MR2

Whilst neither goalkeeper was seriously troubled in the opening twenty five minutes, Jakub Machlowski was by far the busier of the goalkeepers but such was his sure handling that the home side never really looked like scoring. We thought we had taken the lead mid way through the half when a good ball by Victor Osobu put Jason Tucker through and Jason calmly steered the ball past Dave Clark into the net only for the assistant referee to raise his flag to indicate that Jason was in an offside position. Five minutes later, Jason's misery was compounded when he was adjudged to have pushed an opponent as we defended a corner and a penalty was awarded. Lee Putnam slotted home the resultant spot kick. We equalised on the stroke of half time. A good ball by Jason provided a great chance for captain Warren Williams. Clark made a good save to deny Warren but from the resultant corner kick, Denis Inboli scrambled the ball home on the far post after his first effort had hit the post .At the interval Leon Cover took over from Deacon.

Three minutes into the second half, Holmer Green suffered a blow when keeper Clark limped off after a clash with Vigan Qehaja. Without a substitute keeper on the bench, Putnam had to take over between the sticks. The replacement keeper did well but had little chance when we took the lead in the seventieth minute with Victor scoring from close range after a good cross deep into the goalmouth by Maradona Mason. Holmer Green were now limited to rare breakaways as we dominated possession and we should have increased our lead when Putnam fumbled Jason's free kick but Potter was unable to mark his debut with a goal as he turned the rebound wide. Five minutes from time, Simeon Charles took over in an unaccustomed striker's role as Vigan limped off. In the final minute, we assured ourselves of the three points when Jason's long through ball put Victor through and he managed to squeeze the ball home at the near post, to cap a fine individual performance. There still remained time for Putnam to stand and watch as Jason curled a free kick past him only for the ball to hit the post before it was scrambled to safety.

We failed to grab the the opportunity to move up to fourth place in the League when despite leading twice we lost out in a seven goal thriller. The game almost began in disastrous fashion for us as in the second minute Tring were awarded a penalty kick for an offence that only the match referee seemingly spotted. However, Simeon Charles deputising for Jakub in goal dived the right way and saved Terry Gibbs's spot kick. We enjoyed the better of the early exchanges after this let off with Warren Williams looking dangerous almost every time that he was in possession and he was instrumental in our opening goal after nineteen minutes. Aziz Khoshimov's pass set him clear as he cut in towards goal before pulling the ball back into the path of Jason Tucker. Jason's first shot was blocked but the ball rebounded back into his path and he drove it past the helpless Sam Styles in the Tring goal. In the next ten minutes we should have put the game beyond Tring's reach as we carved out at least three clear cut chances. Firstly Warren put Dean Scarlett through with only Styles to beat but the keeper made an excellent save. Dean then headed wide when unmarked on the far post from Aziz's in swinging corner kick and then came the biggest miss of all when Warren actually rounded Styles but with an empty goal in front of him, steered the ball wide of the post. Aziz then saw another of his corner kicks bundled clear from the goal line with Styles beaten. In the final minute of the half, Tring could have made us pay for our wastefulness but Vinnie Iannone headed Darren Caseman's cross over the bar.

We increased our lead three minutes into the second half when a short corner between Jason and Danny Edwards culminated in Dean scoring with a diving header from Jason's cross. However, a minute later we conceded a poor goal with nobody taking responsibility as a long throw from Dave Whicker came into our box and Gibbs atoned for his earlier miss with a slight touch as the ball curled into our net. On the hour mark Tring drew level when Dennis Inboli tripped Phil Otum in our penalty area and this time there was no reprieve from the spot with Whicker firing the ball home. Ten minutes later Vigan Qehaja with almost his first touch after coming on back heeled the ball into the path of Dean who crashed the ball home. The see saw nature of the game continued with Whicker beating Simeon from fully thirty five yards to bring the scores level and our fate was sealed with a minute of normal time remaining when we failed to deal with another long Whicker throw and substitute Andy Humphreys scored with an acrobatic overhead kick. There still remained time for Warren to get himself sent off for a reckless and needless challenge after having been cautioned just a minute previously.

