Chiesa made three changes to the team that played in surreal atmosphere at Digital Line a fortnight ago. Danny Trew and Cy Taylor dropped to the bench, while Terry Soteriou was absent, the trio replaced by Jonny Gray, Steve McCarthy and Colin Williams as the home side reverted to 4-5-1 against stronger opposition.

 

 

Chiesa knew they had to buck their ideas up if they were to trade punches with such a committed team, and they began to pass the ball around with more confidence following their early let offs. This was rewarded when Jonny Gray gave them the lead in thirteen minutes. Samuel Knowles sold two outrageous dummies on the edge of the area before Iain Gay found Gray with a slide rule pass,  the attacking midfielder taking the ball in his stride before lashing past Ashley Turner.

 

Teams are always at their most vulnerable when they have just scored, and this proved to be the case yet again as Maze drew level with their next attack. A long ball over the top found Chiesa's defence and keeper leaving it to each other and by the time they had decided what to do, Steel had rounded Mark Harris and slid home the equaliser. Before you could say 'haven't we been here before' Wayne Gannon had been played through by a long ball over the top, and as LC/DC stood and stared, the other half of the Maze attack had crashed a shot into the top corner to give his side the lead.

 

Three goals in five minutes, great entertainment for the neutrals but filthy for Chiesa fans having been sent into delirium only moments earlier. Still, they had been set a challenge to get back into the game, and for the rest of the half they attempted to do so by attacking the Maze defence with poise and vigour, passing the ball quickly despite the muddy pitch that was cutting up more by the minute. A header from Dennis Peck brought a great save out of Ashley Turner as the home side cranked up the heat, but when a long ball was diverted to Steel via the head of Chris Young,  Chiesa feared the worst, and although Harris saved his first effort, Maze's answer to Luca Toni fired in the rebound to make it three one.

 

Peck thought he had reduced the arrears when his side foot volley from Young's flick beat Turner, only for a fantastic goal line clearance to deny him, and would you believe it, Steel was again released in an instant with a ball from his full back that bypassed the midfield, to coolly slide the ball past Harris to make it four!

 

Chiesa were stunned! The opening two or three minutes aside the football had been played almost exclusively in the Maze half, the midfield were passing the ball around their opponents as if they were statues, and full backs Colin Williams and Darren Hodsoll were whipping in crosses at will yet four old fashioned 'Have its' had undone them yet again.

 

Maze keeper Turner, who had been harshly lambasted by his own website for his performance in the last encounter between the teams, was in inspired form this time around. Having already pulled off one world class save to deny Peck, he repeated the feat to keep a three goal margin for his side on two more occasions. La Chiesa's leading scorer this season did eventually beat him with an outside of the boot effort after Knowles and Gay had combined to reduce the deficit to two goals, and he could have made the half time team talk even more optimistic had he not headed wide from six yards when left unmarked from a corner with the last touch of the half.

 

Two goals down at the break, Chiesa faced an uphill task to get anything out of the match. Although the Corinthian head honcho's decision to reduce the amount of divisions from five to four meant neither team were likely to be promoted whatever the outcome, Chiesa still wanted to finish as high as possible. But in order to do this, schoolboy errors at the back had to be cut out.

 

It is one thing to know how your enemy is going to attack you, but coping with it is a different problem altogether. Maze have a system that seems to work perfectly against Chiesa, Steel and Gannon play on the shoulder of their markers, and when the ball is launched towards them, they have the pace and finishing ability to destroy  a team that seem to be lacking defensive organisation to deal with it. In fairness to the Chiesa rearguard, the whole emphasis at training and at team talks is on two touch 'sexy' football, with almost no time devoted to heading, marking or coping with other teams strengths. Food for thought maybe... Anyway, enough of all that...

 

Chiesa started the second half as they had the first, allowing Gannon all the time he needed and an ocean of space down the right to run in the area, only to shoot wide from eight yards. Heads were being shaken all over the pitch...

 

With their next attack, Maze did make it five as Gannon was again left unmarked to cut in from the right and cross for Steel, who stole in front of McCarthy for his fourth of the match.  

 

Gannon made it six soon after as Chiesa began to grow disillusioned with the game while Maze remained ruthlessly efficient. Danny Trew replaced Adam Jeffers who had worked tirelessly alone upfront, while Knowles was forced off injured, Cy Taylor, unfortunate to be left out following goals in consecutive games, coming on in his place. Substitutions were complete when Terry Kerley replaced Warren Hardwick in defence.

 

Danny Trew made the scoreline a little easier to stomach with a cool finish following a scramble in the Maze area, but when Referee Quatermaine, who had an impressive game in the middle, blew for full time, it was the men in orange who were celebrating, with Chiesa left wondering how they had fallen for the same old tricks time and time again.

 

Fair play to Maze though, they play to their strengths, and if LC/DC had two weapons of mass destruction in attack such as Steel and Gannon no doubt they would sacrifice the flashy football they endeavour to play. Five games against these opponents have seen nineteen goals conceded - fourteen from Steel, three from Gannon and two OG's. If only we could come up with a fiendish plan to be rid of the dynamic duo forever.... As it is the LC/DC must say well done to a side who are fast becoming more than just annoying...