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Combined Counties Premier League GUILDFORD CITY 3 Rivers, 21; Carnegie, 44; King, 70 WEMBLEY 2 Garner, 34; Manuwa, 80 GUILDFORD took all the points in this far from straightforward encounter with bottom placed Wembley. Indeed the Middlesex club well and truly battered their Surrey opponents in the opening half hour, winning and missing a penalty and then conceding against the run of play courtesy of a well taken Rivers header. The home side recovered and went ahead just before halftime – Carnegie heading home from a well worked corner. The second half was just as frenetic with Guildford doing everything but score before King gave them some breathing space with yet another headed goal. There was the customary wobble from City as the Lions pulled one back with 10 minutes to go but Guildford held on to take all three points. Wembley started the match impressively and within the first 10 minutes won a penalty after a clumsy challenge in the box. The spot kick was well taken but Hall guess correctly and clawed the ball behind for a corner which was well cleared. Guildford did not heed the warnings and continued to be put under the cosh from a side which looked far from relegation fodder. Still, Harrison Carnegie did manage to head just wide in the 11th minute, prior to a spectacular attempt from the visitors, an overhead kick landing harmlessly in Hall’s arms. The Lions continued to press however and it seemed only a matter of time before they converted one of their chances. What a surprise then when City went 1-0 up in the 21st minute – Danny Elgar made one of his tricky runs, making space for himself before firing a perfect cross into the box which Rivers flicked imperiously into the back of the net. Rivers then tried to the same from a City free kick but this time Power-Simpson in the Wembley goal was equal to the attempt. The visitors kept coming forward and really should have scored on the half hour mark. The ball was crossed into the box and Anthony Hall spilled it. Somehow a Wembley player did not connect in time to put it into the open net. City’s elation was short-lived as Wembley’s players finally found their scoring boots a few minutes later. A superb run down the home side’s left wing led to a perfect low cross to Glenn Garner at the near post who cleverly volleyed the ball across his body and into the net. Wembley appeared to have the game for the taking but they faded a little at this point and suddenly Guildford started to have more possession. Moves started to be put together, initially with little end product but looking increasingly promising as the minutes wore on. Both King and Elgar drove wide before City won a corner, 2 minutes from half time. The ball was taken short to a player who nipped in to the near post and sent a perfect cross onto the forehead of Harrison Carnegie who had crept in unmarked – his header crashing into the back of the net. A perfect training ground goal had given Guildford the lead once again. Wembley were rattled and City could have scored from a dodgy back pass a few moments later. They went even closer when Danny Elgar unleashed a ferocious shot from the edge of the area which beat the keeper but smacked back off the crossbar. The half concluded with a City free kick being headed to the keeper. The first half had been played at a frantic pace and none of us expected either side to be able to play at the same tempo for the second period. How wrong we were. Guildford picked up where they left off in the first half, although Wembley had clearly regained their composure and were still looking dangerous on the counter-attack. Indeed it was the visitors who had an early opportunity, winning a free kick on the by-line in the 50th minute which was easily claimed by Hall. For the next 20 minutes or so though it was all City, as Guildford contrived to do everything but score – indeed Sean Rivers amazingly hit the woodwork 3 times in 3 minutes. To be fair he should have been credited with a goal in the 59th minute when he hit the bar with a header and the ball bounced vertically down, appearing to cross the line. The linesman was no-where near unfortunately and no goal could be given. Seconds later the City striker got his head onto a perfect Liam Harwood cross but yet again hit the bar. As if things could not get any more excruciating, Rivers was soon on the attack again and this time lofted the ball over the keeper but straight against the post. The home side still had the lead but we all thought East Preston syndrome was about to strike again. The visitors did not take advantage of their let-offs however and in the 67th minute Stephen Ntesa was sent off after a terrible challenge on the last man during another attack. As he had almost broken Cory Knight’s leg a few minutes before we saw this as long overdue justice. Heads dropped among the Lions and City finally took advantage, winning a corner which Ben Rayner curled perfectly for Jamie King to head home. The flood gates opened briefly once again