Denaby United – Denaby 2 Notts Forest Reserves 1 – 1,875 Gate

August 1947

South Yorkshire Times August 30, 1947

1,875 Gate for Denaby Curtain Raiser

Denaby United 2 Notts Forest reserves 1

feature of this curtain raiser for a gate of 1875 at Tickhill Square on Saturday was the strength of Denaby’s halfback line, notably Osborne. They had a tight grip of things from the kick-off and their rare sorties for a generally crowded out.

Forest more serious threat came after half time when Denaby, who had forced a hard pace in the first, seem to lose the initiative and with it their earlier cohesion.

Even later in the game, Forest, too, lost their newfound effectiveness, and generally there was much beginning of season flavour about the afternoon.

It was not as decisive a victory as it might have been. The Denaby left-wing found a way to goal which Coward and Windle often exploited to excellent purpose, but there was no serious threat to Williams, the Nottingham goal, and totemic to the game gone, and Jack Williams blazed in a kick from 30 yards out with his namesake held, but dropped.

Windle gave Denaby the lead by snapping in an opportunist goal after eight minutes, seizing on a loose ball from a melee in the Nottingham goal and pushing it well past Williams. Denaby lead at half-time by that goal and increase the lead to 10:02 minutes of the second when Moses was brought down and Wright scored effortlessly from a penalty kick.

Four minutes later Leverton, the Nottingham inside left in the true spirit of enterprise chased an apparently lost cause, beat Williams to a clearance and pushed the ball past Urien from only a yard or two out.

Features of note this half were an astonishing escape for the Nottingham goal and an even more remarkable one for Denaby.

Windle swung the ball in from the wing and the Nottingham goalkeeper held a short but dropped the ball. Wright, there in the centre, made a second scoring attempt, but again the goalkeeper saved, diving low and pushing the ball out. Again Wright endeavoured to get the ball over the line, but as it rolled Clarke rushed across to clear on the line.

Discount for generals when Nottingham were awarded a penalty for a foul on Leverton. The goal would have been a point saver, but Mee blazed so wide away that the ball must have finished somewhere in the region of the corner flag!