SWPL EAST Ivybridge Town 2 Torrington AFC 1
- Details
- Created on Sunday, 14 November 2021 13:06
- Last Updated on Sunday, 14 November 2021 13:06
- Published on Sunday, 14 November 2021 13:06
- Written by GRAHAM HAMBLY at Erme Valley
HARD work brought its reward for Ivybridge Town with a home win over Torrington.Memories of last month’s 5-0 cup win over the north Devon side came to mind as Ivybridge eased into a 2-0 interval lead while Torrington were reduced to ten men after half an hour.
But it was a different story in the second half and Ivybridge had to survive an anxious final ten minutes after Torrington pulled a goal back in the closing stages.
Ivybridge began well enough and went ahead in the 26th minute when Fletcher Williams provided the finishing touch to some good work on the left by Luke Forward.
Williams continued to be a threat and Matt Ward was shown the red card after denying Williams an obvious scoring opportunity with a foul just outside the 18-yard line.
Williams went on to bring his season’s tally to eight goals when he finished well from close range on the stroke of half-time.
Ivybridge dominated the early stages of the second half but failed to take their chances and Torrington’s ten men sensed the opportunity to salvage something from the game.
Their efforts were rewarded when Tudor Placinta reduced the arrears on 80 minutes but Ivybridge settled and held on to secure a hard-earned three points.
Ivybridge manager Darren Stewart was looking for his side to get back to some rhythm after a mixed time in their last three games.
He said: “We had the 5-4 win over Bovey Tracey last Friday with the 1-1 draw against Brixham before that and the defeat at Torpoint.
“So, the message before the game was to get back to controlling the game and setting the tempo with a little bit more discipline in our positions and a bit more quality. I thought in the first half, without being fantastic, we were better than we have been.
“Effectively, we won the game in the first half, scoring the two goals and Torrington having one of their players sent off when Fletcher was through.
“At half time it was a case of saying to the players that it was either going to be a scrappy second half or we were going to end up frustrated. Unfortunately, it was the latter. We got into some good positions to add to the goals that we had but did not take them.
“At 2-0 it is always a dangerous lead because teams are still working hard, thinking they have got a chance, and ten mins from the end they pulled one back when we switched off from a set piece and then the game was in the balance.
“We were pleased with the way we handled the last ten minutes and kept the ball well. We kept it away from our goal and could have added a couple more. It was a deserved three points but not the best performance over the 90 minutes.”
Despite their numerical advantage for the final hour, Ivybridge tended to lose possession too easily and Stewart explained: “The temptation against ten men is to play a little bit too quick and a bit forward too much. The pitches are difficult now and it is difficult to get a decent strike on the ball at times. Passes fall short and we just lost our rhythm.
“We are a good side but if teams knock us out of our rhythm we have got to scrap our way through a game. That’s what we did today.”
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