Draw for Town

Woodley entertained Rayners Lane with the visitors on the back of a great win over Wokingham & Embrook.

It was an even start to the game with both sides trying to gain control of the game with Town gradually getting the upper hand with some slick passing. Tom Williams forced James Christian to parry the ball low past his right post on eighteen minutes for a corner while Nick Edwards found Steven Campbell on twenty five minutes but the latter shot tamely at Christian.

However, Campbell made amends on thirty five minutes when Edwards received the ball from a Jim Nightingale free kick. Edwards played a one – two Williams on the edge of the penalty area and then cut the ball back for Campbell to finish nicely across Christian at the near post

It was the home side that had their tails up and looked threatening for the second. Richard Thomas cut in from the left, Carl Davies made a good run and Thomas found him with a reverse pass and Davies squared for Jamie Fairchild to score at the far post on thirty five minutes.

From the kick off Lane attacked down the centre of the pitch and it required a point blank reflex save from Ben Rose to deny Simeon Mitchell.

Town recovered and Williams forced an error in the Rayners’ defence and found himself with Christian to beat but great covering defending smothered the good chance of making it 3-0. Woodley’s last chance of the half saw Campbell have a header go just over the bar from a corner kick.

Rayners Lane re-grouped at the break and had a good spell in the opening stages and looked threatening. Luke Williams, introduced at half time, looked lively on his Woodley debut and gave the home side a decent outlet. Davies was also causing plenty of problems for the away defence and could well have earned a penalty when he was chopped down, but the referee adjudged the offence to be outside the area. Craig Hiscock’s resulting free kick went over the cross bar,

Rayners Lane did get a goal back when Jim Nightingale was put under pressure on the break and the forward hassled him out of possession and crossed for Oli Leslie to head home on sixty five minutes. The away side had their tails up and had a lobbed effort rebound off the post into Rose’s hands in a narrow escape. Woodley had their own chances for Davies who curled wide from eight yards and Hiscock had a volley go just past the post and an excellent headed chance go wide.

The away side got the equaliser from a poorly defended corner kick. Warren Baxter was off the field at the time with a knock and a free header was converted from close range by substitute Dean Ryan on eighty eight minutes.

Both teams had excellent chances to win it in the closing stages, Davies challenged Christian under the high ball and he got their first, but headed wide while Rayners Lane had excellent chances in a goalmouth scramble, in which Baxter, Nightingale, and Rose combined to somehow keep the ball out.

Rose, Varndell, Thomas, Edwards, Nightingale, Baxter, Fairchild, Hiscock, T Williams (Wilder), Davies, Campbell (L Williams)