Our title hopes receded further as we suffered our second League defeat in succession as we were beaten 3-1 at home by mid table Broxbourne Borough. On a heavy surface after the continual rain of the previous day, we started the game very brightly and were much the better side in the opening period but the Broxbourne keeper Obey Murefu was rarely troubled until he made a tremendous save on the half hour mark when a good move involving Jason Tucker, Victor Osobu amd Aziz Khoshimov culminated in Murefu diving low to his left to turn Aziz's shot around the post. From the resultant corner taken by Aziz, Charlie Baverstock back in the side after his honeymoon, saw his header cleared from the goal line. Broxbourne took the lead seven minutes before the interval when Danny Ward was given time and space out on the right flank to drill a low cross into the goalmouth. Jakub Machlowski, who's handling is normally so sound, failed to gather the ball cleanly and when it ran loose to Tony Burke he drove it low into our net. Worse was to follow two minutes before the interval when the Broxbourne captain, Daryl Mitchell, by far their best player in the first half, send an in swinging free kick across the face of our goal where Lee Teagle scored from close range with our defence seemingly motionless.

We pulled a goal back on the hour mark when Jason's saw his free kick hit the post with Murefu beaten and Victor was tripped as he latched onto the rebound. Jason made no mistake from the resultant spot kick. In the very next minute, Jason's back header from Aziz's corner flew just over the Broxbourne bar. At this stage of the game we looked perfectly capable of getting something out of the game but it was Broxbourne who looked the more likely side to score and were almost gifted a goal by Jakub when his dreadful short clearance was intercepted by Burke but Jakub redeemed himself with a fine save. In the next minute, a good run by Broxbourne's Bradley Drisdale finished with him shooting just over our bar. Shortly after Jakub saved well from Drisdale and then Ward, right through on goal, fired over an empty net after being forced wide by our advancing keeper. However, the almost inevitable happened when a good ball by Paul Dodd sent Drisdale racing through again and he lashed the ball home. Any faint hopes we had of getting back into the game were immediately ruined by Antony Rowlands getting himself sent off for a rash and reckless tackle that fully deserved the red card immediately brandished by referee Liam Walshe.

Meeting Ryman Premier Division side Harrow Borough we recorded an excellent 3-2 win to knock the current holders of the cup out of the competition. Whilst Harrow who are enjoying their best League season for some years only fielded four of the side that had started the previous game, our side also had a strange look about it with five new players in our squad. However, the most significant name in our line up was Keith Rowlands, who was making his first start for five months following his long term ankle injury and he had a massive influence on the game, creating our opening goal and then scoring two tremendous goals himself.

Harrow had much the better of the opening exchanges but Jakub Machlowski was equal to everything that was on target but was thankful when both Gary Meakin and Charlie Hill fired wide when well placed. We gradually came more and more into the game and Victor Osobu should have done better when played through by Stefan O'Brien but his first touch let him down and the Harrow keeper Matt Mann was quickly off his line to save at Victor's feet. We took the lead on the stroke of half time when Keith Rowlands's pass sent new signing Jamanhi Henry through and he finished in style sliding the ball past the advancing Mann. After both Jonathan Constant and Kwasi Frempong had fired wide for the home side, Hill missed a great chance to bring the scores level when he found himself in a one to one situation with Jakub but stood up well and blocked Hill's shot. Keith then put us two up in the fifty seventh minutes. Substitute Darren O'Callaghan with almost his first touch put Keith in possession and he evaded a tackle before drilling a tremendous left footed shot into the roof of the net past the despairing Mann. Twelve minutes later we were three up with Keith again on target this time with his right foot. Keith departed the fray at this stage whilst Harrow made three substitutions and threw players forward in an effort to get back into the game. One of the three substitutes, the burly Samuel Oluwafemi pulled one goal back when he scored from close range after we had failed to deal with a long throw into our box by Daniel Nielsen and when Blake Goodman was adjudged to have handled in our box minutes later, Oluwafemi made no mistake from the resultant spot kick. In the final ten minutes, Harrow pressed forward almost constantly but we held out to earn ourselves a second round home tie against Enfield Town who play in The Ryman League, Division One North.

