Denaby Utd – Denaby 0 Long Eaton 1 – Denaby Slip to Defeat

January 1965

Denaby Slip to Defeat

Denaby United 0, Long Eaton 1

On a day when icy conditions apparently forbade good football, Denaby United turned in a confident and sure-footed display before a pitifully small Boxing Day crowd . . . then slipped to defeat as Long Eaton scored the only goal of the game three minutes from the final whistle.

Throughout the match, Denaby wisely tried to move the ball as much and as accurately as possible, though the rock-hard ground made this a difficult task, especially in the second half. With the whole forward line continually on the move, Denaby impressed their own pace on the game, and for most of the time held Lon Eaton in their own half. Finally Smith, Hanby, Woodger, and even centre-half Hinton, all had scoring chances which were either foiled by a last ditch Long Eaton effort, or well saved by keeper Taylor.

But Denaby themselves found the difficulties of turning from attack to defence quickly in these conditions, and were caught on the hop at least four times by Long Eaton counter-attacks. Twice – in the 46th and 85th minutes – centre forward Birbeck hit the post, largely it seems to Bolwell’s quick covering which gave the centre forward a much narrower area of goal to aim at.

But in the last of these attacks, three minutes from time, Bolwell was stranded after diving at the feet of the Long Eaton attack. With the rest of the defence at sixes and sevens, NIGHTINGALE found himself on the line with the ball at his toes and it was all over.

As individuals United could not be accused of slacking – they never can. Hinton, Hanby and Woodger put in bags of hard work backing up a lively forward line which is beginning to make greater use of a newly-arrived right winger Riley, who obviously has plenty of talent to offer Denaby.
One of the main Denaby faults on Saturday seemed to be wild clearances from defence – Wroe in particular was guilty.

DENABY: Bolwell 7, Wroe 6, Harvey 7, Woodger 7, Hinton 8, Hanby 7, Riley 7, Smith 7, Kelly 5, Whittaker (T) 7, Whittaker (D) 7.
LONG EATON: Taylor, Gee, Martin, Vallance, Halford, Metcalfe, Brown, Jordan, Birbeck, Nightingale, Blount.