Risca United edge past ten-men Lliswerry in seven-goal thriller

Risca United claimed their first home win under new interim manager Nathan Bracegirdle, edging out Lliswerry in a seven-goal thriller.

The pair met at Ystrad Mynach’s Centre for Sporting Excellence having played a week prior, with the Cuckoos narrowly edging that one 2-1.

It was an equally close game this time, however goals from Lloyd Oliver, Mitchell Palmer, and Finlay Wood saw Risca secure three points with a 4-3 win.

Kick-off:

The Cuckoos began the game looking very comfortable in possession, and happy to keep the ball despite playing in a different system.

With the absence of fullback Harvey Selway, Bracegirdle opted for a back four as opposed to a typical Risca three.

The system couldn’t be blamed for the first goal of the game however, a stray pass from Lloyd Oliver was picked-up by Finnley Chard who played a superb ball through to Ethan Pidcock.

Pidcock set himself before finding the near post and putting his side 1-0 up inside the opening ten minutes.

Oliver soon made amends for his previous error though. A throw-in to Lliswerry down the right was cleared to the chest of captain Lewis Ellis who lumped a ball over the backline for the speedy Oliver to chase.

Oliver took one touch on his chest, and caught the half volley perfectly. Keeper Jason Kelly had no chance at the near post and it was 1-1 in no time.

After a ferocious start to the game, both sides would have been looking to settle down and keep the ball.

The pace was relentless however, and it wasn’t long before the Cuckoos had their next big chance of the match.

Arthur Furness was played through having timed his run perfectly. There were calls for offside, but Furness was away. He took a little too long to get a shot off though and Kelly was there to save.

The visitors were put under pressure but coped well while looking for a chance to break. It wasn’t long before they had another opportunity which was clinically taken by Pidcock once again.

After the ball was won back in midfield, it was quickly fired into the feet of Dale Cooke who took a nice touch and laid it to the onrushing Pidcock, who finished well into the other corner this time. 2-1 after 25 minutes.

It suddenly went quiet out there for Risca, who have one of the youngest sides in the league. With a few key players missing on the night, they needed what leaders remained to step-up.

Mitchell Palmer was doing a good job of leading by example in midfield. He was constantly looking to get on the ball and control the game, which eventually led to a chance down the left for Risca.

It shouldn’t have been more than a half chance however, goalkeeper Kelly came flying out to meet Furness, who headed over Kelly and left him in no mans land.

Palmer was alert in the middle and slashed one towards goal. He didn’t get the greatest connection, but it didn’t matter as Oliver was there at the back post to make sure it went in. He had his second of the day as did Risca; 2-2.

As the half winded down, both teams probably needed the reset after a crazy first 45 minutes. However, it was about to get crazier.

After initially blocking a free-kick in the Risca penalty box, Cooke was booked by referee Dale Randall. Frustrated at the yellow, Cooke then swore at Randall who shrugged his shoulders and gave Cooke his marching orders.

A moment of madness that ruined a very solid first-half from the visitors, who had executed their game plan well.

Second-half

As expected, the second-half started with the hosts well on top. Early chances for Palmer and Jak Lewis threatened, but Lliswerry held firm.

The Cuckoos continued to probe, but were rushing on occasion. With a man advantage, they only needed to move the ball quickly and gaps would develop.

A gap wasn’t found but rather made by Oliver, who skipped past three before he was clipped on the edge of the Lliswerry box after an hour played.

Finlay Wood stood over the ball, picked his spot and curled a beautiful effort into the far corner. Finally they had broken through.

Lliswerry had put everything into keeping it 2-2, but now had to find a way to threaten going the other way with just ten men.

Oliver continued to exploit the space when the visitors did manage to get up the pitch. He had a brilliant game for the hosts and could have grabbed a couple more goals but for some last-ditch defending.

The Risca pressure continued until substitute Alfie Hutton played a lovely pass inside to Palmer – who opened his foot-up and rolled the ball into the far corner. 4-2 and the game felt over with ten minutes to go.

Lliswerry had other ideas however. A break from the visitors should have been dealt with by the Risca defenders, but they stepped-off substitute Mccorley Allman who took full advantage of the extra space and fired a beautiful shot from outside the area into the far corner to make it 4-3.

As the final few minutes ticked by, Risca looked to have managed the game out.

That was until Risca United goalkeeper Joseph Massaro fumbled a cross that almost found a Lliswerry attacker. Fortunately Massaro managed to scramble across and jump back on the loose ball.

A relieved Cuckoos side had repeated their success against Lliswerry to gain an invaluable three points. After that win, they are now two points behind Trethomas Bluebirds in first, who still have four games in hand over Risca.