The Iron returned to league action this afternoon for a clash with newly promoted Leamington FC in the Vanarama National League North.
Scunthorpe came into the game on the back of a victory over local rivals Grimsby Town in the Lincolnshire Senior Cup and were hoping that this form would transfer into the league for the encounter with the Brakes who were notoriously impressive on home soil.
For the first time this campaign the Iron would alter their starting shape and set up with a traditional four at the back formation. Lining up in this shape would see a variety of changes from last weekend’s Isuzu FA Trophy defeat against Warrington Rylands. Firstly, goalkeeper Ross Fitzsimons regained his place between the Scunthorpe sticks and found himself protected by a familiar backline. In the core of midfield, the creative duo of Cal Roberts and Alfie Beestin returned to the starting line-up as part of a diamond while Danny Whitehall returned from illness to start upfront alongside league debutant Mark Beck.
It has to be said that it was far from ideal conditions at the start of proceedings, and this would continue long into the first period with the rain thrashing down on the Windmill Ground. The game began as a stalemate with both teams attempting to figure one another out with a number of searching balls forward that came to nothing.
The first chance of the game came for the hosts as after a sustained period of Scunthorpe pressure the Brakes would break from an Iron corner. It was Leamington captain Callum Stewart that set Joe Doyle-Charles down the centre of the pitch with Will Shorrock in support. Doyle-Charles had just Tyler Denton to beat who did extremely well to force the Leamington man into a pass to Shorrock who drove an effort straight into the gloves of Fitzsimons from a promising position.
After this chance the Iron would push forward for the opening goal of the game and came outrageously close through Cal Roberts who floated into the box after a surging run from 25 yards. Under almighty pressure from a back tracking Brakes defender, Roberts would rush his eventual shot and send it flying just beyond the near post.
Another chance would come for the hosts on the half hour mark, and it would be an ambitious effort from right-back Dan Meredith that forced an excellent save out of Fitzsimons. Meredith collected possession 25 yards out and let fly with a superb piledriver of a strike that forced the keeper to flick the ball around the post for a corner.
With the elements continuing to make it hard for both teams and it would do so right up until the half-time whistle. However, before the break there would be a golden chance for Beck to open his Iron account. It was midfielder Max Brogan that created the chance for United as he collected the ball and ran into a wide area before sliding a perfectly placed cross into Beck who made sufficient contact with the ball, but it was somehow prodded wide of the goal by a well-placed defender.
After the half-time break United would return to the field of play with hopes of grabbing the first goal of the game having done the hard work in the opening period. United set about immediately testing their opponents and were playing a fantastic brand of attacking football.
The Iron would conjure the first chance of the half, and it was Beck again that would meet a pinpoint cross into the box. After the initial attack was recycled Roberts switched the ball onto his stronger left foot on the right flank. Roberts’ delivery is usually exquisite, and this one was no different as he swung a superb cross to the back stick where Beck was waiting, and in an act of desperation the striker’s header was brilliantly clawed away from goal by the scrambling goalkeeper Callum Hawkins.
A goal to break the deadlock could be sensed around the Windmill Ground as Scunny flooded forward at pace. After winning a corner on the near side Roberts would whip in a delivery from the corner that found a head at the near post. As the ball finally rippled the net it was Maxim Kougun that emerged from crowd of bodies celebrating, however referee Jonathan Maskrey’s whistle would sound to deny United of their well-deserved goal for a foul that he’d spotted during the scramble.
After many attempts of trying to break the so far goalless encounter it would finally come to an end with just over half an hour remaining through top goal scorer Roberts with a cunning finish. It was a low ball in from Brogan that allowed the ball to fall to Roberts as it ricocheted around the penalty area, once the unmarked midfielder brought the ball under his spell there was only going to be one eventual outcome as he hammered the ball past Hawkins on the half-volley.
Once the emphatic celebration from Roberts had calmed down their was to be a period of defending to do for Scunthorpe as they were met an onslaught of Leamington pressure that saw Rob Evans’s long throw be called into action on a regular basis.
Despite the Brakes' best attempts to draw level they would fail to do so from their dominance as the closest they would come to drawing level would be a volley of their own from he edge of the box. It was Jack Evans that struck the powerful effort goalwards and seemed destined for the net if not for the intervention of Iron skipper Michael Clunan who bravely charged down the shot and took a ball square to the face when turning the shot away.
The hosts would remain on top of the game until the 82nd minute when a game changing moment would occur that worked in Scunthorpe’s favour. The fresh legs of Kian Scales of the bench had breathed new life into United and when he received the ball on the halfway line he had just defender Josh Quaynor to beat on his way to goal. Scales had legs to burn whilst on the counterattack and knocked the ball beyond Quaynor who was forced to bring him down with a cynical challenge which denied the Iron of an obvious goalscoring opportunity, not only was a penalty awarded for the Iron but the left-back dismissed for his troubles having not made a genuine attempt to play the ball. From the resulting spot kick the points would be put to bed by Roberts who grabbed his 12th of the campaign while sending Hawkins the wrong way.
This 2-0 scoreline would provide Scunthorpe with a much-needed cushion and Andy Butler’s side would fight to maintain their lead right up until the final whistle in what was a brilliant display of might and character to bring their recent unfortunate run to an end.
IRON: Fitzsimons, Kouogun, Evans, Clunan, Beestin (Scales, 77), Whitehall (Ubaezuonu, 69), Roberts (Kelly, 89), Brogan (Rowley, 87), Beck (Nicholson 90+3), , Denton, Barrows.
