East Grinstead Town v Ashford United. Isthmian League Division 1 South. 24th of March 2018.

East Grinstead Town  3

Ashford United  2

from Ashford United’s Milton Keynes Correspondent

Ashford United supporters are quite fond of describing their vocation as being like a ‘roller coaster’. Well, it hasn’t really been that this season. After the highs of winning the double and gaining promotion last season, and the early shock of losing Manager Danny Lye and virtually all of that successful squad after just two games of this season, it has all felt rather unpressured. This is because of the ‘one-off’ situation of there being just one team to be relegated from Isthmian Division 1 South at the end of this season, due to the latest restructuring of the non-league pyramid. With Shoreham struggling along with only eight points from 36 games, (which includes a points deduction), it seems certain that they will be going back to the Sussex League, (or whatever it’s called now). That means that this has always been a ‘nothing to lose’ season.

With eight games of the season remaining, it is all about getting a squad together for August. Now that it has been confirmed that Gary Alexander will be taking over Jason Whitmore’s position as Manager for next season, it’s important that he gets his own players on board. So, rather than a fairground ride, this season has become more like sitting on a wall and watching a building project take shape.

The latest recruit to the squad, announced during the week, has been Joshua Oyinsan, a 6’ 4” striker who comes to us from Walton Casuals. The staggering number of players that we have used this season has been the subject of considerable derision from some fans – and, if anyone is interested, Joshua’s fictitious squad number is No.78 – but I am happy to buy into the ‘building for next season’ narrative. However, there is one little target that the lads might like to set themselves. We haven’t won a league match away from home all season, so that would be a nice duck to break. (The last time I saw us win was away to Croydon, on the 22^nd of April 2017, so it will have been a long time between drinks !).

I hesitate to say it, but today’s trip to East Grinstead appeared to provide a good opportunity for the lads to get off the mark. At the start of the day, The Wasps were lying in 21^st place, just one place and five points above Ashford, having played a game more. Surely, if the objective is to build a squad that can challenge at the top of this division next season, then we need to have the personnel to defeat teams at the bottom at this stage of the process.

Unfortunately, the lads suffered yet another defeat, and we now have the unimpressive away record of four draws and 15 defeats from 19 games. The ‘haul’ of four points away from home equals that of Shoreham. The other worrying statistic is that Ashford have now conceded three goals in each of their last three matches – all defeats. On the brighter side, the travelling support for the Nuts ‘n’ Bolts appears to be holding up well, despite the 15 good reasons for maybe being discouraged.

In truth, this was a good fixture to attend, not least because this was the first time an Ashford team had visited East Court. This is the first season that the two teams have been in the same division, and our only previous meeting was in 1953, when East Grinstead (as they were then called) lost 4-0 to Ashford Town in the First Qualifying Round of the FA Cup, at Essella Park.

Also, it’s a very attractive little ground, set in woodland, on the outskirts of the town. There is one long, thin stand on one side of the pitch, which has three rows of black, plastic seats. The low roof gives excellent coverage to the spectators, so it was very cosy at the back. (Although it was a fairly mild day today, albeit cloudy throughout). The turf pitch has the charm of a typical non-league slope, but it was level and well grassed, and played very well.

I had been busy, during the week, trying to plot a means of travelling down to this new venue, which is situated just to the east of Gatwick Airport. For once, my beloved National Express coach option would have been both slow and costly, and I don’t think my poor, battered old Astra Estate would have stood up to crawling around the M25. Eventually, I found the solution, and it was something a little different to the usual route – drive to Luton, get the Gatwick Express to Three Bridges, and then take the No.281 bus to the football ground. The whole lot cost less than £30. Sorted !

If the result was not what the Ashford fans, and The Management, wanted, it must also be said that the match was not a particularly successful exercise in contributing to the wider goal of preparing for next season. The main reason for this is that the squad has, numerically, become very thin of late. It has been noticeable, recently, that the Ashford United team sheet has had either the bare minimum of three substitutes, or just the three outfield subs. Today, Gary Alexander and Jason Whitmore had to cope with having just 13 players available in total, including the new signing. The various reasons for this include injuries and suspensions, but it cannot be easy for Gaz Alex to mould a team into a structure and a method of playing when he is basically having to fit whoever is available into the gaps that are being left.

