Pershore II 1, Walsall II 2

PERSHORE'S fine run of victories came to an end against a surprisingly strong Walsall side in the last DTZ League game before Christmas.

The catalyst for the defeat was probably the fact that Pershore actually scored first - a rare occurrence this season as Taylor fired in from the middle of the area following another imaginative short corner routine.

This was already against the run of play and it was no surprise when Walsall equalised through their centre forward who was easily the outstanding player on display.

Stout defending and solid midfield play from Taylor and Tucker, assisted by the roving Speake meant that few chances were created by the Walsall side.

The second half saw yet more pressure from Walsall, with again the defence holding firm. Moreby, in particular, playing as ever against a player with high pace, kept his eye open for imminent danger. Eventually, the Pershore goal was breached as Walsall took the lead their play deserved.

The gallant Pershore side refused to give up and Emsley had two good chances towards the end which he was unfortunate not to convert.

Pershore III 0, Evesham III 0

IN a game dominated for long spells by a more experienced Evesham side resolute defending was needed from Pershore.

Pershore's young third team continued their unbeaten run with some strong defending which gave Evesham only a few goalscoring opportunities even with their domination.

When they did hit the target Ian Anderson was again in outstanding form to deny the Evesham strikers.

Pershore's forays on the Evesham goal were limited and things went from bad to worse when Jon Walker took a nasty injury to his ankle cutting short his game and possibly his season.

A reorganisation saw 12-year-old Tom Whitehead replace him up front who then struggled to find any joy against the Evesham defence.

The last 20 minutes saw Evesham encamped in the Pershore half and the final whistle came as welcome relief.

The club as a whole can look back on the first half of the season with pride in the progress the club has made.

West Midlands One

P W D L F A Pts

Leamington 9 7 2 0 29 6 23

Droitwich 9 6 1 2 26 15 19

Redditch 9 6 1 2 18 13 19

Stafford 9 5 2 2 22 17 17

Rugeley 9 5 1 3 20 14 16

Yardley 9 4 1 4 17 13 13

Market Drayton 9 3 0 6 17 25 9

Kynoch 9 2 1 6 20 24 7

Pershore 9 2 0 7 12 28 6

Ramgarhia 9 0 1 8 7 33 1