Vanarama National League North
The Citadel
Tuesday 14 March 2023

by Max Passantino

Arguably the best action on a cold Tuesday night in Leeds was four hardy volunteers sweeping the lines clear of snow to ensure the game went ahead as relegation rivals Farsley Celtic and Leamington played out a cagey score draw in baltic conditions.

With 15 minutes to go until kick off, the heavens opened and blankets of snow swept over The Citadel covering the playing surface. Referee Richard Aspinall made the decision to take the players off the pitch without a ball being kicked as the heavy snowfall persisted. 

The hosts could only find three brooms and one shovel so four volunteers took to clearing the lines including Brakes chairman Jim Scott. Despite the pitch still being white, the Blackpool based referee gave the game the go-ahead to everyone’s surprise as Leamington got the ball rolling 20 minutes after the scheduled kick off time.

Celtic started the quickest, with both Frank Mulhern and Tom Allan putting efforts wide of Ted Cann’s goal with Leamington taking longer to get used to the conditions compared to their Yorkshire opponents.

With the snow on the surface, there were bound to be a few slips and Celt Army ‘keeper Max Dearnley suffered the first, allowing Dan Turner to beat him to the ball but the striker’s effort was weak and trickled wide. 

Leamington got themselves into good positions after the first ten minutes and Adam Walker was next to see a shot blocked and Theo Streete’s header onto the roof of the net from a corner happened two minutes after a good piece of play from Liam Cross freed Ollie Hulbert, the on-loan Yeovil striker unable to get a strong connection with his effort easy for Dearnley.

A slip up in the Leamington defence allowed Frank Mulhern to play through Kian Scales who somehow put his effort straight at Ted Cann with the whole goal at his mercy. Adam Walker picked up the first Leamington yellow card of the game for an overzealous tackle on Dave Syers before Syers himself was lucky to escape with only a yellow card in injury time, planting an elbow on Jack Lane which left the Brakes centre back with a golf ball black eye.

Syers was subbed off before the second half started, with the hosts presumably knowing their luck that they were not reduced to ten men seconds before the referee blew for the half.

Unlike the first period, it was the visitors who started the brightest in the second half and found themselves ahead five minutes in as Dan Turner cut in from the right hand side before unleashing a ferocious effort into the top corner.

However, as has happened on so many occasions this season, Leamington looked to sit back once they had taken the lead and invited pressure onto themselves. That pressure would pay off for Farsley as ten minutes after Dan Turner stuck for the visitors, Lewis Turner was on hand to level the scores, tapping in at the far post after some poor Leamington defending from a left wing cross. 

Leamington looked shell shocked with Farsley’s equaliser and the hosts continued to press, a fantastic Ted Cann double save needed to deny Tom Allan and Theo Williams. 

The final ten minutes saw the Brakes kick back into action and they would have been annoyed, but not overly shocked, to see the referee wave play away after the ball struck a Farsley hand in the box as the hosts tried to clear a Devon Kelly-Evans cross. From the play immediately after, Jack Edwards powered a ferocious header on target but it was easy for Dearnley.

Paul Holleran brought Kelsey Mooney on to try and give the Brakes some fresh legs up top before Adam Walker was forced into being replaced by Joe Clarke, Walker picking up a slight niggle. 

Referee Aspinall decided to play seven minutes of added time, and that period followed the trend of the ninety minutes with not much happening before the man in the middle brought play to an end, probably to the delight of the 22 men who had been slipping and sliding for the past 105 minutes.

Attendance: Unknown

Farsley Celtic: Max Dearnley, Lewis Turner (16 Danny Devine, 75’), Lewis Butroid, Bobby Johnson, Andy Butler, Adam Clayton, Dave Syers © (18 Theo Williams, 45’), Chris Atkinson, Tom Allan, Frank Mulhern, Kian Scales 

Subs not used: 15 Luke Parkin, 17 Sam Muggleton, 19 Carlton Ubaezuonu

 Leamington: Ted Cann, Dan Meredith, Louis Hall, Sam Perry, Theo Streete, Jack Lane, Liam Cross (12 Jack Edwards, 69’), Adam Walker © (15 Joe Clarke, 85’), Ollie Hulbert (14 Kelsey Mooney, 83’), Devon Kelly-Evans, Dan Turner

Subs not used: 16 Ben Usher-Shipway, 17 Junior English

 Referee: Mr Richard Aspinall

Assistant referees: Mr Samuel Clayton, Mr Aaron Hallam

Brakes Man of the Match: Ted Cann