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An independent supporters' website dedicated to Mansfield Town FC
Season 20/21 Stagsnet Match Report
Papa John’s Trophy (English Football League Trophy)
Scunthorpe United  
1 - 2
 Mansfield Town
Olumola 78.
 
 Sweeney 33, Reid 44
Attendance: behind closed doors
 
Date: 10 November 2020

STAGS WIN AGAIN, AT SCUNTHORPE IN EFL TROPHY

Martin Shaw at the Sands Venue Stadium, Glanford Park

Mansfield Town waited 15 games for the first win of the season in all competitions and then two came along at once, as the Stags followed up Saturday’s fantastic win at Sunderland in the FA Cup, with a 2-1 victory at Scunthorpe United in the newly renamed Papa John’s Trophy last night.
Having lost the first two games in the competition, to Manchester City U21 and Lincoln City, the Stags were already out, as were Scunthorpe, but there was still £10,000 up for the grabs for the winner on the night, and perhaps more importantly it was a chance for new manager Nigel Clough to take a look at players who didn’t get a game in the FA Cup, as he made 11 changes to the side from Saturday.
And his side didn’t disappoint as they outplayed a poor Scunthorpe side for most of the game and should have won more comfortably than the final margin of 2-1.
This was the first match where Clough was in the dugout taking charge of the side and the players were out to impress.
Early on, captain Ryan Sweeney did just that with a wonderful tackle as Ryan Loft turned away from Rollin Menayese and surged into the area, but Sweeney was across just in the nick of time to tackle him.
At the other end, Sweeney was involved in the action again as Corey O’Keeffe’s free kick into the area was headed up in the air and Sweeney powered a header towards the roof of the net but Scunthorpe keeper Rory Watson made an incredible save clawing it over the bar.
Scunthorpe hit the bar after 23 minutes as Sweeney brought down Andy Dales 28 yards from goal, and Kevin Van Veen struck a great free kick that cannoned off the top of the bar and away.
And it was that man Sweeney who put the Stags ahead after 33 minutes. Tyrese Sinclair’s corner from the right came straight back to him, and Sinclair then whipped in a great powerful cross which Sweeney headed into the net from 5 yards via a deflection off Myles Hippolyte. I had a post in front of me in the commentary box obscuring my view so I couldn’t tell initially if Sweeney’s header was going in or not without the deflection, and I think the two video angles we have are not conclusive so it should remain as Sweeney’s goal rather than an own goal. What wasn’t in doubt was the quality of the cross from Sinclair.
Three minutes later, Aaron O’Driscoll, playing in midfield in this game, crashed a tremendous shot from 24 yards against the cross bar, having been teed up by Sinclair.
The Stags doubled the lead after 44 minutes as Andy Cook did well to control a ball forward on his chest on the right, and he curled in a nice cross into a dangerous area where Hippolyte headed the ball straight into the path of Jamie Reid who emphatically smashed the ball into the net on the volley from 4 yards. Reid’s first goal for the Stags. Good play from Cook but put on a plate for Reid by a terrible defensive header from Hippolyte.
The Stags in complete control at the break leading 2-0 with Sweeney involved in just about everything at both ends, Reid with his first Stags goal, and the Stags playing very well. Particularly impressive were James Clarke and Tyrese Sinclair combining down the right with Jamie Reid, causing Scunthorpe lots of problems.
The Stags dominated the opening half hour of the second half with chances for Cook, Sweeney and Sinclair, but Scunthorpe pulled a goal back completely out of the blue after 78 minutes as Olufela Olomola struck a superb shot from 25 yards into the left corner of the net giving Aidan Stone in the Stags goal no chance.
After 83 minutes, more good play from Olomola nearly gave the home side an equaliser as he shot low from 12 yards and Stone did brilliantly to get his left hand down low to keep it out. And two minutes after that, another brilliant save from Stone as a corner from the left found Manny Onariase unmarked at the far post, having got away from his marker Menayese, and Onariase’s close range shot was somehow kept out on the line by Stone. Great goalkeeping, awful defending.
The Stags brought on 17 year old youth team striker Nathan Caine after 88 minutes, and two minutes into stoppage time Caine found Cook in the area. Cook turned away from his marker Onariase and curled a low left footed shot inches wide of the left post from 15 yards.
So the Stags ran out 2-1 winners and there were loads of positives from the night with plenty of players playing very well including Aidan Stone with those two late saves that preserved the win, both full backs James Clarke on the right and Corey O’Keeffe on the left did very well, Tyrese Sinclair provided some real quality on the right with some fine crosses including for the first goal, while Jason Law had a good game as well on the left of midfield. Jamie Reid scored his first goal for the club, and linked very well on the right with James Clarke and Sinclair. My man of the match was Ryan Sweeney, captain for the night, who was involved in almost everything in that first half that saw the Stags take a decisive lead. It was great to see Ollie Clarke return from injury and play the last quarter of an hour, and young Nathan Caine make his debut as a late substitute. Caine was an unused substitute in last season’s excellent FA Youth Cup run, but he’s had a great season this season, scoring regularly for the youth team, and was captain in the most recent game.