Among today’s absentees were two of our most experienced, and best loved, soldiers - Pat Kingwell and George Kamurasi – but that at least gave the very promising Aaron Lee-Wharton the opportunity to have a run out in goal. The other silver lining was that Clark Woodcock, one of the stars of Ashford’s youth system, was given the chance to make only his third start for the First Team. In fact, it was better than that. Clark actually played for the full 90 minutes, looked strong throughout, appeared more and more to be our most dangerous player as the game wore on – and he got on the score sheet for the first time, with a well-taken goal.

So here was today’s line-up, using this season’s unofficial squad numbering system: 23. Aaron Lee-Wharton, 66. Ola Williams, 76. Malachi Robinson, 68. Will Thomas, 12. Jon Difford, 64. George McLennan, 77. Siao Blackwood, 71. Jordan Johnson-Palmer, 21. Clark Woodcock, 69. Dean Grant, 74. Daniel Ajakaiye.

Sub.s: 13. Brandon Williams, and 78. Joshua Oyinsan.

I am happy to report that East Court has an excellent PA system – but the stadium announcer struggled with one or two of those names !  (Bless him).

The Management opted for a 4-4-2 formation, with the versatile Will Thomas partnering captain Jon Difford in central defence, (having previously played at full-back and central midfield for us this season). George McLennan played wide on the left of midfield, which I feel is his best position, especially as he was obviously given the freedom to roam in-field, and at times swapped wings with Clark Woodcock, who played mostly on the right.

Things looked fairly promising for Ashford during the initial 15 minutes of the game, although East Grinstead, playing in amber & black stripes, (making them look unnervingly like Folkestone Invicta), set their stall out to play neat, on the ground, passing football. The visitors, in their daffodil yellow & black away strip, (which sounds like there was a colour clash, but this was never a problem in reality), were also prepared to pass the ball around the back five, and build patiently from the back. The difference between the two sides, however, was that, early on, Ashford appeared to have quality players up front who could certainly hurt the home defence. Daniel Ajakaiye seemed to have pace that was on a different level to any other player on the pitch, and Dean Grant always looks an accomplished striker – and so it is disappointing to have to report that the team failed to provide them with enough worthwhile service.

I don’t keep a formal record of the number of shots, shots on target and corners, but I am confident that the statistics will have been decidedly in Ashford’s favour – except for the only important statistic, of course.

Daniel Ajakaiye was the first to have a sight of goal. This was in the seventh minute, when he was found with a long ball through the inside-right channel. With plenty of space, in the East Grinstead penalty area, he hit a firm, first-time shot, which was tipped over the bar by Dan Smith. Three minutes later, Ajakaiye received the ball on the edge of the area, and, with a good turn, fed the ball through to Clark Woodcock, whose curling shot went just high and wide. Clark had another half-chance, in the 14^th minute, when he attempted to get some part of his body on a deep cross, as he charged in beyond the far post. I am not sure what part of his body he used to make the contact, but it resulted in the ball going just wide. A minute later, it was Daniel Ajakaiye who once again had an opportunity. Using his pace to get to a through ball, in spite of being blatantly held by a chasing defender, he rounded the ‘keeper, but was then unable to turn the ball in from an impossibly acute angle.

It was certainly a surprise when East Grinstead took the lead, in the 21^st minute, although there is no doubt that it was a deserved goal, for the sheer quality of its execution. Picking the ball up about 25 yards from goal, Alex Gaggin turned, looked up and then curled the ball around Aaron Lee-Wharton and into the far corner of the net. Aaron had no chance with that one, but, just seconds earlier, he had made an important save. Jordan Johnson-Palmer had lost control of the ball, inside his own area, and this enabled The Wasps’ big centre-forward, Charlie Postance, a free run on goal – but Aaron was quickly off his line, coming out and smothering the chance.

Ashford had the ball in the net in the 33^rd minute, when Dan Smith was unable to hold onto an excellent long-range shot from Johnson-Palmer. Daniel Ajakaiye had the simple job of tapping the ball into an empty net, with Smith on the ground, but the lino flagged him offside. In the 37^th minute, the visitors made a real meal of trying to secure possession from a throw-in in their own half – and eventually lost the ball. Steven Sargent quickly played the ball forward, into the path of the lively Alex Gaggin, but Aaron Lee-Wharton was alert once again, coming out to snuff out the chance.

Ashford looked at their most dangerous, in the first half, when George McLennan was carrying the ball through a fairly vacant midfield area, or when Clark Woodcock was cutting in from a wide area, but both players were sometimes guilty of making the wrong decision – such as attempting a shot when a lay-off or a through ball might have been a better option.

