Rovers played at Brodsworth Welfare, on a warm summer’s evening Friday under the guise of the Under 21s, consisting of a majority of the current Youth team.
A minutes applause was held in memory of a long serving committee member of the Brodsworth team, Allan Pawson, who had died recently.
The match took ten minutes to settle down before Alex Peterson, for the Rovers, brought out a good save from Senior, with a 20yard strike. Three minutes later Johnny Iverson, in the Rovers goal, saved a header from Carver at the far post following a free kick to the home side. In the 18th minute Billy Whitehouse, for the Rovers, received the bll on the left following a corner and curled a great chip just over the bar at the far post.
Then Peterson was through on goal but Senior was out quickly to spread himself and block the shot. Just before the half hour Jordan Binns made a good block tackle on Mundy, who was cutting in on the right byline. The resulting corner was cleared.
Past the half hour the Rovers made some changes in personnel. Jordan Binns, the most experienced of the central defenders, was taken off and before his replacement could bed in, the home team took the lead when MUNDY took a through pass and slotted past Iverson in the 35th minute.
Callum Terrell, who had also just come on for the Rovers was soon in his stride, with a thirty-yarder just wide and minutes a few minutes later put a shot from 25yards just wide. Just before the break Aron Gordon, for the Rovers, worked his way in from the left with some deft footwork to the angle of the six-yard box but shot across the face of goal and out past the far post.
Both sides made some changes at the start of the second half, with the home team going on the attack in the early minutes. In the 55th minute the Rovers got an equaliser when a nice flick header by Burnyeat was pounced on by Gordon, who went through two defenders, round a third before slotting the ball into the empty net. However, it hit the near post but TERRELL was first to the ball to fire into the net.
Just before the hour mark further good work by Gordon gave Terrell another go at goal from 25yards but a diving Senior pushed the ball away. The changes of personnel were coming thick and fast as both sides gave their players a run out. It seemed to work in the Rovers favour as they pretty well took control of the last quarter of the game, with their superior fitness also playing a part. However, the home team were not out of it by any means as they brought out three outstanding saves from 16year old Iverson. In the 81st minute Peterson had a cracking shot from just inside the area which Senior parried away but Jack McKAY followed up and smashed it into the net for a third goal to the Rovers. Then, in the 89th minute, FERGUSON won the ball in midfield, took it on and from 20yards slammed it past the keeper for a fourth goal.
The superior football and fitness had told in the end as the Rovers pressed home their advantage but they had been given a good work-out before their sojourn in Sweden in the Gothia Cup.
Rovers starting XI – Johnny Iverson; Mitchell Lund, Jacob Dawson, Jack Steadman, Scott Brown, Jordan Binns, Lewis Ferguson, Spencer Lund, Alex Peterson ©, Chris Whincop, Billy Whitehouse
Subsitutes (all came on at various stages of the game after the half hour – some of them two or three times) – Ryan Burnyeat, Matthew Davies, Aron Gordon, Callum Terrell, Paul McKay, Jack McKay, Liam Mandeville, Alex Head