Mousehold 3, Loddon 3Mousehold were expecting a tough league match, with Loddon out to settle the score following their exit from the Shoetrade Cup at Mousehold's hands last week.

Mousehold 3, Loddon 3

Mousehold were expecting a tough league match, with Loddon out to settle the score following their exit from the Shoetrade Cup at Mousehold's hands last week.

Mousehold started the game well, consistently outplaying Loddon. However, the wind took a major part in events that followed:

The hosts were playing into a strong wind and it was the wind which was ultimately responsible for all three Loddon goals in the first half.

Their first came on 28 minutes from a free-kick, which went up and over the wall and the wind carried it straight into the net.

The Mousehold players were understandably disappointed as to that very moment Loddon had never looked even close to scoring.

The second came three minutes later, and this also was pure fluke - the Loddon player was more surprised than the Mousehold defenders.

He kicked the ball straight up in the air on the halfway line and the wind caught it sending it sailing straight down the pitch, over the keeper and tucked neatly under the crossbar - it could just have easily sailed on and over the fence as landed in the net.

By the time the third came seven minutes later (another goal from distance, straight though the defence and the keeper couldn't throw himself across the goal fast enough), Mousehold were feeling very hard done by and arguments started to break out, which Brett Macey, captain and manager for the day, immediately moved to quell.

At half-time the disappointed players took heart in the fact that in the second half the wind would be at their backs.

They had played Loddon off the field, and Bretty demanded they produce the same quality in the second half.

But after the restart you had to wonder whether they would produce, as their performance was not quite as sparkling from the outset.

They had their chances - rebounds off the crossbar, over the bar, saves by the Loddon keeper.

It wasn't until 73 minutes that the doubters were silenced when Stevie Wildey got the first of his header hat-trick, when he was set up by Chris Daniels right in front of goal.

The spirits of the Mousehold players started to soar when five minutes later he got his second: Ben Jacob took a free kick which Stevie picked up to score with his head again.

His third and final goal of the game came on 82 minutes, Chris D passed to him from the halfway line, and he used his head to knock it high, up and over the keeper, carried by the wind into the net.

The final 10 minutes continually threatened but never actually produced that winning goal for Mousehold, and the game finished 3-3.

Man of the Match to Stevie Wildey.

Mousehold Res 0, South Walsham 6

Mousehold Reserves continued their disappointing form, all the more so after last week where the Reserve players contributed to Mousehold's progression in the Shoetrade Cup competition.

Changes in the line-up failed to deliver an improvement to the performance or the scores.

The few chances in the first half were not followed through, and Mousehold defence were unable to prevent the 3-0 scoreline at half-time.

The half-time talk wasn't easy, and the players and management were understandably upset.

The problems continued into the second half with Mousehold unable to turn the game around, and the final scoreline of 6-0 tells the story.

Man of the Match awarded to substitute Paul Mitchell who came on early in the second half and tried his utmost to create chances when other players had already given up.

Mousehold 4, Homecare 2

Early on in the game Homecare were making all the chances and the play was all in the Mousehold half, however when Mousehold did get the ball up front they looked dangerous.

It perhaps shouldn't have been a surprise then when Homecare went in front on 15 minutes, but it was such a soft goal that there was disbelief all round, the player was waiting on the far post unmarked to tap the cross in.

However five minutes later Mousehold equalised when Andy Brown got his head to the ball right in front of goal.

Three minutes after that Mousehold went ahead for the first time, an absolute gift: the ball took a rebound off a Homecare player and it fell to Ben Jacob right in front of the goal.

On 37 minutes Homecare equalised through the same player again when Josh's attempt to clear the ball only resulted in blocking the keeper's view, and the scores remained drawn at 2-2 when the game went into half-time.

Two minutes into the second half and already there was action on the pitch: a penalty was awarded to Homecare for a handball in the area, a claim denied by the player at fault - the penalty was taken and netted only for the referee to order it taken again for encroachment, and this time he kicked it over the bar, leaving both side slightly bemused, and Mousehold at least, relieved.

There followed so many chances for Mousehold: 51 minutes Andy shot, it rebounded off the post, he caught the rebound and had another go, but this time a defender got in the way to clear it: 53 minutes Bretty crossed and Matt Taylor got his head to it but it was caught by the keeper.

Andy passed to Matt on the right, Matt to Ben Jacob on the left who then shot across goal to much groaning, soon after Nick Tyrrell had a great chance right in front of goal but scuffed it.

On 64 minutes Ben Jacob collided with two other players in the area - no one's fault - and suffered a badly broken finger and retired from play.

Dwayne Batley who came on in his place put Mousehold ahead for the second time when on 76 minutes the ball managed to find the back of the net despite taking a deflection off the keeper's head.

The restart saw an inexplicable argument start between two of the Homecare players from the kick-off - the referee instructed the players to stop it escalating and when all had calmed down handed out two yellows and play restarted.

There was one final goal to go, on 93 minutes, when Nick's perseverance paid off: he caught a throw in, controlled it, shot it across the goal and into the far corner: the keeper didn't even move.

Man of the Match awarded to Nick Tyrrell, and many thanks to Homecare for their hospitality and generosity, as always.