Archived News from November 2019
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STAGS THROUGH IN EFL TROPHY WITH WIN AT BURTON
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English Football League Trophy - Leasing.com Trophy
Burton Albion 1 - 2 Mansfield Town Templeton 36. Rose 23, Sweeney 34 Attendance: 485 (approx 140 from Mansfield) Date: 12 November 2019 Martin Shaw at the Pirelli Stadium Mansfield Town produced an impressive display to win 2-1 at Burton Albion last night and qualify from the group stages of the EFL Trophy (now named Leasing.com Trophy, formerly Checkatrade Trophy). It was Mansfield’s first ever win against Burton Albion in any competition, at the 7th attempt. League One Burton fielded a strong side, the strongest they could in fact, making only four changes from their game at the weekend, and three of those were enforced with players on international duty. The Stags meanwhile made eight changes from Saturday, giving opportunities to those who have not had much game time lately. Burton, who needed just a draw to qualify, while Mansfield needed to win in normal time, started the stronger and had the Stags under the cosh in the opening 10 minutes. Conor Shaughnessy, on the line, blocked a header from former Stags defender Jake Buxton which was then flicked on by John Joe O’Toole, following a corner. Then Lucas Akins ran at the Stags and fired in a great shot from 22 yards that was brilliantly tipped over the bar by Bobby Olejnik with his finger tips. But Mansfield got a foothold in the game and went close after 12 minutes as Will Tomlinson did well to win the ball and feed Omari Sterling-James whose low cross-shot was pushed away by Burton keeper Ben Garratt with Danny Rose waiting unmarked at the far post to turn it in. The Stags took the lead after 23 minutes and what a goal it was. Brilliant play from young Alistair Smith who slid a perfect ball forward for Danny Rose to run on to in the area and dink the ball over the advancing keeper from 15 yards. A superb finish from Rose and great creativity from Smith. Rose’s 8th goal of the season to reinstate himself as the club’s outright leading scorer this season. And that came just a minute after more good play from Smith to create another chance for Rose who dragged a shot wide. After 29 minutes, a Shaughnessy free kick was flicked on by Rose and Sterling-James went around the keeper but the chance was snuffed out by a defender. The Stags increased the lead after 34 minutes. Great play by Smith to send CJ Hamilton away down the left, Hamilton got to the byline and delivered a brilliant cross that sailed over the keeper to the far post and was put behind for a corner. It was a great cross taking the keeper, who was backpeddling, out of the equation. Sterling-James took the resulting corner from the right, high into the middle where Ryan Sweeney rose above Buxton to head down and into the bottom left corner of the net from 10 yards. A great header from Sweeney, his second goal in three games, both from corners. A good corner as well from Sterling-James, into the right area for Sweeney. But the Stags could only hold on to their two goal advantage for two minutes. David Templeton turned superbly on the edge of the box and fired a wonderful shot into the top left corner of the net. Olejnik at full stretch got his finger tips on to it but could not keep it out and could not be blamed. In the final minutes of the half, Olejnik made three super saves to keep the Stags in front. Firstly he pushed away another shot by Templeton from just outside the area after more great play from Templeton. Then Templeton was clean through into the area and Olejnik saved again. And finally Olejnik did superbly again to tip over a shot from Scott Fraser after Fraser burst his way to the edge of the area. After a quiet start to the second half, Rose should have reinstated Mansfield’s two goal cushion. James Clarke played a perfect ball forward from inside his own half, Rose ran on to it and was clean through 1-on-1 with the keeper, with no defenders in sight, but fired wide of the right post. It really was a golden chance. Burton could have been level a minute later as Olejnik got down brilliantly, low to his left, to save a shot from 8 yards from Oliver Sarkic. Mansfield had another golden chance to score a third goal after 65 minutes as Jacob Mellis found Tomlinson on the edge of the area with a free shot at goal and just the keeper to beat, but Tomlinson