Draw with Henley

Woodley met Henley in the first local derby of the season at the Triangle and the game ended in a draw and Woodley were disappointed to leave with only a point. The away side had the chances to win the game over the ninety minutes, but Henley cancelled out a first half Tom Williams goal to score the equaliser early in the second half.

The game started with some typically committed tackles for a local derby and there were early bookings for a handful of players. Woodley pressed the home team back in the early stages and had a claim for a penalty as early as the first minute when Rob Morley’s cross in to the penalty appeared to be handled which was followed by Danny Isaiew being given offside in the second minute from a Craig Hiscock header. Richard Thomas failed to connect cleanly with his shot while Jim Nightingale headed a Luke Williams corner wide, all in the opening ten minutes.

Woodley created the first clear opening on the quarter hour when Tom Williams was put through by man-of-the-match Rob Morley. With Fairchild in support, Williams chose to shot and Henley’s David Lyons blocked the shot with his feet for a corner that Thomas shot wide from.

Henley weathered the Woodley pressure with Tom Archbold getting more of the ball and running at Woodley’s defence to enable the home side to gradually into the game. Imram Cooke – Chowdhary twice smothered shots while he was beaten by an Archbold effort from the edge of the area that struck the base of the post and went across the goal for a goal kick.

The game opened up with Nightingale again heading wide from a corner and Tom Williams and Hiscock had shots blocked by the committed Henley defence while Dan Jewell made a goal saving tackle as the last man with Henley’s Alex Allen forward about to get his shot away.

Tom Williams jinked his way through one-on-one once again but he failed to lob the tall Lyons who gathered comfortably. Luke Williams had a fierce shot blocked and in the build up a Henley player was injured and it led to a lengthy delay as was removed from the field. The resulting corner caused chaos in the home six yard box and eventually, under heavy pressure, the Tom Williams scored from close range at the far post a minute before the break.

Henley started the second half much the better and attacked with intent. Ahmed Al-Alami blazed over from the edge of the area one forty eight minutes while Woodley were sloppy in the aftermath of a set piece and the ball fell to the unmarked Allan ten yards out and he calmly scored on sixty eight minutes. Henley was buoyed by the goal and Woodley defended well during this period.

Jewell was picked out by a precise Hiscock pass, but the teenager just lofted his snap shot over the crossbar, under heavy pressure from Lyons while Luke Williams, who was becoming more influential as the half progressed, stung the palms of Lyons with a left footed drive from distance while Tom Williams was unable to convert the lose ball before being tackled.

Woodley was disappointed to loose their one hundred percent record, but they remain unbeaten and welcome Finchampstead to East Park Farm for their first home game on the 4th September.

Cooke - Chowdhary, Edwards, Thomas, Jewell, Nightingale, Morley, L Williams, Hiscock, Fairchild (Waring) (Witt), Isaiew, T Williams Sub not used: Gordon, Faherty, Mullen

Attendance: 65