Middleham Town 2 Bowes 1

RARE goal from centre back John Acton in extra time gave Middleham victory in this tense Medals Competition Final at The Calvert Stadium last Thursday evening which keeps them on course for a Wensleydale League treble this season.

With so much at stake it was a very tight opening 20 minutes with neither side wanting to give too much away and both defences very much on top.

However it was Bowes who created the first real opportunity after 22 minutes when a great ball over the top by Neil Gulliver put Wayne Thwaites in the clear.

He could not take the ball in his stride though and Andrew Steel in the Middleham goal was able to gather it. Then in the 34th minute Thwaites put strike partner Robert Hudson in down the right but Steel was quickly out of his goal to block the effort with his legs.

That seemed to fire Middleham into life and they finished the half on top. In the 38th minute a long ball from Lee Fawsett was flicked on the far post by Jason Barnard but Jimmy Wilkinson dragged his shot wide of the post. Then,two minutes later,Gary Acton burst through but shot straight at Thomas Lowes in the Bowes goal as John Close challenged him.

Middleham almost took the lead in the final minute of the half when the Bowes defence could not clear a corner, but Glynn Barnard's shot from 10 yards was cleared off the line by Gulliver.

The large crowd was hoping to see a more open game in the second period and it seemed it would not be disappointed when, straight from the restart, a poor clearence from Lowes fell to Glynn Barnard 25 yards out. But the Bowes keeper recovered well to push his shot over the crossbar.

But defences remained on top and chances were at a premium.

Thwaites almost created one for Bowes in the 65th minute with a neat turn on the edge of the box but his shot lacked any power while at the other end a Wilkinson shot was deflected wide for a corner after 72 minutes.

Fawcett's inswinging kick led to an almighty goalmouth scramble but Middleham could not force the ball in. As the game entered its final 10 minutes the tension increased as no one wanted to make a mistake which would cost their team the cup.

However, in the 82nd minute Bowes had the chance to win the match and the cup when a free kick from the right by Andy Bellew found Close six yards out. He was totally unmarked but somehow managed to send his header wide of the post with the goal at his mercy.

In extra time the match finally came to life and Middleham took the lead just two minutes after the restart. A defensive mistake let in Jason Barnard through the centre and as Lowes came out to narrow the angle he squared the ball to his brother Glynn who had the easy task of knocking it into the empty net.

Middleham appeared to have wrapped up the match when they got a second in the 97th minute. A free kick from the dangerous Fawcett from 20 yards out was spilled by Lowes and John Acton, up from the back, was on hand to fire in the rebound. Bowes did not let their heads drop though and they got a goal back when Middleham failed to clear a corner and Gulliver hit a great shot from 20 yards into the top corner of the net.

It set up a grandstand finale and with just two minutes remaining a free kick from Thwaites almost sent the match to penalties. However, his effort was deflected into the grateful arms of Steel and Middleham had won the cup.

Captain Mike Bailey went up to receive the trophy, which could become a habit for him in the next few weeks as Middleham have a semi final of the Dales Cup coming up and are still very much favourites to land the league title as well.