SYDENHAMS (WESSEX) LEAGUE DIVISION ONE
SATURDAY 23RD FEBRUARY 2019
VERWOOD TOWN 4 NEW MILTON TOWN 0

A young good footballing New Milton had a shot on target in the first five minutes and enjoying early possession. We gradually settled with Dyer and Heggan battling the midfield. Heggan’s ball to Hall opened up NM’s right flank. Hall’s deep cross was gathered by the keeper.

An immediate counter followed but Kelly put paid to any threat with a good tackle blocking the cross. A pass inside found Dyer, a through ball gave Gray a chance but again the keeper did well to race out and clear.

Guthrie stepped into the picture with a rising shot just clearing the bar as we fought for more of the ball.

Good interplay down NM’s right flank finished with a cross and volley but Lynch was off his line quickly to take a high ball. A throw found Guthrie wide left. Guthrie whipped a line ball to Davies but Davies’ volley went down the keeper’s throat.

On 18 minutes Hall fiercely contested a midfield tussle winning the ball. A pass found Guthrie. A good shot hit bodies. A half clearance fell to Guthrie’s right boot. 1-0.

6 minutes later a Gray, Davies combination gave Guthrie a chance and an angled shot was half cleared off the line. Up stepped Dyer to drill the ball into the bottom corner. 2-0

New Milton’s response was admirable. No heads dropped and selfless running pegged us back.

Gajic, Head and Evans earned their stripes with good defending on the left and central, with Kelly intelligently closing any gaps on his flank.

3 minutes to go for half time and strong running from NM’s central pairing looked dangerous until Head stepped in with a cool and calm interception blocking progress on goal. The whistle blew on a good half time score line.

Half Time 2-0

Within a minute of the re start NM chipped a ball over mid field. A runner caught the bounce and it looked like a classic goal until Lynch acrobatically palmed the ball round the post for a corner. Gajic won the heading duel and put the ball in front of Guthrie. On 46 minutes 40 seconds Guthrie doubled his tally with a great goal. 3-0.

We were now enjoying more possession. Davies went close with a low shot followed by Dyer hitting the side netting.

64 minutes, Kelly’s line ball reached Gray. Good feet took him past his marker. A low ball into the box found Guthrie, he was was upended by defender on the edge of the area stopping him claiming a hat trick. Dyer blazed the free kick over the bar.

Josh Hall came off for George Richardson with 24 minutes left. Richardson was immediately in the thick of it linking with Heggan to free up Davies. A good run was blocked on the dead ball line.

We pushed up and almost suffered when it looked as if Moses had repeated his Red Sea trick. We left a gap for runners. Out came Lynch. A stunning volley was palmed away from danger. It was a wake up call that we couldn’t ignore. This NM side if they stick together will be a force to be reckoned with.

79 minutes Nicholson came on for Dyer and on 82 minutes Cowland came on for Heggan.

5 minutes left. Nicholson did well to track back and make a crucial tackle on the dead ball line. A minute later it needed a powerful Gajic header to clear the box as NM pushed on.

We almost caught them out with a counter on 87 minutes when Guthrie sped away to cut into the box. A strong tackle floored him but penalty shouts were ignored. Back came NM. Kelly this time blocked the route to goal and a telling pass through the middle was tucked into Gray’s path. A volley from just inside the box whistled past the keeper on 90+1 to finish the scoring.

Result 4-0