Match Report

Leverstock Green extended their unbeaten run to six games with a 2-2 draw at Sun Sports in Saturday’s SSML Premier Division game. With players and management on both sides having been involved with the other club, it was always going to be a hard-fought game, and so it proved with a draw being a fair result.

Leverstock took the lead in the 11th minute when Curtis Donaldson played in Brima Johnson, who drilled the ball across goal for Jonathan Lacey to come in at the far post and sidefoot home his 29th goal of the season.

Former Green player Tommy Walsh was just wide with a free kick for Sun in the 14th minute, but Leverstock were unlucky not to take a 2-0 lead in the 24th minute. Lacey ran in behind the Sun defence to get on the end of a through pass from Lewis Davis, and did everything right as he took the ball past keeper Matt Evans and directed it towards the empty net, but he was denied by a brilliant goalline clearance from former Green defender Damion Cruickshank, who had an outstanding game.

The scores were levelled in the 33rd minute as Andrew Brennan chipped a pass through to Karl Penny, who took it down and hit an unstoppable shot past Liam Jahn. Having been second best up to this point, Sun then had a good spell with Kyle Johnson having a shot palmed away by Jahn a minute later, and Jack Johnson hitting a shot over the bar after intercepting a stray pass in the 37th minute.

With the scores level at half time, Sun forced a save out of Jahn in the opening minute of the second half, but again it was Leverstock who had more of the play in the early part of the half. On 51 minutes Brima Johnson made a solo run into the box and laid off to Davis, who shot over the bar. Ross Adams came off the subs bench in the 54th minute and within two minutes was clean through on goal from Lacey’s pass but was denied by keeper Evans saving with his boot. In the 59th minute Casey Linsell made a great cross to the far post but David Lawrence’s shot was saved.

Having looked on top, Leverstock found themselves behind in the 65th minute. Lawrence and Penny challenged for the ball in the Green box, with the end result being the referee awarding a penalty to Sun. Jack Johnson netted the spot kick against one of his former clubs to put Sun 2-1 in front.

However, their lead lasted less than three minutes as a well-worked move involving Donaldson and Lacey ended with Adams shooting home an equaliser to level things up at 2-2.

Both sides had chance to win the game over the closing minutes, but Leverstock had the best chance in the first minute of stoppage time. Lacey’s pass from his own half allowed Karl Davidson to burst between two defenders and go clean through, but he was denied by a save from Evans, and neither Davidson nor Lawrence, who was following up, could put the loose ball into the net.

The point moves Leverstock back up into 11th place, a position they will secure with either a win at Hadley on Wednesday night or a point from next Saturday’s league closer at home to Crawley Green.