Egham T 1 South Park 0

SURREY COUNTY FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION SATURDAY SENIOR CUP
SECOND ROUND
TUESDAY 29 OCTOBER 2013
EGHAM TOWN 1 (0) SOUTH PARK 0 (0)
Egham Town scorer: Tommy Hedges (90)

As preparation for Saturday’s trip to Ryman Premier Carshalton Athletic in the Second Round Qualifying of the FA Trophy this was certainly a tonic after the dire performance at Barton Rovers. All it lacked was the goal return that Egham’s almost total domination deserved. The return of Josh Andrew to the right back slot was pleasing, as was that of Joel Jacobs on the other side and Jim Ward back in central defence, but the main talking point was the return to the fold of dynamic midfielder Tommy Hedges, whose vibrant performance was rewarded with the goal that saw Egham into the next round.
That the winner did not come until the last minute was down to the visitors’ stout defending, an attribute that has contributed to their current standing at the summit of the Combined Counties League Premier division. As early as the second minute Kyle Anthony had a header scrambled off the line, and in the tenth minute the best spell of pass and move that Egham have managed in ages ended with Andrews cutting in from the right and rolling his shot wide of keeper James Westoll but against the foot of the left post. With twenty minutes gone Anthony saw another header have the same result as his first, and soon after Luke Muldowney hammered in a shot that Westoll pushed away. Ryan O’Toole lifted a decent chance over the bar off Andrews’ square pass in the last minute of a first half in which South Park barely troubled Gary Ross in the Egham goal.
Early in the second half O’Toole put another chance wide, off Jacobs’ cross and it looked as if it would be no time at all before Egham took the lead they deserved. Hedges almost completed a Louis Chandler-Joseph cross and Anthony slalomed his way through the defence before having his fierce shot saved by Westoll. Mo Harkin shot over before being replaced by Andy Crossley, and Jamie Read came on for O’Toole. Finally it all came together. Andrew set off on his final run of the evening before whipping the ball crossfield to Jacobs, whose cross was met by Chandler-Joseph and parried. There, four yards from goal, stood Hedges, whose header grazed the underside of the bar on its way and the Sarnies were spared the energy sapping experience of extra time before the Carshalton game.
EGHAM TOWN: Gary Ross, Josh Andrew, Joel Jacobs, Kyle Anthony, Jim Ward, Luke Muldowney, Mo Harkin, Louis Chandler-Joseph, Mo Harkin, Tommy Hedges, Ryan O’Toole. Subs: Andy Crossley (Harkin), Chris Ellis, Brendan Matthew, Jamie Read (O’Toole), Jacob Lambe.