Tintwistle Hold Central to Level Pegging

Images From: Manchester Central Flikr, Credits: Rafaella Macintosh.

Seashell Trust saw a stalemate this sunless Saturday afternoon, with Manchester Central and Tintwistle Athletic sharing the spoils after scoring one goal a piece. The visitors broke the deadlock with a rapid counter just after half-time, whilst Central equalised via Costa with eight minutes to go but were unable to propel themselves to a winner.

Chris Tomkinson named a squad with two changes from the eleven which reached the semi-finals of the Manchester FA Challenge Cup, beating Heywood St James on penalties. Nell Noupoue returned to the side, sporting the number 6 shirt, whilst Damani Hall took the remaining starting spot in the number 7 jersey.

The game saw an electric start, a symptom of the season so far, with Central earning themselves a chance early on. After kicking off, the home side passed the ball around the back line, inviting the visitors deep into their half, before Dolling fired a long ball down the right channel for Ruben Lawal to run onto. The number 9 met the ball by the byline, beating a man in the process, however, his attempted cross into the box was blocked by a defender.

Next, it would be Tintwistle's chance to make an early statement as they progressed the ball through the middle of the pitch. Eventually, Dolling would thwart their move with a well-timed tackle, allowing Noupoue to cleanly regain possession for Central.

The fourth minute would see Central's first shot on goal. Hall was brought down deep in the visitor's half, with Dolling floating the resulting free-kick over Tintwistle's defensive line. The ball found the head of a Central player, however, the opportunity would go amiss as it bounced wide.

With Tintwistle operating in a 4-3-3 formation, utilising a defensive midfielder to outnumber Central's attacking unit whilst focusing on attacking via the wide areas, the visitors showed a settled structure. This allowed them to create chances with intricate build-up play. However, this also suited Central's tactical instructions.

Images From: Manchester Central Flikr, Credits: Rafaella Macintosh.

The Whites defended in a flat 4-3-3 formation, looking to stifle attacks to trap the opposition deep in their half before rapidly breaking forwards in by transitioning into a 4-2-3-1 in the attack. This created a double pivot of Kong and one of either Odell or Noupoue dependent on the move. This allowed Central to create an attacking overload whilst retaining defensive rigidity and a numerical advantage in midfield.

Within the ten-minute mark, Hall made one of his trademark mazy runs, driving diagonally across the pitch until he arrived at the left corner of Tintwistle's box, where he shifted the ball to Abreu who won a corner. Although this came to little, Central's next foray forwards would come via a free kick on the right corner of the box. Abreu stepped up for the set piece and delightfully whipped it into a dangerous area, but before a Central player could latch onto it, the cross was cleared with a header.

Free kicks would become a common occurrence for both sides within the fixture, and with Athletic awarded a deep free kick in the 13th minute, Whiting would be called into action for the first time. As the ball was floated toward the Central netting, the number one timed his run off the line perfectly to meet the ball at the 6-yard line, catching it over the top of a Tintwistle head.

The end-to-end trend would continue as Sultan Kasali masterfully pushed a through ball down the right wing for Lawal to run onto. The striker met the ball by the by-line and looked to cross the ball into the box, but it was cleared for a corner.

Just minutes later, Central would be gifted a free-kick on the left corner of the Tintwistle box. Abreu fired the ball into a dangerous area, with the resulting clear falling to Noupoue on the edge of the box. The midfielder deftly controlled the ball with his chest before aptly beating a man. However, despite his best efforts, Noupoue's shot was obstructed.

Images From: Manchester Central Flikr, Credits: Rafaella Macintosh.

The early end-to-end trends of the game would continue until the half-time whistle, with a few stand-out moments - however, these would often come from free kicks.

The first of which came in the 27th minute, with Sholabi firing the set-piece directly at the shot-stopper, whose mishandling of the ball led to a goalmouth scramble. Eventually, the ball reached Abreu, whose twists and turns around the edge of the box opened up space for his sizzling shot, which swiftly struck the post.