and substitute Gabriel Adesina was unlucky not to increase the lead after being put through – Power Simpson just getting his fingertips to a good shot. Inevitably though it was Wembley who were celebrating 4 minutes later after catching City with a sucker punch – tearing down the Guildford right, before beating Hall on the by-line and allowing Richard Manuwa an easy tap in. Guildford responded but squandered yet another one-on-one chance. Suddenly it was Wembley who looked dangerous and we all started to get a bit nervous. City kept conceding free kicks in the final ten minutes and almost paid the price. They were extremely lucky in the 88th minute, a vicious shot deflecting off the wall, and just being kept out by the fingertips of Hall. The pressure was at least creating gaps at the back and Luke Bradnick should have done better with a one-on-one in the dying moments of the game – the ball being struck straight at the keeper and cleared. Somehow City hung on though to take all three points and climb to 11th in the table. GUILDFORD CITY: A. Hall; T. Penson; L. Harwood; J. Cooper; J. Thoroughgood; J. King; C. Knight (T. Arnold, 62); B. Rayner (L. Bradnick, 90+3); S. Rivers; H. Carnegie (G. Adesina, 75); D. Elgar Subs not used: A. Ducran Booked: T. Penson; B. Rayner; S. Rivers WEMBLEY: M. Power-Simpson; S. Ntesa; J. Burgess; C. Carroll; R. Manuwa; J. Parker; I. Bates; G. Garner (J. Okunowo, 62); J. Walker; J. Mitchell; L. Guentchev Subs: A. Rouse; J. Dalton-Brown; M. Black; D. Clinton Booked: G. Garner Sent off: S. Ntesa Referee: F. Collins Attendance: 48
Combined Counties Premier League NORTH GREENFORD UNITED 5 GUILDFORD CITY
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Combined Counties Premier Challenge Cup Round 3 GUILDFORD CITY 5 Carnegie 20, 44, 60; King 34; Moody 67 NORTH GREENFORD UNITED 0 GUILDFORD excelled themselves in this game, turning in a virtuoso performance to knock high flying North Greenford United out of the league cup. Indeed after a slow start, City well and truly hammered opponents who had humbled them 5-1 in the previous league game. Harrison Carnegie was the star of the show, feeding off the skill of new signing Dan Moody and showing impressive composure to notch his hat trick. Jamie King and Moody completed the rout which sees Guildford progress to the quarter finals. With the postponement of the previous game, this match had all the hallmarks of a two-legged Champions League match (ok I may be exaggerating a bit here – there were only about 50 of us and no millionaires on the pitch). North Greenford must have been expecting an easy passage to the next round, although their lineup was reasonably strong with the impressive Dave Lawrence starting and his equally deadly strike partner Ricky Pither ready to add firepower from the bench. The home side had a few new faces in their ranks – Adam Peck deputising for the suspended Antony Hall, James Brown adding some much needed quality in midfield and Dan Moody partnering Carnegie in attack. As mentioned North Greenford started the game the stronger and really should have scored in the opening fifteen minutes. First an excellent slide-rule pass from near the byline was missed by the unmarked player at the far post and then ten minutes or so later a forward beat the offside trap but fired just wide of the target with the goalkeeper stranded. Slowly but surely though, Guildford found their feet and began to really stretch the visitors – not least through the pace and movement down the left wing. And it was from one such attack that City scored in the 20th minute. A hanging cross was dropped into the box and somehow bounced over a defender, allowing Carnegie to scramble the ball home. Suddenly it was all Guildford and they could have made it 2-0 two minutes later – a freekick being fired in from the edge of the centre circle and headed at goal but cleared off the line. A candidate for miss of the season followed – the product of another blistering run, the City player receiving the ball unmarked in the box but firing wide from barely 6 yards out! The visitors seemed stunned but they did recover enough to win a corner in the 26th minute which was headed clear and prompted another Guildford attack without result. The home side got a deserved second goal some moments later however, a superb corner seeming to be laser-guided onto the head of Jamie King: as usual the Guildford midfielder made no mistake, heading into the back of the net. With the bit between their teeth, City did not cede the initiative for the rest of the half, stretching their opponents and winning three corners. They got their just desserts just before halftime – Carnegie side-footing home easily at the far post after a brilliant cross from Danny Elgar. The home side started the second half with continued purpose – they clearly knew from bitter experience how easily a 3 goal lead could be reduced to nothing. The first fifteen minutes saw some invention by both sides but without anything really clear cut. Sure enough however it was Guildford that