After losing their previous two games, Leverstock Green returned to winning ways as a dominant second half performance saw them come away from Tring Athletic with a 2-0 win in Saturday’s Dacorum derby.

The home side, playing down the Pendley slope in the first half, opened the game strongly and won a corner in the opening minute, from which Leverstock keeper Mackenzie Taylor had to make an excellent close-range save from a header. Leverstock’s first attack came in the 4th minute when a cross from Casey Linsell found Ross Adams in space inside the box, but Adams didn’t make proper contact with his shot. A minute later Reece Cameron had a run at goal but shot over the bar.

Tring continued to put on pressure and win corners, but the Green side created some chances on the break. In the 9th minute a pass from Chris Marsh put Linsell through, but his shot was turned round the post by Tring keeper Lewis Todd. In the 19th minute Adams got on the end of a cross from Marsh with a header that was saved by Todd. Four minutes later Leverstock had their nearest miss so far when Luke Nugent played in David Lawrence, whose shot was deflected inches wide of the post.

Taylor produced another good save in the 30th minute as he safely claimed a free kick from Sam Joliffe which took a deflection, but there was even better to come from the young Green keeper. On 37 minutes Taylor did brilliantly to tip over a shot from Chris Vardy, and two minutes later topped that with a close range save from a Mark Riddick diving header.

Three minutes before the break Leverstock had another promising attack as Linsell played the ball down the line to Nick Jackson, whose shot was turned wide by Todd, but the game went into the break goalless, a good outcome for a Leverstock side that had absorbed a lot of pressure in the half.

The second half was a different story as the Green attacked down the slope and were much the better side. There had been several promising forays forward before Leverstock took a deserved lead in the 61st minute. Reece Cameron played a great ball to put Jackson through on goal. Jackson’s effort was blocked by a defender, but David Lawrence was following in on the overlap and neatly slotted home from a narrow angle to open the scoring.

Chris Gosling brought another good save out of Todd four minutes later with a shot that was tipped over the bar. There was almost a second goal four minutes from time when Cameron made a run down the left touchline and played in the perfect square ball to find Luke Marsh, but Todd made another good save to turn the shot wide. The resulting corner was headed off the line by Jack Sunderland.

Tring rallied towards the end of the game and looked set to equalise two minutes from time when Dave O’Connor won the ball outside the box and had a clear run at goal but Taylor produced another brilliant save to turn his shot wide.

Lawrence could have had a second goal in the last minute when he was clean through, but Todd came off his line to produce another good block. Finally in the third minute of stoppage time a pass from Luke Marsh found Nick Jackson all alone and onside, and Jackson went on to take the ball round Todd before slotting into the empty net to seal the three points for Leverstock.

The man-of-the-match award unanimously went to Mackenzie Taylor, whose saves kept his side in the game during the first half and preserved their lead at the end. It was a second clean sheet in three days for Taylor, who played in the under-18s 5-0 win at Hemel Town on Thursday night.

Next up for the Green is a visit to Cockfosters on Tuesday night.

Leverstock Green paid the price for a first half penalty miss as for the second game in a row they were beaten by a late goal to begin their league campaign with a defeat in a tight game at Tring Athletic.

There were few chances early on, with the game’s first real near miss coming on 24 minutes when Curtis Donaldson cut in from the left and hit a superb dipping shot from distance which hit the Tring crossbar.

Four minutes later there was an even better chance for Donaldson as Alex McCarthy was brought down while trying to turn inside the box. The referee pointed straight to the penalty spot, however Tring keeper Jack Hopwood guessed correctly and dived to his right to save Donaldson’s spot kick.

Donaldson was denied for a third time on 35 minutes after good work by Aaron Lewis set him up to hit a shot from outside the box which Hopwood turned round the post, and again three minutes into the second half when his chipped free kick from the edge of the box was tipped over the bar by Hopwood.

Liam Jahn had his first real save to make from a shot by Ryan Sturges on 54 minutes, but within a minute Leverstock broke quickly and the ball was played through to Lewis Bowers, who shot wide. On the hour Tring had another chance when Sturges crossed to the far post but Dave O’Connor headed over the bar, and for the next few minutes the pressure was in the Leverstock box as Tring put over a series of dangerous crosses and corners.

Hopwood continued to deny Leverstock at the other end, pushing away a shot from Lewis on 76 minutes, and parrying a shot from Joel Williams four minutes later, with Lewis unable to get on the end of the rebound. A quick break from Tring then found Chris Vardy through on goal, but Shane Wood got back to put in a great tackle.

The game looked to be heading for a stalemate, but six minutes from time Tring produced one of the night’s few moments of quality as they broke quickly with three one-touch passes before Sturges put a great diagonal ball into the box where substitute Chris Stapleton came in to head home what proved to be the winner.

Leverstock certainly deserved something from the game, with the back four putting in a particularly solid display all night, however their inability to take their chances at the other end proved costly. They must now look to open their league account on Saturday when St Margaretsbury are the visitors to Pancake Lane.