PICS: Pinnacle
UEFA REGIONS CUP
INTERMEDIARY ROUND – GROUP 2
ENGLAND (Isle of Man League) 2 SCOTLAND (East, West, Central Region) 0
Tuesday 23 September 2014
At: The National Sports Centre, Poprad, Slovakia
ENGLAND'S representatives in the UEFA Regions Cup, the Isle of Man League, got their campaign off to a winning start with a 2-0 victory over the “Auld Enemy” on a damp afternoon in the Slovakian town of Poprad. The win puts them on top of the group after one game.
With Germany defeating the hosts Slovakia 2-1 earlier in the day the side knew that only a victory would do to keep their hopes on track and they got off to a perfect start when Josh Kelly scored on five minutes following good work by Lee Gale.
The Manxmen kept up the pressure and should have added to their lead as the half progressed but the Scots were not to be taken lightly and they clawed their way back into the game with Goodwin, Currie and Wightman all have efforts off target but with half time approaching Ciaran McNulty converted a Connor Doyle free kick to settle the nerves.
It was an ideal time to score and came as a huge blow to the Scots who had been in the game throughout the first 45 minutes. The stats would shore a fairly even half but the score line put England firmly in the driving seat.
The second half began with Scotland pushing forward looking to get themselves back into the game and forced a couple of corners and almost pulled a goal back on 58 minutes but McVey's shot was well saved by Max Thomas in the England goal, turning the ball away for a corner.
The half developed into a fairly even affair with each side having opportunities to score with Fletcher going close for Scotland on a couple of occasions and both Doyle and Chris Bass having chances at the other end but there were no further goals and the Manxmen held on and kept a clean sheet which could prove vital as the tournament progresses.
With both England and Germany picking up wins on Match Day 1 it sets up Thursday's clash between the two as a huge opportunity for either to stake a claim for a place in next June's finals. England have never reached the Final and this year could just be the time to break that duck.
After the game team manager Steve Burns said that he was delighted with the performance of the team.
“We are delighted to get off to such a great start but, it is only a start and there is much still to achieve during the week but it does set us up for the match against Germany on Thursday,” Burns said.
“I thought that we were exceptional in the first half and overall we did not concede much during the game maybe we could have taken more of our chances but overall it was a great start.”
Team: Max Thomas, Julian Ringham, Stephen Riding (replaced by Chris Bass 65 mins), Andy Crennell, Johnny Myers, Marc Kelly, Conor Doyle, Frank Jones, Lee Gale (replaced by Jack McVey 72 mins), Ciaran McNulty (replaced by Liam Cowin 87 mins), Josh Kelly – Subs Not Used; Karl Clark, Sam Holiday, Dan Bell and Mark Wolfenden.
