27.04.10 - SUPERB MURPHY DENIES SOUTHGATE AS THE MENS 3RDS FORESTERS WIN DIVISIONAL CUP:
League Champions Southgate found their way to a League and Cup Double blocked by a Foresters side determined to exact revenge for the disappointment of missing out on a promotion spot in the Divisional Cup Final held at the Champions Trent Park ground last Sunday. Although the Foresters had an early chance of opening the scoring in the first minute with a drive which went high and wide, it was free scoring Southgate who came closest to scoring in the fifth minute, only to be denied by the first of several great Murphy saves. The next minute, the Foresters were at the other end failing to convert two short corners. Whilst the game lacked the edge of the League game of two weeks ago it was abundantly clear that both sides badly wanted to win a match played in the unusually warm April weather. On 11 minutes, Southgate won two short corners which were both cleared by the resolute Foresters’ defence and on the quarter hour forced Murphy into another great save as he found himself in a one on one situation with a Southgate striker. In some ways this was the turning point in the match as the Foresters raced to the Southgate end with a lightning counter attack and top scorer Gunn fired home, beating the home keeper on his near post from a seemingly impossible angle (1 – 0). Murphy was again called upon on 23 minutes when he produced a splendid double reflex save to deny again the Southgate strikers, whose profligacy in front of goal was punished again on 27 minutes as Gunn released Monteith who gleefully fired home (2 - 0). The Foresters were now very much in the ascendancy and should have increased their lead on 29 minutes from another short corner. However, the lead was duly extended on 31 when Monteith continued his impressive recent scoring run for the Foresters when he forced the ball home from short range (3 – 0). There was still time for further heroics from Murphy on 33 minutes when he casually gloved away another goal bound strike from the home side.
The match was effectively killed off as a contest on 43 minutes when Max Kempe coolly rounded the Southgate keeper to extend the lead for the visitors for a final time (4 – 0). The Southgate heads understandably seemed to go down as they were reduced to desultory counter attacks which were on the whole repulsed by the Foresters’ defence. The best Southgate chances came from three short corners which were beaten away by the Foresters who themselves also enjoyed further short corner goal scoring opportunities which were not converted. As the final whistle blew, Southgate came face to face with their first home defeat of the season. Meanwhile, the Men’s 3rds Foresters celebrated a Divisional Cup Final success which came exactly 10 years after their previous Cup win, strangely also by exactly the same score line. Only time will tell whether the next Foresters Divisional Cup success will have to wait until 2020!
» Click here to return to news index.
