Staines & Lammas 4 (2) v Woodley United 3 (2)
United twice came from behind to level the scores but when Michael Goddard scored the hosts fourth goal in the eighty third minute this proved to big a challenge for the visitors to level a third time.
Woodley kicked off and again started positively forcing a corner in the second minute and seeing Donate Hamblin flagged offside four minutes later on a United counterattack from a Staines corner.
The opening goal came after eight minutes play when the visitors’ goalkeeper pushed an opponent as the ball was going out of play. Mark Bitmead converted from the penalty spot. Despite Lucas Taplin shooting over crossbar from Jude Van Spall’s pass three minutes later the second goal went to the home team in the thirteenth minute.
Despite tackles, Woodley was unable to win the ball which was played to Bitmead on the Staines left. The forward cut inside to the penalty area, saw his low shot rebound back to him off the goal post to score into an empty net.
Undeterred Woodley pushed forward and were rewarded in the twenty third minute when Jude Van Spall got between a defender and goalkeeper to turn Lucas Taplin’s cross into the net.
The equaliser came ten minutes later. Good work by Dylan Clark saw him play the ball from Woodley’s left close to the goal line into the penalty area where the unmarked Hamblin scored his first goal for the club.
As the match entered the last five minutes of the half, Hill tipped Joe McBride’s shot following a corner over the crossbar while Kian Leahy shot narrowly went wide of the goal when the hosts’ struggled to clear a Woodley attack. The final chance of the half fell to Woodley’s Van Spall who broke free of the home defence following Hamblin’s through ball only to be denied by Jake McKelvie, in the home goal, in a one on one situation.
Woodley again started the half positively but again it was Bitmead who scored, completing his hat trick, when he defected Goddard’s cross from the right, pass Hill into the far side netting nine minutes after the restart.
It took United until the seventy third minute to equalise . A long Hill kick resulted in a Woodley corner which Clark delivered to the far post for Harvey Collins to head into the net. This was followed shortly afterwards by Connor Suckling shooting over the cross bar.
The decisive goal came seven minutes from the end of normal time when a long pass resulted in Goddard beating Eden Downes to the ball before shooting pass the advancing Hill. Suckling again shot wide in the eighty ninth minute but United were unable to find another goal and slipped to only a third defeat of the season.
Hill, Maadini (East), Cammock, Leahy (Hannachi), Downes, Simpson, Hamblin, Collins, Taplin (Ojong), Van Spall (Suckling), Clark Sub not used: Blake