Guernsey U16s 2, Dorset 2

THERE was plenty on which Paul Ockleford can build in yesterday’s entertaining South & West Counties Under-16 Championship draw at the Track. Although the Guernsey coach saw his side lose the lead twice, his charges gave a decent account of themselves against neat opposition from Dorset.

With the Sarnians in action once again this coming weekend as they host Gloucestershire, Ockleford was delighted with the effort his squad put into their opening encounter.

‘I was pleased with their performance and their attitude,’ he said.

‘We were solid in defence with the back five well organised, workmanlike in midfield and created opportunities going forward.’

However, he admitted that his side suffered from the traditional Guernsey problem against county opposition – a sluggish start.

With captain Oliver Tribe pulling the string from central midfield for the visitors, Dorset were the brighter side in the opening quarter of an hour and it took a sharp save from Will Jarrold to prevent them taking the lead through the lively Sam Ball after just six minutes.

The Sarnians stuck to their task well, though, and having shown his defensive qualities from the outset, skipper Jack Domaille popped up with an excellent header to guide home Robbie Le Corre’s corner and give his side the lead on 17min.

It was the hosts’ first real attack and gave them a huge confidence boost.

For the remainder of the half there were chances at either end, mainly on the break with Jarrold making a couple of good blocks to keep Ball at bay while Dorset keeper Sam Filkins did likewise to deny Daena Bodie.

But right on half-time the team in yellow grabbed their first equaliser.

When in the process of shooting, Ball had Jarrold, Domaille and Greg Roland converge on him attempting to block.

Referee Gary Pratt felt Roland’s challenge took the man, pointed to the spot before booking the defender and Ball tucked away the penalty.

Shortly after the break, the game was halted for around 11 minutes after an accidental clash of heads left Guernsey’s Ben Youlton dazed and very unsteady on his feet. He left the ground in an ambulance as a precaution, but by that stage he had seemingly regained his composure.

The hosts kept pressing though and just moments after Filkins had pulled off a stunning save to tip Bodie’s close range effort onto the bar, the Guernsey striker finally beat the keeper with a cool finish after Etienne Le Prevost’s pinpoint pass.

But the Sarnians’ joy was short-lived as newcomer Luke Winch was shown a straight red. It came after his jinking run was ended with a tangle of legs and the referee called him over. The official did not seem set to issue a card at that point, but suddenly reached for his pocket as if to indicate the player had spoken out of turn.

Whatever the reason, Winch and his teammates were aghast at the decision.

Almost immediately Dorset levelled through Aaron Bleach with Guernsey still in disarray, but they regained their composure and had chances to win the match but Jacques Ogier and Bodie could not make them count.