shot with the outside of his boot was straight at the keeper. Sterling-James sent a free kick from 18 yards straight at the keeper after 81 minutes. Burton really only had one more chance to equalise when former Stag Junior Daniel miscued wide from 8 yards after a cross from the left from Jevan Anderson. Mansfield wound the clock down expertly with sub Dapo Afolayan showing several pieces of superb skill to keep the ball down in the corner as Burton didn’t look like equalising. So the Stags were the winners. It was an entertaining game and the 140 or so Stags fans really enjoyed their evening. There was a real energy about the Stags and some real quality too. Alistair Smith had a superb first half, setting up the first goal, playing a part in the second, and setting up another chance for Rose. Jacob Mellis also played well in midfield. Omari Sterling-James, after a poor opening few minutes, really blossomed, and provided quality from set pieces. Will Tomlinson had a much improved game in midfield. The back three of Preston, Shaughnessy and Sweeney did well. Young James Clarke at right wing back impressed, though was caught out a few times. And behind them, Bobby Olejnik made five super saves in a top showing. The draw for the next round is at 2pm on Saturday. Mansfield, having finished second in the group, should have an away tie at a northern based club. Stat update: The crowd of just 485 was the lowest to watch Mansfield in an EFL Trophy game. It was also the lowest to watch Mansfield during Mansfield’s time as a Football League club. However there were four lower attendances during Mansfield’s time as a Conference club, so it was the 5th lowest ever (stats from Paul Taylor). The Stags return to the league now at Macclesfield on Saturday. It’s vital of course that Mansfield bounce back from that defeat to Colchester and start to rise up the table. It was Mansfield first visit to the Pirelli Stadium for nearly 5 years, and only the 4th in our history. Mansfield made eight changes from the side that beat Chorley. Preston, Sweeney and Tomlinson were the starters who started on Saturday. It was a 3-4-2-1 formation: Olejnik; Preston, Shaughnessy, Sweeney; Clarke, Smith, Tomlinson, Hamilton; Sterling-James, Mellis; Rose. Jordan Graham was on the bench and came on in the second half for his first game since a long lay-off through injury. Great to see him back. Jimmy Knowles, scorer in the previous game in this competition against Crewe, was rested so that he can play in the FA Youth cup on Wednesday evening. Burton included three former Stags in their squad. Jake Buxton started at centre half though was withdrawn at half time. Junior Daniel played at left back. Chris Beardsley, who is the Burton fitness coach, was on the bench but did not come on. He did come on in Burton’s previous game in this competition. Lucas Akins, normally a striker and Burton’s top scorer last season, started at right back, but moved up front after half an hour. Apparently he has played in every position for Burton apart from in goal. Burton fielded a strong side, the strongest they could in fact, making only four changes from their game at the weekend, and three of those were enforced with players on international duty. FULL REPORT IN THE MATCH CENTRE -------------------------- MATCH REPORT: Mansfield Town pull off win at Burton Albion to reach Trophy knockout stages chad.co.uk, Tuesday 12 November 2019 Mansfield Town secured a spot in the knockout stages of the EFL Trophy with a 2-1 victory at Burton Albion tonight. After two draws, before losing to both Everton U21s and Crewe Alexandra on penalties for the extra point, the Stags, who made eight changes on the night, saw off the League One Brewers at the Pirelli Stadium to go through. Goals from Danny Rose and Ryan Sweeney did the damage against Nigel Clough’s side with David Templeton’s scorcher a mere consolation for the hosts. Stags’ shot-stopper Bobby Olejnik pulled off a string of super saves to ensure victory. https://www.chad.co.uk/sport/football/match-report-mansfield-town-pull-off-win-at-burton-albion-to-reach-trophy-knockout-stages-1-10100794 Burton burst out of the blocks with Olejnik producing a fine stop to tip Lucas Akins’ strike over the bar. Down the other end, Omari Sterling-James was kept out by Ben Garratt after getting on the end of Willem Tomlinson’s ball. Rose opened the scoring in the 23rd minute with a delicate tip. And 11 minutes later Sweeney rose highest