Match Report
On paper the standings were lopsided — Needham Market 6th with 70 points, St Ives Town 19th with 39, 31 apart. Against a league average of 1.49 goals per team per game, Needham Market ran at 1.52 scored and 1.26 conceded, St Ives Town at 1.19 and 1.74.
Needham Market carried a 6-game unbeaten run into this, having scored in 7 consecutive games. St Ives Town had been beaten in eight straight games. The last-five ledger: Needham Market 9/15, St Ives Town 0/15.
The sides have met 6 times in the GioScore results database: 2 wins for Needham Market, 3 draws and 1 for St Ives Town, at 3.5 goals per meeting. Goals at both ends are the pattern: both teams scored in 83% of the meetings.
The match was played at Bloomfields (capacity 4,000). On the scoreboard, St Ives Town led 1-0 at the break; 3 second-half goals set the final 3-1.
Goal scorers
Needham Market: Joe Neal (59'), Tommy Smith (50'), Luke Ingram (55') · St Ives Town: Michael Richens (14')
Key stats
Possession: Needham Market 59% · St Ives Town 41% · Total shots: 13-6 · On target: 3-2 · Corners: 4-1