Bewdley 3 Alvechurch 2

BEWDLEY Town capped a fine campaign by winning the Worcestershire Senior Urn final for the second season in a row by seeing off higher-ranked Alvechurch at Aggborough on Tuesday.

The Ribbesford Meadow men, who play a level below their opponents in the West Midlands League Premier Division, made a mockery of their underdogs tag with a deserved victory over the in-form Churchmen.

Alvechurch had actually taken an 18th minute lead after Elliot Nash broke down the right and squared for Andy Nicol to steal a yard on his marker and thrash the ball home past an exposed Darren Steadman.

But by that stage Bewdley’s Richard Burgess had already dropped a cross onto the top of the bar with hapless Church keeper Lewis Gwilliams all at sea and the shot stopper’s fallibilities allowed their rivals from the West Midlands League to hit back in emphatic fashion.

In the 20th minute a Sam Watkins centre from the right was cleared only as far as Craig Webb who sent it back towards goal and wheeled away in delight as Gwilliams failed to react until it was far too late and the ball bounced past him into the net.

Four minutes later Gwilliams was again at fault, rushing headlong into no man’s land as Zak Marriott sent a hanging cross into the box which Dan Flowers sent past the flailing keeper with a looping header.

Flowers tried his luck from distance before Alvechurch skipper Tom Elder stabbed the ball over in a congested area and Steadman made a hash of gathering a Ben Judd cross but improvised to deny a predatory Lee Dunkley effort.

And it was all over in the 38th minute, Burgess sending in a corner from the left which saw an unmarked Sean Wright head home.

The Midland Alliance side, who could have been down to ten just before the break as midfielder Dave Glaze felled Marriott with an elbow to the face in front of the referee, offered little up front until Jazz Luckie entered the fray just past the hour and Bewdley hit the woodwork again in the 55th minute when substitute Russ Godfrey’s cross landed on top of the bar with Gwilliams again all at sea.

Alvechurch’s desperation became evident when Adam Humphries committed the most embarrassing of dives in the 59th minute, getting opposite number Flowers an entirely undeserved yellow card in the process, and it should have been four in the 68th minute only for Godfrey to cut the neck off the ball when left free as a bird eight yards from goal.

Luckie injected some purpose and saw an effort loop up off Bewdley’s Wright and onto the roof of the net in the 75th minute but within seconds an overambitious back header from Humphries brought a one-handed save from his keeper Gwilliams and to compound the misery for the Alliance side Glaze had his marching orders five minutes from time for a crude lunge on Bewdley sub Chris Seekings as justice was belatedly served, the culprit not waiting to see the card waved.

Luckie added a semblance of respectability to the scoreline with almost the last kick of the game as he lashed home from point-blank range in injury time after Steadman had pushed away a low drive from Church sub Ross Dempster but it proved too little, far too late.

Bewdley Town: Darren Steadman, Zak Marriott, Mike Hyde, Sean Wright, Richard Costello, Craig Webb, Sam Watkins (Russ Godfrey, 50min), Rob Orme (Dan Gittens, 83), Chris Hough, Richard Burgess, Dan Flowers (Chris Seekings, 65). Subs not used: Dan Jones, Alex Taffe.

Alvechurch: Lewis Gwilliams, Adam Humphries, Ben Judd (Jazz Luckie, 61), Rob Freeman (Ross Dempster, 81), Scott Smith, Tom Elder, Sam Wills, Dave Glaze, Lee Dunkley (Dean Morris, 72), Andy Nicol, Elliot Nash. Subs not used: Daley Cameron, Karl Hooper.