to head home the second and double the visitors’ advantage. But the two-goal lead lasted mere seconds as the Brewers hit back. Templeton was the man to get on the scoresheet as helpless Olejnik couldn’t stop his superb curling effort nestling in the top corner. But Olejnik denied Templeton a second with a good stop and frustrated the scorer again just before the break. In stoppage time a sprawling Olejnik then denied Scott Fraser’s rasping drive to ensure John Dempster’s side went in ahead at half-time. After the restart Sterling-James’ speculative volley flew wide. On the hour Rose should have restored the visitors’ two-goal advantage. The forward raced away to meet James Clarke’s through ball before firing wide with the goal gaping. Jacob Mellis and Tomlinson then linked up well with the latter seeing his effort from the outside of his boot kept out by Garratt. Conor Shaughnessy could only glance Sterling-James’ cross wide late on as Mansfield saw it through in six added minutes. The draw for the next round will take place on Saturday, live on Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday from 2pm. BURTON: Garratt, Daniel, Edwards, Buxton, Wallace, Quinn, Fraser, Akins, Templeton (Anderson 71), Sbarra, O’Toole (Brayford 76). Unused subs: Livesey, Sarkic, Beardsley. MANSFIELD: Olejnik, Shaughnessy, Preston, Sweeney, Clarke, Tomlinson, Smith, Hamilton, Mellis (Afolayan 67), Sterling-James (MacDonald 88), Rose (Graham 62). Unused subs: Stone, Benning, Cook, Gordon. REFEREE: Leigh Doughty. ----------------- Report: Burton Albion 1-2 Stags mansfieldtown.net, by Aaron Curry Mansfield Town progressed to the last 32 of the Leasing.com Trophy following a well-earned 2-1 victory over League One side Burton Albion on Tuesday evening. The Stags arrived at the Pirelli Stadium knowing only a win would take them through to the next round and they battled hard to complete the job. Danny Rose marked his return to the starting line-up with a beautiful chip on 23 minutes before Ryan Sweeney nodded home his second of the season 11 minutes later. https://www.mansfieldtown.net/news/2019/november/match-report-for-burton-albion-vs-mansfield-town-on-12-nov-19/ The hosts halved the deficit exactly one minute thereafter, via David Templeton’s curling effort, yet were never able to conjure another, which meant the visitors escaped Group E in second place. John Dempster marked his side’s final Leasing.com Trophy group stage game with wholesale changes from the Emirates FA Cup victory over Chorley. Will Tomlinson, Matt Preston and Sweeney were the three to keep their place in the starting XI. The opening stages belonged to the hosts as they boasted the majority of possession. A diving, fingertip save from Olejnik had thwarted Lucas Akins from distance, amongst a flurry of corners. Mansfield sought to grow into the evening’s contest and did just that when Omari Sterling-James’ low drive was palmed to safety by debutant Ben Garratt. A lightning-fast counter then ended with CJ Hamilton being slipped in by Jacob Mellis, yet the eventual delivery was hooked clear before it could reach Rose who lurked in the centre. But the Stags’ no. 32 would get his chance to fire his side into the lead soon after. Alistair Smith pounced upon a loose ball in the middle of the field to release Rose, who made no mistake with a calm dink past the onrushing Garratt. Sterling-James lingered around the Burton defence and so nearly profited from a mix-up on the ball. The winger struck towards an empty net but Colin Daniel was close enough to block. The Brewers threatened an equaliser on the half-hour mark - Scott Fraser shaping to shoot - yet his attempt cleared Olejnik’s crossbar. And just four minutes thereafter, the amber and blue found themselves a two-goal cushion. Following a corner from the far side, Sweeney popped up amidst a crowd of yellow and teal shirts to power home with his head. The advantage, though, was quickly slashed in half as Templeton found the top corner with a curler from the edge of the area, despite Olejnik getting a touch in the process. Nigel Clough’s men would not lie low and pressed for an equaliser before the half-time break. A ball flashed across the face of goal did not rear its required touch before the Brewers’ initial goalscorer, Templeton, twice stung the palms of Olejnik. The Austrian shot-stopper ended the half in similar fashion, denying Fraser who had danced his way towards the area. Into the second half and