Melksham 0 – 0 Mousehole
It has been two hundred and ninety-four days since Mousehole were last involved in a goalless match* and many watching this game will still be wondering how this one stayed nil nil. (*Tavistock, away – 15th Feb)
Melksham came into this fixture on the back of successive victories, the first time they’d achieved this feat this season. Therefore what, couple of weeks ago, would have been a probably victory, became, on paper, another tough away for the Seagulls.
It was at the Meads of Melksham Community Football Stadium on the last day of last season that Mousehole’s hopes of a play-off place finally fell thanks to a two all stalemate. This season has seen the road trips being more productive but as we enter the meaty part of the campaign draws need to be turned in to victories.
Based on the number and quality of chances created in this match by both sides the Xgs were something like 2-2.
Melksham had the best of the early chances as the rain poured down and they even had the ball in the net after twenty minutes. Following a sustained period of pressure the ball fell to one of their forwards on the left hand edge of the box, he miscued his shot but it went straight to a team mate who poked it home. Luckily for the greens and whites the scorer was offside.
Not long after this the Mousehole Tal(lan)isman Mitchell was forced off thanks to a pulled hamstring. He was replaced by Tim Nixon and much to the away fans relief it was Mousehole who started to take control.
Maybe it the scare from the offside goal, or a slight reorganisation but something sparked Mousehole into action and they got a foothold in the game. A Hayden Turner long range effort from a free kick was blocked on its way towards top bins and the resultant corner showed that Mousehole, with a rare midweek off, had been working on set pieces in training. A slick move which saw the ball played in to the feet of an advancing Tim Nixon was defelcted to the edge of the box where Turner struck goalwards* only for it to be well saved by the keeper. (*Redacted by the Set Piece Coach.) Mousehole were now on top and it felt like the momentum they had achieved would see them lead at the break.
With moments to go Mousehole won another corner. It went to the far post where Ward nodded it down to Nixon. He laid it back to Paulo Sousa, back in the starting line-up, and he took a touch and blazed it high over the bar when it was really easy to take time and pass it in to the net.*. Not long after, the whistle went and both sides trudged off with a strange mixture of relief and satisfaction. (*Redacted by Paulo Sousa.)
If honours were shared in the first half, even a neutral would have come away from the second half thinking it was Mousehole who deserved the win. They had the best of the chances starting when Turner blocked the keeper’s clearance and passed to Symons in the box. He took his time, jinked this way and that before unleashing a shot which the keeper did well to save. Melksham meanwhile were limited, by a strong Mousehole backline, to long distance efforts which Ollie Chenoweth dealt with easily.
The closest the Seagulls came was a Turner thunderbolt from distance that smashed the bar but ultimately neither side could break the deadlock. We’ve asked the question before this season; two points dropped or one point gained? Let’s leave it there.
