Leatherhead v Ashford Town. FA Cup First Qualifying Round. 12th of September 2009.

Leatherhead 2 Ashford Town 0
from Your Milton Keynes Correspondent

This might have been a simply wonderful day. Kent beat Middlesex by ten wickets in the cricket, to all but wrap up their Championship, Your Milton Keynes Correspondent backed the St Leger winner at 14-1, we had a very decent lunch in The Running Horse, Leatherhead’s oldest public house, and we were blessed with a lovely, warm, sunny day on which to watch a game of football. I suppose the shine was rather taken off the afternoon by the result here at Fetcham Grove – not that the Ashford lads let anyone down today, as they looked solid, and put in a performance well worthy of earning a replay, but they were dumped out of the FA Cup at this Preliminary Round stage by two goals in the last six minutes of a pretty even cup tie.

Before going into a description of the match, I really am inclined to dwell on the weather. I just know that there will be plenty of occasions to come during the season when I’ll be donning the thermals and the scarf and the woolly hat, and I’ll still be freezing my crown jewels off at some God-forsaken gaff ground. Today, though, was a day for basking in the sun, in a T-shirt – and green, green Fetcham Grove is about the ideal venue for doing this. Located in a park, near the centre of Leatherhead, this tree-lined stadium has a sloping, grassy bank on two sides of the pitch, and it is possible, as some did, to sit at the top of either of these banks, leaning against the concrete perimeter wall, with a good, elevated view of the game, enjoying the aroma of freshly-mown grass. In fact, it was almost too hot on this sun-facing far side this afternoon, so, in the second half, we sought refuge in the low, narrow stand which extends for the whole length of the opposite side of the pitch.

It was not easy to predict the outcome of this one - even allowing for the fact that the form book can be rendered redundant in the FA Cup. Whilst Ashford Town had beaten Leatherhead three times last season – including a 1-5 victory here at Fetcham Grove in the League, and a 3-2 victory at The Homelands at the same stage of the FA Cup – both clubs have undergone substantial changes in personnel.

Steve Lovell has been operating with a small squad this season, but the silver lining to this is that it has encouraged him to maintain a level of stability with his team selection. He actually named a starting eleven that was unchanged from the side that earnt a well-deserved point at the Met Police last Saturday – but then Paul Jones pulled out, as he was experiencing problems with his groin, (a not uncommon trait for a newly-wed), so the tippex was administered to the team-sheet, and Joe Fuller moved up to partner Luke Coleman up front. There was the same midfield quartet that performed so well at Imber Court, of Mitchell Sherwood, Ryan Briggs, Ross Morley and Nick Smith. There was also the same back four in front of Scott Chalmers-Stevens – which lacks a specialist full-back – of Lee Hockey, Bryan Pearce, John Guest and Skipper Danny Lye. The absence of a proper full-back was to prove an issue, since Leatherhead carried considerable threat from the flanks in the form of Kevin Terry on the left, and Josh Smith on the right, but Danny Lye certainly made a good fist of what is a fairly unfamiliar role for him.

The substitutes’ bench was plenty crowded enough, even without Joe Fuller’s bum, and additional seats had to be sent for – this is because of the regulation that seven subs can be named in FA Cup games. Ashford’s bench included two players returning from a one-game suspension, in striker Kevin Swaisland and right-back Carl Harrold, one returning from injury, in left-back Ryan Norman, plus John Ralph, Toby Ashmore and ‘keeper Darren Ibrahim, who were all on bench duty at Imber Court.

This was not a game of many chances, but it began with what was an open, entertaining first half hour, with both teams sporadically getting the ball down and trying to play football. There was nothing particularly frantic, or high-paced, about the play, but there appeared to be a certain care-free attitude on the field, which seems to distinguish cup games from league football.

