Match Report

Leverstock Green travelled to their SSML Premier Division fixture at Risborough Rangers in good spirits, sitting in 7th place in the table after three straight wins, and with one of their strongest lineups of the season, but it ended up being something of a nightmare afternoon for the Green side. Two quick goals towards the end of the first half and another two at the start of the second half sealed their fate, but in truth they were rarely in the game against a strong side who may yet have a say in the promotion race.

The opening 15 minutes of the game were mostly played in the Leverstock half as the home side applied heavy pressure. In the 9th minute a shot from Wiktor Makowski brought a great save out of Austin Byfield, who then pulled off a double save from close range from the resulting corner. Byfield produced more heroics in the 20th minute as he parried away a cross from Ricky Miller, and then somehow got a hand to Rico Greco’s effort from the rebound and turned it onto the bar.

Leverstock’s first near miss came in the 34th minute as a free kick from Dan Pett went across the face of goal, just eluding both Dan Weeks and Bobby Armstrong who flung themselves at the ball. Just when it seemed as though Leverstock might get a foothold in the game, they conceded an unfortunate goal a minute later. A chip from Miller should have been kept out by Byfield, but the ball went through his hands and squirmed over the line despite Byfield’s efforts to scramble back and keep it out.

Two minutes later the lead was doubled from another unfortunate goal. A clearance from Weeks was blocked into the path of Makowski, who had the goal at his mercy and shot past Byfield into the corner of the net. Weeks felt he was fouled in the build-up to the goal, and his protests earned him a spell in the sin-bin.

Leverstock went close to pulling a goal back three minutes before the break as a cross from Chris Blunden found Radu-Mihai Stefanoaica at the near post, but his hooked effort went inches wide.

Weeks was still in the sin-bin for the opening two minutes of the second half, but Leverstock were back up to full strength by the time they conceded the third goal to a swift Risborough counter-attack in the 49th minute. Makowski was clean through on goal, and although Byfield did well to keep out Makowski’s shot, he could do nothing about the rebound as Rahman Ajibola followed up to score.

Leverstock were found wanting at the back again in the 54th minute as Makowski’s pace took him clear and his cross found Miller to score his second and Risborough’s fourth of the game.

The home side were needlessly reduced to ten men in the 58th minute as Greco was shown a straight red card for striking out at Ethan Mooney, whose reaction only earned him a yellow card. Leverstock didn’t win their first corner of the game until the 73rd minute, and Stefanoaica had an effort on goal, but it was blocked in the six-yard box.

A save from Byfield in the 75th minute prevented Miller from completing a hat-trick, but in the 81st minute Danny May was caught by the ball bobbling over his boot, and Jethro Odunosu was left to run clean through and slot past Byfield, marking the first time that Leverstock had conceded five goals in a league game during the reign of Fergus Moore.

The damage to Leverstock’s goal difference saw them drop below Cockfosters in the table despite both sides losing.

Risborough Rangers (2) 5 (Miller 35, 54, Makowski 37, Ajibola 49, Odunosu 81)
1. Connor Hunt, 2. Jamie Robinson (16. Harry Scott 85 mins), 3. James Dobson, 4. Ben Sturgess, 5. Joel Read, 6. Joe Fitzgerald, 7. Wiktor Makowsi (12. Alex Sethi 85 mins), 8. Asher Yearwood, 9. Ricky Miller (14. Liam Enver-Marum 79 mins), 10. Rahman Ajibola (15. Jethro Odunosu 69 mins), 11. Rico Greco. Sub not used: 17. Steve Tavender.
Leverstock Green (0) 0
1. Austin Byfield, 2. Danny May, 3. Rio Beach, 4. Dan Weeks, 18. Bobby Armstrong (19. Luke Durnin 56 mins), 6. Ryan Carruthers (12. Elgeniy Daalberg 64 mins), 7. Ethan Mooney, 8. Dan Pett, 9. Chris Blunden (16. John Shamalo 79 mins), 10. Radu-Mihai Stefanoaica, 11. Ibrahim Nagheeb. Subs not used: 14. Kurainashe Musanhi, 15. Adrian Pitfield.