Match Report

It was a disappointing afternoon for Leverstock Green as they fell to their second straight league defeat, going down 2-0 at home to Edgware Town in Saturday’s SSML Premier Division game.

Continuing rain through the week had left the Pancake Lane pitch in a muddy state, and it was the visitors who played the conditions better than the Leverstock side, who often got bogged down trying to play intricate football on an unsuitable surface. In general the performance was below the standard that had been set by the last few games.

Edgware had a chance to go in front with just over a minute played, but Scott McGleish lashed a shot over the bar from a corner. Leverstock’s first effort on goal came in the 10th minute, Steve Hawes shooting over the bar after the ball had been passed around the edge of the penalty area. In the 18th minute Cass Grant and Frankie Jowle combined down the left to set up a shooting chance for John Smith, but the Green skipper passed up a couple of opportunities to get his shot away while trying to work a better position and eventually lost the ball.

Matt Fallon, who returned to the Leverstock goal this afternoon from injury, saved a shot from Danny Taylor in the 21st minute. Seven minutes later it looked like Leverstock had escaped again when a shot from Steve Benavides was cleared off the line by Zak Howells, but the ball went back to Benavides, who found the net at the second attempt to put Edgware into a 1-0 lead.

The visitors doubled their lead in the 35th minute as Rio Beech lofted a pass from his own half which went over the head of Jack Stevens to leave Adam Page clean through on goal, and he ran on to slot home past Fallon for the second Edgware goal.

Leverstock needed to get a goal back quickly to get back into the game, but Smith’s shot on 38 minutes went over the bar, and an attempt from Grant on 42 minutes may have been goalbound but was nodded wide by a defender. In the last minute of the half both keepers were in action as Adiel Mannion was denied by a save from Fraser Siddall, and Fallon turned a shot from McGleish wide.

Three minutes into the second half Chris Gosling floated a free kick into the box that Dan Weeks got on the end of, but his header went over the bar. On 50 minutes Edgware were unlucky not to get a third when an effort from Taylor hit the post, while seconds later at the other end Hawes hit Leverstock’s best effort of the game so far, a dipping shot from distance that cleared the bar by inches.

Three substitutions could not turn the game around, although one of the subs Luke Peerless produced a great volley in the 82nd minute that brought a good save out of Siddall. The Green side battled to the end, but Edgware held on comfortably for a deserved win.