With little to play for due to York’s unassailable lead, the final sporting event of the Roses saw York and Lancaster’s men’s football teams play out a disappointing display to the remaining fans, loyally standing in the Yorkshire rain.
Despite the initial quick tempo of the game, the beginning of the first half had very little to offer other than messy midfield scraps and the occasional link up play from Lancaster’s Newton, Hannity and Baines.
Striker Newton managed to stop the fans from dozing off completely with a couple of half chances later in the half – one shot tipped wide and a header comfortably caught by York’s number one – however it was nothing the fans expected.
The second half was a slight improvement, if only because York began to compete in the final third managing to create some chances in the process. The deadlock was finally broken when York’s number eleven scored a simple tap in, resulting from a free kick that Lancaster failed to clear.
Lancaster almost equalised immediately after the restart, when York’s keeper dropped the ball in front of striker Newton who could not finish in the melee of players that packed the box. York’s clumsy defending continued for a short while resulting in a penalty when number 18’s tackle brought down Lancaster’s Hull. The subsequent penalty was taken by Newton and wonderfully saved by York’s keeper – going down sharply to his left to push the ball away.
To add insult to injury, three minutes later Lancaster’s captain Low did his team no favours by being sent off for dissent. This only galvanized the home side who went on to counter attack Lancaster and gain a penalty themselves five minutes later. By far the most exciting period of the game culminated in York missing their penalty too – this time the ball was struck woefully sky high over the bar.
In the dying minutes, York effortlessly defended their 1-0 lead from a depleted Lancaster side, bringing the Roses 2011 to an uninspiring close. York’s additional two points gave them a total score of 176.5.
