Grasslot 1 Carlisle City 0

Carlisle City FC travelled to the new facility at Penrith AFC to play Grasslot Club Veterans FC Club Veterans FC in the final of the County Veterans Competition hoping to complete a League and Cup double after recently securing the League title. The players were maybe a yard slower than in their heyday and some has a little less hair, but they were all an absolute credit to the beautiful game. Their enthusiasm was tremendous, and they always tried to pass the ball. Their attitude was excellent, never questioning the referee’s decisions.The only incident to mar a wonderful evening was a serious leg injury to Grasslot’s Dale Patrick, which he suffered with five minutes of the game remaining. The match was delayed for some 45 minutes, whist the medical team came to Dale’s aid. We all wish Dale a very speedy recovery.
The game was a very tight affair, with neither side really creating many clear cut chances. Darren Wilson, a small busy energetic forward, scored the winning goal for Grasslot after 40 minutes, following a cross from the right by James Routledge, and Wilson scored from close range.
Both defences performed well on the night with City’s Chris Sanderson and Mike Algeo commanding in their defence, whilst Tom Shepherd for Grasslot was outstanding. Shepherd read the game well, rarely missed a tackle, and was always keen to pass the ball out of the defence, although when he had to put the ball into Row Z, he did. Excellent work.
In goal, both Nicky Hill and Mark Irving also had commanding games with the handling of both keepers a feature of their game. Irving’s long kicks often put City’s defence under pressure.
For City, Derek Walsh made several surging runs down the left flank. Their strikers Mike Graham and David Jenkins worked their socks off, and often got into good positions, but their final shot/header often lacked accuracy.
Phil Hoyles in midfield for Grasslot Club Veterans FC played very well, and his accurate passing was a feature of the match. He was also willing to have a shot from good distance.
City’s defence always has to be alert to the powerful running of Grasslot’s James Routledge and Darren Wilson. City’s subs added some late pressure with Wallsend Boys product, Mark Eagling giving City some late pressure.
When the final whistle was blown by referee Tony Cresswell, the Grasslot jubilation was slightly muted following the injury to their colleague. Harry Upton from Cumberland FA presented the trophies, and spoke of the “great spirit” shown by the golden oldies, which was a tribute to all of the players that had graced the field of play.