Mansfield made 11 changes from the side that won at Sunderland. It was a 4-4-2 formation again, but not the diamond in midfield that was the formation at Sunderland. Instead there was two wide men in Sinclair (right) and Law (left), with O’Driscoll and Smith in the middle. O’Keeffe was at left back.

Scunthorpe had lost 7 games on the trot in all competitions. After losing to National League Solihull Moors on Sunday in the FA Cup, manager Neil Cox said he was proud of his team as they had not been able to prepare properly due to most of the players self-isolating for two weeks, and they had played better than he expected.

After 4 minutes, Sweeney produced a wonderful tackle as Ryan Loft turned away from Menayese and surged into the area, but Sweeney was across just in the nick of time to tackle him. A minute later, Van Veen’s corner came back to him, and he fired into the side netting via a deflection.

Good defending by James Clarke after 7 minutes as Van Veen broke forward.

A good catch by Stone after 16 minutes from a free kick, and he got an attack moving with a quick bowl out to Sinclair.

After 17 minutes, Sweeney was involved in the action again as O’Keeffe’s free kick into the area was headed up in the air and Sweeney powered a header towards the roof of the net but Scunthorpe keeper Rory Watson made an incredible save clawing it over the bar. The free kick came after a deliberate shirt pull by a Scunthorpe player. The referee astonishingly didn’t produce a yellow card.

Great defending by Cook after 21 minutes as he headed away a free kick, then blocked a shot from Beestin.

Scunthorpe hit the bar after 23 minutes as Sweeney brought down Andy Dales 28 yards from goal, and Van Veen struck a great free kick that cannoned off the top of the bar and away. Two minutes later, Rowe crossed low into the area and Loft swept a shot high over the bar and indeed over the stand. After 27 minutes, Loft went down in the area under pressure from Menayese. The referee correctly decided that Loft had dived and booked him. Two minutes after that, there were half-hearted claims for a penalty from Scunthorpe but the referee was correctly not interested.

It was that man Sweeney who put the Stags ahead after 33 minutes. Sinclair’s corner from the right came straight back to him, and Sinclair then whipped in a great powerful cross which Sweeney headed into the net from 5 yards via a deflection off Myles Hippolyte. I had a post in front of me in the commentary box obscuring my view so I couldn’t tell initially if Sweeney’s header was going in or not without the deflection, and I think the two video angles we have are not conclusive so it should remain as Sweeney’s goal rather than an own goal. What wasn’t in doubt was the quality of the cross from Sinclair.

Three minutes later, O’Driscoll crashed a tremendous shot from 24 yards against the cross bar, having been teed up by Sinclair. The follow-up shot from Reid was blocked, then Sinclair shot well over the bar.

After 38 minutes, a lovely cross dinked in by James Clarke, Cook attacked it and headed straight at the keeper. It was the sort of cross that Cook thrives on. Moments later, a great turn by Smith, but he scuffed a shot well wide.

The Stags doubled the lead after 44 minutes as Cook did well to control a ball forward on his chest on the right, and he curled in a nice cross into a dangerous area where Hippolyte headed the ball straight into the path of Reid who emphatically smashed the ball into the net on the volley from 4 yards. Reid’s first goal for the Stags. Good play from Cook but put on a plate for Reid by a terrible defensive header from Hippolyte.

The Stags in complete control at the break leading 2-0 with Sweeney involved in just about everything at both ends, Reid with his first Stags goal, and the Stags playing very well. Particularly impressive were James Clarke and Tyrese Sinclair combining down the right with Jamie Reid, causing Scunthorpe lots of problems.

Half time 0-2

The first chance of the second half fell to the home side after 49 minutes as Pugh volleyed wide from 20 yards.

After 55 minutes, good play from the Stags, and Law’s cross was put behind for a corner. From Sinclair’s corner, Cook headed wide of the left post. Four minutes later, from Sinclair’s corner from the left, Sweeney headed wide, not getting the connection he would have wanted. Then great play by Cook to get to the byline and his cross was put behind for another corner.

