CADOXTON Barry faced St Albans in the South Wales Senior League Division Two, with the score ending 3 all with Thompson, Steel and Dawson scoring for Cadoxton.

With CB sitting on a comfortable lead a long ball saw a forward's expertly executed glancing header finding the back of the CB net. It was a top finish and fully matched Van Persie's goal for the Netherlands in the World Cup. The only difference, however, was that the slow motion replays checked out the fact that the Dutch ace was on side while, with the Saints' 'goal' looking to be at least a couple of yards off side, there were no cameras present to prove that the referee - standing a good forty yards from the action - had made a certain mistake by allowing it. After the game, the linesman, who was standing exactly level, said that there was no question that, at the moment the pass was made, the forward was a good two yards ahead of CB's last defender. Rightly however, club linesmen are not allowed to advise referees on offside calls.

But to rub salt into the wound, the referee decided to use absolutely no discretion whatsoever when, standing just a yard away from Jones and close to the left edge of the box, a Saints forward blasted a hundred mile an hour shot at the turning player. By essence, his arm was going to be slightly away from his side, but get it out of the way? There was no chance! Had it missed Jones, it would have travelled no more than another yard in packed box before hitting something. And there was certainly no chance of a goal coming from the move. But there was no way that the referee, who otherwise, was a really nice guy, was going to apply a bit of common sense to the situation. The spot kick was scored and suddenly Saints were back in a game that they had looked totally out of fifteen minutes before.

CB had started so positively, earning a free kick on the edge of the box, but Adams' shot went over the bar. Scott Williams' long throws were causing the hosts lots of problems. And then, in the twentieth minute, when Dawson put a ball into the path of the oncoming Thompson it was one, nil - the goal forager slotting home.

But the lead was relatively short lived when the hosts sent in a pin point long ball from left to right and found a forward to convert with a quality dipping shot from twenty yards.

Despite a close range shot from Baker which brought an excellent reaction save from the home keeper, it stayed at one all until the half time whistle.

The second half started with CB playing against a strengthening wind, but that didn't seem to stop them from taking the offensive as a Steel corner saw a Curran header being cleared off the line.

In the forty-ninth minute Williams floated a ball in from the left to find Steel near the far post. He then chested it down before burying the ball into the net with a magnificent half volley.

And only four minutes later CB were looking good when Baker found Weekley who executed a lovely lay off in the direction of Dawson, who he gratefully accepted with a fabulous half volley from the left into the net at the far right. And for a further twenty minutes Cadoxton Barry continued to look comfortable, a powerful shot from Baker being well saved at point blank range by the home 'keeper. A Williams’s drive from the middle of the park then went only just shy of the left hand post.

But there was a warning of things to come when a hesitant CB defense allowed an unchallenged cross to fizz across the face of their goal with two forwards failing to connect by the width of a cigarette paper.

Then, on the sixty-eight minute mark, we witnessed the first of the two questionable decisions. Heads went down and it has to be said that during the fifteen minute spell between that and the penalty award CB did not play well, an Albion header going only just above the CB bar.

Perhaps it was a feeling of injustice at the disappearance of a two goal lead following the penalty award that then spurred CB on for the final seven minutes. Suddenly it was the home side that was desperately defending their gifted share in the points. But try as they did CB were unable to break through a resolute and determined Saints rearguard.

Next Saturday, September 6, Cadoxton Barry entertains Penrhiwfer at Bryn-Y-Don in a 2pm kick off.

Read more: http://cadoxtonbarryfc.proboards.com/posts/recent#ixzz3C3FgBfhY.