Saturday 12th September 2015
at the Lawrence Academy, Scunthorpe
Football League Youth Alliance
Scunthorpe United (0) 1
Jack Dyche 76
Mansfield Town (1) 1
Zayn Hakeem 44
Scunthorpe line up:
Ben Ledger, Lewis McMichael, Sonny Shilling, Matt Stockill, Riley Baker, Lewis Butroid (Sam Ebraheem 55), Fortunate Sitole (George Barmby 44), James Dean-Atkinson, Leslie Sackey, Jack Dyche (C), Noel Burdett
Unused subs - Joe Parker, George Henshaw
Stags line up:
Sam Wilson (C), Teddy Bloor, Louis Danquah, Morgan Ratcliffe, Kieran Harrison, Kane Baldwin, Cain Smith, Cameron Healey, Tyler Blake, Tom Marriott (Alistair Smith 78), Zayn Hakeem
Unused subs - Luke Bacon, Charlie Shaw, Henry Brittijn, Surafel Behailu
For the Flickr photo album from this game click HERE
An evenly matched game, saw both sides preserve their unbeaten runs so far this season, on the Lawrence Academy pitch in Scunthorpe.
The draw was just about a fair result, as neither side gave any quarter in an open and competitive encounter.
A group of scouts from Manchester United and the Sheffield league clubs were present to run the rule over the Iron's prolific striker Jack Dyche... and it was Dyche who almost drew first blood, as he headed Leslie Sackey's cross wide of Sam Wilson's goal inside the opening two minutes.
Tyler Blake escaped his marker and went down over Ben Ledger's outstretched arm has the Scunthorpe keeper came off his line to rescue the situation; but the referee was unmoved by the Stags penalty appeals.
Louis Danquah cleared the Iron defence with a cross to the back post from out on the left wing, Zayn Hakeem had timed his run on the defence's blind side well, but his header went just wide of the right hand upright.
Scunthorpe hesitated as they tried to play the ball out of their last third and squandered possession, which gave Tyler Blake the chance to shoot from 20 yards... his speculative effort beat Ledger but crashed against the post.
Scunthorpe picked up their momentum and Noel Burdett tested Wilson from outside the box, but the Stags keeper dealt with it comfortably.
Minutes later, Burdett threatened to break the deadlock again, but he couldn't keep his free kick down and he shot over from 18 yards.
Danquah and Teddy Bloor, both put the home side's defence under pressure with crosses into a crowded goalmouth, but the United defence scrambled the ball to safety.
Former Crystal Palace trainee, Sonny Shilling, came close for Scunthorpe, but blazed his shot from 18 yards narrowly over the crossbar.
Morgan Ratcliffe, Keiran Harrison and Kane Baldwin, were doing well against the highly thought of home forward line, but they were being kept very busy and couldn't let their guard down for a moment.
Tom Marriott gathered the ball twenty yards from goal, worked himself some space and let fly with a shot, that Scunthorpe were grateful to see deflected off of Lewis Butroid and just wide of the post.
Bloor swung the corner kick into the heart of the six yard box, where Hakeem, stood his ground amidst all of the pushing and shoving and turned the ball past Ledger to open the scoring on 44 minutes. 0-1
On the stroke of half time, Marriott held off a challenge and laid the ball sideways to Danquah, who was a whisker away from giving the Stags a two goal interval lead.
HT: Iron 0 v Stags 1
Autumn arrived and the wind picked up in the second half, with the home side playing with it behind their backs.
Mansfield looked strong at the start of the second half, as they pushed forward, looking to consolidate their advantage.
Danquah trouble the home defence again, with a long range ball into the box that moved about all over the place in the stiff breeze.
Marriott was unlucky, as his crisp volley from 15 yards out, flew just wide of the upright.
Blake broke free on the right flank and crossed, but Marriott's downwards 'textbook' header was saved by Ledger at full stretch.
Once again, the Stags attacked through blake, this time down the left, but having made light of several challenges on his forty yard run, he was stopped dead in his tracks with a firm but fair challenge from Riley Baker.
Scunthorpe came back again through Sam Ebraheem, but Marriott blocked his run and Shilling's speculative drive from the loose ball deflected wide.
Ledger pulled off a great save from Hakeem at point blank range, after Marriott and Danquah had created another chance for Mansfield with a slick passing move.
Cain Smith and Cameron Healey, were unsung heroes of the day, digging in deep and battling for every ball in the middle of the park and dropping in to cover for each other. While the defence deserved a special mention for the way they coped with Scunthorpe's forwards, the Stags midfield battled gamely to thwart the Iron's supply lines, while linking up with their own attack.
Dyche went shoulder to shoulder with Harrison, but still managed to get his shot in on target, but Wilson turned the ball away with his outstretched leg.
Scunthorpe had been threatening to get back in the game with Dyche, Butroid and George Barmby all having gone close, while Wilson and Harrison kept them at bay.
On 76 minutes, the equaliser came from a set piece at the other end. Harrison narrowly failed to get a touch on a Bloor free kick, Ledger snatched the ball from the air and launched a long clearance up the pitch into the path of Dyche, who sprinted forward and planted it past Wilson. 1-1
Dyche threatened again and slipped the ball to Barmby who went one against one with Wilson, but the Stags keeper stayed upright and gave him nothing to aim at and the pacey Iron forward shot high and wide.
This pulsating game could still go either way, Cain Smith and Hakeem played a neat passing triangle through the Iron midfield and Smith tested Ledger from 20 yards.
Moments later, Hakeem played the ball out wide to Alistair Smith, whose first time cross played Blake in on goal, but Ledger pulled off another first rate save, to keep out what looked like a certain goal.
In stoppage time Noel Burdett unleashed a shot from outside the area that deflected over Wilson as he ran out of his six yard box, but the Mansfield keeper twisted and stretched and managed to turn the ball away for a corner with his outstretched left hand.
Wilson collected the cross from the flag kick comfortably and moments later the referee blew for full time.
FT: Sunthorpe United Youth 1 v Mansfield Town Youth 1
