This was a proper game of football. A physical, competitive match played in difficult conditions, with a very strong wind having a huge influence on the game. Whoever had the wind at their backs had a clear advantage, and that made the way we came back from 3–2 down at half-time even more pleasing.

We couldn’t have asked for a better start. After just 90 seconds, Donald continued his excellent form in front of goal, getting on the scoresheet again and giving us the perfect start. Whickham responded after around 10 minutes. We failed to clear our lines properly from a set piece and didn’t get out quickly enough, allowing their player the time to find the bottom corner.

We regained the lead through a brilliant Max Johnson header. The corner was delivered towards the back post and Max rose highest to power his header home.

Whickham then got back to 2–2 through a very fortunate goal. Donald attempted to clear the ball, but the wind caught it and sent it high into the air. It then carried over our defenders and straight into the path of a Whickham attacker, who finished well. It was one of those goals where the conditions played a massive part.

We continued to create chances, with the Whickham goalkeeper making some very good saves, including from another Max Johnson header. However, right on the stroke of half-time we were caught flat at the back. A ball was played between our centre-back and left-back and Whickham finished well. It was a poor goal from our perspective and left us 3–2 down at the break.

The message at half-time was simple: keep playing football.

We knew we had the wind behind us in the second half, but we didn’t want to resort to simply playing long. The instruction was to build the ball through the thirds, get towards the edge of the box and then look to finish.

Michael produced a brilliant moment to get us level, curling a free kick from midway inside the Whickham half into the top corner. The goalkeeper had absolutely no chance.

We continued to push. Donald came close, Jake produced a brilliant turn and shot which narrowly cleared the bar, and the Whickham goalkeeper made another excellent save to keep them in the game.

At the other end, Ollie made a fantastic save when Whickham’s big striker broke through. Ollie showed excellent patience, waited for the striker to take a touch and then got down at his feet to collect the ball. It was excellent goalkeeping.

Eventually, we found the winner.

It came from a really good piece of football. Donald held the ball up, turned his marker and, just before being tackled, laid it off to Max Johnson. Max took one touch to set himself and then struck a fantastic shot across the goalkeeper and into the top corner. 4–3 Rutherford.

The game remained physical right to the end. There were a few moments where things boiled over, and we need to be more disciplined with our tackling, particularly around our own box. We gave away a few unnecessary free kicks. However, I was really pleased that we stood up for ourselves and weren’t prepared to be bullied out of the game.

From a footballing perspective, I thought Rutherford played the better football. Despite the conditions, we kept the ball down whenever possible and the rotations between Joe Harvey, Jake, Max Billingham and Max Johnson were excellent. They moved into different positions, communicated well and created problems for Whickham.

There are still things to work on defensively, particularly the action-reaction work we’ve been focusing on. When we clear the ball, we need to react quickly and push up together. We did this well on occasions and caught Whickham offside once or twice, while also giving Ollie the opportunity to come and collect balls cleanly.

Man of the Match: Max Johnson. Max was outstanding today. He covered a huge amount of ground, played in several different positions, scored two goals and created another. It was a complete performance.

There were also excellent performances from Michael, who was very strong at the back, made several important clearances and scored a brilliant free kick, and Rehman, who was excellent both defensively and going forward. His two tackles, particularly the late one where he threw himself in front of the ball during a scramble, showed exactly the controlled aggression we want to see.

Most importantly, the team showed character. To go in 3–2 down in difficult conditions and come back to win 4–3 was a fantastic effort.

First win of the season. Well deserved.