The game commenced in exciting fashion with both sides almost scoring in the opening minutes. In just the second minute, Beaconsfield were awarded a free kick just outside our penalty area and Jakub did very well to turn Matthew Clarke'e kick just over the bar. At the other end, Jason Tucker's corner kick was headed firmly towards goal by Maradona Mason. The ball struck Nick Hart in the Beaconsfield goal and they were then able to scramble the ball clear. Play was then very even for the next thirty minutes until we suffered two blows when first Maradona and then James Louison limped out of the game , James having being the victim of a late and dangerous tackle that went unpunished by the match day referee. It was whilst we were deciding on a substitute for James that Beaconsfield opened the scoring in the thirty eighth minute. A long ball by Steve Dell towards the far post was headed back across goal by Michael Swaysland into the path of Michael Currie. Jakub did well to block Currie's first effort but the ball rebounded back to Currie who made no mistake with his second effort. We scored a deserved equaliser in the forty fifth minute when from another corner by Jason, Stefan O'Brien saw his header beat Hart only for Dell to head clear from the goal line but fortunately for us his header went straight to Blake Goodman who haded the ball back into the Beaconsfield net.

Early in the second half, Swaysland headed over our bar after a good cross by Oliver Godwin and then Jakub made a tremendous save from Godwin, diving to his right to turn the ball around the post. Beaconsfield regained the lead on the hour mark when Antony Rowlands who acquitted himself very well in an unaccustomed central defensive role following the first half substitutions brought down Currie and from the resultant penalty kick, Stuart Swift sent Jakub the wrong way from the spot. Three minutes later we fell further behind when from a long cross to the far post by Swift, the unmarked Swaysland had a simple task to turn the ball past a helpless Jakub. Beaconsfield were now in total control and they scored their fourth ten minutes later with Swift once again the provider. Jack Jeffries found him in space wide on the left and the prolific goalscorer Swaysland eluded any marking defender to head home his cross.

We should have taken the lead in the very first minute of the game when an excellent move down the right flank involving Warren Williams and Charlie Baverstock culminated in Charlie's low cross reaching Victor Osobu completely unmarked in the centre of the goal, but somehow Victor failed to turn the ball into the Biggleswade net. This was the only clear cut chance either side created in an entertaining opening twenty five minutes with both sides playing some good football on the heavy surface. Adam Turner missed a good chance for Biggleswade when we failed to clear Jason Darvall's corner kick and in the ensuing scramble in our goalmouth, Turner prodded the ball wide. In the next minute at the other end, the Biggleswade keeper Adam Lawrence made a fine save low down at his near post from Charlie's fierce shot. Darvall then unmarked on our far post volleyed over from Marc Holmes's cross before Turner gave the visitors the lead five minutes before the interval. The tall Dan Gaskin managed to work the ball through to him on the right hand side of our goal and Jakub Machlowki was unable to prevent Turner from finding our net. We equalised on the stroke of half time when Lawrence who had been totally dominant in the air missed an excellent cross by Aziz Khoshimov with his less favoured right foot and Dean Scarlett had a simple tap in.

We enjoyed much the better of the second half with Jakub only rarely called into action but we were unable to break down a resolute Biggleswade defence. After just ten minutes of the half, Victor who found it difficult to get past the Biggleswade skipper Michael Scarisbrick at last got clear after a terrific run down the left but cutting in almost on the by line he opted to try to beat Lawrence from an acute angle when there were much better placed colleagues just waiting for a cross in the middle of the goal. With fifteen minutes remaining we replaced Dean with Danny Edwards as we surged forward in an effort to find the wining goal but we knew it was not going to be our day when Lawrence made a tremendous save to turn Warren's shot around the post after Aziz had chested Danny's cross into his path. One major plus for us from the game was the return to the starting line up of Jake Jenkins after an absence of thirteen games and there was a more assured look about our back line with Jake and Blake Goodman renewing their partnership at the centre of our defence.

