1st February 2025
Sporting 87 vs Halesworth Town @ Victory Sports Ground - Bury St. Edmunds
Suffolk & Ipswich League Senior Division (Step 7)
14:30 KO
Free entry
Attendance - approx. 40
Half-time score: Sporting 87 1-1 Halesworth Town
Goals:
Sporting 87: Park - 32'
Halesworth Town: L. Spooner - 45'
Sporting 87: Truter - 87'
Final Score: Sporting 87 2-1 Halesworth Town
With no Thetford Town fixture this weekend, I took the opportunity to check out a new ground, and decided to make the short journey down the A134 to see Sporting 87, who play in Bury St. Edmunds at the Victory Sports Ground, not too far from Nowton Park. Sporting 87 play in the Senior Division of the Suffolk & Ipswich League, or in other the words the top division of this league. Today saw them host Halesworth Town, in a game pitting 7th vs 5th, although the visitors had played fewer games than everyone around them. Either way, looked to be a close and important game for both teams.
It is an impressive set-up at Sporting 87, a large field separated by a line of trees with a host of pitches either side sprawling down the gentle incline. At the top of the incline sits a pavilion complete with a bar, kitchen, toilets and a commanding view of the pitches. I believe that this is also the home of Bury St Edmunds Cricket Club, with the pitches presumably converted back to cricket fields in the summer months.
When getting a much needed cup of tea, I was pleased to see printed programmes on offer and it was a pleasant surprise to hear they were free, programmes are rare at this level in my experience.
Although I'm sure it would have been possible to watch the game at the pavilion, I like to be in the thick of it so I headed down to the pitch. Despite the recent weather, the pitch looked in decent condition with a few softer patches in places. It was also a relatively mild afternoon for this time of year, with a bit of a chilly breeze in the air. Onto the pitch, Sporting 87 lined up in their all navy blue kits, with Halesworth Town in what I presume to be their home black and white stripes.
KEY MOMENTS
SP = Sporting 87
HA = Halesworth Town
18' - SP - A tight start to the game with both defences on top, the first decent chance coming in the 18th minute. Truter receives the ball in the box in space, he has time to control the ball and curl in a strike, but it is headed clear by a defender, behind him the Halesworth keeper had already begun making the dive across so it must have been heading in!
18' - HA - Halesworth Town immediately break, the ball finds the No.10 on the edge of the box, from the right-side of the box he drives a low strike across the goal that is narrowly wide of the far-post.
32' - SP - GOAL (1-0) - A great ball is crossed into the box from the left, Hailstone rises high but the defender gets to the ball first, it drops down perfectly for the supporting Calvin Park and he drills the ball past the Halesworth keeper and into the net, clinical finish to give the hosts the lead!
45' - HA - GOAL (1-1) - Halesworth have long spells with the ball but cannot carve out any chances until just before half-time. The No.11 attacks the left flank and finds the supporting No.3, he runs along the by-line, steps past the defender and with time he picks out Leo Spooner coming in at the far-post and he slides in from close range, perfect time to equalise.
58' - SP - Having absorbed a lot of pressure in the 2nd half, Sporting 87 break with a slick move, Hailstone finds Park, he takes the ball to the edge of the box before chipping the ball into the sprinting Hailstone who had continued his run, he is through on goal, the keeper is out fast but Hailstone is first, he directs the ball towards goal but the keeper gets a touch to send it wide for a corner.
64' - HA - The Halesworth 9 and 11 link-up in the box, the 9 has a chance to shoot and powers in at the near-post, but keeper Moss is equal to it.
67' - HA - The Halesworth 9 pounces on a loose ball at the back, he breaks the tackle and is through on goal, from the right-side of the goal he lashes in a powerful strike, but Moss makes a brilliant diving save to palm the ball away!
69' - HA - The pressure is mounting on the Sporting 87 goal, the Halesworth No.2 crosses in from the right, the 11 is steaming in at the far-post, he slides in at close range but Moss is in the right place to make the stop at the near-post.
87' - SP - GOAL (2-1) - Having weathered the Halesworth pressure Sporting 87 play themselves back into the game, the introduction of pacey forward Ferrell causing the Halesworth back-line a whole host of problems. Sporting 87 are awarded a free-kick in the centre circle, Buckmaster fires in a low floating ball, Hailstone gets control of it and squares to Firrell who shoots, the Halesworth keeper makes the save but the ball drops to Truter who slots it in to see the hosts regain the lead.
Having regained the lead, Sporting 87 were able to close out the game in relative comfort as the visitors began to lose their discipline. Overall this was a great watch, a fiercely competitive game with a bit of needle between the two teams, and plenty of crunching tackles. Halesworth Town are clearly a good side, they looked the most comfortable on the ball and had large periods of dominance. I felt they carved out a lot of good opportunities but were reluctant to shoot at times, allowing the Sporting 87 defence to scramble back and make a lot of great last ditch tackles and interceptions. Sporting 87 were ultimately able to weather the pressure and countered well, with their 2nd half substitutes making a big impact, particularly Will Firrell, whose shot led directly to Truter's winner on the 87th minute, clearly a lucky number for them! I also thought Harry McKeown put in a great captains performance, the centre backs were strong all game and keeper Noah Moss made some fine saves to keep Halesworth out, the one on the 67th minute the pick of the bunch. All-in-all a great afternoon of football at a fine club, I wish them all the best with the rest of their season, and I hope to re-visit one day.
Line-Ups:
SPORTING 87: Noah Moss, Henry Bale, Will Smith, James Buckmaster, Ash Brown, Edward Spampanato, Ewan Hailstone, Harry McKeown (C), Reuben Truter, Calvin Park, James Smith. SUBS: Tom Smith, Will Firrell, Kyle Trautner, Oscar Marshall.
HALESWORTH TOWN: TBA SUBS: TBA
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