ARLESEY TOWN 0 EGHAM TOWN 7

EVO-STIK DIVISION ONE CENTRAL
SATURDAY 10 OCTOBER 2015
ARLESEY TOWN 0 EGHAM TOWN 7
EGHAM TOWN SCORERS: BAJRAM PASHAJ 3 (34, 55, 63), TAROME HEMMINGS (45), BRENDAN MATTHEW 2 (58, 84), JAKE CASS (72)

Egham Town moved up to sixth place with their second 7-0 away win in three league games. The game featured a first ever Sarnies hat-trick for Bajram Pashaj, and a first goal for Tarome Hemmings. The squad had to be reshuffled a bit, Hemmings coming in for skipper Kurtney Brooks, who was tied up with work commitments, but surprisingly left back Mitchell Gutteridge played despite going off in Monday’s win at a rainswept Beaconsfield SYCOB with a shoulder injury. Arlesey, relegated last season from Southern Premier, have had mixed results away in this campaign and a 100% losing record at their Armadillo Stadium. Hitherto it would have been a very Egham sort of thing to lose this match, but the home side offered little but some initial vim and vinegar. There was a chance for an early lead once Reece Yorke had dispossessed Aaron Morgan and sent a superb long pass down the right wing for Brendan Matthew to chase. His low cross needed but did not get the required touch. It took until the 34th minute for the home defences to be breached, Pashaj sweeping a wonderful free kick into the top right corner of Nicholas Thompson’s net. The second goal, which all but guaranteed that Egham would get the three points, was created by right back Jerome Ecclestone’s linking with midfielder Callum Webb down the right wing before Ecclestone drilled a low cross for Hemmings to guide the ball into the bottom left corner from the edge of the box.
Egham had the measure of their opponents by now and let rip in the second half, beginning with a break by Matthew that saw his marker left floundering in his wake. The Egham man was off target with his shot but it was not long before Chris Henry caused havoc down the other wing and from his cross Pashaj tapped the ball over the line. After 58 minutes Matthew made it 4-0 with a tidy finish to complement a flowing move before Webb threaded the ball into space for the in-form striker. That it was not Arlesey’s day became crystal clear when the fifth one went in. Thompson came out of his area to close the ball down, the ball came to Pashaj 25 yards out. He sized up the situation in an instant and placed a perfect lob into the net for his hat-trick. Arlesey made substitutions but to no avail, as was shown with the sixth. Jake Cass, lurking on the edge of the box, hammered in a shot that the No. 14 did supremely well to block. Unfortunately for him the ball landed back at Cass’ hammer of a right foot and in a trice the ball was hitting the bottom right corner of the home net. Arlesey got a shot on target, the previously unused Jamie Norris showing great levels of concentration as he dived to the right to put the ball out for a corner. Danny Bassett came on in place of Henry and while not able to add to his tally of three so far this season with a late half volley that flew over the bar he had by then played a wonderful through ball for Matthew to make it 7-0 with another excellent finish. This writer had thought that this was the first ever meeting between the two clubs but Steve Bennett told me, after the Beaconsfield game, that he remembers going there and getting a hammering. True. It was season 200-2001, Arlesey came into Ryman Three and walked over most clubs on their way to the championship. Whatever the score was I am sure this was suitable, if delayed, payback.
On Tuesday Egham return to Honeycroft to face Uxbridge in an Integra Red Insure Cup first round tie. Uxbridge lost 0-3 at home to Chippenham Town in the FA Cup on Saturday but will be looking to turn that disappointment into a positive performance against Gary Meakin’s men. On Saturday, after games at Barton Rovers, Uxbridge, Slimbridge, Beaconsfield SYCOB, Arlesey Town and Uxbridge again Meakin will take his home bow with a game against North Greenford United. Egham have played the Londoners five times in league and league cup as a Southern League club and won the lot but seem to have a more difficult problem to solve this time round. They were bottom but ripped up the form book (that’s a cliché I haven’t used in years!) with an eye-catching 6-2 win over previous leaders Chalfont St Peter. After the Arlesey game Meakin was keen to play down expectations: “It’s not going to be like this every other week.” Egham fans are enjoying the ride.