It was the visitors, playing in their “Norwich City” strip, with the home side in their famous green shirts, white shorts and green sockies, who had the first sight of goal, in the fourth minute. A trademark long throw by Lee Hockey was won, in the Leatherhead penalty area, by Joe Fuller. His touch found Mitchell Sherwood, outside the penalty area, but Mitch’s left-foot shot went just wide of the post. First chance for The Tanners came in the eighth minute, when a deep cross from the left eluded everyone in the Ashford goalmouth, and found the impressive Josh Smith on the right edge of the area. Smith took one touch to control the ball, and sent in a good, low shot – this was straight at Scott Chalmers-Stevens, but the ‘keeper got down well to save and hang on to the ball.

There were plenty of corners, and throw-ins high up the pitch, at both ends, during the first 30 minutes, but it must be said that the majority were at the end that Ashford were defending. Although Scott Chalmers-Stevens was the busier of the two ‘keepers, neither goal was seriously threatened during this period. The home side’s only shot at goal was a long-range effort from Hassan Nyang, in the 26th minute, which went well wide, whilst Luke Coleman put a first-time lob just wide, after running onto a long Chalmers-Stevens clearance, in the 21st minute.

Unfortunately, the spotlight gradually focused away from the football, and onto Referee Stephen Child, beginning, in the 28th minute, with a lengthy debate he had with Tanners Manager Mick Sullivan over his decision to stop the game due to an apparent head injury. This chat dragged on for rather a long time, and, just four minutes later, Child held up proceedings to have a long discussion with Danny Lye and Ryan Briggs. Just prior to this conversation, Ashford had had a half-chance, which stemmed from a corner that was won by Luke Coleman, on the left. Ryan Briggs took this one short, to Joe Fuller, who returned the pass to give Briggo a better angle; the resulting cross to the far post was headed clear by the Leatherhead defence, as far as Ross Morley, whose shot from outside the area was sliced wide.

A much better opportunity was presented to Ashford “on a plate”, in the 34th minute. The home side’s back five were making rather a meal of passing the ball amongst themselves, before ‘keeper Craig Bradshaw made a complete hash of a clearance. The ball went straight to Joe Fuller, who was presented with a one-on-one, with Bradshaw a few yards in front of him, on the edge of his 18-yard box. Joe did the right thing by side-stepping the goalie and shooting for goal, but, by this time, a defender had got back to cover, and cleared off the line.

The Referee, observed by the dreaded Assessor, in the stand, again took centre stage, in the 37th minute, when he booked Bryan Pearce for a tackle made right in front of the Leatherhead bench. I must say that my view of the tackle itself was obscured by the brick dug-out, with its grey, corrugated roof, but the reaction from the Ashford players near to the incident seemed to indicate that the yellow card might have been a little harsh.

The home side did threaten the Ashford goal in the dying minutes of the first half. In the 44th minute, Joshua Smith made it to the by-line, inside the penalty area, but his cross was headed clear. Then, inside the third minute of injury time at the end of the half, The Tanners finally put together a move that penetrated the Ashford defence. Former Banstead Athletic winger Kevin Terry played a neat one-two with Hassan Nyang, the return pass nutmegging an Ashford defender, which took him into the visitors’ penalty area. Terry’s initial cross found its way back to him, upon which he side-footed the ball into the far corner of the net – but the lino’s flag was raised for offside. That was the final action of the first half, so the teams went it at half time with the score remaining at 0-0.

[ ………. and during the Intermission, I will take the opportunity to apologise to Mr O’Brien, who refereed the Met Police game last Saturday. I mentioned in my report on the game that he blew up for full time when the ball was out of play, which I described as being contrary to regulations – as he points out, it isn’t, so I stand corrected. ]

During the opening minutes of the second half, the home side seemed strangely low-key, but they had the first recognisable chance after the interval. This came about after an Ashford attack, featuring a Lee Hockey long-throw, had broken down, in the 51st minute. Suddenly, the breaking Leatherhead forwards had a two v two situation with the Ashford defence. This ended with Josh Smith being put through on goal, but he side-footed a shot just wide of the post – but was flagged off-side, in any case.

