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EGHAM TOWN 1 BALHAM 6

EGHAM TOWN 1 BALHAM 6

Tempest Ward18 Aug 2019 - 15:39
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Egham sink to the bottom after thrashing

CHERRY RED RECORDS COMBINED COUNTIES LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION
SATURDAY 17 AUGUST 2019
EGHAM TOWN 1 (1)
Anthony Thomas (28)
BALHAM 6 (2)
Ash Sneddon (10), Jack Robinson 3 (45, 46, 90), Julian Fuller (54), Tom Read (58 pen)

Egham Town are bottom of the Combined Counties League Premier Division after this hammering from Balham, who thoroughly enjoyed their first ever visit to Runnymede Stadium. The home team should have been buzzing after their midweek exploits in the FA Cup at Lancing even though they were missing centre back Harry Tubb and midfielder Costa Rodrigues from recent line-ups and were without Kiemon Robinson for this, the first of three after a straight red last Saturday against the Sussex side. Midfielder Connor Channon will be available for Saturday, which Kiemon Robinson and Kayode Conteh will have to sit out. Tristan Toney, who has not been available for the last couple of games, may be available on Saturday.
What unfolded was probably a result of the mental and physical exertions of their winning replay performance, with skipper Conteh having been sent off just past the hour. Certainly what won that game, the busy-ness of tackling, chasing back, working hard for each other and refusing to buckle under pressure were all missing against visitors who now sit atop the division. They had shown their own battling qualities at Sutton Common Rovers where they turned a 1-3 deficit into a 5-3 win.
Balham were on top from the off, Jack Haire hitting Sam Freeman’s bar from 20 yards as early as the 3rd minute. Four minutes later Freeman denied Tom Read but seconds later Ash Sneddon saw the Egham keeper off his line and, from near the half way line, arced his shot into the Egham net. Egham needed to find some of the spirit that saw them recover from 0-2 home and away against Lancing, and they did, briefly, Omar Hassan and Anthony Thomas stretching the Balham defence. In the 28th minute a misplaced pass by a Balham midfielder allowed Thomas to advance, side step Marco Erriu and scoop a wonderful lob over Hayden Read in the Balham goal. Parity was threatened eight minute later as Tom Read hit the bar from a free kick and again as Jack Robinson was found in space, Freeman saving at point blank range, and then lost as Robinson found the target with a header just before the break.
At half time Egham’s right back Lekan Ejinwunmi was subbed for debutant Sham Abufalah, whose lack of match fitness, seconds from the restart, was shown up by Robinson as the forward took advantage of non-existent midfield cover and feeble defending. Egham boss Carl Palmer held his hands up to this bad call. Tom Read hit the right post in the 49th minute, Julian Fuller pouncing for Balham’s fourth, and Tom Read finally got the goal he had been seeking as he converted a spot kick awarded after Conteh wrapped his arm around Robinson’s neck. In amongst the carnage Egham replaced Ashley Elson with Nathaniel Mensah and Jack Hatcher with another debutant, Jack Howard, to no great effect. Hatcher’s passionate rant about “us falling apart again” is to be commended. Robinson got his hat-trick in the last minute as the home rearguard was again caught flatfooted. Egham have now lost three league games out of three, and conceded two, three and six goals, with only two scored. This is their bread and butter. It’s like a marriage; sometimes it can be hard work. It is all very well having a little fling with the FA Cup, in which they travel to Horsham YMCA next Saturday, but this is the bit that counts. At least they kept all eleven on the park this time, although the most determined performances have come when a man light.
This is not Egham’s heaviest home loss. That remains the 1-8 FA Cup calamity against Thame United in 2003. It is not even the heaviest home league loss; Leyton & Wingate left Tempest Road with a 7-2 win in November 1982, and Edgware Town repeated it in May 1994. There was another 1-6 early in season 2004-5 against Oxford City, the season we finished bottom of the Southern League Western Division. The worst home league defeats I can recall were 0-6 v Wembley in December 1996 and, as the least perfect way to celebrate a brand new kit sponsored by a local car dealership, 0-6 against Camberley Town in January 1986. I have seen them all. This, though, has probably the worst effect because this is, relatively speaking, the lowest league position for Egham Town given the standings of the divisions. It is in complete contrast to our last home loss by 1-6. In season 2012-13. We were top of CCL Premier, on the way to winning the title. We played Hartley Wintney, who were struggling, and we lost the plot. Thankfully we recovered.
Unless there is a replay on Tuesday 27 August the Sarnies’ next game is scheduled to be at Molesey on August Bank Holiday Monday, 11.30 kick off. On 31 August Egham are at home in the FA Vase to FC Elmstead. They are top of the Southern Counties East League Division One and are based at Holmesdale's Oakley Road ground in Bromley.
EGHAM TOWN: Sam Freeman, Lekan Ejinwunmi, Kildane Tesfu, Jack Hatcher, Tommy Cole, Kayode Conteh, Zaine Gangadeen, Tyler John, Ashley Elson, Anthony Thomas, Omar Hassan. Substitutes: Nathaniel Mensah (Elson, 60), Jack Howard (Hatcher, 59), Sham Abufalah (Ejinwunmi, HT).

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