Match Report

It was the same old story for Leverstock Green as they once again surrendered a winning position deep into stoppage time against relegation rivals Rayners Lane in the Southern League Division One Central.

Leverstock had not played for three weeks due to the constant rain which waterlogged their pitch, causing three home games to be postponed, and they looked rusty in this game. The home side had the better of the early stages, with keeper Ashton Broome-Alexander having to make two good saves in the opening ten minutes. In the 16th minute Kleyton Junior was through on goal, but Broome-Alexander did well to force him wide and out of play.

However, in the 22nd minute Rayners Lane were gifted a goal. Broome-Alexander played the ball out of his area to Dan Casey, who was under pressure from an opponent and lost the ball on the edge of the area. Suddenly Broome-Alexander was stranded out of goal as Pharell Mensah had a shooting chance and hit his shot in off the underside of the bar to put the home side in front. Leverstock were back on level terms five minutes later, though, as Radu-Mihai Stefanoaica played a great pass to put Joe McCarthy through on goal to slot the ball past keeper Matt Burrows for the equaliser.

Leverstock were unlucky not to go in front in the 34th minute when Tommy Boxer headed just over the bar from a corner. Four minutes later Stefanoaica made an impressive run into the box, but his ball across goal was cleared. In the 42nd minute Carmicheal Uchenna hit a shot from the edge of the box which Burrows couldn’t hold onto, but Stefanoaica couldn’t get to the rebound before Burrows gathered it. Uchenna was denied again in the last minute of the half, hitting a shot on the run which Burrows turned round the post.

The second half saw few chances for either side. In the 73rd minute Broome-Alexander did well to tip a rasping free kick from Mensah over the bar. The game looked like petering out to a draw until Leverstock made a breakthrough in the 87th minute. Substitute Marcus Warren played a pass which gave McCarthy a run at goal, and McCarthy squared across goal to present Jeffrey Sekyere with a tap-in for his 20th goal of the season to put Leverstock into a 2-1 lead.

Five minutes of stoppage time were signalled, and in the second minute Daniel Hector was through on goal for Rayners Lane, but Broome-Alexander pulled off a great save with his leg to keep the ball out. However, in the fifth minute a needless free kick was given away on the halfway line. The ball was pumped into the box, Leverstock couldn’t clear and Mensah netted from close range to rescue a point for his side and deny Leverstock the full three points. To add insult to injury, a poor decision by the referee saw Boxer shown a straight red card for a foul on Burrows which was a yellow card at best.

The point was still enough to lift Leverstock out of the relegation zone, but on a day when all the sides around them lost, the extra two points would have given them some breathing space.

Rayners Lane (1) 2 (Mensah 22, 90+5)
22. Matt Burrows, 2. Adeyemi Adewale (16. Abdul Saccoh 88 mins), 3. Troy Silvera, 4. Ayo Majekodunmi, 5. Myles Anderson, 6. Eric Schulz, 7. Deshane Dalling (14. Daniel Hector 58 mins), 8. Omarr Lawson, 9. Kleyton Dowglas De Biazze Junior, 10. Martin Youngah 12. Ade Gbolohan 68 mins), 11. Pharell Mensah. Subs not used: 15. Reuben Whittaker, 17. Kershaney Samuels.
Leverstock Green (1) 2 (McCarthy 27, Sekyere 87)
1. Ashton Broome-Alexander, 2. Dan Casey (14. George Mitchell-Gears 76 mins), 3. Rio Beach, 4. Dan Pett, 6. Ryan Carruthers (16. Marcus Warren 85 mins), 7. Joe McCarthy (15. Aldo Petagine 90 mins), 8. Kombe Kawimbe, 9. Jeffrey Sekyere, 10. Carmicheal Uchenna, 11. Radu-Mihai Stefanoaica (18. Jack Allen 77 mins), 20. Tommy Boxer. Sub not used: 12. Olusegun Adedipe.