There was certainly no shortage of attacking intent from United, and we conceded a second goal, on the stroke of half time, when players had been pushed forward at a corner. Once George McLennan’s cross had been cleared and the break was on, the home side found themselves with a three-against-two advantage. And they made no mistake. With the Ashford defence retreating, the ball was spread wide, to Oliver Boulding, on the right. His cross found Alex Gaggins, in the penalty area, who turned the ball in with a deft, Danny Welbeck-style back-heel, as the ball came across him.

The Ashford Management Team made a substitution at the start of the second half, replacing right-back Ola Williams with Brandon Williams; (no relation). Brandon took up a position on the left of the back four, with Malachi Robinson, (who had looked a good player, in the first half), switching to the right.

There was no real change in the pattern of the game after the interval, with Ashford having most of the play and doing most of the attacking – but these attacks seemed to be rather sporadic, and a little improvised.

The first clear-cut chance of the second half fell to George McLennan. Daniel Ajakaiye fed him with a square pass, and the Scotsman connected with a great shot, which required a great, diving save from Dan Smith. It was a period of Ashford pressure that culminated in them finally achieving a break through, in the 64^th minute. As they probed for an opening, the ball found Clark Woodcock in a fairly crowded penalty area. The youngster took a touch, before placing a firm shot into the net. This was a hugely popular goal with the Ashford fans, and we can hope that it gives the lad confidence to push on from here. Today, in spite of his very youthful appearance, I felt that Clark never gave the impression of being a boy amongst men. He certainly looked very much ‘the part’ when he had the ball at his feet.

A minute later, however, Clark’s good work was nearly undone, when his team mates found themselves, once again, outnumbered three-against-two at the back. This must have been purely down to a lack of concentration, because we seemed to be caught on the break when we weren’t even attacking !  Anyway, Jon Difford saved the day with a really good covering tackle. Then, within seconds, the ball was at the other end of the pitch, and there was a chance for Dean Grant. This was the result of the East Grinstead defence failing to clear their lines. As the ball fell to him, Dean let fly with a powerful shot, but it went about a foot over the bar.

Ashford’s second available substitution was made in the 73^rd minute, with Joshua Oyinsan making his debut, in place of Daniel Ajakaiye – and the Paul Pogba lookalike and body double, (even down to the pink streak in his hair), attempted his first shot in an Ashford shirt in the 82^nd minute. Joshua looked very good as a big, strong target man, and seemed to know what he was doing – but this initial shot on goal went well over the bar.

Time seemed to be frittered away as 90 minutes approached – due to a combination of Dan Smith taking an age over every goal kick, there being a lengthy delay due to a head injury sustained by Steve Springett and some unnecessary bickering over where a succession of throw-ins should be taken – but then there was a flurry of activity during injury time.

This started with a long ball being launched into the East Grinstead penalty area. This was headed away by the home defence, but only as far as Brandon Williams, on the edge of the area, who hit a volley straight at Smith. Seconds later, Ashford were caught on the break again, and this time they were punished. As Charlie Postance raced clear of the Ashford defence, he lobbed the ball over the advancing Lee-Wharton, and into the net. But that wasn’t the end of the action, as the visitors pulled a goal back, fully three minutes into the five minutes of added time. The tireless Dean Grant chased a ball into the far left corner, turned and carried the ball into the penalty area. In a great solo effort, he unleashed a shot which was deflected over Dan Smith, into the far corner of the net. Deano deserved that goal for sheer endeavour – but I don’t think he’ll get it, as it appears to have been recorded as an Andrew Cooney own goal.

So no complaints about the three points going to East Grinstead, who took all three of their goals well. This latest defeat, at the hand if the team occupying 21^st position in the league table, means that Ashford will now almost certainly finish in 22^nd place. But it’s all about next season !

Thamesmead Town v Ashford United. Isthmian League Division 1 South. 17th of February 2018.

Thamesmead Town  3

Ashford United  1

from Ashford United’s Milton Keynes Correspondent

This has certainly been the season of ‘Planes, Trains and Automobiles. And, strangely enough, I have used those three means of transport, in that order, for travelling to my last three matches.