there were few gilt-edged chances to report, until James Clarke set Rose free. The full-back released his teammate with a delightful ball down the channel; however, his eventual strike flew the wrong side of the near post. And this marked the end of the striker’s evening as he was replaced by Jordan Graham, who came on to make his first appearance in the Stags’ senior fold since January. Soon after, Mellis found Tomlinson on the move but his outside-of-the-boot effort fell into the midriff of Garratt. The home side made inroads to restore parity and almost did so through Akins - who could only force another stop from Olejnik. Daniel was next to find himself with a shooting chance but he dragged his first-time effort wide of the mark. Despite a late onslaught from the League One outfit, Mansfield stayed resolute to confirm their place in the next stage of the competition. Attentions will now turn back to Sky Bet League Two for John Dempster’s charges as they make the journey to face Macclesfield Town on Saturday afternoon. STAGS XI: Olejnik (GK), Preston ©, Mellis (Afolayan 67’), Shaughnessy, Tomlinson, Sweeney, Clarke, Hamilton, Sterling-James (MacDonald 89’), Smith, Rose (Graham 61’). UNUSED SUBS: Stone (GK), Benning, Cook, Gordon. BURTON XI: Garratt (GK), Daniel, Edwards, Buxton © (Sarkic 46’), Wallace, Quinn, Fraser, Akins, Templeton (Anderson 71’), Sbarra, O’Toole (Brayford 76’). UNUSED SUBS: Livesey (GK), Beardsley. REFEREE: Leigh Doughty ASSISTANTS: Abbas Khan & Ollie Williams FOURTH OFFICIAL: Elliott Swallow ATTENDANCE: 485 (away attendance not announced) -------------------- MATCH REPORT: MANSFIELD HOME https://www.burtonalbionfc.co.uk/news/2019/november/match-report-forburton-albion-vs-mansfield-town-on-12-nov-19/ BURTON Albion bowed out of the Leasing.com Trophy after losing 1-2 to Mansfield at the Pirelli Stadium. The Brewers went into the game in third place in Northern Group E knowing that a draw would take them above Crewe in second place and into the last 32. The Brewers were without Liam Boyce, Nathan Broadhead and Kieran O’Hara, who were all on international duty, while Richard Nartey, Lloyd Dyer and Reece Hutchinson were ruled out through injury. Ben Garratt made his first start for the Brewers in goal with Joe Sbarra leading the attack. Colin Daniel returned to the starting line-up at left back. The Brewers opened the game brightly winning four early corners, all whipped in by David Templeton but well defended by Mansfield. Lucas Akins let fly on eight minutes with a bending shot that was brilliantly tipped over the bar by Bobby Olejnik. On 12 minutes it was Garratt’s turn to save his team getting down well to stop Omari Sterling-James’ shot after Stephen Quinn’s stumble had let the visitors’ break. On 17 minutes Jacob Mellis found space on the edge of the box but blasted over the bar. Mansfield took the lead on 23 minutes when Danny Rose got a clear run on goal and lifted the ball over the advancing Garratt. The Brewers fell further behind when Ryan Sweeney rose highest from a corner to head home from eight yards on 34 minutes. But David Templeton pulled one back almost immediately with another stunning finish, curling it in from the edge of the box into the top corner. The Albion No 11 was then denied twice more before the break - on 42 minutes with a low drive that Olejnik scrambled away and on 45 minutes cutting inside and unleashing a fierce shot that the Mansfield keeper could only parry. Half-Time: 1-2 Oliver Sarkic replaced Jake Buxton at the start of the second half for the Brewers. On 58 minutes Templeton tried his luck from a free kick which was deflected over the bar and Albion piled on pressure from the corner, but the ball wouldn’t drop for Joe Sbarra. Rose should have extended Mansfield’s lead on 60 minutes when he ran clear of the Brewers defence only to shoot into the side netting as Garratt came out to meet him. A minute later Sarkic found space at the far post but Olejnik saved well and Mansfield cleared the rebound. On 66 minutes Sarkic pulled the ball back for Akins who tried to bundle the ball over the line but Mansfield closed him down well. The Brewers continued to waste good chances with Colin Daniel getting on the end of a cross but steering the ball just wide with eight minutes left. But Albion couldn’t find the breakthrough and bowed out of the competition, Full-time: 1-2 Attendance: 485 --------------------- |
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