Entrance = £4
Programme = £1
Tea = 50p
Total = £5-50
Nearly 2 years ago, I came to Swallownest's ground for a league cup Quarter-final against Handsworth. On that cold January day, Swallownest triumphed after a header in extra time from 'Rhino'. Today again pitted these two local clubs against each other, and I couldn't resist the short drive to the 'Swal Siro' for this one.
The ground has developed significantly since my last visit. Previously, there was a blue rope marking the edge of the pitch; now there was the standard white fence-cum-pole as a more solid boundary. Whereas before there was an opening into some trees at the far end, there was now a fence enclosing the football ground. And of course, the tiny detail key to an evening game is that the ground now has fully functioning flooodlights. In fact, I believe that this evening's match may have been the first under lights here. I understand that Swallownest have ambitions to reach the NCEL, which would be fantastic as they are pretty local to me, and would expand the growing power-base of clubs in South Yorkshire. Handsworth, in contrast, are already in the NCEL, playing their games at Worksop's Sandy Lane. This should be an intriguing clash tonight.
The first 40ish minutes saw a very evenly weighted match. Handsworth looked superior initially, but Swallownest had clearly come with a game plan. This mainly involved containing the away side, before moving the ball quickly via some swift counter-attacking. Early on they tested the Handsworth defence when a shot had to be cleared off the line at the far end. Then they somehow rattled the cross-bar after the ball had taken a wicked deflection. They were holding their own. Handsworth, as ever, looked bright, sparky and creative, but seemed well-matched for once. 10 was at the centre of the action, when he landed up in a 3-man scrum when driving forward, and fired wide after a cross was cleared away. This was an even clash, and I thought that if the 'Swallows' (is that their nickname?) could get to the break intact, we could have an intriguing second half. Just as the thought had occured, Handsworth rattled the home cross-bar with a fierce shot, the ball bouncing on the line. Agonisingly for the home side, Handsworth's Whittington managed to get his head to the ball to make it 1-0.
The goal would prove to be crucial. I had barely taken up my place on the terraces near the dug-outs when Handsworth's Smith made it 2-0 on 48 minutes. A goal either side of half-time was really a killer when an underdog was seeking out any sniff of a chance. The floodgates opened. Handsworth's Whittington scored his second of the game to make it 3-0, before Travis finally grabbed a deserved goal. All of this happened before 60 minutes was on the clock! The main event of the second half was when the referee pulled up, and looked to have pulled a hamstring/groin. Despite the short break, Handsworth were not put off and did not take their foot off the gas. Their fifth arrived when 7 scored a terrific top corner goal from inside the box, and six came when 16 headed in after a great cross. Another Handsworth sub joined in the fun when he tapped in a low cross. Amazingly, Swallownest somehow prevented further damage and made it to full-time 'only' at 7-0.
I suspect this defeat will hurt for many years to come, but equally this could be their equivalent of Manchester United's 4-0 thrashing in the Nou Camp, which was a watershed moment, perhaps their biggest lesson, on their way to European success. I hope that Swallownest continue to develop as fast as they have done in the 2 years since my last visit, and believe that one day we may see a more tightly fought match between two of the city's best non-league clubs.
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