Welling United 1 - 0 Tanners

Leatherhead’s Away record has taken a beating in the last seven days as it has fallen from unbeaten to “unbeaten in the league” to just beaten, as we lose on the road to Welling.

 

Our downfall was created early in the first half, where we looked thoroughly on the back foot.  Welling United had their tails up and we were hanging on for dear life.  A headed goal, just inside ten minutes, looked to be the first of many goals but we saw out the first half 0-1.

 

Half time was enjoyed by taking in the sights of the stadium.  If y Leatherhead’s away record has taken a bit of a beating over the last seven days, falling from unbeaten, to “unbeaten in the league”, to just beaten, as we lose on the road at Welling.

 

Our downfall was created early in the first half, where we looked thoroughly on the back foot. Welling United had their tails up and we were hanging on for dear life. A headed goal inside ten minutes looked like it might be the first of many, but we saw out the first half just 1-0 down.

 

Half-time was enjoyed by taking in the sights of the stadium. If you ignore the dangerous wall behind one goal and the trip hazards involved in walking down a darkened alleyway behind one of the stands, it had an authentic charm that is often lost with more modern constructions. A worthy sounding of the New Ground Klaxon.

 

Onto the game, and Leatherhead came out a different animal. I wouldn’t say we were battering them, but it felt more 60:40 in terms of momentum, as opposed to the 20:80 we had suffered in the first half.

 

We were getting increasingly frustrated by the referee, though. He had already blown his whistle for a foul when, had he played advantage, Kofi would have been through on goal. Welling then went on to give away a string of fouls in the final third. I hadn’t seen so many fouls on the edge of a box without a card being shown. The ref spoke to a player, then warned him that was his last warning, then spoke to the captain to say that was his last warning... and, just to infuriate us even more, the first tackle Cam gets wrong, the ref dives into his pocket.

 

Leatherhead’s unbeaten record could have been saved in the final five minutes when The Lip’s Marcel Barrington had a shot blocked by a defender. Then a ball from a set piece (another foul, ref!) fell to Anas at the far post, forcing a fine save from the Welling ’keeper. From the resulting corner, Sonny came up and got on the end of the cross, only to send it over the bar. The ref then blew for full-time.

 

A worrying slump in league form, but we get the chance to put that right on Saturday with the visit of Stanway Rovers...ou ignore the dangerous wall behind one goal and the trip hazards from walking down a darkened alleyway behind one of the stands, it had an authentic charm to it that is often lost now with more modern constructions.  A worthy sounding of the New Ground Klaxon.

 

Onto the game and Leatherhead came out a different animal.  I wouldn’t say we were battering them, but it felt more 60:40 in terms of momentum, as opposed to the 20:80 we had suffered in the first half.

 

We were getting increasingly frustrated by the referee, though.  The ref had already blown his whistle for a foul when had he played advantage Kofi would have been through on goal, when Welling then went on to give away a string of fouls in the final third of the pitch.  I hadn’t seen so many fouls on the edge their box and each time the ref kept his cards in his pocket.  He spoke to a player, then warned him that was his last warning, then spoke to the captain to say that was his last warning… and just to infuriate us even more, the first tackle Cam gets wrong he dives into his pocket.

 

Leatherhead’s unbeaten record coud hve been saved in the final five minutes when The Lip’s Marcel Barrington had a shot blocked by a defender.   Then a ball from a set piece (another foul, ref!) fell to Anas at the far post and forced a fine from the Welling ‘keeper.  From the resulting corner Sonny came up and got on the end of the cross, only to send it over the bar and the ref then blew for full time.

 

A worrying slump in league form, but we get to try and put that right on Saturday with the visit of Stanway Rovers…

Tanners 2 - 2 Eastbourne Borough (lose 1-2 on penalties)

Leatherhead exit the crappiest FA competition on penalties after a trademark comeback from being 2-0 down.

 

We looked reasonably comfortable in the first half, with a few chances, but perhaps lacked some of the intensity needed to keep Eastbourne fully under control. We gave them too much space, and a powerful shot flew in, via a cruel deflection, to make it 0-1.

 

We needed a bright start, and the signs were there, but again we gifted too much space and a well-placed shot was curled into the top corner on 61 minutes. 0-2.

 

The crowd was at about 25% of what we saw last week, but the desire to get something from the game wasn’t, as we went on to pull it back but probably should have had more.

 

The fightback started when we won a penalty. In the first half, Mark Waters was clotheslined by their defender as he went to the ball, with the ref only stopping play for a head injury. The ref commented, as we gave him “advice”, that his daughter was in the crowd and we should not abuse him. I can only imagine his daughter gave him the same advice during the half-time break, because when the same player did something very similar, he gave the penalty. Hogan was first to pick up the ball and smashed it home. 1-2.

 

The equaliser came on 70 minutes. Cam Black, who had already missed an open goal when his header rebounded off the post back to him and he could only prod it wide, either because of the conditions or overthinking, turned and swivelled on a loose ball and found the back of the net.

