Holmer Green 2 (1) v Woodley United 2 (1)
Woodley kicked off on a pitch made heavy following rain showers during the two hours leading the match start time and found themselves a goal behind in the sixth minute when Joe Hill’s punch of an in swinging corner hit Harrison Holbrook and rebounded into the United goal.
Two minutes later Josh Peck wasted a chance to double the lead when he shot wide of Hill’s right hand post.
The matched was tied after eleven minutes of play when Kian Leahy’s pass from his own half to Kaylum Barlow on the left wing saw the Woodley man run towards the goal line before playing a pass in to the Holmer Green penalty area where Connor Suckling stuck the ball first time pass home goalkeeper Sam Bell.
The game then proceeded to be played with both teams strong in attack, wasting chances to score and indebted to their goalkeepers for keeping the score one all at half time.
Recent signing Donate Hamblin shot into the host’s side netting, Alex Colverd forced Hill into a save, Bell denied Suckling a second using his feet to divert the ball for a corner kick, Clark was flagged off side while Josh Peck was forced to shoot wide following Eden Downes’ challenge and Harvey Collins had a free kick at goal blocked and cleared for a throw in all in the opening half hour of the game.
Seven minutes before the break Bell parried a Hamblin shot but no Woodley player was close enough to react to the loose ball while Barlow shot wide of Bell’s left hand post following good skill be Clark.
The opening quarter hour of the second half saw Woodley press for lead with Hamblin shooting over the cross bar from distance, Keiran Maylen also shooting over following a corner kick cleared to him and Bell smothering a low shot from Collins.
With Woodley caught flat footed from a throw that the hosts took in their own half, the ball found left back Oskar Esplund-Evans who curled the ball into the top left hand corner of Hill’s net from just inside the penalty area.
This followed a period of Green pressure that twice required Hill to precent Woodley falling further behind before man of the match Hamblin began to cause the home defence problems from his right wing position that saw Bell parry a shot and Collins fire over the crossbar from a Hamblin cross.
The United equaliser came in the eighty third minute. Downes passed the pall to his left where Clark received it and played a cross into the Holmer Green penalty area for substitute Alfie Ward to volley pass Bell from close range.
Woodley survived a scare shortly after the kick off when Peck shot wide but despite both teams searching for a winning goal, it was not coming with the game ending in a draw.
Hill, Hok, Clark, Leahy (Simpson), Maylen, Downes, Hamblin, Collins (Ward), Taplin (Ojong), Suckling, Barlow (Van Spall) Sub not used: Maadini