Reading YMCA and Rabson Rovers met for the 2nd time this season and it was the Young Men who gained revenge for an earlier league defeat with a 2-1 win in this Berks & Bucks Intermediate Cup clash.

After a quiet opening 25 minutes which saw neither side taking a grip of the game, YM began to emerge as the side most likely to opening the scoring.

The prompting and probing of midfielder Andy Bullet was beginning to find holes in the Rabson’s defence whilst the direct running of Tim Zielinski and Nader Edmunds were also beginning to threaten.

Strikers Andrew Heath and Drew Tipper were also linking up nicely with Heath using his pace to work the channels and Tipper’s elusive skills causing hesitancy amongst the Rabson’s rearguard.

And it was Tipper who had the first real chance of the match when a good YM move ended with Tipper with the ball in the penalty area.  A great dummy saw him elude 2 Rabson’s defenders and then with the goal at his mercy he poked the ball towards goal only to be denied by the outstretched boot of Rabson’s keeper John Bates.

YM continued to create promising situations but all too often a poor decision in the final third or an errant pass cost them a goalscoring opportunity.  YM did go close again though when some audacious play from Tipper saw him hit the post with a lob from an acute angle – Edmunds was then unable to convert the rebound from close range.

But the deadlock was finally broken when a typically powerful run from Edmunds saw him race down the right wing before squaring the ball into the box.  With several YM players queuing up to put the ball in the net it was Tipper who sidefooted home.

Rabsons were relatively quiet as an attacking force with the normally dangerous Matty Brown well marshalled by Danny Fitzpatrick.  But they did manufacturer one good opportunity when they won the ball from a YM corner and broke quickly.  With the YM defence, for once, looking disorganised Brown played in strike partner Chris Breadmore but he could only blast wide.

Much of the second half was subdued with YM taking their foot off the pedal and Rabson’s unable to find any fluency in attack.  YM continued to spurn good opportunities and the sloppiness of YM began to encourage Rabson’s and with 20 minutes to go the suddenly began to apply serious pressure on YM.

A succession of free-kicks and corners severely tested YM and there was a sense that a goal was coming after a number of close shaves.  And it duly arrived when a pinpoint corner eluded the YM defence and keeper leaving a Rabson’s player to nod home.

It was now anyone’s game but YM were fortunate to thwart the Rabson’s revival almost as soon as it had begun when a free-kick from the half-way line was delivered by Adam Cassidy into the box and, under pressure from Tipper, keeper Bates saw the ball bounce over his head into the top corner.

In the closing minutes Tim Sidwell and Heath had chances to make the game safe but YM eased home to secure a victory that they laboured over but ultimately deserved.

YM boss Mark Lemm said “The defeat to Rabson’s earlier in the season may well have been our worst performance since I became manager but since then we have been steadily improving.

There have been plenty of good things in our play over the last 2/3 weeks but we are just not being clinical enough in the final third at the moment.  If we can get that right we could be in business because we have started to look really solid defensively recently.

I thought we were in control of this game for long periods but started to relax a bit too much which allowed Rabson’s back into the game.  It has been a bit of a pattern this season and we need to show a bit more determination to kill games off when we are in the ascendancy.”

READING YMCA: MORTIMER, FITZPATRICK, CASSIDY, ROLFE, EDMUNDS, BULLETT, ZIELINSKI (replaced by SIDWELL 70mins), KEARSEY, CORNELL, HEATH (replaced by M LEMM 85mins), D TIPPER SUBS SIDWELL, M LEMM.

LEMMY’S MOM – ADAM CASSIDY

Close season signing Nader Edmunds powered his way to the MOM award against Berks County Sports. With several players missing 'Naz' took the game by the scruff of the neck with his box to box running, and ensured YM got back to winning ways.