Match Report

After six league games without a win, Leverstock Green finally returned to winning ways in style with a 4-1 win over Baldock Town in Saturday’s SSML Premier Division fixture, completing a league double over Baldock.

Most of the damage was done in the first half, despite a quiet start to the game. The game’s first shot was an effort over the bar in the 7th minute from Rio Beach. Leverstock had the ball in the 10th minute as George Mitchell-Gears slotted home from a Radu-Mihai Stefanoaica cross, but he was flagged for offside. At the other end two minutes later Lawrence Ajong put the ball across the face of the Leverstock goal, but no-one was on the end of it, and on 15 minutes a shot from Dominik Robertson stung the hands of Austin Byfield.

Leverstock were having more of the goal threat. On 16 minutes a cross from Brad Robinson was over the outstretched arm of keeper David Archer but dropped onto the bar, and on 27 minutes a cross from Stefanoaica was met with a glancing header from Ethan Mooney that was not enough to divert it on target. Finally in the 30th minute Mooney did well on the right edge of the penalty area and chipped a cross into the six yard box, where Stefanoaica met it with a volley to open the scoring and notch his first goal for the club in his 8th game.

He didn’t have long to wait for his second goal. In the 38th minute Mooney exchanged passes with Blunden on a quick break before sending over a cross from the bye-line which found Stefanoaica on the edge of the six yard box with the space to control the ball with his first touch and calmly drill home a shot with his second touch for a 2-0 lead.

It should have been 3-0 in the 42nd minute when Blunden was clean through against Archer, but Leverstock’s top scorer was uncharacteristically off target as he blasted the ball over the bar. However, the third goal did arrive in the first minute of stoppage time, as Ibrahim Nagheeb received a pass from Stefanoaica and stroked a shot from the edge of the box low into the corner of the net for his first goal of the season.

Baldock had played better than the scoreline suggested in the first half, and they had the better of the early stages of the second half as they put the Green goal under some pressure, but were unable to get the early goal that might have caused some nerves in the Leverstock defence. Instead it was the Green side that increased their lead in the 58th minute. A corner was cleared to the edge of the box, where Stefanoaica met it with a shot into the ground which was probably going into the net as it bounced towards the goal, but Blunden made sure as he got his head to the ball inches before the goalline to register a goal for the fourth straight game.

Blunden was replaced by new signing Tyriq Hunte immediately after bagging his goal, with one eye on the injury that caused him to leave Wednesday night’s game early. Baldock looked like getting a goal back in the 65th minute when Ryan Lamond was through on goal, but Byfield did well to turn his shot wide. Leverstock were unable to add to their tally, with off-target efforts from Mooney and Hunte being as close as they got.

They were also denied the clean sheet as Baldock got their consolation goal in the 89th minute with a free kick from outside the box that somehow got through everyone and rolled into the corner of the net. However, it was still an excellent win which lifts Leverstock back into the top half of the table. Despite Stefanoaica’s two goals and two assists, Bobby Armstrong was nominated as man-of-the-match for his solid performance at the back.

Leverstock Green (3) 4 (Stefanoaica 30, 38, Nagheeb 45+1, Blunden 58)
1. Austin Byfield, 2. Brad Robinson (15. Ayomide Oke 70 mins), 3. Rio Beach, 18. Bobby Armstrong, 5. Alvin Kyeremeh, 6. Ibrahim Nagheeb, 7. Ethan Mooney, 8. Dan Pett, 9. Chris Blunden (14. Tyriq Hunte 59 mins), 10. George Mitchell-Gears (16. Sean Walsh 67 mins), 11. Radu-Mihai Stefanoaica. Subs not used: 12. Ryan Carruthers, 20. Scott McGleish.
Baldock Town (0) 1 (TBA 89)
1. David Archer, 19. Tommy Reynolds (2. Dean Laing 79 mins), 3. Callum Kane, 4. Charlie Joy (12. Mamadou Diallo 52 mins), 5. Josh Furness, 6. Luke Rowland, 7. Owen Robertson, 8. Dominik Robertson (16. Zach Decker 64 mins), 9. Lawrence Ajong (14. Ryan Lamond H/T), 10. Jude White, 11. Jamie Essam (15. Chris Uchenna 68 mins).