Members
of the Molten Spartan South Midlands League
Members
of the Southern Counties Floodlit Youth League
|
| Match Report |
| Saturday 15th
March 2008 |
Molten Spartan South
Midlands League Premier Division |
| Leverstock Green |
(2) |
3 |
Wardle 11, 17, 90+1 pen |
| Broxbourne Borough |
(0) |
0 |
. |
| at Pancake Lane |
A hat-trick from
Matt Wardle saw Leverstock Green to a 3-0
home win over Broxbourne Borough, which
enabled Green to leapfrog Broxbourne into
ninth place in the Premier Division table.
With eight games to play, a finish in the
top six is still within reach for Mick
Vipond’s men.
The win was not as comfortable as the
scoreline suggests, as Green raced to an
early two-goal lead before Broxbourne
battled back, with only the lack of a
killer touch in the box preventing them
getting back into the game. Green were
missing a number of first-choice players
due to injury, illness or suspension, but
this gave a chance to teenage striker Dan
Stoker, who was in the first team
starting line-up for the first time.
In the early stages of the game it looked
like Green would cruise it. On 11 minutes
Anthony Page intercepted a Broxbourne
clearance, and knocked the ball through
for Matt Wardle, and he slotted the ball
past the keeper to put Green 1-0 up. Six
minutes later the lead was doubled when
Frankie Jowle put over a superb cross
that the keeper got nowhere near, finding
Wardle completely unmarked at the far
post with a simple nod home for 2-0.
However, Green did not build on their
lead and Broxbourne began to create
chances. Tony Burke hit a long-range
dipping shot just over the bar on 24
minutes, and on 37 minutes shot over
again when Ade Cole set him up with a
very presentable chance. On 41 minutes
the referee caught everyone by surprise
by playing an advantage which left Paul
Dodd clean through on Carl Tasker with no
Leverstock defender within 30 yards, but
Tasker did well to dive at Dodd’s
feet and smother the shot.
The second half continued with Broxbourne
having more of the play. Green might have
added to their lead, but Stoker failed to
make contact with Page’s square ball
across goal on 52 minutes, and Page
couldn’t finish when Jowle played a
low ball into the box ten minutes later.
Between those chances, Tasker had to turn
Dodd’s shot from a narrow angle into
the side netting. Tasker saved again to
deny Dodd from close range on 63 minutes.
In the 67th minute Burke’s pass
between two defenders put Michael Nathan
through on goal. Nathan knocked the ball
past Tasker, but Louis West got back to
clear off the line.
Stoker gave way to James Armstrong midway
through the half, and Green’s top
scorer was eventually involved in the
play that sealed the game in the last
minute. Jowle’s ball forward was
nodded down by Wardle into the path of
Armstrong, whose shot was turned round
the post by the keeper. From the
resulting corner, Armstrong was brought
down by Gary Taylor’s wild challenge.
There was no argument about the award of
a penalty, and Wardle made no mistake
from the spot-kick to complete his hat-trick
and a 3-0 win for Leverstock. |
| Team: Tasker,
Brown, Flain, Boad, West, Page, Parsons,
Wilson (Davies), Stoker (Armstrong),
Wardle, Jowle. |
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