South Leeds End Ilkley’s Winning Streak
Ilkley Town 1-2 South Leeds
In a West Yorkshire derby, Ilkley Town AFC fell to a disappointing 1-2 loss against South Leeds FC to put a halt to their good run of form. A sluggish first half performance left the Baht’atters behind at the break, and an improved second half – in which Kevin Gonzalez scored – wasn’t enough to earn a point, writes Matt Lambe.
Town were slow to get out of the blocks, unlike Leeds who started energetically. Matthew Keen had to be alert to deny their striker from a tight angle, while Benjamin Agu broke the offside trap but failed to hit the target.
Agu made amends for his earlier miss by giving the visitors a deserved early lead in the 18th minute. After a pinball sequence inside the box, his crisp finish nestled in the corner.
Leeds, keen to strike again before Ilkley’s wounds had healed, continued to ensure the ball remained in the Baht’atters’ half; a free kick narrowly missed the target and James Nightingale prevented a close range shot with a crucial tackle.
Approaching half time, Ilkley began to play more promisingly and were duly rewarded with more chances. From Luke Baldwin’s corner, Finn Ellis’ glancing header flew wide and, with the following attack, Toby Marriott missed the target from a one on one. Thus, Ilkley were trailing at the break.
In the second half, Sam Dexter’s side responded well and played with more purpose and tenacity. Gonzalez came tantalisingly close to equalising after beating three defenders, but his subsequent effort struck the inside of the post and bounced out.
Shortly afterwards, Marriott gained a sight of goal following composed play from Harry Brown, but the number nine was tackled just before he could shoot and Baldwin’s follow-up was deflected.
At the other end of the MPM Stadium, South Leeds doubled their advantage to leave Town with more work to be done. Capitalising on the fact that Ilkley’s defence had to push up in an attempt to equalise, the visitors attacked with pace and Agu bagged his brace with a powerful effort.
Once Leeds gained a two-goal lead, the game opened up as the hosts became increasingly in need of a goal. Substitute Arlo Buller almost assisted with an inviting cross, while on the counter attack, Keen stopped the visitors adding a third with a reflex save.
In the 75th minute, Gonzalez halved the deficit to give Ilkley supporters a glimmer of hope. After Baldwin’s delivery wasn’t dealt with by ex-Ilkley goalkeeper Callum Gladding, Gonzalez reacted the quickest to set up a tense finale.
Baldwin’s set-pieces continued to pose a threat to South Leeds: this time, his corner agonisingly skimmed the underside of the crossbar.
Dexter’s side continued to put pressure on South Leeds, but it was too little, too late, leaving the visitors to take home the three points and Ilkley ruing missed opportunities.
Looking to the future, Ilkley travel to Shelley FC on Tuesday 20 August at 7.45pm, before hosting Penrith AFC at the MPM Stadium in the FA Vase First Qualifying Round on Saturday 24 August at 3pm.
Photo Credit: Nigel Owen