No joy at Wokingham & Emmbrook

Despite the closeness of the score line, Wokingham & Emmbrook were worthy winners and once they had established a two goal lead late in the first half with United reduced to ten men never looked in danger of losing the match points. In deed apart from an outstanding goal keeping display by Woodley’s Tom Bryant, the margin of victory would have been greater.

Woodley enjoyed the better of the opening ten minutes that saw Pablo Fernandez have a free kick blocked by the host’s wall on the edge of the penalty area, the over run and advancing Freddie Barron, Barron putting wide and Liam Wilson firing over from a Chace Jewell corner.

Gradually the hosts got into the game with Josh Harris tackled as he was going to shoot, Bryant saving from Ellis Day, the ball rebounding off the Woodley cross bar following a corner before Harris beat the offside to beat Bryant one on one after sixteen minutes.

Ryan Alexander forced Felix Davies to save inside his left goal post following a free kick with Davies also denying Max Laschok and then Jon Malone following a corner.

The thirty third minute saw Fernandez dismissed for an off the ball incident and United fall further behind four minutes later when Day beat Bryant. The lead could have been further extended a minute before the break when Nick Bateman saw his header cleared for a corner.

United made two changes at half time with Harry Swabey and Leon Mannion introduced and the latter could have scored within two minutes only to be denied by Davies’ feet and then the same player saw the keeper catch a header in the fifty third minute.

With United playing with two forwards the game became stretched and the visitors were indebted to Bryant’s saves and an amazing goal line clearance from Swabey in the seventieth minute to not go further behind. However, Wokingham got the all-important third goal eight minutes from time when Harris converted from close range.

Woodley continued to press forward and were rewarded in the eighty eighth minute when Mannion headed home a Jewell corner and then saw Laschok denied by Davies two minute into stoppage time.

Bryant, Malone, Jewell, Alexander, R Thomas (Swabey), Barnard, Barron, Fernandez, Wilson (Mannion), Laschok, Hawkins (E Thomas) Sub not used: Hagger