Bury Town bounce back from FA Cup exit to Felixstowe & Walton United with 2-0 home victory against Wroxham
A goal in each half against Wroxham saw Bury Town bounce back from their early FA Cup exit to make it two victories from two in the Pitching In Isthmian League North Division.
A deflected Joe White goal in the 10th minute got them under way at the Getaway Cars Stadium this afternoon before Mikey Davis eventually made it 2-0 with a thunderbolt of a shot in the 64th minute to mark his first goal for the club since signing from Cambridge City in the summer. It proved to be another deserved three points to reply to Tuesday’s chastening 4-0 cup replay defeat at promotion rivals Felixstowe & Walton United.
Cole Skuse’s side did have to play out the last five minutes, including four added on, with 10 men after subsitute Ryan Horne made the second of two late challenges, but it was not something that had any bearing on the match.
The performance, as well as the result, will now send Bury off to Felixstowe for the third meeting already this season on Bank Holiday Monday (3pm) full of confidence ahead of a revenge mission.
The Seasiders, in contrast, suffered their first defeat of the campaign today, 3-2 at Witham Town.
With Ollie Canfer (back) joining Louis Henman-Mason (knee) and Luke Brown (back) on the injured list, manager Cole Skuse handed 18-year-old academy player Theo Carter his first competitive first-team start. The 18-year-old lined up alongside Ed Upson in central midfield with captain Josh Curry and Ethan Mayhew both dropping to the bench in place of Joe Carroll and Ryan Jolland.
Bury made a bright start against a Wroxham outfit who had lost back-to-back games in league and cup, with a 3-1 FA Cup exit at home to newly-promoted Newmarket Town last weekend coming after a 4-1 scoreline, also in Norfolk, against Maldon & Tiptree on the opening weekend.
Tom Thulborn’s early shot across goal saw Ollie Sutton make a comfortable save, but he was deceived by a low deflected cross from out on the right from Joe White in the 10th minute with the ball rolling in at his far post.
Bury looked to quickly build on their early advantage but Cemal Ramadan could not quite slide in on Davis’ ball behind the defence while Sutton did well to gather a loose ball ahead of the on-rushing Thulborn.
With the Blues well on top, play was suspended in the 20th minute for a medical emergency in the crowd, with the players going off before play eventually resumed 20 minutes later, following a brief warm-up.
Bury looked to pick up where they left off with Max Maughn cutting inside and sending a shot wide of the far post just before the half-hour mark.
But Wroxham began to get their act together as an attacking force with White having to make a good block from a volley inside the box before a cross whizzed dangerously past everyone.
Charlie Beckwith was drawn into his first save in the 41st minute, parrying out at his near post from Harry Barker’s shot before Ryan Miles curled past the far post with the outside of his boot from the other wing.
Towards the end of the half Bury worked the ball well around the fringe of the area before Maughn’s lofted effort found the hands of Sutton.
There was no doubt at the interval that the suspension of play had knocked some of the sting out of what was heading into a dominant first-half display from Skuse’s side.
The second half was only three minutes old when former professional Ed Upson drew an arcing save out of Sutton to turn his fierce shot from the edge of the box over his crossbar.
As the rain began to lash down a promising Bury move, which began with White breaking down the right, ended with Upson, in a similar position, sending a low shot straight at Sutton.
Upson was soon replaced by Ethan Mayhew as Skuse made his first change in thre 57th minute.
With the rain now torrential, Bury got the breakthrough they had been looking for on 64. Ryan Jolland fired in a low cross from the right-hand side that whizzed past everyone before being picked up on the fringe of the area by Davis who then fired in a thunderbolt that Sutton got a hand to but could only push up into the roof of his net.
Ryan Horne replaced Jolland immediately after the goal.
Entering the last 20 minutes, Davis threatened to add another when meeting Thulborn’s cross with a volley but it went straight at the keeper.
Bury’s remaining three substitutes all came on in the 73rd minute with Lewis O’Malley, Josh Curry and Ben Curtis replacing White, Parr and Ramadan.
Thulborn had the ball in the net via a cut dink over the keeper in the 74th minute but the whistle had already gone to signal offside.
Likewise, Curtis also found the back of the net, three minutes later, via a one-two with fellow subsistute Horne, but the latter had strayed behind the defensive line.
Wroxham were not posing the threat they had in the second half of the first period but had a sight of goal from a free kick which Joao Rangel fired into the wall.
A few minutes later the tricky running of Rangel earned another free kick in a central area just outside the box with it this time clearing the wall and heading for the top right-hand corner before Beckwith’s fine diving save.
The keeper soon showed command of his box to come and punch away a cross.
With five minutes remaining, and Bury having weathered some pressure from the visitors, Sutton went full stretch again to turn over Mayhew’s fierce strike from range as the Blues looked to put the game firmly to bed.
Up the other end, Travis Dodsworth saw the ball fall to him inside the box but he lashed it well over the bar.
As the game entered the final minute, Bury substitute Horne was shown a second yellow card and given his marching orders for a second late tackle on the greasy surface.
Davis almost added a third for the hosts in the third minute of added time when he met Thulborn’s cross at the far post but after sending it into the turf, it bounced over the bar.
It was the last notable action of a game which had seen Bury continue their winning start to the campaign and topping the embryonic table courtesy of scoring five and being yet to concede a goal across the two games so far.
Bury: Beckwith, White (O’Malley 73’), Carroll, Upson (Mayhew 57’), Parr (Curry 73’), Carter, Maughn, Jolland (Horne 65’), Ramadan (cpt) (Curtis 73’), Thulborn, Daivs.
Booked: White (55’), Curry (79’), Horne (81’, 89’)
Wroxham: Sutton, Barker (Arodunde 69’), Dodsworth, King, Linford, Peters (Everett 82’), Rangel, Jaggard (Batch 73’), Royle (Forbes 69’), Taylor, Miles. Unused sub: Pipe.
Booked: Royle (36’), Taylor (76’).
Attendance: 424
SuffolkNews Man of the Match: Mikey Davis. The former Cambridge City full-back was full of energy and deservedly got his first Bury Town goal to cap a bright display on and off the ball.
