Kirkby Hat Trick Stuns Bardon Hill

A clueless Bardon were 4-0 down at half-time against a rampant Holwell, but emerged for the second half a totally different side.
Playing their first game for three weeks and without captain Antony Snelgrove in central defence, the home supporters may have expected a sluggish start, yet it was anything but.
Within two minutes Holwell were ahead when Ben Smedley easily unpicked Bardon’s back four with a simple pass through the middle for Kirkby who worked himself time and space to pick his spot in the right corner.
With Michael Stevenson pulling the strings in the middle and Nick Hardy’s bustling runs a constant threat down the left, the second seemed just a matter of time. And after 16 minutes it came.
Kirkby’s short pass found Stevenson who showed excellent quick skill to turn his man on the edge of the box. Shaping to shoot, he instead threaded a pass back across into Kirkby’s run and the striker’s neat footwork took him round the keeper before calmly finishing for a superb goal.
By the 28th minute it was Kirkby 3 Bardon 0 courtesy of more sloppy defence from a back four who just couldn’t clear their lines. Holwell’s leading scorer again showed his goalpoacher’s instincts to complete his hat-trick.
Kirkby again shot inches wide from another Smedley assist before Hebberd was presented with Bardon’s only chance of the half, holding off Stuart Rose and captain Ian Bitmead, but shooting wide.
Two minutes before half-time it was 4-0 when a good free kick from the left touchline, near halfway, picked out Chris Hibbitt whose fine header sailed back across goal into the right corner.
Holwell would have expected a Bardon response after half-time, but may not have expected it to be so sustained. Bardon attacked with zip from the whistle, while sub Ward shored up their back four.
Bardon dominated possession as Holwell lost their disciplined first half shape. But the visitors lacked a cutting edge up front until a speculative ball into the box just shy of the hour found sub O’Callaghan who had time to line up a shot past Richard Cragg.
Bardon continued to create half-chances with the ball over the top, as Holwell surrendered possession cheaply, but Cragg was largely untroubled as excellent last-ditch tackles from Rose and Bitmead twice denied O’Callaghan.
Holwell looked to counter and Smedley’s great touch and through ball put Kirkby away, but he was brought down by keeper Fradsham who dashed out of his area to close down the trouble and was yellow-carded.
The hosts finished the stronger, inspired by the industrious Hardy who maintained a tireless shift through to full-time on an unforgiving playing surface. Continually hustling the Bardon right-back, he was almost rewarded with an assist in injury time, running to the byline and cutting the ball back for Kirkby whose shot on the run was blocked.
Holwell: R. Cragg, K. Foster, D. Hallows (S. Wallis 45), S. Rose, I. Bitmead, C. Hibbitt, B. Smedley, F. Stannard, J. Kirkby, M. Stevenson, N. Hardy. Subs not used: R. Plummer, T. Barnard.