Our free fall down the League table continued at a pace as we suffered our heaviest defeat of the season at free scoring Langford. Our three previous visits to Langford have all seen us return home with the three points in the bag but there was little hope of of there being a repeat after the opening half in which we produced as poor a performance as we have witnessed for a long time. Disaster almost struck straight from the kick off when from a long punt forward, Blake Goodman ignoring the call of Jakub behind him tried to clear but only played the ball straight into the path of Wes Byrne who chipped it over our stranded keeper but to our relief the ball hit the post. However, our relief was short lived as the home side scored in the ninth minute. A long cross field pass by Andy Carter inside Darren O'Callaghan was chipped back into our goalmouth by Marc Barnes. We had chances to clear but failed to do so and Byrne hammered the ball home from close range. Three minutes later, Craig Farrell who was having a torrid time against the experienced Rob Groves was pulled back by Gary Walker as he tried to clear and Walker drove the ball low across the face of our goal where Joe Delasele stabbed it home from close range. Mid way through the half we missed a golden chance to get back into the game. A long clearance by Jakub was played back into the path of Warren Williams by Charlie Baverstock. Warren played the ball through to Victor Osobu who had a clear run to goal but Victor right through with only the Langford keeper, Steve Young, to beat drove the ball wildly over the bar. Jakub then made a great save from Delasele's header from a precision cross by Groves before in the final minute of the second half, Langford scored their third. A long cross to the far post by Ryan Nicholl was headed back cross goal by Groves and that man Delasele was there again to poke the ball home.

We started the second half as if we really meant business and Warren fired just wide but almost immediately we conceded yet another soft goal at the other end. There seemed no danger when Groves's inswinging corner from the right sailed over the heads of those waiting in the goalmouth but when the ball was returned into the danger area, we failed to clear and Delasele completed his hat trick, all three of his goals being scored within our six yard box. To our credit we fought back strongly and one was left to wonder how different the game might have been had we played with the same passion and commitment in the first half. We deserved our consolation goal scored by Dean Scarlett from a good individual effort five minutes from time but Langford had the last laugh deep into injury time when Jakub's attempted clearance from way out on the touchline was charged down by Barnes who then executed an overhead kick which sent the ball fully forty yards into our unattended net.

Following our disappointing performance at Langford, manager Chris Boothe rang the changes as we switched to a 4-5-1 system with Charlie Baverstock being left to go it all alone up front. We made a bright beginning as we took the game to our opponents but we fell behind in the twelfth minute, when newcomer Mark Gallagher mistimed a header from a long throw by Lee Togwell, deflecting the ball across the face of our goal where Jerome Okimo scrambled the ball home from close range. Chalfont then began to gain the upper hand dominating possession but we fought back strongly in a game being played at a high tempo. Eight minutes before the interval, Terrell Lewis volleyed over our cross bar from a good shooting position whilst at the other end, after a patient build up, Daley Joseph back in the side after an injury lay off, headed just over the Chalfont bar. On the stroke of half time, Paul Taylor who had an excellent evening in our goal made a tremendous save to prevent Daniel Hughes from putting Chalfont two up.

We were forced into a substitution at half time with Jake Jenkins replacing the injured Blake Goodman and shortly after the restart Warren Williams replaced Jamanhi Henry. Ryan Welsh sent a free kick just wide of the post after Jake had handled right on the edge of our penalty area whilst at the other end Warren's left footed cross cum shot floated just wide of the far post with Michale Power-Simpson in the Chalfont goal beaten. Aziz Khoshimov became our third substitute replacing Daley as we strove for the equaliser but the Chalfont back line stood firm and the better goal scoring chances came at the other end with Paul saving well from Lewis when he was right through and then Bubb blazed the ball over the bar when well placed. In the final ten minutes, Charlie headed a cross from Warren just over the bar, Victor Osobu took the ball around Power-Simpson but ran the ball out of play and then Charlie blocked an attempted clearance

by the Chalfont keeper before screwing the ball across the Chalfont goalmouth just out of the reach of the onrushing Victor. The final whistle arrived with Chalfont's three month unbeaten run continuing and they remain in the hunt for a possible five trophies at the end of the season. A plus point for Town in the game was the performance of youth team player Craig Farrell at full back, putting behind behind him his personal disappointment from the previous game.

