Steel Mind FC, 1
Tyneside XL Titans, 2
The Titans headed south down the A19 to the the Southlands Community and Sports Hub and came home with a 2-1 league win over Steel Mind FC, their first victory of the season.
It was not the smoothest of build-ups. With no access to the changing rooms, the 16 Titans had to kit up in the public areas, and after a short warm-up the game kicked off slightly late. None of it dampened the mood.
Both sides spent the opening spell feeling each other out, moving the ball around in short, tidy passages of play. The hosts won most of the early battles in the air, while the Titans had the better of the passing and movement. Steel Mind brought exactly what you would expect from them: passion, organisation, constant communication and 30% of the Cleveland population on the sidelines. Chances where had at both ends, but both goalkeepers were equal to them.
The game turned as space began to open up. Central midfielder Daniel Scott started winning every challenge on the ground and in the air, and the Titans' forwards were suddenly getting far more of the ball. Three clear chances went begging before Chris Barnes beat the offside trap perfectly, on to a pass from Daragh Lambert, to put the visitors in front. Barnes seemed almost dazed and confused that the whistle didn't go for offside but he "played to the whistle" perfectly to slot the ball home. Get in that net your circular b*stard!
After that goal, the game continued to ebb and flow, with chances for both sides, until Jack Brown — the owner of a left crafted the gods themselves — whipped in a beautiful corner. A ball like that simply cannot go to waste. And up stepped Daniel Scott, rising like a North Atlantic salmon to head home. 0-2.
Credit where credit's due. Steel Mind's heads didn't drop. They kept working the ball down the wings and pulled one back with a neat passing exchange and finish. In the past, this is where the Titans might have let the game slip. Not this time. A new-found togetherness and resolve saw them defend heroically, and Joey Gregory produced two outstanding saves, putting his body on the line both times.
With the hosts committing everything forward and legs tiring, plenty of space opened up, and the Titans finished with a run of late attacks. The 1-2 scoreline held, Daniel Scott took man of the match - and with it, a collection of beers - and the Titans have a perfect foundation to build on going into next week's game.