Solid, efficient and very competent is the best way to describe Sundays’ performance against an uncompromising Speldhurst team who are always difficult to beat. That said we felt before the game, that if we were patient and moved the ball around, that openings would come as it is very difficult to chase the ball for ninety minutes on our pitch.
That in essence is how the game went. In the first half Speldhurst were able to make life difficult by getting close and chasing. However, we controlled the ball and had several good opportunities to score before we did on the half hour. The goal started from a Speldhurst corner when the impressive Matt Afton, deputising for The Chimp, took a fine cross and immediately set our attack off with a quick throw. Seconds the later the ball was in the back of the Speldhurst net as Dave Burren cut in from our right, crossed low and the ball was diverted into his own goal by a Speldhurst defender as Peter Buckovec was looking to finish.
At half time we lost Dave Burren to B&Q and Alun Evans, shortly after, to the Cup Final (oh what a lovely afternoon!!!!) but it didn’t disrupt things too much with Peter moving forward and, the star of The Courier, the ‘magnificent’ Martin Millins being brought in to the affray. With the defence of Lindo, Wardy, Coxon and Woody looking so solid, getting a second was always going to close the game out and that duly arrived on sixty two minutes from the penalty spot after a foul which led to Speldhurst having a player sent off.
With our regular penalty misser absent through injury Wardy stepped forward to drive the ball home. From then on it was a question of how many - as down to ten, physically tiring and having to chase the game Speldhurst left themselves very exposed defensively. For a while, despite many opportunities, we failed to capitalise, however, on eighty two and eighty five minutes the ‘mercurial marksman’ Millsy gave the score line a meaningful reflection with two finishes from close in.
All in all a very good performance against a side, who proved the previous week by beating Simla, that they are capable of upsetting you. All around the park everyone did their jobs and if we can take this level of performance into our remaining games then we will give ourselves a very good chance of further success.
Team:
M.Afton
A.Lindsey
M.Wood
N.Coxon
I.Ward
P.Bukovec
G.Manser
A.Chapman
L.Gent
A.Evans
D.Burren
Subs:
M.Millins (outstanding when on for Burren)
S.Gray (for Evans)
I.Jones (for Gent)
S.Hunter (dnp)