Mousehole 0-2 Frome
Frome are so far ahead at the top of Division One South of the Southern League that they are practically in the Northern Section. Even the teams in the play-off zone are having to use binoculars to see them. Ahead of this game they had lost only twice. For Mousehole, hovering dangerously close to the relegation zone, this was probably the last opposition they would have chosen to face after the miserable night at Willand.
Whilst ultimately the result brought no more points into the Mousehole pot, it was actually a performance that reminded everyone; staff, players and fans, that we have a team who, on their day, can compete with the best. The fact that ‘their day’ has been too rare this season is not something to dwell on till the season’s end because this performance could possibly be the catalyst to a solid end of the campaign that may see relegation avoided.
The first half was one of few chances, only eight in total and only two of them on target. That the majority of those fell to Frome was not a surprise. What was unexpected was that the apocryphal neutral visitor from Mars would have had trouble working out which team was the table topper and which had neck ache from looking over their shoulder.
Where the performance against Willand lacked spine, endeavour and energy, this was a match where every Mousehole player stood up to be counted. In fact, the best chance was probably Mousehole’s and it came with moments to go before half time. With a free kick on the left the box was crowded like a Premier League corner. Jack Calver suddenly ran away from the melee to the edge of the box to receive a pass from Turner. He whipped his left foot at but a bobble sent it wildly wide. A neat move.
The match was decided in a crazy four minute spell either side of seventy minutes.
After sixty-eight minutes Frome took the lead. A long cross from their left flew a long way to the far post where substitute Dave Duru found space by pushing Sullivan in the back. Was it a foul? No one appealed and Sullivan didn’t go to ground so the referee didn’t have a decision to make. Duru controlled the cross with one touch then hammered it past Chenoweth from close range.
Two minutes later Frome doubled their lead. The Frome winger skipped past our skipper and laid the ball back to his full back. He floated a cross to the back post where two Frome players stood in not so splendid isolation. Either could have put it way but it only needed one.
Mousehole have come back from situations like this before but any chance of that disappeared a minute later when James Ward was sent for an early shower within seconds of the restart. It was the result of the perennial undoing of the team this season; the long straight ball from the other half. On this occasion it flew high and straight towards Ward and Duru. Ward was ahead of Duru when they seemed to tangle arms. Who initiated the contact was unclear but the referee deemed that Ward had pulled Duru back and prevented a goal scoring opportunity, or DOGSO as it is known. Ward trudged off and took with him any hopes left for a point in this game.
Mousehole battled valiantly on but the gulf was now too much to overcome and so the 2026 undefeated home run came to an end. A disappointing result but an encouraging performance.