Town should have taken the lead after just five minutes when a poor clearance by former Town keeper Craig Nicholson, now between the posts for Aylesbury, went straight to Aziz Khoshimov but Aziz's shot at an empty net from around twenty five yards drifted wide of the far post. At the other end, two speculative shots from Ricky Sinfield sailed narrowly over Town's bar. Play swung from end to end in an enjoyable first half with the best two chances falling to Aylesbury's Luke Melisi. Both came from long balls forward which saw Melisi in one to one situations with Jakub Machlowski. On the first occasion, Jakub made a brave block with his body but on the second occasion, Melisi delayed and delayed his shot as Jakub narrowed the angle and eventually the ball was scrambled to safety.

Within seconds of the start of the second half Town should have been ahead when a cross by Darren O'Callaghan was deflected over Nicholson's net leaving Warren Williams with a simple tap in at the far post but somehow Warren failed to make contact with the ball, Our groans turned to cheers almost immediately when Warren receiving possession out on the left flank cut inside before crashing an unstoppable shot across Nicholson into the far corner of the Aylesbury net. Ten minutes later we almost increased our lead when Charlie Baverstock's close range header was cleared from the goal line with Nicholson beaten. We continued to look the more likely side to score and a terrific individual effort by Victor Osobu was well saved by Nicholson diving to his left, From the resultant corner kick by Aziz, Jake Jenkins saw his header thud against the goal post much to the relief of the Aylesbury keeper. Such incidents often decide a game and so it proved as two minutes later, Aylesbury instead of being two down had equalised at the other end after James Baxter's long cross into the goalmouth had been prodded home by Sinfield from close range. With twenty minutes remaining the game could have gone either way with Town coming closest to securing the three points, firstly when Nicholson just managed to turn Williams's low shot around the post and then when Baverstock just failed to make proper contact with another dangerous cross by Warren into the box.

Our last hopes of winning any silverware this season were dashed when we suffered a 5-0 defeat at home to Ryman Division One North side Enfield Town, but the scoreline did not reflect the game overall. In the opening twenty minutes we had sufficient chances to have established a commanding lead. After Andy Jones had shot just over our bar in the opening minute, we created our first chance in the fifth minute when Charlie Baverstock cutting in from the right drove the ball wildly across the face of the goal. Minutes later, Charlie had an even better chance when Craig Farrell's cross found him unmarked in front of goal but Charlie's header lacked pace and Jason Willis in the Enfield goal made a comfortable save.

Warren Williams then fired over the bar from point blank range when a shot on target must have produced a goal and then Willis blocked Charlie's shot with his body. During this opening period of play we produced some excellent football and had the Enfield defence at full stretch, the only thing that was missing was our ability to turn our possession into goals. On the twenty minute mark, Enfield took the lead completely against the run of play when Jones given time to pick his spot drove the ball across Paul Taylor into the far corner of our net. This goal seemed to stir Enfield into action and they began to dominate possession and Paul made an excellent save to deny Jones a second goal when he was right through on goal.

Enfield still led by this single goal at the interval but in the opening six minutes of the second half put the game beyond our reach with two further goals. Within a minute of the restart, Ozie Foster's cross from the right was headed home by the unmarked Ricci Crace and then Steve Velandia shot over our bar when well placed. However, our relief was short lived as a good move cut through our defence and Crace rounded Paul and then turned the ball back into our net from an acute angle. It was now all Enfield with us rarely mounting a serious threat to the Enfield goal. Paul made a fine save to turn Jones's free kick from distance over the bar but with twenty minutes to go, Enfield substitute David Bastien made it four as he fired past the helpless Paul from close range. James Louison then blocked a shot from Crace on our goal line with Paul beaten but there was no denying Crace his hat trick, which he completed seven minuted from time when another cross by Foster was headed back across goal by Bastian giving Crace the simple task of nodding the ball into our vacant net. Our disappointing evening was made worse after the final whistle when Jake Jenkins advised the club that he had decided to join Moseley FC for the remainder of the season.

