Take bobsledding for instance. It’s a sport that Britain has a long and, at times, successful history in. But how many people who take it up realise that the extreme g-forces experienced during a career spent hurtling down an ice chute in a fibre glass go-kart will actually make you smaller? One minute you’re travelling at 85mph down sheet ice wearing nothing more than lycra body suit that leaves little to the imagination (and less than complimentary in below zero temperatures) and the next you’re failing to meet the minimum height required to have a go on the Magic Teacup ride at Alton Towers.
And there’s Rugby. Never mind the eye gouging, stamping, fighting and other underhand tactics that go on: shouldn’t the fact that you’re only one unfortunate plane ride across the Andes away from cannibalism persuade the country’s leaders to curb the take up of the game? Having said that, after some of the stories you hear about rugby club outings and post match antics, nibbling away on a colleague’s buttock seems rather tame.
All sports carry dangers to their participants but it can be even worse for the spectators? Have a quick flick through some of the satellite channels on most days of the week and you’re almost bound to stumble across footage of a rally car driving into a group of rapidly scattering spectators, a boxer extending his bout to take in the first three rows of the crowd or a close up of somebody staring wide eyed in shock as an F1 cars tyre bounces off their head.
However the threat posed by an animal/sportsman gone berserk or an internal combustion engine propelled projectile has nothing on what a short period of time spent watching Mossley can do to the human condition. Watching the last ten minutes of a game where the Lilywhites are either level or a goal to the good is extremely hazardous for your health.
For 600 seconds you’ll see people age before your very eyes (Indeed, it’s a little known fact that the aftermath of Walter Donovan sipping from the wrong cup of Christ at the end of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade wasn’t a special effect but real time footage of a Mossley supporter taken in the final few minutes of a Northern Premier League game against Morecambe in 1987). Nerves start to fray, nails are chewed down to the cuticles and I’m not exaggerating when I say that the closing stages of most games could turn the most constipated of supporters into a replica of Willy Wonka’s chocolate waterfall.
The final moments of Saturday’s game at Harrison Park were no different either. As Leek continually pressed forward in search of an equaliser they probably deserved, you could hear the travelling supporter’s hearts pounding against their rib cages. A rhythmic beating that was silenced only by the huge sigh of relief that greeted every shot that was blocked, missed or cannoned back off the woodwork. It was that nerve racking.
With time almost up though it seemed that Mossley’s season long curse of conceding a point robbing last minute goal was going to happen again. Centre-half Wayne Johnson had been pushed into the attack in an effort to rescue the game for the hosts and it appeared to have been a tactical master-stroke when it looked like he’d sent the ball on a journey to the back of the net during injury time. The shouts of celebration got caught in the Leek fans throats though as Steve Wilson flung himself across the goal and somehow managed to knock the ball over the crossbar for a corner - a phenomenal save that nothing I write could do justice to.
As I mentioned earlier though, no-one could have denied that Leek weren’t worthy of a point at the very least. Straight from the kick-off (where Mossley surrendered the ball after two touches) Town were the side doing all the pressing but it soon became apparent as to why their goals for total, especially at home, was so low. Put it this way, if you ever find yourself having to face a firing squad and you’re given a last request - ask if Leek Town can do the shooting.
For all the Staffordshire side’s pressure Mossley were looking quite nifty on the break. James Turley and Joe Shaw were making huge inroads down the wings but despite Peter Wright and debutant Alex Taylor providing able support the Lilywhite’s were struggling to create any half decent chances in open play. Set pieces were another matter entirely though.
The visitor’s first real opportunity came when a corner from the right was headed back across an open goal by Steven Shiel but with no Mossley player ‘having a gamble’ the chance was cleared. Just after the midway point of the first half Leek keeper Peter Collinge pushed Joel Pilkington’s deep cross/Nicky Thompson’s goal against Telford homage (delete as applicable) over the cross bar for a corner. James Turley swung the ball into the near post where Peter Wright beat Everett and Collinge to head Mossley into the lead.
The goal stung Town into action and they actually managed to force Wilson into a save before Mossley doubled their advantage three minutes from the break. After trying to play the advantage the referee had no option but to penalise the home side for their third attempt at bringing a Joe Shaw run to a halt in as many seconds. From a position wide on the left David Eyres swung in a fantastic free-kick with pace that Collinge could only parry into the back of his net.
Having missed the 4-0 win at Frickley last December, this was the first time I’d seen Mossley two goals ahead in a game for four months and, frankly, I’d forgotten what to do. Thankfully though, Mossley being Mossley, slack marking in the box on the stroke of half-time allowed Steve Brannan (who a minute earlier had been subject to a torrent of abuse from his own supporters on the halfway line) to halve the deficit after the ball had bounced back off the post, and I was able to return to the more familiar feeling of fretting over our ability to hang onto a one goal lead with forty five minutes still to play.
The second half unsurprisingly began with the home side throwing everything at Mossley in an effort to draw the scores level. Happily though the accuracy of Leek’s forward line hadn’t improved during the interval and coupled with some resolute Lilywhite defending, it meant that Steve Wilson was as much a spectator as the away fans positioned behind Collinge’s goal. Occasionally the pace of Shaw and Turley would allow Mossley to break forward but Town’s goal rarely came under any real threat; at least not until twelve minutes into the second period that is when Mossley were given the opportunity to increase their lead from the penalty spot after Andy Thomas blocked Peter Wright’s shot with his right arm.
The debate as to whether the hand ball was intentional or not died a death the moment Wright sent his spot kick wide of the left hand post. As well as ensuring that Mossley are the only side in the world (along with England) whose least dangerous set-piece is a free shot at goal from twelve yards, the penalty miss seemed to be the cue for Leek to find another gear and suddenly the visitor’s defence was starting to look a little ragged.
As Town’s chances grew more frequent, so did the panic attacks amongst away fans that’d been in this situation enough times to realise that a happy ending is rarely forthcoming. With every near miss and goalmouth scramble you could feel another knot tighten in the stomach or a hair go grey. There was the odd long range effort and corner from Mossley to alleviate the tension but as time (very) slowly ticked away the fears that we’d concede yet another soul destroying late goal grew.
For once though, we didn’t. Steve Wilson’s ‘wonder save’ from Wayne Johnson’s close range effort effectively killed off the home side’s doggedness and, as the adrenalin started to pump through the small band of Mossley supporters who’d made the journey to Staffordshire, the referee brought proceedings to a close.
It might not have been the greatest game of football ever witnessed but who cares? When you’re second bottom at this stage of the season the result is all that matters – better the three points than another gallant defeat, just ask Leek. It would be nice though if Mossley could occasionally do it without sending its supporters central nervous system into meltdown through a near ninety minute white knuckle ride.
Finally (yes, there is an end to this match report), whilst it’s still too soon to suggest that we’ve turned a corner (one win does not make you safe from relegation) there were plenty of things in evidence on the pitch to suggest that we can at least make a fight of it which, at the end of the day, is all we want.
