NORTH GREENFORD UNITED 1 EGHAM TOWN 2

EVO-STIK SOUTHERN LEAGUE DIVISION ONE CENTRAL
SATURDAY 27.02.16
NORTH GREENFORD UNITED 1 (1) EGHAM TOWN 2 (2)
George Moore (35) Reece Yorke (25), Chris Moore (90+5)

Another very late winner on the road by Egham Town helped secure another league double and maintained their grip on third place. The deciding goal, bundled home by 36 year old Chris Moore who had come on as substitute on his debut, sparked a furious reaction by the home club, with some of their players, officials and spectators accusing the referee and their guests of some kind of larceny as their own parlous state at the foot of the table was given further confirmation.
That this match ended with this outburst of enmity by North Greenford United can be attributed to three factors: Egham spurning all but one of a host of first half chances; the excellence of the home keeper Lewis Todd; and the unfathomable timewasting of the home side once they had equalised, as if, even though starting the match eight points adrift of 20th placed Aylesbury United (with two games in hand) they were intent on securing only a point.
Both sides had home draws in their previous games, Egham 2-2 against Uxbridge and NGU 0-0 on Tuesday against mid-table Beaconsfield SYCOB. Egham started the game missing Callum Webb and Wes Daly (injured), and started with Ryan De Battista partnering Brendan Matthew up front. They also welcomed Mitchell Gutteridge back after a shoulder injury that had seen him out of action since 24 October.
Playing down the slope in the first period Egham were soon on top. Three minutes in Greenford’s Danny Bennell flattened Matthew, Gutteridge took the free kick, Todd got a hand to the ball, Reece Yorke nodded the ball on and Matthew had a header cleared off the line. The home defence did not clear the ball, Chris Henry knocked the ball in and Matthew’s header was saved by Todd. After nine minutes Egham had the ball in the net as De Battista turned in Henry’s cross but the ball had bounced off the striker’s shin and on to his hand on its way over the line. Then off a Bajram Pashaj cross Matthew was alone and clear for a shot but he chose to head the ball, sending it off target. Pashaj then set up De Battista, but home skipper Liam Hind got in the way of the shot. The next chance saw a Pashaj corner kick find Egham skipper Luke Neville’s head, but the ball hit the underside of the cross bar and bounced on but not behind the line. Finally, after 25 minutes, the Sarnies found a way through. Neville and Bennell both rose with Todd for another Pashaj corner, the home defenders screamed for a foul, the ball was cleared to the edge of the area and Yorke hammered the ball in. Four minutes later Matthew missed another good opening, a loss of form odd for a man with twenty goals to his name this season, and with a goal in each of Egham’s last two matches. It mattered. The Middlesex side took heart. With a 1-1 draw with Royston Town, up with Egham in play-off contention, and a home win against Bedford Town, since the turn of the year, they clearly thought they could now get something out of this match. A quick break up the incline caught Egham square, Alfie Cain and George Moore combined and the latter angled the ball past Jamie Norris in the Egham goal. The visitors’ need for a reply was almost met but Pashaj elected to cross the ball towards De Battista instead of trusting in his own ability to deliver a shot on target. Todd again came to his side’s rescue from Pashaj’s next shot, diving to push the ball away for a corner from which Matthew headed against the bar.
Right back Elliott Carey gave way to Ollie Jones, with Jake Cass moving back to defence as the sides came back from the break. Barely had play got underway when Bennell was booked for a loose elbow into De Battista’s face. Five minutes later De Battista was subbed for Chris Moore. The highly experienced striker, with a more than decent goals-to-games ratio, should be a useful addition to Gary Meakin’s squad. Near the hour Henry sprinted down the right and found Matthew coming in from the left for a shot that smacked against the defiant home keeper. Almost immediately another cross came in, from Pashaj, and the luckless Matthew headed wide. From the goal kick the ball was moved to Alfie Cain who, after an uncontested 20 yard sprint, hammered a 35 yard shot against Norris’ left hand post. Matthew was taken off with Ryan Parsons on, allowing Cass to move further upfield. When they didn’t have the ball the visitors had to put up with Greenford doing all they could to slow the game down and waste time. It seemed at the time that the officials were not that bothered, which added to Egham’s frustration. With ten to go the new Sarnie, who had also picked up a yellow card for a loose elbow, worked his way round Bennell for a shot that Todd held. Within a minute Cass seemed to be in with a chance, only to be denied by good cover from Jess Yoboue. With five minutes to go Yorke cleared up an attack spearheaded by Cain, then, back up the slope, Kurtney Brooks looped a long pass into Neville’s path. The finish was superb but the flag was up. Three minutes into injury time Henry’s shot failed to beat Todd but then, with seconds to go, Cass contested a drop ball that the home side thought should have been a “gimme” (why wouldn’t he? Egham went into this match wanting a win, not a draw) and the ball went out for another Pashaj corner. Gutteridge nodded the ball down, there was an almighty scramble in the box and Moore got the final touch to grab the three points. (There is a link at the top of the report for a clip showing the goal.) The home side had only just restarted when referee Ollie Davies blew the final whistle. The home players then reacted badly to the defeat, adopting extremely aggressive attitudes to anyone who got in their eye line. The home officials acted in a similar fashion. When yours truly pointed out to them that they lost to a goal scored in the extra time added on for the time their own side had wasted the riposte was not exactly a great addition to the canon of debate. The home chairman, puce in the face with rage, ordered me to leave the ground as I was not welcome. I didn’t care, we’d won, I knew my comment was right and I was leaving anyway (and I am aware of just how much of a tosser that makes me sound). When I shouted out “Well done Egham” as the visiting team could finally make safe passage to the changing rooms a local yelled at me to “Leave the premises now!”, as if he had just found a new word and wanted to try it out for size. In the lower car park I met a man who had accused Egham of being a “bunch of cheats” (actually, it was a lot ruder than that), so I challenged him on as I went to my car. His response? “Sorry mate, heat of the moment, I didn’t mean it. It just gets frustrating, you know”, and we shook hands on it. I hope the same kind of level headed attitude prevailed up the slope in the clubhouse.
Next up for Egham Town is a home game against Arlesey Town, whom Egham beat 7-0 away. Egham had also beaten Uxbridge by the same score and were forced to scrap for a point, and, after a performance today that was by no means clinical enough (Egham should have had the game wrapped up in the first 20 minutes) they will know by now if they didn’t already that holding on to a play-off place will only come if chances are taken and defensive slips eradicated. Egham have reached 60 points, the same as they managed in the whole of last season, and have 13 games left.
EGHAM TOWN: Jamie Norris, Elliott Carey, Mitchell Gutteridge, Reece Yorke, Luke Neville (Captain), Kurtney Brooks, Chris Henry, Jake Cass, Brendan Matthew, Ryan De Battista, Bajram Pashaj. Substitutes: Ryan Parsons (Matthew, 72), Ollie Jones (Carey, HT), Ryan Phillips, Chris Moore (De Battista, 52), James Reading (kpr).

Mark Ferguson