Steels 4-0 Retford United

Written by Dakir Thanveer

Stocksbridge Park Steels beat Retford United 4-0 at Bracken Moor in their sixth friendly of the pre-season on Tuesday, 23rd July.

Not even a minute had passed on the clock when the Steels had their first chance of the match. Jack Tinker’s low cross from the left flank found Ashley Butterworth on the edge of the box. The summer signing’s shot then deflected on for a corner, setting the tone for the game.

Less than two minutes later, Stocksbridge netted their opener via a thumping left-footed finish by Danny Deakin from the centre of the box. The move started with centre-back Alex Phillipson, who played a pinpoint through ball to Jack Haslam, allowing the striker to set the goal up for Deakin.

Alex O’Connor came close to doubling the lead after Tommy Marshall set him up for a close-range goal. However, the midfielder’s shot was straight at the Badgers goalkeeper Jonathan Hedge. The ball then fell kindly to Tom Charlesworth, whose attempt, though, was wide off target. Hedge tipped the ball over the bar to deny Haslam on another occasion.

It was only a matter of time before Stocksbridge grabbed their second goal of the evening and it eventually came in the 26th minute with centre-back Elliot Owen getting on the scoresheet following a corner. Haslam then got his third goal of the pre-season.

With five minutes still left to play in the first half, the Steels netted their fourth goal through Butterworth, who got on the end of a sublime cross from Kurtis Turner.

With the Steels in the driving seat, stand-in manager Peter Goldstraw made three changes at the start of the second half. Henry Hampshaw replaced Harry Garman in goal, while Declan Childes and Trialist A came on for Turner and Deakin.

The home side picked up right where they left off as Chiles immaculately played O’Connor through on goal. It would have been 5-0 for the Steels if it was not for an exceptional save from Hedge.

Meanwhile, Kyle Austin, Dan Nelson, Dan Hernandez and Luca Defalco replaced Tinker, Owen, Marshall and Butterworth around the 70-minute mark.

The trialist then left the Bracken Moor crowd in awe with a brilliant bit of footwork inside the box before having a shot, which, in the end, was well off target. Defalco joined the party as he produced sublime skills of his own before having a go on goal, but was unfortunate to have his shot blocked. The ball fell to O’Connor, whose first-time attempt from the edge of the box was saved by the goalkeeper.

Despite the number of chances in the second half, the scoreline remained 4-0 when the final whistle blew.