A three-goal blitz in
the final fifteen minutes of the first half ultimately saw Royal Albert to
Essex Sunday Corinthian West Essex Charity Trophy success after victory over
Walthamstow Avenue at Oakside, completing a cup double in the process.
Albert had come into this final off a fifth placed finish in
Division Two of the Corinthian League and had also won the Essex Sunday Junior
Trophy in early April, so they were going for a second Trophy of the campaign.
For Avenue, they finished seventh and some twelve points behind
their opponents in the same Division, but an average season could be turned
into a decent one with cup success here.
Albert though were probably the favourites prior to a ball being kicked.
The game started rather quietly and the first effort at goal
didn’t arrive until the tenth minute when Avenue fired an effort over, but they
came so close to taking the lead when a defender diverted the ball onto his own
post from close range soon after.
Albert then went down the other end and fired a long-range
effort over, before they got into a good position inside their opponents’ box
but could only slice an effort wide of the near post.
Avenue then went down the other end and saw the Albert
keeper make a decent stop before getting up to stop the ball going over the
line, but Avenue then saw their keeper have to come off after being poked in
the eye from an attacker when challenging for a forward ball.
After a five-minute delay the keeper was replaced, and this
seemed to affect Avenue who fell behind almost immediately after the restart as
a corner was turned home from close range just past the half hour mark.
And only three minutes later Albert were awarded a penalty
after a foul inside the box, and they converted this chance to double their
lead. Albert were now well on the front
foot and almost made it three when a cutback was sent wide of the near post,
but right on half time it was three when a corner to the near post was flicked in
by an unfortunate defender and the favourites had a three-goal cushion at the
break.
Half Time Walthamstow
Avenue 0 Royal Albert 3
Avenue knew they needed the next goal to try and get back into
this contest, and they immediately sent an effort towards the Albert goal, but
it was straight at the keeper, before Albert lofted just wide at the other end
as they looked to end this contest once and for all.
Avenue then saw a cross back flicked towards goal, but again
it was straight at the keeper, before they then failed to convert a corner in a
spell that saw Avenue applying plenty of pressure on the Albert goal.
The Albert keeper then almost gifted Avenue a goal back when
his sloppy clearance hit an attacker and went into the side netting rather then
the goal itself, before Avenue then flashed a corner across the six-yard box
but saw no one manage to get on the end of it.
Sure enough though, after all the Avenue pressure, Albert
went up the other end and netted a fourth to pretty much seal the contest just
past the hour mark, when a ball forward was controlled and then brilliantly
volleyed into the far corner. It was
tough on Avenue who should have had at least a goal back by that point.
Albert then sent a dangerous ball into the box which was
just about punched clear by the keeper, and from that corner a loose ball was
blocked by a defender, before Albert then flashed an effort wide of the far
post as they looked for a fifth.
With eight minutes remaining though, Avenue did find a goal
back to show for their efforts, when a quick free-kick caught out the Albert
defence and allowed an effort to be fired into the far corner via the keepers
foot, and they almost found a second soon after when they saw a goal bound
effort blocked before the loose ball was somehow fired over. If that had gone in who knows what could have
happened?
Albert though were dangerous in attack too and almost added
a late fifth when a close-range header was kept out, but Albert took the spoils
in this one to complete a cup double for the season.
Full Time Walthamstow
Avenue 1 Royal Albert 4
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