I never thought that I would ever get on an aeroplane to go and see Ashford play football, but that was what we did, just three weeks ago, when we boarded an Aurigny Air Services flight to Guernsey. This must have been the most eagerly awaited fixture of the season for many of us – very much the glittering prize for gaining promotion to the Isthmian League – and it turned out to be a wonderful week-end. A large invasion force arrived from England, (what people on the Isle of Wight refer to as ‘the North Island’), and the entire occasion was full of fun and bonhomie. I will never forget the reaction of the locals in the bar, about 20 minutes before kick-off, when someone pointed down the lane leading to the ground and said: “Oooo, look. There are loads of bananas coming up the road !”. We ended up with a point from that game, when we really ought to have beaten what looked to be a fairly weak Guernsey side, particularly in the first half, but I couldn’t begrudge the home side the draw, after a much improved second-half performance.

Before that, I found myself on business in London on a Wednesday, so that gave me the opportunity to hop on a train to Hayes Lane, Bromley, for our evening kick-off against Cray Wanderers. (This was the first time that I had been to Hayes Lane since the artificial pitch had been installed – which reminded me of a match here, also against Cray Wanderers, in the 2006-7 season, when John Cumberbatch’s struggling Ashford Town side had been leading 0-2 at half time when the waterlogged pitch caused the game to be abandoned; although we won the rearranged match 0-4). Unfortunately, this season’s game, on the plastic, was to be very different. Against a clearly very good Wands team, the lads were pretty dreadful, as poor as I have ever seen an Ashford side look, and the 9-1 score line would have been worse if the returning George Kamurasi hadn’t made some important saves. Fortunately, I had to make a dash to Bromley railway station after 50 minutes, at which point the score was only 5-0.

The previous game I saw was away to Walton Casuals, in their very extensive, and very impressive, multi-purpose sports complex, (which is on the site of the poxy little ground they used to have). That necessitated asking the battered old Astra Estate to make the journey down to South West London, via the M1, M25 and M3. I’m not sure how many more match days the old warhorse will see – a veteran of away days to Gateshead, Salisbury, the Isle of Wight and, of course, Gatwick Airport – but her MoT test is due in five days’ time. I will ask for a priest to be in attendance. Again, I’m afraid the lads were outclassed, this time by a formidable Casuals side, which were actually probably more impressive than Cray Wanderers were. I have to say, though, that the Ashford lads came out of that game with plenty of credit, having been deservedly level at half time, before losing 4-0.

Today, it was back to the more familiar routine of getting the train down, from Milton Keynes, for the match away to Thamesmead Town. The Mead ground-share at Dartford Borough Council’s Princes Park Stadium – so I have now seen Ashford sides play here against Dartford, Greenwich Borough and Thamesmead.

In a season that has become, or maybe always was, an exercise in building a squad that can challenge at the top of this league next season, this promised to be an informative game against a solid, mid-table team. Ashford United went into the game on a run of six games without a win, although performances in the last four of those had been encouraging. A 3-3 draw at home to a Hythe Town team pushing for a play-off place, and a defeat by one goal at the hands of Corinthian-Casuals and Hastings United, both powerful sides, have not been bad results, (and, again, we really should have beaten Guernsey).

A regular criticism from fans, this season, has been the number of players that have come and gone as a result of this building process. It is undeniable that using more than 70 players by the middle of February suggests a lack of continuity, but I think that everyone concerned with the club will have been delighted that Dave Cook, this week, re-signed for his third spell with Ashford United, so putting himself in line to become the 72^nd player to be used this season. An Ashford boy and a thoroughly proven midfielder at this level, he is probably the ideal man to have on board for the immediate future.

The Ashford line-up today, using theoretical squad numbers to reflect the order in which players have appeared this season, was as follows: 1. George Kamurasi, 68. Will Thomas, 64. George McLennan, 70. Jahmal Howlett-Mundle, 6. Pat Kingwell (capt.), 67. Jordan Wright, 55. Kwabena Osei, 37. Joe Bingham, 13. Brandon Williams, 69. Dean Grant, 71. Jordan Johnson-Palmer. The sub.s: 20. Matt Day, 72. Dave Cook, 60. Ryan Richefond, 52. James Fitchett, 21. Clark Woodcock.

A little disappointing that there was no place in the starting line-up for Matt Day, given the very recent departure of strikers Andrew Dalhouse (six goals, at a rate of one every 195 minutes) and Shomari Barnwell (seven at a rate of one every 115 minutes, a rate only beaten, for Ashford United, by Damian Abel, Shaun Welford, Stuart Zanone and Mo Takaloo) – but this looked like a strong line-up.