got the scoreboard ticking over once more. Again Moody was at the heart of the move, shredding his markers down the wing with his blistering pace before crossing into the box. Carnegie benefited from some fortune as the ball pinged off a defender but he took his chance and fired the ball home to complete his hat trick. The visitors were now on damage limitation mode – oh how well we know that feeling as City fans – and did some hasty substitutions to try and inject some confidence back into their side. It was Guildford though who looked dangerous on every attack and it seemed inevitable that more goals would follow. Carnegie was finding space behind the back four with startling regularity and nearly caused a defender to score an own goal in the 66th minute – his shot cannoning off the player and behind for a corner. The fifth goal followed immediately – Dan Moody deservedly getting his name on the scoresheet after rising unmarked to head the set piece home. There was still plenty of the match to go but with the game won (even Mr Pegman was saying that the game would ‘probably’ not go into extra time now) Kev Rayner must have decided to save his side’s energy for Saturday. There was certainly a change in the balance of play in the final 20 minutes and North Greenford were unlucky not to get at least one consolation goal. Their best chances came in the final ten minutes – a superb strike being just pushed over the bar by Peck and a few minutes later a freekick being punched clear. Little remained but to run the clock down and the ref blew for fulltime on the stroke of 90 minutes. GUILDFORD CITY: Adam Peck; T. Tydeman (T. Arnold, 62); T. Penson; S. Cooper; J. Thoroughgood; J. King; James Brown (L. Bradnick, 86); B. Rayner; Dan Moody; H. Carnegie (A. Ducran, 88); D. Elgar Subs not used: J. Turner; C. Knight NORTH GREENFORD UTD: J. Warrington; S. Hillier; J. Lisi; J. Diston; C. Meddes;; M. Murray; J. Sparrowhawk; N. Salapatas (R. Pither, 65); R. Pinto (K. McNamara, 65); D. Lawrence; L. Kenny Subs not used: Booked: J. Warrington Referee: A. Connor Attendance: 46
Combined Counties Premier League GUILDFORD CITY 4 Rayner, 28; Brown, 34; Carnegie, 74, 85 BOOKHAM 1 Appiah, 37 THIS emphatic result which in truth could have been by an even greater margin, is proof that Guildford should not find themselves anywhere near the bottom three this season. City were just too good for a hard-working but ultimately ineffective Bookham side – retaining possession and stretching them with the pace of Carnegie and the guile of Danny Elgar. They deservedly scored twice in the first half courtesy of Ben Rayner and new signing James Brown before sloppily conceding moments later from a pacey counter-attack – Ronnie Appiah slotting easily home when one on one with the keeper. Any concerns that Guildford would not take all three points were swiftly dispelled however as Carnegie scored twice (and missed a sackful of other chances) to give City a comfortable win. This was very much an afternoon for the enthusiast – the rain falling torrentially for most of the match. Despite this the turnout was better than usual, with even some ground hoppers in evidence. On the pitch, Kevin had had to make alternative striking arrangements, bringing in new signing Jack McLeod for Dan Moody who had sustained an injury in the midweek match against North Greenford. Guildford started the game strongly, having several efforts in the first ten minutes which the Lions’ keeper Tim Brewster was able to handle comfortably. At the other end a Bookham midfielder tried his luck from long range but without troubling Hall. In the 17th minute City won a corner which was headed wide at the far post but it looked as if they had corrected this glaring miss with a superb headed goal in the 25th minute – unfortunately it was an optical illusion, the ball flying the wrong side of the post. After the clinical finishing of Wednesday, this was more what we were used to. The home side were pretty much controlling the play however and it seemed only a matter of time before their luck changed. Sure enough the goal arrived three minutes later – Brewster being only able to deflect a powerful shot into the path of Ben Rayner who rolled the loose ball over the line. It wasn’t long before we were celebrating again. Some brilliant work down the left wing resulted in a slide rule pass which bisected the Bookham defence and allowed James Brown to finish easily at the far post. Guildford were flying now but perhaps a touch of complacency drifted in. They were certainly caught flat-footed by Appiah’s blistering run to latch onto a through ball and fire past the helpless Hall. Although City’s bench all concurred afterwards that the goal was well offside, Guildford once more had some work to do. They could have restored their two goal lead in the final minute of the half – again some brilliant passing was involved but despite two bites at the cherry, the home side could not put the loose ball over the line. There was only one option for the cold and wet spectators at halftime and that was to head for the shelter of the clubroom and have a beer!! Lofty, perhaps alone amongst the City fans had actually thought to bring an umbrella and once we had trooped out for the second half impressively remained on the terraces throughout the match. He was even out-shouted by a 7 year old girl who led the chants of ‘Red Army!’ and ‘Come on Guildford!’ Stalwarts from last year, Dave S and Joe M joined the occupants of the stand in giving Mr L some stick!! The question at the back of all our minds was could City close out this match or were we about to see more points dropped in a criminal fashion?!! None of us believed a one goal cushion would be enough so the first twenty minutes or so were extremely frustrating as the home side huffed and puffed, dominating possession and creating chances that they just could not put away. On the hour mark a great cross into the box drew two point blank saves from Brewster and a minute later Carnegie, who had been giving his marker a torrid time all afternoon, skilfully manoeuvred himself to the byline and sent in a peach of a cross but with no Guildford head to knock it home. In the 69th minute it was Elgar’s turn, making a brilliant run into the box and pulling the trigger only to see his shot blocked by some desperate defending. Carnegie then rose unmarked to head wide the resulting corner and wasted another chance three minutes later – a blistering run taking him beyond his markers but his shot was straight into the keeper’s arms. City really were dominating but it was going to be a nerve jangling ending if they could not get the killer goal. At last it arrived though – some great passing putting Carnegie through: the City striker waiting for the keeper to commit and then firing the ball home. The pressure continued on the unfortunate Bookham – Danny Elgar dinking a ball over the back four and winning a corner which City could not quite convert. At last the visitors found a breathing space and started to venture into the Guildford half. They put together a decent move in the 83rd minute but it broke down, allowing a counter-attack – Carnegie once again going close with a powerful shot which was well saved. This was only a temporary reprieve however as City got their fourth some two minutes later – a defensive error enabling Carnegie to latch onto the ball, beat his man and fire home. Bookham started to come back into the game for the last five minutes of the match – a freekick in a dangerous position forcing a City defender to head the ball behind – but they were unable to make anything of the resulting corner. At the other end, debutant Jack McLeod nearly made it 5 after a sliding shot beat the keeper but drifted an inch or so wide of the post. GUILDFORD CITY: A. Hall; T. Tydeman; E. Defreitas; S. Cooper; J. Thoroughgood; J. Turner (C. Knight, 65); J. Brown (Adrian Greenland, 78); B. Rayner (L. Bradnick, 88); Jack McLeod; H. Carnegie; D. Elgar Subs not used: A. Ducran Booked: None BOOKHAM: T. Brewster; S. Currie; J. Van Gelder; R. Hurtt; D. Oliver; M. Fowler (R. Fraser, 45); J. Piercey; N. Ayling; R. Appiah; M. Packenham (M. Smith, 70); B. Ramsey Subs not used: R. Bhogal; C. Peck; C. Woodward Booked: None Referee: A. Groves Attendance: 59
Southern Combination Challenge Cup Round 2 GUILDFORD CITY 2 Moody, 2; McLeod, 87 MOLESEY 3 McShane, 30, 63; Yeates, 32 GUILDFORD exited this cup competition more with a whimper than a growl as high tempo Molesey made them pay for some lax defending. It was City who started the better, Dan Moody finishing clinically to put his side ahead with just over a minute on the clock. Moles midfield dynamo James McShane came into his own as the match wore on however scoring a screamer before skipper Joe Yeates headed home the simplest of chances to give the Moles the edge at the break. Guildford could not up their game in the second half and the match was ended as contest after McShane scored his second of the afternoon. Jack McLeod clawed one back near the end but it was too little too late. This was City’s second mid-week home game in a row and the fifth home game in the last six matches!! It was a pity more people could not make it down but I guess the Southern Combination Cup, a fine competition though it is, is not quite on a par with the FA Cup or even the Premier Cup. Anyway those of us that were there at least had cause to cheer in the opening minutes of the game. The impressive Dan Moody beat the offside trap and latched onto an excellent defence splitting pass. With the Moles defence flat-footed he deftly chipped the ball over the advancing keeper and into the back of the net. Easy! We were rather rashly predicting another North Greenford match at this point. As if to underline this Moody went through on goal again but this time his shot was flashed wide of the post. The visitors woke up and tried an ambitious volleyed effort from long range before Jamie King tried but failed to get on the end of a well hit pass to the far post in the 11th minute.. Guildford continued to look dangerous for