Two minutes later, Ashford had a throw-in, deep inside the Leatherhead half. This was taken by Danny Lye, who threw the ball to Nick Smith, who had come short. Smudge returned the ball to his captain, who measured a cross into the home side’s goalmouth; Mitch Sherwood came steaming in, but his powerful header went well wide of the target.

This was never a violent game, but there was some punishment dished out by the referee during the second half, starting with a yellow card for Leatherhead’s Gabriel Emechete, for a blatant, and totally unnecessary, chopping down of Joe Fuller, in the centre circle, in the 55th minute. A minute later, the Ashford defence was breached, and it’s amazing that the home side didn’t open the scoring. Once again, it was the wide men who did the damage. Good work by Kevin Terry, attacking the Ashford penalty area from the left, resulted in a good cross, which led to a scramble in the goalmouth. The ball fell to Josh Smith, who was only denied by a desperate lunge by an Ashford defender, from close range.

It’s impossible to tell whether it was because of the ease with which Terry was able to get the ball into the Ashford area, but Steve Lovell almost immediately replaced Lee Hockey with Carl Harrold. At the same time, Leatherhead Manager Mick Sullivan made a double-substitution, sending on Marc Elston in place of Josh Smith on the right wing, and striker Tony Cuff in place of Gabriel Enechete.

Shortly after Nick Smith had headed a Mitch Sherwood cross wide of goal, having done well to get above his marker, on the hour mark, the two Tanners substitutes combined well, down the right wing. This resulted in a cross finding the prolific Tommy Hutchings, in the middle of the Ashford penalty area – he was in “Position A”, about 15 yards out, but his control let him down, and the ball ran away from him. Nevertheless, the ball broke to the diminutive Marc Elston, outside the area, whose hard, low shot was well saved by Scott Chalmers-Stevens.

In the 63rd minute, a good tackle by Nick Smith enabled him to rob the ball from Elston, and he fed John Guest (of all people) with a ball inside the right-back. Guest put in a good cross, but the ball refused to settle for Luke Coleman, in the six-yard box. Sullivan then made his third and final substitution, in the 67th minute, replacing striker Dominic O’Shea with Kwabena Agyei, in a like-for-like swap – but it was Ashford who had the next attempt at goal, just a minute later. This featured a one-two between Joe Fuller and Luke Coleman, which put Lukey through on goal, but this time it was the visitors’ turn to be caught offside. (By the reaction and body language of the players, however, I suspect that it wasn’t a particularly close-run thing).

The next man to be yellow-carded was Leatherhead substitute Tony Cuff; this was for a blatant foul on Nick Smith, just as the Ashford No.11 was about to break forward. Ryan Briggs curled the resulting free-kick high into the Tanners’ penalty area, but the referee immediately saw an infringement by an Ashford player.

Steve Lovell made his second substitution, in the 77th minute, when he replaced Luke Coleman with Kevin Swaisland. Whilst Swaisland’s Kent County League background, with Bearsted, doesn’t exactly match up to Lukey’s CV, which has Gravesend & Northfleet on it, it must be said that Kevin did actually make a difference up front, getting his head to several balls that were pumped forward. The Coleman, on the other hand, wasn’t delivering today.

There was a half chance for Ashford in the 79th minute. Joe Fuller won a corner on the left. This was taken by Ryan Briggs, but was cleared as far as Ross Morley, on the far side. Ross crossed the ball back into the danger area, and John Guest got up well, but could do no better than to head the ball up in the air, and over the bar. Four minutes later, Ryan Norman came on for the hard-working Nick Smith, for Ashford’s final substitution.

It was at about this time that my mind wandered from the immediate cup tie in hand, and I considered the bigger picture of how the Ashford team and squad was shaping up. Although Leatherhead had had the better chances, and Craig Bradshaw, in the home goal, didn’t have a save to make, I reflected that the lads had matched what is probably a good, mid-table yardstick pretty well – and that, following the previous good showing against the Metropolitan Police, we should be OK for at least a solid mid-table league position this season. Well inside the last ten minutes, with the cup tie looking set to finish as a goal-less draw, I also mused over the importance of the team’s first clean sheet of the season – and this was about the time that it all slipped away, and Ashford conceded the first of two late goals.