 

By now, Storm Boelo was picking up where Austen left off and standing water was in areas of the pitch at the end we were attacking, which didn’t make it easy for either team.

 

Somehow, Eastbourne held on and took it to penalties, and that is where our journey ended. If I was to tell you Sonny saved two of the first four penalties, you may be thinking we were safely through, but alas their ‘keeper saved three. The Lip’s Marcel Barrington was the unfortunate player to step up and have his shot saved.

 

So out we go, but straight on to the league with a long trip to Welling, who will be itching to get revenge for the 4-1 we notched up earlier in the season.

Eastbourne Borough are coming!

Game on! Storm Austen didn’t get this game postponed, so we welcome Eastbourne Borough for this FA Sodding Trophy game. We met in August and we came away with a 1-0. The FA Cup heroics may have taken a bit out of the legs though. Kick off at 3pm. Good luck fellas!

Yeovil Town 5 - 2 Tanners

Since Saturday, Billy Rowley has been mowing the pitch, performing a rain dance and praying to the footballing gods for better luck and he pretty much got everything he wanted as Yeovil Town ran out 5-2 winners last night.

 

The stadium was fairly impressive, but I soon realised how spoilt we are at The Grove for provision of food and drink with the bar and Fan Zones being open to all and covered.  I arrived early to area that consisted of a few tables – half of which were exposed and therefore had wet seats – spread about which could cater for just a small proportion of those due to attend.  I have since been told we were lucky to even be there as it is closed to away fans.  After two and half hours of travelling, I would have been pretty disappointed had that been enforced.

 

Onto the game and Leatherhead got off to a dream start when Mark Waters made a surging run and the ball broke to Kofi, who slotted it past Barker after just 90 seconds. Somewhere Iain Hendry shuddered, as we recall going ahead this early away at Torquay only for it to end in tears.

 

Yeovil did not panic. In fact, they went about their business like a cat with a mouse as they played the ball in front of us, looking for an opening to make it level. Their equaliser came on 15 minutes when a ball was worked down to the left corner, where it was swung in for their big forward to head home from close range.

 

The second goal came just 10 minutes later when a clever pass unlocked our defence, and the ball was calmly slotted into the bottom corner. 1-2.

 

Leatherhead have proved they can come back from these situations but were dealt a major setback when Charlie saw red for following up with a tackle while the Yeovil player was on the ground with the ball at his feet. The ref thought this was reckless and showed a red, which was made all the more infuriating as Charlie himself had been scythed down from behind just minutes earlier, which was only deemed to be a yellow.  Throw in the bad tackle in the first game and it is fair to say the footballing gods were not smiling down on Leatherhead.

 

Certainly as when the half drew to a close, where seeing it out at 2-1 may have seemed like a minor victory, the lino completely failed to see that Yeovil’s striker was about two yards offside when following up a saved shot. 3-1 and the game was done.

 

Fair play to Leatherhead, they never gave up. Even when Yeovil made it 1-4 on 58 minutes, we tried to counter on the break. First, Hogan was put through and could only fire directly at the ‘keeper before Harris made no mistake with a powerful finish to make it 2-4. Soon after, Dryer broke free but fired over.

 

Had just one of the two missed chances found the back of the net, it could have been a nervous end – again – for Yeovil, but another swift move resulted in a tap-in to make it 2-5.

 

So Yeovil Town go on to play Chesterfield (a game they don’t seem too thrilled about) and Leatherhead go out, but not before scoring five goals against National League opposition and sounding the New Ground Klaxon. On to Saturday and the FA Sodding Trophy…

Tanners 3 - 3 Yeovil Town

A sell-out crowd watched a dramatic second half, where both teams thought they had booked their place in the First Round Proper… which they both did, but with a replay on Tuesday.

 

The first half saw Leatherhead try desperately to control the game. The one thing that was clear from the warm-up was that Yeovil wanted to move the ball around quickly, so we had to be disciplined and keep our shape. This limited our visitors to really one sniff at goal, which Sonny dealt with.

 

The one thing that often infuriates me when playing teams from higher leagues is the ref. It is my perception that they favour their buddies and the lower team gets the crappy end of the stick, so when Yeovil’s key player flew into Anas, it was no surprise only a yellow was awarded.

 

Dryer, who was unusually quiet, had our best chance in the first half when he was put through on goal. He looked like he had only the ‘keeper to beat, but then a defender got himself between him and the ball. Somehow, Tom still managed to surprise the ‘keeper with a shot and force a reaction save with his chest. 0-0 at half-time and we were kicking towards our own fans for the second half.

 

Mind games for the start of the second half as we made Yeovil wait for us to come out. If we were two or three minutes late to be physically out, we were three or four minutes late to be mentally out there, as Yeovil pounced and we failed to respond. A swift move was powerfully finished at the near post after just 30-40 seconds. 0-1.

