Jamie Chandler’s side continued their impressive pre-season form in a packed afternoon on Super Saturday at the Brewery Field. The day saw Moors, Hebburn Town and Newcastle U21s taking part in shortened round-robin matches before the heroes of 2013 replayed their FA Vase final against Tunbridge Wells, undaunted by the intermittent, inclement weather.
After having watched the young Magpies play out a goalless draw with Hebburn in the opening match of the day, the lads took to the field to comfortably beat the up-and-coming, talented Newcastle side.
Just eight minutes in to the 25-minute game, the Moors opened the scoring with a brilliant finish from Will Harris – who notched his first goal for the club in fashionable style. Following a beautiful Glen Taylor back flick, the number 7 latched onto the open ball and slid it across the keeper into the bottom corner for 1-0.
Next, succeeding on from their early goal, Moors continued to press, growing in confidence as the team, assembled of both experienced and prodigious players, began to see more and more of the ball; their dominance eventually rewarded with a second goal to settle the contest.
Glen Taylor’s intelligent movement aided him in receiving the ball on the left flank, providing the striker with the ability to whip in a teasing cross which fellow veteran Rob Ramshaw tapped in to put a Moors win beyond any reasonable doubt.
Both Taylor and Ramshaw will be aiming for a visit to the play-offs this season – as manager Jamie Chandler suggested after the matches – saying the team were working “exceptionally hard and at a really high standard”.
The team then added to their ever-growing collection of pre-season successes, overcoming Hebburn and getting revenge after the team’s penalty defeat in the Challenge Cup final with a second 2-0 win.
Post a scrappy opening half-hour, Spennymoor took the lead just before half-time with an impeccable strike from Mark Anderson, whose shot ricocheted off the inside of the post from just outside the penalty area.
Chandler’s side further maintained their attacking flair, eventually grabbing another goal to double the scoreline four minutes after the break when Connor Shanks was the quickest to react to the rebound after his initial shot was saved.
Moors went on to retain their clean sheet, as their trialist keeper shut out a softly-awarded penalty with a superb dive to his right-hand side – delighting fans as the current team finished the day with two wins out of two.
A stoked atmosphere then began to filter through the Brewery Field off the back of the victories, parallel to the build-up to the all-important exhibition match, which certainly did not disappoint.
The game started lively, when just 80 seconds in a treacherous ball played across the 6-yard box was turned into his own net by the Tunbridge Wells defender. It was a disappointing start for the team who had held out for a good while longer ten years prior.
As the match progressed, it continued to excite, with a Lewis Dodds pass going straight to the Wells forward who was unable to convert being accompanied by a flurry of Spennymoor chances crafted by current manager Jamie Chandler (who adorned the shirt of Keith Graydon in his absence) and various shouts for Gavin Cogdon to reveal his famous handstand celebration which only fuelled the game’s pacey tempo.
Contrary to Moors attacking focus, however, it was the visitors who scored next, as Andy Irvine prodded home a low driven cross eight minutes prior to the end before dispatching his own rendition of Cogdon’s famous handstand, albeit with the assistance of three of his teammates.
Great saves at either end managed to keep the score level, and despite the referee’s best efforts to avoid a shootout (adding on six additional minutes), the match was decided on penalties.
Tunbridge Wells were unable to convert their opening two, giving Gavin Cogdon and Daniel “Bobby” Moore the opportunity for the lads to race into a two-penalty lead, which, contrary to the team from Kent’s best efforts, were key to the Moors victory, replicating their win a decade on as Wells were unable to overcome the deficit.
Before the game, Chandler mentioned Bobby’s disappointment after he had missed out on the final (despite being captain) due to a broken leg and was happy to see him take on the Southern side even at the expense of a 90000-seater stadium.
Looking ahead to the start of the season, the team has set its goals high. Off the back of an agonisingly close play-off miss last time out, and prompted by the relative success of Chandler’s first season in charge, the manager told Spennymoor News in a post-match interview that “everybody in that changing room wants to be successful”.
Enhanced with six recent signings, it points to an exciting upcoming campaign for the Moors. With just two and a half weeks until the side travels to Banbury for the season opener, the sky is certainly the limit for this Moors team.
Spennymoor's local community newspaper.