After 63 minutes, a good ball from O’Driscoll out to Sinclair, who cut inside and was brought down by O’Malley. Sinclair’s free kick from the right was over everyone, and unusually poor for him.

Superb play between James Clarke, Sinclair and Reid on the right after 67 minutes, though the ball eventually went out for a goal kick.

Ollie Clarke replaced Smith after 74 minutes. Great to see him back. He's been out for 5 weeks, with his second calf injury of the season.

A surging run by O’Keeffe after 75 minutes before he was brought down for a free kick, and a yellow card for Rowe.

The Stags had dominated the opening half hour of the second half, but Scunthorpe pulled a goal back completely out of the blue after 78 minutes as Olomola struck a superb shot from 25 yards into the left corner of the net giving Stone no chance.

A minute later at the other end, great play from Sinclair to get to the byline, but he tried a shot from a difficult angle rather than cross.

After 83 minutes, more good play from Olomola nearly gave the home side an equaliser as he shot low from 12 yards and Stone did brilliantly to get his left hand down low to keep it out.

And two minutes after that, another brilliant save from Stone as a corner from the left found Manny Onariase unmarked at the far post, having got away from his marker Menayese, and Onariase’s close range shot was somehow kept out on the line by Stone. Great goalkeeping, awful defending.

Gordon replaced Sinclair after 87 minutes. Sinclair had a tremendous game.

The Stags brought on 17 year old youth team striker Nathan Caine after 88 minutes, for Reid. And two minutes into stoppage time Caine found Cook in the area. Cook turned away from his marker Onariase and curled a low left footed shot inches wide of the left post from 15 yards.

So a deserved victory for Mansfield, and that’s two wins in the cup since Nigel Clough was appointed. As in recent games since Graham Coughlan was sacked, the Stags side certainly didn’t play like a side that is 3rd bottom of the Football League. But the challenge is to make sure they pull away from that foot of the table. The Stags visit third-placed Forest Green Rovers on Saturday for Nigel Clough’s first league match in charge. It’s a tough place to look for your first league win of the season, but that’s what the Stags will be trying to do.

Man of the match: Ryan Sweeney


Report by: Martin Shaw at the Sands Venue Stadium, Glanford Park



Line Up:
(4-4-2)
Stone 8 Two brilliant saves to keep the score at 2-1 late on. Some good catches.
J.Clarke 8 Good defending, and linked well with Sinclair and Reid going forward on the right.
Menayese 5 Allowed Loft to get away from him for an early chance and was rescued by Sweeney’s brilliant tackle. Allowed Onariase to get away from him for a free shot which was somehow kept out on the line by Stone.
Sweeney 8.5 Great tackle on Loft early on, then a great header which was brilliantly tipped over, then scored. Involved in almost everything in that first half that saw the Stags take a decisive lead.
O’Keeffe 8 Very good game at left back. Some good surging runs and won several free kicks.
Sinclair 8 Provided some real quality on the right with some fine crosses including for the first goal.
O’Driscoll 7 Crashed a tremendous shot from 24 yards against the cross bar. One particularly good pass to Sinclair. Did ok in midfield.
Smith 6 One good turn and a couple of good passes. But lost the ball several times and his tempo was slow.
Law 7 Good game on the left of midfield.
Reid 8 Scored his first goal for the club. Linked up well on the right with James Clarke and Sinclair.
Cook 7 Good play in the build-up to Reid’s goal. Within a whisker of a goal in stoppage time.
Sub Line Up:
O.Clarke (for Smith, 74 mins) - Great to see him back. He's been out for 5 weeks, with his second calf injury of the season, and it will take him a while to get match sharpness.
Gordon (for Sinclair, 87 mins) -
Caine (for Reid, 88 mins) - 17 year old made his debut as a late substitute. He was an unused substitute in last season’s excellent FA Youth Cup run, but he’s had a great season this season, scoring regularly for the youth team, and was captain in the most recent game.
Subs not used: Campbell, Charsley, Bowery.
Opposition Line Up:
(4-4-2): Watson; Onariase, Rowe (Hornshaw, 81), Cordner, O'Malley; Hippolyte, Dales, Beestin, Pugh; Loft (Olomola, 66), van Veen (Hallam, 46).Unused subs: Collins, Barks, Shrimpton, Jessop.
Referee:
Sam Barrott 7 Handled the game well apart from failing to show a yellow card for a deliberate shirt pull.


Season 20/21 Reports