ALBION fell to defeat on the hottest day of the year, losing 2-1 this evening away at Brackley Town.
The Brewers named Viljami Sinisalo in goal, starting a friendly for the first time in pre-season, with a back four in front of him containing Academy graduate Ben Radcliffe and the returning Michael Mancienne alongside Conor Shaughnessy and William Kokolo.
Terry Taylor, Ciaran Gilligan and Charlie Lakin started in the centre of the park, with Quevin Castro and Jonny Smith providing the width either side of Louis Moult up front.
The Brewers began the game well, utilising the patient passing game that has been a staple of our pre-season games thus far, and Castro had the first sight of goal just five minutes in as the West Bromwich Albion loanee cut in from the left and drilled an effort just wide from 18 yards.
Brackley would threaten themselves with experienced striker Wes York causing issues, but it would be a midfielder opening the scoring. An attempted clearance in the Brewers box hit a prone body and the ball fell kindly for SHEP MUROMBEDZI, who finished coolly from close range past Sinisalo after 23 minutes.
Shaughnessy was unable to get enough power on a set piece minutes later as Danny Lewis made a comfortable save, before York at the other end flicked a header of his own just wide.
Castro continued to be a lively outlet on the left and when he cut in successfully again on 39 minutes, he made a better connection with his shot and forced an acrobatic save from Lewis, who did well to palm the ball wide.
Shaughnessy again came close from a corner just shy of the break as the ball landed at his feet in the box, but a last-ditch block from a Brackley defender denied him an equaliser and it was the hosts who went in ahead at the break.
HALF-TIME: BRACKLEY TOWN 1-0 BURTON ALBION
The Brewers found themselves two goal behind early into the second half, as Stead added a second for the home side. A deep ball was played into the area by a Brackley trialist, who did well to pick out striker STEAD who powered home his header past the helpless Sinisalo.
The second Brackley goal seemed to be a wake-up call for Albion who straight away went on the attack. Jonny Smith straight away forced keeper Danny Lewis into a good save, as the Brackley keeper tipped the wide man’s fierce shot from distance onto the crossbar.
The resulting corner allowed Albion to pull a goal back. MOULT was the liveliest player in the area, doing well to find himself space and meet Taylor’s cross and guide a header into the net in the fifty-seven minute.
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink made seven substitutions in the sixty-fifth minute, allowing new signing Victor Adeboyejo to get his first minutes in an Albion shirt, but Albion failed to really threaten the Brackley goal despite large amounts of possession and the result stayed 2-1 to the home side.
STARTING XI: Sinisalo, Smith (Trialist B, 65), Shaughnessy (Oshilaja, 65), Lakin (Trialist A, 45), Kokolo, Taylor (Borthwick-Jackson, 65), Gilligan (Williams, 65), Radcliffe, Castro (Adeboyejo, 65), Moult (Blake-Tracy, 65), Mancienne.
Goals:
Murombedzi 23' & Stead 51' (Brackley Town)
Moult 57' (Brewers)
Attendance: 263