Mexborough and Swinton Times March 4, 1927

Return of Hill
An Improved Mexborough

Mexborough 4  Shirebrook 0

Rob Hill (picture) came back into the Mexborough team on Saturday as fresh as a daisy to play game that infused fresh life into the whole side.

Mexborough won thoroughly and deservedly and Hill had a lot to do with it. The match was not altogether thrilling entertainment. Shirebrook some slice of bad luck in the first half – Mexborough had one or two also – and Mexborough hardly merited their two goals interval lead. But after Shirebook put of a very poor showing deed against a weakened resistance Mexborough took things more easily.

Mexborough look good for goals at the start, the more especially as Marsh was dreadfully shaky and seem very worried about the proximity of Taylor where the ball was at that end. But no goals came for quite a long time. The Mexborough men failed to take up some excellent chances. Shirebrook bestirred themselves and showed they could place pretty football; indeed their forward combination was rather better than Mexborough’s. But their finishing wasn’t.

The goalscoring started as a result of a defensive mistake and Taylor’s readiness. A swift Mexborough Russian the right caught the Shirebrook backs a little unawares and Slack slipped the ball back to March. Marsh fumbled it and before he could recover Taylor was into him and he and the ball were over the line. The Shirebrook players protested eminently that it was not, but they did not seem to be much doubt about it; Taylor is an expert at charging.

The other goal of the offers a pretty piece of work. Star was given the ball and appeared to be losing it over the goal-line. But he got it under control and screwed across a nice centre which Bramley got his head, and the ball went in off the upright.

I repeat, Shirebrook did not deserve to be two goals down at the interval.

Afterwards it was different. Inside eight minutes Davis showed the way to the Shirebrook goal with a clever manoeuvre and pass and Bramley finished the job with a ground shot that Marsh ought to have saved.

Some time passed before Mexborough got their final goal, though they kept up an almost continuous attack, and this time it was a good shot by Davis that did the trick after a masterly bit of work by Hill

Team: Calladine; Burkinshaw, Hawkins; Hill, Wilkinson, Saxton; Storer, Bramley, Taylor, Davis, Hetherington