 

The day appeared to be getting worse when the referee rushed to give a penalty. It didn’t look like much more than a coming together, but he saw enough and dramatically pointed to the spot. Sonny, the hero of so many penalties recently, wasn’t needed as the Yeovil player smashed the ball into the crossbar and one of the follow-up attacks was deemed to be offside.

 

Then the game looked dead and buried when Yeovil moved the ball across the box until they found space and whipped in a shot perfectly into the side netting to make it 2-0.

 

On 71 minutes, it looked like it was turning into a massacre when one of our players slid in and clearly took out the trailing leg of their player, but Durkin had seen enough now and felt sorry for us and waved it away. Then something happened…

 

Ian Selley will tell you it was down to the bold changes he made. The extra energy in midfield with Everitt, the power up front of Barrington, the outlet of Hogan, blah, blah, blah… but the truth is a lot simpler. The pitch.

 

The grass, which had been slowly growing all game, finally reached a length that Yeovil couldn’t cope with and Leatherhead pounced. Durkin gave us a foul out on the right and Everitt sent in a cross to the far post, headed back into the middle by Butler for Paget to head into the empty net on 75 minutes. 1-2.

 

Then Leatherhead won a corner from the same side. The ball was swung into the near post but met by two desperate defenders who, between them, could only steer it towards goal. The ball seemed to take an age to spin into the back of the net, but when it did, The Grove erupted.

 

On 85 minutes, anyone who had any vocal cords left suddenly lost them. Yeovil failed to clear a cross and sent the ball high into the air. It was won by a Leatherhead player who played in Mark Waters, who evaded a tackle and sent in a powerful shot. It took a deflection on the way, but the power and precision were too much for Ronnie Barker in goal.

 

Could we have actually booked our place in the First Round Proper? We looked like we had them on the ropes, but then something happened…

 

Billy Rowley will tell you it is about the togetherness of the group, the quality of his signings from lower leagues or the instructions from the sidelines, blah, blah, blah, but the truth is a lot simpler. The weather.

 

On 87 minutes, it started to rain a bit, which gave the pitch the zip Yeovil needed to attack themselves. The one thing you learn quickly when playing a National League side is that passing is quicker and the shots bendier, as Sonny appeared caught off guard by the extra three or four feet of movement from a long-range shot and could only spill the ball into the path of a Yeovil player (who I was surprised wasn’t offside to be in such a position), who tapped it in.

 

Somehow, Leatherhead struggled through the conditions of a slightly damp pitch to the 96th minute, where they had a free kick to try and win it, but for once their ‘keeper managed to deal with it.

 

So, the footballing gods looked down at the replay fixture and pronounced that it is good. See you on Tuesday!

Yeovil Town are coming!

If the fact that Yeovil Town are coming tomorrow has passed you by, where the hell have you been!? Also, get your ticket online before 10pm tonight!

 

One-time Championship side Yeovil Town arrive tomorrow, and everything seems to be going their way. Twelve goals in two games, the appointed referee once gave them a 95th-minute penalty, and their manager can casually recall beating us 4-2 in the Surrey Senior Cup while at Walton & Hersham.

 

Leatherhead are going to have to be on top of their game to overcome all of those omens. But I also recall us holding Rushden & Diamonds to a draw here, and had the ref spotted a push on our defender, we would have won 1-0…

 

Kick-off at 3pm. See you there!

Tanners 1 - 2 Cheshunt

This was as disappointing as it was predictable.  With just a week before we play 12-goals-in-two-games Yeovil, it is understandable that some players might be a little distracted and a little (if not miles) off it.

 

Leatherhead perhaps edged the first half, but the game hardly reflected the league-table positions at kick-off. Dryer fired a powerful shot against the crossbar, only to be adjudged offside, but beyond that there was precious little to get excited about.

 

The second half was petering along until Cheshunt scored. I thought I saw our defender shoved off the ball to allow the cross into the box, but the referee disagreed, and it ended with a simple tap-in. 0-1.

 

That finally sparked Leatherhead into life, and we began to play with some real attacking intent. Anas, who had previously shown admirable self-restraint in crossing whenever he won the ball on the right, decided to take matters into his own hands and unleashed a powerful shot that the ‘keeper could only parry into the path of Kennett, who smashed it into the net. 1-1. Now we pressed for a winner.

 

A double chance came and went, and The Lip’s Marcel Barrington did a Paul Gascoigne by somehow failing to get on the end of a low cross for what looked a certain tap-in. Then our players all seemed to believe they were Morgan Rogers and started trying to bend them in from 30 yards. Amid all the growing excitement and desperation, the one thing that felt inconceivable was that Cheshunt would go down the other end and score — but that is exactly what they did. In the final minute of stoppage time, the ball was worked down the right and coolly slipped under the advancing Sonny Wheeler.

 

1-2, and we drop out of the play-off places. Attention now turns to the new ground arrangements for the visit of Yeovil…