AFC Portchester 0 - 3 Tanners

Leatherhead pulled off a statement result with a fine 3-0 win away at AFC Portchester. After a pre-match pint in one of the two bars serving supporters, I emerged into the new ground to hear their manager had just been presented with Manager of the Month. The kiss of death had been administered.

 

The first half was a cagey affair, but it sprang into life when one of their players saw red for a high tackle. Did the AFC Portchester player make significant contact with Massango? I don't care. He dived in with the ball out of reach, straight leg, knee height. The red card however, if anything, prompted a robust response from the hosts, and Leatherhead did well to stand up to it.

 

In the second half, it was difficult to tell who had ten men as AFC Portchester pegged us back. Sensing we needed a goal, I hauled myself from my spot behind the goal to a new position out wide, near the toilets. The switch brought my third goal in two games as Hedley headed in a Paget cross.

 

The second goal was karma served on a plate. AFC's number 6, Jack Lee, spent much of the game bullying and diving rather than playing football—a tactic that worked for him at Moneyfields last year, when one of our players was sent off following his playacting. This time, a corner was swung in and Lee was so preoccupied with trying to win a foul off Kane that he failed to notice Cameron Black steaming in. Black met the ball cleanly and thumped it into the net.

 

At 2-0, AFC Portchester probably felt they had us exactly where they wanted us and fancied a route back into it, but we found a third to kill it off. Bancroft was brought on, this time as a straight swap for Breckon, keeping the structural integrity of the formation that was working so well intact. With renewed power and pace up front, he calmly ran onto a long diagonal ball, brought it down, and poked it into the far corner. 3-0.

 

A great win, and a relatively easy midweek drive home—without the Hindhead Tunnel closing on us. Onto Saturday, and the visit of Hayes & Yeading…

Travelling Tanners

The New Ground Klaxon sounds with a trip to AFC Portchester this Shrove Tuesday.  And I will be flipping annoyed if we conspire to give up a two goal lead again.

Our hosts have hit some form, so we will need to be on our game for the whole 90 minutes.

Kick off at 7.45pm. Directions can be found here.  See you there!

Hanworth Villa 3 -3 Tanners

Another squandered lead yesterday, when it looked like we were well worth all three points.

Leatherhead dominated the first half and missed two good chances before Hanworth grabbed a goal against the run of play. Hogan rattled the crossbar and Breckon blasted over from close range. Typical that our hosts scored with their first shot on goal. 0–1.

As the half was drawing to a close, I decided that walking around for a cup of tea would bring Leatherhead goals, and I was not disappointed. First, Anas latched onto a cross and fired it into the roof of the net, and then we won a penalty that Hogan slotted away. 2–1. You're welcome.

In the second half, we were soon in table-topping dreamland as Hogan bore down on goal and slotted a long-range effort into the bottom corner. 3–1.

Then it all changed. Up until the 68th minute, we had dominated midfield with three in the centre and two explosive wingers who were posing a threat (and scoring). Then off came Anas (not sure why), and on came Jacob Bancroft, leaving us with only four in midfield. He put himself about a bit, but the midfield battle was starting to be lost and the pressure grew.

Just eight minutes later, Hanworth scored to set up a nervous ending. To help out, Bancroft moved into a left-wing role but lacked the pace to pull this off. Jordan Gallagher was so keen to get involved that he pretended to take a corner while warming up and got booked. Interestingly, the Hanworth player who attempted to pull Anas off the pitch when he was subbed off only got a talking-to.

The game wore on and finally we could see light at the end of the tunnel. We were past 90 minutes and through the four minutes of added time when Hanworth won a corner. The referee treated the time like the final drive in rugby and played on, and the resulting corner was swung in and met by a Hanworth header that was thundered in. The ref blew his whistle no sooner than the ball had hit the back of the net. 3-3.

Disappointing and entirely avoidable. Again. Onto Tuesday, and the New Ground Klaxon sounds again with the trip to AFC Portchester.

Travelling Tanners

Love is in the air, as we travel to Hanworth Villa this Valentine's Day.  Something that isn't in the air, rain.  Which is ironic given this is a weekend the elements would find hard to spoil as our hosts have a 3G pitch.

It's second vs. first.  Kick off at 3pm.  Directions can be found here.  See you there!

Corinthian-Casuals 0 - 5 Tanners

This was my second trip into Woking for football in four days, after watching a Binfield, that side tore into us only a couple of weeks ago, fluff their first-half chances, and then lose convincingly to Westfield on Saturday.

 

Working in Woking and being desperate for a game, I jumped at the chance to get to this friendly and realised, as I walked through the leisure centre, that I had the added bonus of ticking off a new ground.

 

Corinthian-Casuals were probably grateful for the friendly at first, but football came at them fast as a strong Leatherhead side raced into a 4-0 lead. Quick goals from Anas, Sapsford (I thought it was Hogan at the time), Hogan (penalty), and Breckon made this a non-event inside 25 minutes. If we learned anything from the first half, it's that tackles still hurt in friendlies too—Mark Waters took a couple of hefty ones.

 

I counted eight changes in the second half, which slowed our goal rate considerably. Jordan got our fifth when he ran onto a cross (one Corinthian-Casuals really should have dealt with) and smashed it into the top near corner, having just given the 'keeper "the eyes".

 

With Saturday looking in doubt, it was good to get a game under the belt, and with fixture congestion forecast as well, maybe we should appeal to the league to classify this as a league match and take the three points…

Harrow 0 - 2 Tanners

A crash on the M25 turned a one-hour journey into something a lot longer. Was I worried about getting back in time for the panto I was due to see that evening? Oh yes, I was.

 

In the opening minutes, our debutant, Sapsford, dived in for a tackle and, while making contact with the ball, also landed on the Harrow player. A lengthy delay then ensued while the player received treatment before being stretchered off to hospital, and Sapsford escaped with only a yellow card.

 

Once the game restarted, Leatherhead comprehensively dominated, but it took set pieces to score the vital goals. Nathan Hogan swung in a free kick that, as soon as it began its downward trajectory, looked destined for the net. The ball dropped between the defenders and the 'keeper with such pace that it invited either a Leatherhead header or a panicked clearance that risked an own goal. Breckon was first to it and headed the opener. He was then denied a hat-trick by two offside decisions.

 

Then, in the 11th minute of the 13 indicated, Anas sent in a corner and Black rose to head it past the 'keeper. Up until that point, Anas' corners had been somewhat lofty, but a demand for "flatter" was obeyed, and it proved far more deadly.

 

Into the second half, and the inevitable collapse and concession of three goals? Oh no they didn't. Leatherhead went on to deliver a thoroughly professional performance and left Harrow with nothing but scraps.

 

All of this played out against the backdrop of some really poor officiating. Harrow were obviously upset not to get their "stonewall" red-card decision, while Leatherhead were frustrated with assistant referees who refused to flag for fouls right under their noses, gave Harrow anything for falling over while we got little, and failed to give a back-pass decision for one of the most obvious infringements of its kind I've seen.

 

A fine win, though, and a further chance to build on this form with a visit from Chipstead on Tuesday (weather permitting)…

Travelling Tanners

A blip turned into a wobble and over two second half performances we lost 8-1… the kind of performance that creates offers of free drinks to the supporters only for that to be later retracted…

Today we travel to ninth placed Harrow Borough, a side that beat Hayes & Yeading on the week.

Kick off at 3pm.  Directions can be found here.  See you there!