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Forget last Saturday's Junior Cup final, this trip to fellow strugglers Village was potentially the biggest game of the season to date. As expected, there was plenty of talent on show. Wulfs drafted in Liam Evans and Mark Tipton while Village gave a run out to Matt Baldwin, Carson Tweedie and Steve Marfleet. It all pointed towards a fantastic game and the flocking crowds certainly weren't let down.
The early exchanges saw Wulfs make a couple of raids into enemy territory but it was Village who created the better chances with two tantalising balls across the face of goal, one of which was graciously spurned by Wulfs old boy Tweedie.
The quality of football belied the lowly status of both teams as each passed the ball around probingly, only to be met by solid defending.
Wulfs first creditable chance came on twenty-five minutes when Chris Tranter fed the ball forward to Martin Dalton who produced a sublime flick through to Luke Oliver but his shot was deflected straight into the keeper's arms.
Six minutes later a slip by Mark Tipton allowed Steve Marfleet in with a run at goal but he was expertly closed down by goalkeeper Tristan Stephens who smothered the shot well.
Two minutes later, and back at the other end of the pitch, Adam Woodhall sent a long pass forward, Ben Kimpton knocked the ball down in to the path of Luke Oliver and he fired a shot narrowly wide of the post.
Village should have taken the lead on the stroke of half time. A slight hesitation in defence allowed Marfleet to nip in with a sight of goal but he was too indecisive and the defenders managed to recover sufficiently to snuff out the danger.
At half time playmaker Brendon Turner was forced to leave the field due to a pulled buttock and was replaced by James Lane. Any thoughts that the quality of play may drop with the substitution of the Elvis look-a-like were dispelled a minute into the second half when Wulfs took the lead in scintillating fashion. A Village corner was headed clear by Jamie Perkins and Ben Kimpton picked up the loose ball. He held it up before laying back to Liam Evans who fed the ball on to James Lane. Laney then squared for Shane Evans to slam the ball home and set off on a celebratory routine that included all of his team mates, the linesman and the corner flag. It was a devastating break that saw Wulfs turn defence into attack in the blink of an eye. Possibly the best team goal I have witnessed all season.
Village refused to lie down and almost leveled on fifty-four minutes when Marfleet chased a long ball over the top before producing a fine piece of skill and then firing a shot just wide as Tristan Stephens narrowed the angle well.
Four minutes later Wulfs chased goal number two when good work by Luke Oliver allowed Ben Kimpton to fire a shot goalwards but it deflected wide of the post.
Wulfs did increase their lead on sixty-two minutes and again it came from some good build up play. Martin Dalton received a throw in ten yards from the Village by-line and cut between two defenders before feeding in to Liam Evans who danced past one man before cutting back for James Lane to fire low into the corner of the net.
With the three points now as good as secured, Wulfs were able to coast through the final half hour and almost extended their lead two minutes from time with an all Evans affair. Shane picked the ball up just inside his own half and set off on a forceful run down the left wing before squaring across goal agonisingly too far ahead of brother Liam.
All-in-all it was a tremendous performance from the second XI and a vital three points in their quest for first division safety. Luke Oliver excelled up front in a menacing partnership with Ben Kimpton, Martin Dalton produced an all action display in midfield and Tristan Stephens did all that was required of him between the posts. In fact everyone played to their full potential.
Final score: Village 0 Old Wulfrunians 2.
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