Denaby Utd – Worksop Town 0 Denaby 2 – Denaby’s Luck

January 1906

Mexborough & Swinton Times January 13, 1906

Worksop Town 0 Denaby United 2

At Worksop. Denaby kicked off with the wind in their favour. Play at the opening was very fast. Denaby forced a corner early on, and Scott was twice called upon to clear.

Coal, at the other end, struck the crossbar with a fast shot Panama got to close quarters, and appeared certain to score, but the leather stuck in the mud, and Hancock cleared. Lindley had a run on his own on the extreme right, and Scott had to leave his charge to the clear.

Tomkins was pulled up for offside when dangerously near the home goal. Hall found the net, but was ruled off side. Notwithstanding the heavy nature of the ground, the football shown was the very best, the passing of the Denaby team being very neat. Half-time arrived with no score.

On resuming, the play was again equal for a time, but at last Denaby got close in, and as Scott had left his goal Tomkins had no difficulty in heading a goal. This appeared to take the steam out of the home team, and just before the call of time Scott left his goal again and let in Lavery, who placed Denaby further ahead.

Denaby’s Luck.

No one begrudges Denaby their fine record in the Midland League, and if they succeed in disturbing the tenure of the championship set up by the Sheffield reserve teams, all South Yorkshire will rejoice, but it cannot be denied that they have met with more than the ordinary luck of mortals in some of their matches.

On New Year’s Day, for example, they were fortunate not to have been beaten by Mexborough, and on Saturday they were lucky to beat Worksop just on the post. True, they proved the better team all through the piece, but they were opposed to a good goalkeeper of more than ordinarily merit, who in addition to his skill, was enjoying his day out, and do what they would Denaby could not beat him.

When 85 minutes of the game had gone it looked all Lambert Street to a china orange on a draw, for the Denaby attack was wearing itself out, and there was no mortal reason why Scott, who had kept goal marvellously, should suddenly fail. That was where Denaby’s luck came in. Scott fisted away a shot from Laverley, and the ball hit Tompkins head and went back into the net out of Scott’s reach. From the centre kick Denaby attacked again and before the home defence had recovered from the surprise of the first goal, the ball, after some smart passing, was landed into the rigging again. It was a lucky win.

I don’t say Denaby did not deserve it, because almost all football victories are deserved by the victors, but how many teams that have tried until they are tired of trying, and always in vain, meet with a reward like that when success seems past painful?

Credit must of course be given to Denaby for their their perseverance; it was that which pulled them through, for they did not give over trying while a hope remained and their forlorn hope came off at last. The forwards were not exactly seeming at their best; their anxiety to steal a march on the home defence led to them often being offside, while some of their shooting was not particularly clever. The defence, however was cool, and there was one period of the game when Worksop, for the time being, were having the better of the argument, when the backs and the goalkeeper did excellent work, and in fact, placed it in Denaby’s power to snatch a sensational victory at the close of the game.