Wellingborough Town 1-2 Coventry Sphinx
Stuart Guest
Coventry Sphinx’s two Uhlsport United Counties League Premier Division South fixtures against Wellingborough Town always looked like they might have a telling impact on where the sides finish this season.
Sphinx’s home game ended in a 2-0 win for the Doughboys and left them in second place in the table behind runaway leaders Rugby Town on February 21st. By the time the teams met again in Northamptonshire, Wellingborough were on a run of nine league wins and hadn’t been beaten since the middle of October.
The visitors to The Dog & Duck Ground came away with a tremendous 2-1 win despite going behind to a side in sparkling form. Sphinx were good value for the win, too: it was an excellent performance that deservedly took them back into the top two.
Joint managers John Woodward and Shaun Thomas welcomed Jamie Draper back into their defensive trio alongside Louis Guest and James Bryson, with Scott Martin continuing in goal. Jack Downes got the nod at right wing back, and Callum Martin on the left.
Captain Callum Woodward played in midfield with Luke Downes and Max Johnson. Callum Stewart and Matty Shipman were paired up front once more.
The away side made a lightning start but Wellingborough’s threat was quickly evident. Scott Martin had to tip an early shot onto the crossbar as the hosts came into the game, a smart save that was followed by another just a couple of minutes later.
It was a competitive and entertaining game right from the start, with both teams able to get forward and neither willing to pull any punches. The visitors were playing some nice football, already trying to use the ball more than they had for much of the reverse fixture.
With ten minutes played, a neat passing move for Sphinx resulted in the ball coming out to left wing back Callum Martin beyond the back post. His shot was blocked by Wellingborough goalkeeper Dan Farrell. The two would soon square off again.
After a flashpoint in the 18th minute, Sphinx began to make attacking headway with more frequency. The ball dropped to Luke Downes on the edge of the box at the end of another incisive move, and his volley dipped just over Farrell’s bar.
Just as Sphinx took the initiative in the middle of the first half, Wellingborough caught them out on the break for the third time in a matter of weeks and grabbed the lead. Woodward and Thomas will have questioned the team’s defending before the Jack Bowen tap-in that put the hosts in front.
The Doughboys got a lift from their goal and started to have more of a say than they had at 0-0. Martin made another important save at his near post in the 27th minute as Sphinx worked hard to regain their grasp on the match.
When we look back on the 2022/23 season, the timing of Sphinx’s equaliser at Wellingborough might be one of the vital moments. They were level before the half hour and it was a beauty of a goal that made it 1-1.
Luke Downes played a superb reverse ball inside the full back for Callum Martin, who kept his composure against Farrell and calmly slotted the ball past the goalkeeper and into the net to claim his second Sphinx goal – just when it was needed the most.
Wellingborough never looked anything less than a quality side and Sphinx had to be at their best to out-perform them in what remained of the first half. In the 38th minute they were rewarded with what proved the winning goal, and it took the wind out of the sails of the home team.
The second goal originated from a familiar source. Callum Woodward’s deft delivery of a free kick gave Shipman a chance to keep the ball alive in a dangerous area. He got a touch that deceived the defenders, the ball took a bounce, and Bryson arrived in time to crash it into the roof of the net.
From there, Sphinx were fantastic. Whenever Wellingborough got forward in the first half the away team’s defending had to be determined and diligent, but they seldom appeared to be unduly pressured on what might have ended up being a long afternoon.
In fact, it was Sphinx who went into the break looking stronger. The last five minutes of the half were terrific, the half-time lead earned and protected by getting and staying on the front foot.
The second half was everything one might have expected it to be: two robust but highly capable teams, both looking threatening and occasionally nervy as risks were taken and the stakes grew ever larger.
Sphinx performed well in what was an often frantic half, willing to continue slugging it out with Wellingborough and commit numbers forward despite holding the all-important lead. There wasn’t much goalmouth action in the first half an hour of the period; there was no shortage of intensity.
With a little over 15 minutes to play, Sphinx came close to doubling their advantage through a decent Shipman header that sailed just wide after a clever Stewart clip into the penalty area.
Inevitably, the pressure from the home team then arrived. The play was even – Sphinx arguably the more creative from open play but Wellingborough winning free kicks in volume – and still the visitors refused to back down.
One of those free kicks dipped just over the bar in the 78th minute. In the 85th came the chance for which Wellingborough had been searching, generated not from a free kick but a long throw-in. A Doughboys player got there first after it was launched into the box, guided his header downwards and must have thought he’d scored the equaliser.
Scott Martin had other ideas. He showed his agility and strength to get down to the ball right on the line and prevent what had appeared a certain goal. It was a phenomenal and memorable save, Martin’s last of the game as his team-mates saw out the remaining minutes with comparatively little fuss.
After losing the home fixture against Wellingborough, turning the tables away from Sphinx Drive was exactly what was required. This was a confidence-boosting win, a result more than matched by a very fine performance against the most accomplished opposition they’ve faced this season.
To dig deep once to come from behind, and again to find the bravery not to sit back on the lead, was extremely impressive. They were challenged beforehand to show what they were made of. They did that to the full.
Sphinx now shift their attention to the quarter-final of the Birmingham Senior Cup before taking on Rothwell Corinthians at Sphinx Drive. They were beaten by Rothwell early in the season so there’s no room for complacency as a busy March continues.
Sphinx team
S. Martin, Draper, C. Martin, L. Downes, Guest, Bryson, J. Downes, Woodward, Shipman, Stewart, Johnson (Parker). Unused subs: Stone, Adams, Hayward, Jackson