Sarnies 3 Ash Trees 2

FA TROPHY PRELIMINARY ROUND
SATURDAY 5 OCTOBER 2013
EGHAM TOWN 3 (2) ASHFORD TOWN (MIDDX.) 2 (0)
Egham Town scorers: Patrick Craig (23), Joe Chandriam (44), Mo Harkin (83)
Egham Town got through a difficult match that contained four high quality goals and after some tribulations managed to turn their first ever home game in the FA Trophy into their first win in the competition. Playing local rivals Ashford Town (Mx.) was never going to be easy but after dominating the first half and going in at the break two goals to the good the home team stopped doing what they had been doing in the first and against opposition determined not to suffer another hammering in a disappointing season so far that was not likely to be good enough. Happily recent recruit Mo Harkin came to the rescue late on.
Egham were forced to find a replacement goalkeeper as Gary Ross was at a wedding, the search finding Tristan Thomas from Bedfont & Feltham. They were also missing midfielder Jamie Houghton and centre back Jim Ward, but in this Egham squad boss Lee Passmore has the players to plug any gaps. Understandably the Sarnies’ defence looked a tad wobbly initially and Thomas fumbled his first save, Joe Hughes taking a Kofi Lockhart-Adams and testing the keeper who two minutes later showed his abilities with a magnificent save to turn Perry Luckins’ shot over the bar. Egham then started to pressurise their neighbours at pace without any real penetration. Then, after 23 minutes, Ryan O’Toole, who recently rejected a chance to join Metropolitan Police, was the last but one man in a flowing move, pulling the ball back for Craig, who had to stretch back to wrap his right foot round the ball to shoot into Paul McCarthy’s goal. Two more minutes on the Ash Trees missed a golden chance to level when Thomas could not hold a Lockhart-Adams shot and Hughes missed an absolute sitter. Appeals for a penalty when Jim Mann seemed to handle an O’Toole shot were ignored as Egham kept up the pressure and Craig was only just off target with a 33rd minute shot. McCarthy made a crucial interception as Luke Muldowney, ex Ash Tree Josh McAndrew and O’Toole all combined, and with three minutes of the half left the latter tested McCarthy with a 25 yard shot. The visiting keeper had no chance though when Jamie Read made the final pass of a good move to midfielder Joe Chandrian, who hammered the ball in from distance.
Two goals up and looking comfortable, Egham were shaken early in the second period. After giving the ball away in the middle of the park there was too much standing off and nothing in the way of tackling as Hughes ran to the edge of the box and smacked in a corker of a shot into the top left corner. That triggered the fightback Paul Burgess would have wanted and after Mann got away with another handling offence in the box, Joe Lynch missed a decent chance with a header and Jamie Read, for the second Saturday running, had a header ruled out for offside the scores were levelled when sub Cyril O’Cansey drilled in an angled shot that had squirmed through Thomas’ grip and over the line before Lockhart-Adams tried to claim the score. Then Ashford right back Chris Robinson conceded a foul on the edge of the Jungle End box and Mo Harkin smashed in a dipping free kick low to McCarthy’s right, just inside the left post. Egham made substitutions to seal a win that sees them facing a home tie in the First Round Qualifying against Didcot Town or Cirencester Town, the Calor South and West pair recording a 1-1 draw and replaying on Tuesday, as Egham travel to Calor Central leaders Daventry Town. Well done to Tristan Thomas for stepping in as a late replacement.
Egham are at home again on Saturday, Dunstable Town making their first ever visit to the Runnymede Stadium as the second placed team in One Central. On the Tuesday after that Egham Town face Guildford City in the Red Insure Cup, again at home.
EGHAM TOWN: Tristan Thomas, Josh Andrew, Jake Galbraith, Kyle Anthony, Chris Ellis, Luke Muldowney (captain), Patrick Craig, Mo Harkin, Jamie Read, Ryan O’Toole, Joe Chandrian. Subs: Shane Graham (Jamie Read, 84), Brendan Matthew (Muldowney, 84), Joel Jacobs, Jacob Lambe (Joe Chandrian, 90).