MOUSEHOLE 2-0 ILLOGAN RBL
SOUTH WEST PENINSULA LEAGUE, DIVISION 1 WEST
SATURDAY 11TH NOVEMBER 2017
AT TRUNGLE PARC
SEAGULLS PICK UP THE POINTS IN HARD-FOUGHT ENCOUNTER
Mousehole came out on top in this bottom-4 battle on a very windy afternoon, with two second-half goals to continue their good run of form and results.
A scrappy first half was evenly contested but with few periods of quality football in difficult conditions, though both goalkeepers had to be at their best on several occasions.
Mousehole took the initiative in the second half and had the upper hand throughout, with Illogan only once threatening the home goal, a free kick from 25 yards fired harmlessly over by Dominic Bachelor on 88 minutes.
The home side took the lead in the 55th minute when Connor Davey’s forward pass put Calum Elliot in marginally ahead of the visitors’ keeper Scott Attrill, whose challenge was punished by a penalty brutally converted by Matt McIlroy.
The scorer was again in the thick of the action just after the hour, when Illogan centre back Sam Emery’s over-aggressive tackle in midfield and McIlroy’s retaliation saw both players dismissed by referee Rowan Clarke.
Mousehole’s ten men asserted themselves better in the closing half-hour, increasing the lead on 72 minutes when Calum Elliot’s astute pass set up Bradley Wills to take the ball round the keeper and slot in to the empty net.
Attrill then came to Illogan’s rescue with two great saves, tipping Calum Elliot’s chip shot on to the bar on 76 and pushing over substitute Danny Park’s shot on 82.
Mousehole have now lost only once in the last eight games in all competitions, while this win was their fourth in a row and enabled them to climb up to 12th place in the league table, level on 15 points with Dobwalls, Penzance and Elburton Villa whose games were postponed.
This coming Saturday (18th), The Seagulls make the long journey to the east side of Plymouth to face Elburton Villa (3pm), with the hosts having an unexpectedly inconsistent start to the 2017/18 campaign after finishing runners-up to promoted Sticker last season.
This will be Mousehole’s last scheduled away game until 24th February, as they enter a long series of home fixtures at Trungle Parc to compensate for the ground being refurbished and out of action for the first two months of the season.
The forthcoming home games include 11 in the League – starting with the visit of Plymouth Marjon on 25th November, a Cornwall Senior Cup second round tie against Combination side RNAS Culdrose on 2nd December (2pm), and a League Cup third round tie against Premier Division Launceston on 30th December (2pm), not forgetting the much-anticipated Boxing Day morning ‘local derby’ against Penzance (11am).
Team v Illogan: Steve Parker-Billinge, Tyler Tonkin (sub Yeshe Briar, 88), Billy Curtis (captain), Max Hill, Liam Andrew, Jordan Adlard, Calum Elliot, Bradley Wills, Connor Davey (sub Josh Otto, 72), Luke Johnson (sub Danny Park, 79), Matt McIlroy (red card, 61). Other substitutes: Caleb Marsden, Jake Andrew
Scorers: Matt McIlroy (55 pen), Bradley Wills (72).
Referee: Rowan Clarke. Attendance: 55.
