CLIPSTONE MW

0-5

MANSFIELD TOWN
    Lomas 9, Lazarus 30, Gaichem 43, Bacon 56, 80

Tuesday 31st July 2001

Pre-Season Friendly

Stags fielded a side made up of fringe 1st team players and youth team players for the tie with local side Clipstone.  The promising strike duo of Danny Bacon and Andy White spearheaded a 4-4-2 formation with the likes of John Andrews, David Jervis and Jamie Lomas alongside several youth team players.

Stags took early control of the game and in the 9th minute took the lead after a neat one-two between Bacon and White eventually lead to Lomas breaking through and finishing neatly.  A couple of minutes later and Bacon saw his shot well saved and moments later White also had an effort well parried.  Just before the 20 minute mark Clipstone had their first real go at the Stags goal, Andrews producing a well timed challenge to thwart an attempt on goal.  Stags continued to dominate possession, as you would expect and on the half hour Lazarus increased the Stags lead.  A few minutes later and the lead could have been extended when the lively Ghaichem had a shot well saved by the home keeper, who was having a fine evening.  A solo run by Bacon almost gave White a chance to open his account but again the home keeper was on hand to save the day.  Even when the keeper was beaten the bar prevented the Stags moving further ahead, Bacon's deft lob rebounding off the bar and to safety.  However, the Stags did grab a third just before the interval and Ghaichem, having been put through by a deft Lomas header, finished neatly.  

Half Time:  0-3

Danny Bacon was first to try his luck early in the 2nd half but his attempted lob from 20 yards flew over.  At the Stags end Bingham was almost tested after an acrobatic overhead kick just cleared the young keepers bar.  On 53 minutes Andy White was replaced by Dominic Elliott and within a couple of minutes the substitute had set up Danny Bacon to head home the Stags fourth.  Clipstone then could have got on the scoresheet, Hollyoak twice blocking before a shot from the right hand edge of the 6-yard box hit the side netting.  On the hour the home side again threatened, this time Bingham was beaten but the ball also cleared the bar.  Moment later Bacon was put in the clear but side footed his finish well wide.  Stags replaced both Lazarus and Hollyoak and then replaced Bingham, who had another good evening - Jason White in an old Ian Bowling shirt taking over.  Elliott should have made the score 5-0 when clear through, choosing to shoot instead of squaring to the unmarked Bacon.  However, the 5th came ten minutes before time when the Clipstone keeper was dispossessed on the edge of his area and Bacon slotted the ball past the defender on the line.

A solid performance from a young Stags side, with the pluses being more goals for Danny Bacon and a full 90 minutes for Jamie Lomas.  Clipstone certainly had a few good moments and their keeper had a fine game.  Tough call for man of the match, Jimmy Ghaichem looked lively on the right whilst Danny Bacon created havoc in the Clipstone half at times.  However, for a solid performance in the centre of midfield, Jamie Lomas wins the award.

Stagsnet Man of the Match:  Jamie Lomas

STAGS LINE-UP & RATINGS

Stags:  Bingham 7, Clarke 7, Jervis 7, Andrews 7, Hollyoak 7, Lomas 8, Lazarus 7, Rew 7, Ghaichem 8, Bacon 7, White 7.  Subs:  Elliott 7 (for White), J White 7 (for Bingham)