Birkbeck 3 – 3 ITV2

Match Report
Birkbeck 3 – 3 ITV2
Wednesday 18 May 2011, 1-2pm

This was a match that had everything except for the three points Birkbeck were desperately seeking. Still, they can take great heart from a battling performance, and particular the cutting edge in front of goal too rarely seen so far this year.

The team’s pre-match build-up was disrupted when three members of the squad were unexpectedly called to a meeting, prompting a last-minute scramble for players which culminated in injured skipper Schmidt discharging himself from hospital, against medical advice, in order to return to the starting line-up.

The captain had also promoted the match to potential supporters and well-wishers as the final game of the season, at the end of which Birkbeck’s fate would be sealed. Although such tactics were fairly cynical in encouraging several members of staff to give up their hard-earned lunch-break to witness a distinctly non-climactic end-of-season game, the plan certainly worked, and for once Birkbeck could benefit from occasional words of encouragement from the sidelines (beyond manager Parrott’s stirring rhetoric, which was present here, as it is before, during and after every match that Birkbeck play).

Not for the first time this season, Birkbeck started brightly, but for once they also managed to take the lead. Late arrival Nduka had already hit the post with an early effort when he turned the ITV2 defender with ease and raced through to hammer home an emphatic finish.

The Birkbeck centre-forward caused problems throughout, although he was arguably isolated during a first half in which ITV2 had plenty of possession, leaving Birkbeck to counter on the break. Solid defensive work kept clear-cut ITV2 chances to a minimum, but they eventually secured an equaliser when a well-struck shot from an angle snuck in at the near post.

Without wanting to dispute the legality of the equaliser, it’s worth pointing out that the goals at Coram Fields are currently in a state of disrepair, characterised by leaky netting, and from where this correspondent was standing it seemed very difficult to tell whether the shot had actually gone in or not. Goalkeeper Jennings later admitted that he hadn’t been sure, but having observed his captain’s patented reaction of fury to conceding a goal (memorably described later as the “f-jesus”) he assumed that it must have been legitimate.

And wouldn’t you know it, when ITV2 took the lead early in the second half, it was in much the same fashion. With perhaps the exception of long-departed stalwart Magnoff, you could hardly hope for a more fearsome advocate of your case during a dispute than the Birkbeck skipper, and his acceptance of the second goal was once again interpreted as a signal for any colleagues to drop any raised eyebrows at the ITV2 celebrations and accept that the team were behind.

Remarkably, though, Birkbeck refused to let their heads drop, and came storming back into the match. Nduka, Walters, Guest and newcomer Garmon ap Garth were forming a potent attacking combination, causing problems for the ITV2 defence, which was eventually breached when Walters slammed home a right-foot shot to bring Birkbeck back into the game.

Before long, Birkbeck had the lead again, with the same players again combining to present ap Garth with a simple tap-in with the goal at his mercy. Sensing that they needed to make the most of their attacking pressure rather than sit back and invite a talented ITV2 team to force their way back into the match, Birkbeck went in search of a two-goal cushion and came close on a number of occasions. Unfortunately, though, the equaliser eventually materialised when an ITV2 attacker made the most of some space on the edge of the box to chip home a classy finish.

Although the final result was perhaps slightly disappointing, this was an encouraging performance from Birkbeck, and if it can be repeated during the final three matches of the season, the team will surely find a way out of their current predicament and secure their survival in the top-flight.