lawton, Liam Young and Steve Smith.
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