Prior to going to the ground though we had a walk at Victoria Park with the birds fed, counted and recorded and a good brew enjoyed in the local cafe. The weather played fair for once and the stroll was mighty pleasant, we even spied a couple of fungi, one of which was the Wolf-Fart Puffball (Lycoperdon pyriforme). I have never seen a wolf expel its anal gas but I have known a few Jack Russell's to make a reek from the rectum and so am campaigning for a fungus name-change - The Jack Russel Shit-Arse Spore Shooter would look grand in many mycological tomes and would be one many a punter on my walks would surely remember.
And to the ground, we arrived, paid our fees, purchased a couple of choccy bars and I had another coffee and a pie. The pie was delectable, this will be my last one for a few months as I am aiming to drop a few pounds. The coffee was akin to a liquid version of the aforementioned shroom although I guzzled it down due to the fact that it was warm - by heck it was a shocker.
With seats taken a decent crowd built up (a darting 180 I believe) and the teams came out. The desire was for a footballing masterclass with oodles of goals, what we got instead was thus:-
The early state of play saw two teams indulge in an examination process of the opposing force with retainment of the ball very much the key priority. Clitheroe eventually won a corner from nothing with the ball posted and No 9 (Sefton Gonzales) putting too much head-beef on the sphere and sending it over the horizontal. Widnes began to push next, No 2 (Louis Isherwood) knocked a choice ball forth that needed some alert defending. A throw followed, some decent movement ensued but the guests remained disciplined and suppressed the danger.
Clitheroe were the next team to raise levels of hope with an advancement that saw No 11 (Veron Parny) cross, the ball get nudged away only for No 10 (Ross Dent) to latch onto and have a dig. The effort was sadly deflected wide. The resultant corner was abysmal. Clitheroe soon came again, No 2 (Jacob Hanson) out wide put in a fair cross that Gonzales collared. With good muscle the striker shrugged off his marker and let fly a shot that the home No 1 (Cameron Terry) did well to save in his bottom corner. The hoof from the angle was decent but Widnes resisted any penetration.
As the hosts stuttered along the best they could muster was a free-kick that was duly wasted by a rotten shot over the bar. Clitheroe were having a lot of the ball but were a trifle negative in the approach whilst the home team kept up a good work rate to make sure their defending remained watertight. Alas the two teams were not wearing watertight clothing and got a good soaking as the Heavens opened and the liquid misery fell with relentless insistence.
The game now seemed to be dragging until Widnes advanced, a superb cross found the nut of No 10 (Sean Miller) who put in a good header that was wonderfully saved. A quick break followed, Gonzales was at the apex of matters and after negotiating an inch of space, he fired and found the back of the onion bag - 0 -1 and on the balance of play it was deserved.
The half-time came soon after with little else to report. The main gripe with the game is that there were too many passes made by both teams that were going the wrong way. Back, back and back and this, combined with a lack of creativity wasn't making for the greatest spectacle - hey ho, sometimes a clash of styles can kill the greatest sources of potential.
Half two began with the rain hammering down and a few hardy Widdy fans striving to cultivate a tune or two. Their team certainly needed the encouragement and had to up their game. The initial battling was good from both units with the resident pack putting together some good passing that was testing the Clitheroe resolve. Despite this, the visitors always looked the most likely to score with the point nearly proven when Veron Parney released Dent who had a pop at goal but couldn't keep his shot down.
Widnes made a few subs before a long ball saw No 3 (Matty Rain) have a chance to finish but who chose to cross instead. No 15 (Matt Van Wyk) connected, the ball flew way off target but was retrieved, crossed and duly hoofed away. No 16 for Widdy (Steve Milne) put in a positive run next with a punt at the net moving in the bracing air. The No 1 (Burton) kept his peepers on matters and pushed away well. Soon after the hosts came again, a ball into the box laden with players saw the globe saved and then Van Wyk turning home to get the game back to all square.
With just over a quarter of an hour to play the game was up for grabs although my pre-match prediction of 1-1 was looking good. Half chances came and went, the clock ticked away, into the last 5 we went when, Widnes became a trifle static, a long Clitheroe ball was played with Gonzales in the right place at the right time and from the edge of the box sending a looping header over the befuddled keeper. It was an out of the blue moment, a real gift and, as it turned out, the winning goal. The referee blew for time, we headed home and pondered. Man of the Match must go to the 2 goal hero (Stefan Gonzales) who did what he set out to do, held the ball up, be a pain in the oppositions conkers and get a couple of goals - it is as simple as that (well so it seems). The rain was still pouring come the end of the game, I suspect this wouldn't bother the away fans as much as the home 'erberts - hey ho, a New Year awaits.
FINAL THOUGHTS - A big stadium, but still a good Non-League game can be viewed for a fair price. Today both teams nullified each other with very few chances made. It was always going to be a close game and perhaps, on reflection, Clitheroe did deserve it. I can't make too many comments about either unit as I haven't seen them before during this campaign but I would suggest they do need to work harder off the ball and make sure their aim is to attack, attack and attack rather than ponder too much and end up playing back to their own goal. These are merely personal thoughts from a punter who just likes to see a fair few games here and there and who appreciates all that goes into keeping this game alive. 2024 is just around the corner, best wishes to both clubs and their staff, I hope we can get back here in 2024 and when we do I am opting for a cup of tea instead of a coffee and expect the pies to be as good as ever - tis all about priorities.
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