STEVE OGIER was almost apologetic about the lack of quality football played by his victorious side in Saturday’s U-21 Muratti. But the decision by him and assistant Tony Vance to play Alex Le Prevost at centre back proved to be a masterstroke on a stage where the result means everything to the winning island.
Ogier admitted that Le Prevost could have given his side more subtlety and a greater range of passing in midfield and that he had sacrificed that for the overall good of the team.
As it turned out, Le Prevost was a calm rock at the back alongside the also immense Naro Zimmerman, who continues to play through a troublesome knee problem about which he is seeing a surgeon later this month.
Meanwhile, in midfield, the no-nonsense St Martin’s duo of Charlie Pinsard and Ben Coulter worked tirelessly for the cause with the former’s opening goal possibly the deciding factor in the man of the match vote when several Sarnians were in with a shout.
Neither side had settled when Pinsard struck the first blow during an entertaining afternoon.
Tom Strawbridge had been tripped on the left flank just over the halfway line and Vance was soon bellowing to Le Prevost that it was his free kick to deliver.
The Northerner showed why the management team were so keen for him to take it with an inviting diagonal ball to the far post where Pinsard attacked it and thumped his header home - the ideal start.
Jersey’s reaction, though, was from the top drawer.
With the highly impressive Jack Boyle pulling the strings in midfield, the visitors took control and soon Scott Rowe was making the first of several important saves, getting down well to parry Jay Reid’s low shot.
Boyle went close soon afterwards following a neat exchange between him and Craig Russell, while in between those two opportunities Coulter was the first name in Ian Le Prevost’s book for a lunge on Boyle. Considering that caution came within the opening quarter-of-an-hour, Coulter showed terrific maturity to not let it affect his approach to the remainder of the game.
Rowe was back in action a couple of minutes later, this time denying Boyle, and the one time the goalkeeper was beaten after he had taken a tumble coming to collect a high ball, Kyle Hampshire saw his shot come back off the crossbar.
But Craig Young and Ross Allen were a danger at the other end on the break and it took a perfectly timed tackle by Richard Parker to prevent the Ranger from having a one-on-one with Max Jouan.
The Guernsey captain, though, was not to be denied when his chance came along.
Glyn Dyer was instrumental in the 41st-minute goal with a brilliant reverse ball inside the defender for Young to run clean on to.
He initially tried to squeeze his shot through Jouan’s legs but it took a deflection off the right one and Young was on hand to force it home.
That was a real sucker punch for Jersey just before the interval.
Buoyed by their two-goal advantage, Guernsey came out for the second half revitalised and took the game to their opponents.
In the opening 10 minutes, Allen could not quite get the bend on the ball he needed after being released by Zimmerman while Le Prevost’s header from Dyer’s corner flashed just wide of the post.
Things then started to get more heated when Jersey felt they should have had a penalty when Hampshire just beat Rowe to a short back pass and got caught by the keeper, but the referee waved play on after a long look at his assistant Andy Cox.
Young should have made the game safe moments later after neat work by Allen, but Jouan got down low to his left to divert the Guernsey captain’s shot past the post before the marauding Pinsard felt aggrieved to see no one on the end of his cross after he burst into the box.
The next 20 minutes passed by with little goalmouth action and a couple more bookings before Jersey suddenly grabbed a lifeline.
With 84min. on the clock, Jack Cannon’s cross from the right took a deflection to wrong-foot the Guernsey defence and Luke Watson rose to head home.
The scorer was booked shortly afterwards for pushing the ball in Young’s face before he delivered a free kick which Parker headed just wide.
Into injury time and Russell saw red after he said something out of turn after he felt Jersey should have had a free kick. With him went Jersey’s chances.
‘Craig has obviously said something in frustration, but he told me that it was not directed at the referee and I believe him,’ said Jersey coach Dave Kennedy.
‘I don’t think that the referee was going to do us any favours today.’
His counterpart, Ogier, was quick to admit that Jersey had played their full part in the match.
‘All credit to Dave’s team. They played the majority of football in the game,’ he said.
‘But when chances presented themselves, we took them.
‘The whole of the back four and Scott did well and we kept a good shape throughout.’
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