the next twenty minutes or so – a decent flicked header going inches wide before the Moles keeper, throwing caution to the wind, came for the ball and missed it – unfortunately there was no City player there to put it in the net. Molesey were starting to string some passes together however and were unlucky not to score in the 23rd minute after getting an extremely fortunate (lack of) offside decision from the linesman. The player would surely have scored but for an excellent tackle from one of the Guildford defenders. Moments later the Moles had another chance – a reverse pass out-foxing City’s rearguard but Adam Peck was alert to the threat and smothered the ball in time. Our relief was short-lived however as James McShane (no not Lovejoy) picked up the ball down the left wing, and drifted inside with the Guildford defence backing off him. With nothing else on he let fly with an unstoppable curling shot which beat Peck and nestled in the top corner. The City players blamed the wind afterwards but it looked a bit of screamer from where we were standing. There was no need to panic obviously but no-one told the Guildford defence who seemed to switch off entirely at this point. Barely two minutes after the goal, Molesey had a freekick in a similar position to where McShane had let fly his thunderbolt. The ball was fired into the box, missed by every City defender and found the unmarked Yeates at the far post who applied the slightest of headers to nudge it over the line. To their credit Guildford upped their game but could not trouble their opponents from a corner a minute or so later. At the other end the visitors were winning a series of freekicks in dangerous areas but being unable to capitalise. The final chances of the half fell to the home side – a well struck corner travelling across the face of the goal but no-one could head it in. The Moles tried an unsuccessful foray into the City box whilst Moody fired wide from a McLeod lay-off before the half time whistle sounded. The Moles’ first goal had been nice to look at but this was far from a ‘classic’ encounter and we were all rather hoping that the tie would be settled one way or the other in normal time. Kev brought on Harrison Carnegie as a statement of intent but even ‘H’s pace could not inject sufficient belief back into the Guildford attack. Even worse, Dan Moody picked up an injury in the 58th minute, charging down the pitch and being stopped by a superb last ditch tackle which left him on the floor. He struggled on but eventually had to be replaced by James Brown. City did have half a chance on the hour mark and who knows, if it had gone in the match may have gone in a different direction. They strung together an impressive passing move which culminated in a brilliant slide rule pass which if it has been connected with would have put the forward through on goal – as it was though the ball ended up in touch. Moments later the match was over as a contest – James ‘Lovejoy’ McShane once more finishing clinically. The Moles sensed blood and could have easily scored one of two more over the remainder of the game. Twice City nearly conceded from goalmouth scrambles, the ball ping-ponging around the box and being extremely fortunately cleared. The home side did at least win a freekick in the 84th minute which Simon Cooper nearly scored from. A few minutes later they did score – Jack McLeod half volleying into the roof of the net from a corner. However the visitors had no intention of allowing the game to drift into extra time (thank goodness!) and effectively took the ball into the corner and generally ran the clock down for the remainder of the game. GUILDFORD CITY: A. Peck; E. Defreitas; T. Arnold; S. Cooper; T. Penson; J. King; L. Bradnick (H. Carnegie, 57); B. Rayner; J. McLeod; D. Moody (J. Brown, 75); D. Elgar (A. Greenland, 83) Subs not used: C. Knight; J. Turner MOLESEY: W. Young; A. Graves; L. Elliott; J. Yeates; M. Spencer; D. Coombes; D. Lucas (E. Thompson, 68); S. Lampard (B. Pamment, 85); A. Jawonezvi; F. Ebrahim-Zadeh (D. Roberts, 77); J. McShane Subs not used: R. Defoe; M. Hughes; D. Roberts Referee: P. Melin Attendance: 45
Combined Counties Premier League COVE 2 GUILDFORD CITY 0
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Though
the score line reads 5-1, the result was an unfair reflection of how even this match was.
Ultimately poor finishing cost CIty, who had as many chances as their opponents North
Greenford Utd, but just couldn't find the back of the net. Trailing 3-0 at halftime, CIty
were all over the hosts in the second half, pulling one back. It didn't last long as North
Greenford scored twice more to finish the game off.
As has happened so often this season,
City more than matched their opponents but came away with nothing. While that might sound
biased and bitter, the Cove goalmouth saw the majority of the action in this clash. Two
penalties at either end of the match proved the downfall, but City can at least come away
knowing that on another day, they could have so easily bagged all three points.