Unfortunately, after an uneventful opening six minutes, under blue skies, on what was the first vaguely spring-like day of the year, this line-up made life difficult for itself by conceding a really soft goal. The home side had been awarded a free-kick, by Referee Isaac Searle, on the corner of the Ashford penalty area. This was taken by Tom O’Conner, who sent over what looked to be a routine cross, which Solomon Taiwo headed in, unchallenged, for probably the easiest goal he will ever score. There was an immediate inquest from the Ashford bench – something to do with ‘marking’ was mentioned !  During the week, Manager Jason Whitmore had been describing his aspirations for achieving two promotions within the next five years for the club. He and Gary Alexander might start that process by teaching the boys the basics of defending.

One positive to take from this stumbling start was that the lads didn’t collapse in a heap. In fact, they gradually worked their way into the game – and even put together a good move, in the 17^th minute. This gave Brandon Williams, playing wide on the left, a great opportunity to put a telling ball into the centre, but he sliced his cross behind for a goal kick. A minute later, a break-out from defence ended with a diagonal ball which found Brandon inside the Thamesmead penalty area. His low, left-footed shot was on target, but was readily saved by Mead goalkeeper Lewis Carey. But the sight of goal lifted spirits.

In the 21^st minute, Kwabena Osei was presented with a half-chance, when his opposite number, Thamesmead No.4 Solomon Taiwo, passed the ball straight to him, but the former Folkestone man sliced his shot well wide. In the 24^th minute, another opportunity was created by a good Ashford move down the left, involving George McLennan and, once again, Brandon Williams. This enabled Williams to send in a cross from the by-line, aimed at Dean Grant, who was converging on the near post, but the Ashford No.9’s flick went just wide.

So the visitors had started to pass the ball around, and were managing to snuff out Thamesmead’s attacks. They were winning important tackles in midfield, were having the majority of possession, and Pat Kingwell, George McLennan and Joe Bingham were looking particularly impressive. It came as a surprise, then, when Joe had a complete aberration, in the 26^th minute. In possession, just five yards outside his own penalty area, he gave the ball straight to Thamesmead’s Danny Parrish, who had the simple task of placing the ball into the path of Paul Vines. From about 18 yards out, Vines made no mistake, thumping the ball past George Kamurasi, making it 2-0.

The nearest Ashford came to scoring in the first half was from the head of Richard Avery – but remember that he was playing for Thamesmead this afternoon, having been part of Ashford’s Championship-winning team last season !  A dinked ball into the Thamesmead penalty area by Brandon Williams was met with a back-header by Avo, which forced goalie Lewis Carey into making a diving save, at the expense of a corner. Ashford rather made a mess of the attempted short corner routine. In fact, there were rather too many individual errors from the visitors – allowing the ball to run out of play, the misplaced final ball, the poor close control – which reduced the effectiveness of their work.

The Mead had a chance to score a third goal when tall No.8 Tom O’Conner broke out from defence. His powerful run took him all the way to within a few feet of the Ashford United penalty area, but he opted for a tame shot straight at George Kamurasi, when other options were available.

Ashford finished the half strongly. In the 41^st minute, Joe Bingham completed a neat one-two with Dean Grant, and fired in a low cross from the by-line, but Lewis Carey did well with his interception. Seconds later, George McLennan, Dean Grant and Brandon Williams fashioned a good move down the left flank. George had the opportunity to play the through-ball into the path of Jordan Johnson-Palmer, who was straining to stay onside – but George decided on a shot with his left foot, which went wide.

On reflection, neither goalkeeper had a tremendous amount to do during the first half – but Thamesmead, a team that never looked any better than an average team throughout the 90 minutes, sauntered in at half time with a very comfortable 2-0 lead.

The second half started painfully for Will Thomas, who was playing at right-back this afternoon. He was the victim of a crunching late tackle from Solomon Taiwo, in the 49^th minute, and was on the floor for some time. He got up and soldiered on, but had to be replaced by Ryan Richefond, just eight minutes later.

Prior to this, in the 53^rd minute, Thamesmead went close, thanks to some excellent vision from Paul Vines. Halfway inside the Ashford half, with his back to goal, he spun and hit a diagonal ball into the path of Danny Parrish, who sent in a cross towards the far post. This looked awkward for George Kamurasi to deal with, but Brandon Williams did well to hoike the ball clear, for a corner. Brandon’s presence at the far post was due to the fact that he and George McLennan had swapped places, with George now playing as the wide midfielder on the left.

