Men's 1st XI Vs Duchy 1

Caradon Men's 1st XI embarked on a  journey to face Duchy in their first Cornish clash of the league season. Duchy, a team recently relegated from a higher league, presented a challenging opponent with a strong start to the season. Caradon, always keen to shine, traveled with a large squad, aiming to showcase their talents and secure their spots in the squad for future weeks.

Despite entering the match with a game plan centered around controlling possession and setting the tempo, Caradon initially found themselves trailing Duchy around the pitch. The early minutes were marked by Duchy's dominance. However, Caradon gradually found their rhythm, and after the first 15 minutes, they began to assert themselves, pushing Duchy back and launching several promising attacks that narrowly missed their mark.

The deadlock was finally broken by Tyler Walsh after 25 minutes. His determined solo effort saw the ball rebound to him off the keeper, and his second attempt found the backboard. The rest of the first half played out similarly, with Caradon on the offensive but Duchy successfully containing their threat, leaving the score at 1-0 in Caradon's favour at halftime.

The second half began with Caradon continuing their attacking prowess, effectively dictating the flow of the game and preventing Duchy from gaining momentum. Tyler Walsh struck again, finding space in the D and slotting the ball low into the corner for his second goal of the day. Caradon, eager to extend their lead, saw captain Chris Fasey capitalise on a loose shot, shoveling it into the net past the scrambling keeper.

However, Caradon faced a minor setback when Ollie Dinnis received a green card for dissent, putting them on the back foot for a brief period. Yet, in this time, Tyler Walsh won a penalty flick, which he coolly dispatched for his hat-trick. Duchy responded quickly, earning a flick of their own. Despite Dan Harris guessing the right direction and getting a glove to the ball, it managed to slip through his hands and cross the line.

With a healthy lead in hand, Caradon decided to maintain control and dictate the pace of the game. A well-executed passage of play opened up an opportunity for Evan Spencer, who found Chris at the top of the D. Chris rolled onto his reverse and looped the ball past the advancing keeper into the top corner of the net. Adding to Duchy's woes, Caradon pressured the defensive line into a corner, forcing them to make a hasty pass, which Chris intercepted, dribbled toward the goal, and nutmegged the keeper to complete his hat-trick.

Caradon continued to control the game, maintaining their lead until the final whistle blew. The well-deserved victory ended with a commanding scoreline of 6-1.