Three minutes later, Hall would take an almost perfectly placed free-kick. Situated centrally on the edge of the D, Hall curled the ball around the wall, forcing the opposition's goalkeeper into action once again.

As the clock ticked on, both sides desperately searched for the opening goal, and it would be Athletic who came closest to leading at half-time. Whiting prevented one attack, punching away a cross, yet he would be summoned to save seconds later. Central conceded a free-kick, which was whipped in, creating a goalmouth scramble where Whiting blocked a shot as he laid on the floor before another Tintwistle touch would send the goal out for a goal kick.

However, after the break, the deadlock would not last long. Just two minutes after the resumption of the game, Tintwistle capitalised from the breakdown of a Central attack as they uncharacteristically counterattacked - perhaps having lulled the home side into a false sense of security in the first forty-five. Athletic won the ball back in their own half, quickly advancing down the right wing before cutting it back into the box for the striker to convert.

Images From: Manchester Central Flikr, Credits: Rafaella Macintosh.

The visitors soon looked for a second, with their best chance coming just two minutes after their first. their right winger would overhit a deep cross, finding the opposite winger in the far corner. The attacker would weave into the box before Whiting anticipated his cross and swiftly rose to catch the ball in its path to the Tintwistle frontman.

Unperturbed, Central would try to fight their way back to level pegging, with the 59th minute providing Tomkinson's side with their best chance of the second half so far. Dolling skimmed a pass directly down the centre of the pitch, bypassing a number of opposition midfielders and finding Hall on the edge of the box. The midfielder received the ball with a back heel flick which elevated the ball over an Athletic centre-back and found Abreu at around the 18-yard line, but his shot was blocked.

Just after the hour-mark, Abreu would turn creator, weaving his way around multiple Tintwistle players before pushing the ball to Kong on the by-line. The number six fired a low cross towards Odell, who controlled and turned whilst wrestling with a defender. Unfortunately, the midfielder's shot would bobble wide.

In the latest spate of chances, in the 63rd minute, Abreu floated a free-kick into the box, which the goalkeeper batted away. However, the ball would fall within the penalty area, causing a dangerous scrabble. Two minutes later and Central were still occupying the Tintwistle third, yet still couldn't force their way through as Hall forwarded a cross onto Kong, whose shot was once again blocked for a corner.

As Central's desperation and frustration continued to grow, the side's resilience showed. The continued dominance of Tomkinson's side forced the visitors to try to defend their lead by retaining as much possession as possible, simply preventing the home side the opportunity to attack.

Images From: Manchester Central Flikr, Credits: Rafaella Macintosh.

Tomkinson rolled the dice, making all four substitutions within minutes, handing Alex Holmes his first appearance in a Central shirt. The forward would go on to have a promising cameo for the side in the game's dying minutes, however, it would be a fellow substitute that would steal the show.

Claudio Costa, who had come onto the pitch in only the 66th minute, would score his second goal of the season to bring Manchester Central level in the 82nd minute. The late equaliser occurred, rather fittingly, from a free-kick. Dolling delivered the long-range free-kick into the box, which saw multiple players have attempts as the ball bounded about the box. Eventually, it fell to Costa in space at the far corner of the 6-yard line, with his low-driven shot finding the back of the net.

However, the drama was not over. Both sides would push for a winner in the final eight minutes, however, it would be the visitors who came the closest despite having just one chance compared to Central's three opportunities.

Just three minutes after Costa's equaliser, Whiting made a low, diving left-handed save to prevent a curling free-kick from Athletic. That said, in the second minute of added time, Noupoue would almost score Central's second in sensational style, as his dipping long-range strike was tipped over the bar by the Tintwistle 'keeper to prevent Central from taking the lead.

As the final whistle blew, a point felt a fair reflection of the competitive and evenly-matched fixture which had just played out. However, despite the glee that Tomkinson's side had earned their first point in 42 days, there was also a general consensus that Central could have taken all three points on another day, given the quality and quantity of chances.