One other difference in the second half was that Ashford had come out with what seemed to be a determination to play fast, on-the-ground football. In spite of the change on the left, Ashford’s most effective work after the break had come on the right, with Folkestone Invicta loanee Jordan Wright posing the greatest threat to the home defence. Jordan had a shooting chance in the 54^th minute, after George McLennan and Dean Grant had been prominent in an Ashford break. Jordan hit the ball well, but his shot, from inside the Thamesmead area, was deflected into the side-netting.

Jordan Johnson-Palmer, to name but three, had a fairly quiet game, his best moment coming in the 61^st minute. After another good passing movement, this time down the left, JJP found himself inside the opposition’s area, in the inside-left channel, but his firm shot hit the top of Lewis Carey’s crossbar.

That move had been initiated by the returning Dave Cook winning an important header in midfield. (He had come on in place of Kwabena Osei, although I must confess to have missed the substitution, which may well have happened at half time). But the most successful substitution made by Jason Whitmore was the one he made in the 71^st minute, when he replaced Jordan Johnson-Palmer with Matt Day, as Matt made an immediate impact, with what the Americans would call an ‘assist’, just four minutes later.

Some of the credit for the goal must go to Jordan Carey, who harried a Thamesmead defender all the way to his own corner flag. When the fluffed clearance as a result of the pressure came, the ball fell to Matt Day, who was well inside the Thamesmead penalty area. With his back to goal, Matt lobbed the ball over his own head, invitingly ahead of Dean Grant, who, from six yards out, waited for the ball to drop before volleying it home, for his first goal for Ashford. Lewis Carey was clearly furious with his defence for allowing his clean sheet to be spoilt. After kicking the post, in a manner that was a little reminiscent of a certain Cray Valley goalkeeper, it was Danquah Williams who seemed to receive the brunt of his ire.

The visitors had certainly shown the more urgency of the two teams in the second half, but it was Thamesmead who had the next chance. In what had become a rare attack from the home side, Harvey Brand, in the 83^rd minute, sent in a powerful shot, from the corner of the area, which George Kamurasi did well to tip over the bar. A minute later, Dave Cook got himself booked for a late, and fairly cynical, trip on Tom O’Conner – and so joined Jahmal Howlett-Mundle in the book, who had been yellow-carded in the 71^st minute, for a similar offence.

As often happens in matches, the game really opened up during the final five minutes or so. This might have been due to fatigue setting in with both sets of players, but it was certainly encouraged by Ashford pouring forward, in search of the equaliser that looked well within their grasp. It seemed almost certain that the game was going to finish up either 2-2 or 3-1. In the event, it was the latter that turned out to be the case – which was very harsh on the visitors, who had certainly deserved to ‘win’ the second half – but the surprise was that Thamesmead nearly scored the clinching goal as a result of a howler from the normally very reliable Pat Kingwell. Twice !

In the 86^th minute, a miss-kick from the Ashford captain sent Thamesmead sub Richard Pacquette clean through on goal, but Pacquette’s firm shot flashed across the face of the Ashford goal. Then, in the 89^th minute, Kingwell looked to be about to make a routine interception, but, inexplicably, allowed the ball to run under his foot. Again, it was Pacquette who looked like being the beneficiary, but George Kamurasi rushed out from goal to retrieve the situation.

When the third Thamesmead goal came, in the 90^th minute, it was very much the result of Ashford committing players forward. In fact, it came almost immediately after an Ashford attack had broken down, on the edge of the Thamesmead penalty area. A clearance found Paul Vines, free in the Ashford half, and, for the second time on the match, the experienced striker showed an exemplary piece of finishing, curling the ball around Big George, and into the far corner of the net.

So not a whole shed-load of positives to take from this game. However, it was good to see that all three of Ashford’s substitutions seemed to work well. For those of us who are fans of Matt Day, and who would like to see him given more opportunities this season, it was gratifying to see him set up Dean Grant’s goal, within minutes of coming on. (It’s also good that Dean has got off the mark for Ashford, in his fourth appearance). Dave Cook stood out as a commanding presence in the midfield, during the second half, and Ryan Richefond did well at right-back, although he didn’t have a great deal of defending to do.

The improved second half performance also offered some encouragement, after those two very soft goals were given away in the first half. But the boys will not be able to afford such gifts next Saturday, when the opponents will be Cray Wanderers.