Match Report

Leverstock Green’s winless run extended to three games after Harpenden Town staged a second half comeback to overturn a half-time deficit and win Saturday’s SSML Premier Division game 2-1. On a difficult Pancake Lane pitch, both sides gave their all but Harpenden played the better football and ultimately deserved the win.

Leverstock were favouring a more direct style in the first half, and had the better of the early play. In the 6th minute Harpenden keeper Connor Samson came out of his area to cut out a through ball, but was caught out when the ball bounced over his head. Luke Marsh had a shot at the empty net but didn’t get enough behind it and a defender was able to get back and clear. Five minutes later Matt Bateman just failed to connect with a cross from Brima Johnson.

Harpenden had their first effort on goal in the 14th minute when James Yates cut in from the left and hit a shot across goal and just wide. However, a minute later a pass from David Lawrence put Bateman clean through, and Batemen placed an excellent chip over Samson to put Leverstock into a 1-0 lead.

The visitors had a good chance for an equaliser on 24 minutes when a short goal kick was intercepted by James Ewington, who headed straight for goal and looked set to score until Liam McCrohan got back and put in a superb sliding challenge to block the shot. Leverstock keeper Caolan Doyle-Creamer produced a great save in the 38th minute, getting down to turn away a shot from Yates with one hand. A minute before the break a pass from Curtis Donaldson but Bateman through again, and this time Bateman took the ball round Samson, but a defender got back to block his shot wide.

Harpenden were still a goal down at the break, but came close again in the 48th minute when a cross from the left was headed away by Alex Marsh, but only as far as Steve O’Reilly, whose shot from the edge of the box struck the crossbar. In the 56th minute a Leverstock defender slipped on the greasy surface and allowed Yates to have a run at goal and shoot home to level the scores at 1-1.

Leverstock found it difficult to create chances in the second half, but they had a good chance to go back in front on the hour when Donaldson’s pass put Jonathan Lacey through, but Samson did well to keep out Lacey’s shot. For the rest of the game, though, it seemed mostly a question of whether Harpenden would get the winner. Ewington shot over an empty net on 70 minutes after Doyle-Creamer had parried a shot, and six minutes later a pass allowed Ewington to get through between two Leverstock defenders, but Doyle-Creamer produced another great save to deny him.

On 80 minutes Ewington, who had scored six goals in his side’s previous game at Wembley, missed another good chance, sliding in at the near post to meet a cross but putting the ball wide. Three minutes later Leverstock were struggling to clear the ball from their own box. Ewington hit a shot which came back off the post, and Dave Keenleyside followed up to put the rebound in off the post. The Leverstock players and management protested that Keenleyside had been offside, but the goal stood.

Two minutes from time Ewington was denied again by another good save from Doyle-Creamer, keeping Leverstock still in the game through a lengthy period of stoppage time, but they were unable to find an equaliser and suffered only their second home league defeat of the season.

Leverstock are due to face Leighton Town at home on Tuesday night, but given the state of the pitch at the end of the game and the prospect of more rain, that game could be in doubt.