Match Report

Leverstock Green kicked off 2018 with another three points as they came away from a trip to Wembley F.C. with a 2-1 win in Saturday’s SSML Premier Division fixture. It wasn’t one of the better performances in their recent run of form, but the side showed the character and discipline to get the result.

The Green side had a very good start to the match, with Ross Adams hitting a shot wide of the post with just 15 seconds played. With just over a minute played Curtis Donaldson was put clean through and looked set to score, but home keeper Frankie Atwell did well to turn Donaldson’s shot round the post.

Green keeper Matt Evans was brought into action in the 6th minute, tipping a shot on the turn from Zaied Sabti over the bar. Two minutes later Donaldson went close again as he hit a thunderbolt of a shot from the edge of the box which rattled the crossbar, and again a minute later when a curled effort was turned round the post by Atwell.

For the rest of the half, though, it was Wembley who had more of the ball. In the 17th minute a shot from Jonathan Iley wasn’t held by Evans, but Evans got up quickly to block the follow-up effort from Calvin Osborne. Five minutes later a run from Calvin Kasirye set up Adrian Dinham for a shot across goal which was deflected wide. Dinham had another good chance when he was set up by Ethan Tyrer in the 30th minute, but hit his shot wide, and in first half stoppage time Evans had to turn a shot from Iley round the post.

As has been the case several times recently, Leverstock got a crucial goal quickly in the second half. With less than two minutes played, a poor kick-out from Atwell put his side in trouble, and Matt Bateman picked up the ball and hit a well-placed shot from the edge of the box into the corner of the net to put Leverstock into a 1-0 lead.

Bateman could have added a second on 53 minutes when he ran onto a great ball from Reynaldo Carbon and pushed the ball past Atwell, but before he could direct the ball towards the empty net Tyrer came in with an excellent sliding tackle to clear the ball wide. On 62 minutes Carbon was looking dangerous as he made a run into the box, until he was tripped by Donnell Castro-Jervier. The referee pointed to the penalty spot, and although the home side protested vigorously to the officials, the decision stood and Curtis Donaldson netted the spot kick for the second Leverstock goal.

There was almost a third goal a minute later when Carbon put over a cross which Tyrer slid in to clear only just wide of his own goal. Bateman went close again as he tried to score from a very narrow angle but the ball drifted just wide of the far post.

Wembley continued to press over the remaining minutes and played the ball around the box well, but Evans and his defence stood firm and dealt with the danger. There was a glimmer of hope for the home side when Sabti got up to direct a downward header into the corner of the Leverstock net deep into stoppage time, but there was no time left after the restart for them to test the resolve of the Green defence any further.

Next Saturday Leverstock have another away game as they visit Silver Jubilee Park to face Edgware Town for the fifth time this season.