The first of these came in the 84th minute, when Kev Terry was put through, in the inside-left channel. He got to the Ashford by-line, and, in spite of defenders’ appeals that the ball had gone out of play, pulled the ball back, and substitute Marc Elston was there to turn it into the net. This appeared to be a rather ominous turn of events, since, although the lads had looked solid this afternoon, they rarely looked like scoring.

The second goal, which came in the 88th minute, was far more contentious, as it came on the heels of a strong penalty appeal for Ashford. Again, I must invoke the Wenger Amendment, as I didn’t see the incident – in fact, I didn’t even know what the appeal was for, until a couple of the Ashford fans behind the Leatherhead goal, who were close to the incident, informed me that there was a fairly obvious push, which Referee Child should have seen. Instead, I had my eyes on the subsequent Leatherhead break, which was led by Marc Elston. He beat Bryan Pearce, and then Carl Harrold, around about the halfway line – and suddenly the remaining Ashford defender was out-numbered three to one. The ball was carried forward, and then squared to Tommy Hutchings, in the penalty area. Hutchings had loads of time and space, and it looked odds-on that he was going to score his fourth goal of the season, but Scott Chalmers-Stevens made a brilliant save. The fact that the ball broke to Hassan Nyang, who made no mistake in slamming the ball into the roof of the net, means that this great piece of goalkeeping will probably be overlooked in the final analysis – which is a shame, as Scott generally had a solid game this afternoon.

So that was that as far as deciding which team was going to enter Monday’s draw for the Second Qualifying Round – but the saga of the penalty appeal didn’t end there. Before the game was restarted, Mitch Sherwood was booked for continuing to press the (now rather futile) case for a penalty. The Ashford bench was also fairly animated – so animated that Assistant Manager Hugo Langton was sent off, ordered to leave the dug-out and graze on the grassy bank on the far side.

The home side was almost presented with a third goal – which really would have flattered them – in the 93rd minute. The Ashford defence appeared to go AWOL as a ball was fed through to Marc Elston – and Scott Chalmers-Stevens started to come out of his goal, and then changed his mind. It looked like a golden opportunity for Elston to score his second goal, but he somehow trod on the ball, and Ryan Norman did a good job in tidying up, dribbling the ball to safety.

Finally, there was a yellow card for one of the Ashford players in the 94th minute, for something he said to the referee whilst waiting for a corner to be taken, as the visitors really started to lose their discipline – I thought it might have been Kevin Swaisland who was cautioned, but there is a school of thought that it might have been John Guest.

So, in the context of the cup tie, Leatherhead had avenged their defeat at The Homelands at this stage of the FA Cup last season, and Ashford’s fans had to come to terms with the umpteenth consecutive season without a “cup run” in this wonderful competition. Returning to that bigger picture again, this was another encouraging showing from Steve Lovell’s team – and the priority now must be to build on this, and to make progress in the league. It really is a case of achieving those “little victories” – the first clean sheet, and then the first league win. The next stop along that road will be the home game against Whyteleafe, next Saturday, but the trip to Worthing the following week will have to wait – Worthing went to Croydon Athletic today and got a 0-1 victory, so, unlike Ashford Town, they’re still very much in the FA Cup.

Once again, the issue of Man of the Match wasn’t clear-cut. I thought that Joe Fuller looked the part in attack, showing quite a few good touches, but his efforts were ultimately in vain; all of the midfield worked hard; both centre-backs did some important work, particularly in the second half, and Danny Lye did OK at left-back – but the nod went to Bryan Pearce on this occasion.

Man of the Match
(to go towards the Milton Keynes Bowl)
Bryan Pearce