On a hard playing surface with a strong wind blowing from end to end, the game was never likely to be a classic and so it proved. We made a bright opening and should have taken the lead in the sixth minute when a cross to the far post by Stefan O'Brien found Blake completely unmarked on the far post but with the Kingsbury keeper Randes Cunha stranded, Blake headed weakly wide. Five minutes later, Kingsbury took the lead when a long wind assisted clearance found Davies beyond our centre backs in an obvious offside position but the assistant referee's flag stayed down and Davies calmly lifted the ball over Jakub as he raced out into our vacant net. Minutes later, Davies was clear again but this time Jakub denied him with a tremendous save at his feet. In quick succession, Tagbasumi shot wide when well placed as did Davies and then Jakub again blocked Davies's shot when he got clear, Following Tagbasumi's red card, we were denied what seemed to be a clear penalty when Blake was tripped in the Kingsbury box, the referee deciding that Blake had dived, flourishing his yellow card in Blake's direction. On the stroke of half time we missed a great chance to equalise when from a cross by Craig Farrell , Victor Osobu with the goal at his mercy headed the ball against the outside of the goal post. With the wind at our backs, we virtually camped in the Kingsbury half in the opening stages after the interval, winning a succession of free kicks and corner kicks, but there was not a single occasion when any of our players got their heads to the ball as Kingsbury cleared the danger with ease. When Davies, who had been the best player on the field until then, also received his marching orders our pressure on the Kingsbury goal continued but so inept was our finishing that it is difficult to recall, Cunha ever being really extended.Our best two opportunities fell to Victor, who like Charlie Baverstock , just can't seem to find the net at the moment. Victor's first opportunity saw him drag his shot wide at the far post and then when he raced through to round Cunha inside the Kingsbury penalty area, he over ran the ball and the danger was cleared. In the final minute, only another fine save by Jakub prevented Farhad Anvari from increasing Kingsbury's margin of victory.

In the very first minute of the game, Jakub Machlowski was fully extended by a good shot from distance by Colney's Greg Shaw, but we were quickly in the ascendancy and in the opening thirty minutes, the London Colney goal was under constant pressure. After a god move down the left involving Keith, Charlie Baverstock and Victor Osobu, the ball was cut back inside to Danny Edwards who fired just over the bar. The Colney keeper Gary Statham then made a fine save at his near post to block Charlie's shot before Jamie Diston, completely unmarked headed Aziz Khoshimov's corner to the far post into the side netting. We took a deserved lead in the thirty third minute. Statham was only able to palm an inswinging corner kick by Darren O'Callaghan into the path of Keith who drove the ball firmly back into the net. However, our lead was short lived as just three minutes later Dan McCafferty curled a corner kick long towards our far post and the ball was hooked back into the middle by Mark Paradise for veteran Gary Doolan to head home from close range. McCafferty's accuracy with his left foot from dead ball situations caused us concern right up to the final whistle.

The opening stages of the second half were very even with neither goalkeeper forced into any real action but on the hour mark, we missed a good chance to take the lead. A good ball by Darren down the left flank found Charlie who pulled the ball back across goal to find Keith but on this occasion, Keith's finishing let him down as he steered the ball wide of the far post. We made three substitutions in quick succession, newcomer Ryan McIntosh, John McKnight and Mark Gallagher replacing Darren, Stefan O'Brien and Maradona Mason respectively. Mark made an immediate impact with a surging run from deep inside his own half before slipping the ball out to Charlie on the right, who's cross into the goalmouth was rather weakly headed over the bar by Aziz. We scored what proved to be the decisive goal with just seven minutes remaining. From Kyle's chip into the penalty area, the ball rolled free to Keith who calmly evaded a tackle before steering the ball beyond Statham into the net. In the remaining minutes, Victor had two good chances to end his goalscoring drought, firstly when Statham quickly off his line blocked his close range effort and then he headed wide from close range after a pin point cross by Kyle who had been played into space by Keith.

The opening twenty minutes of the game was played in very heavy rain and it was matched by the pace of the game with both sides playing some neat decisive football as play swung from end to end. Ten minutes into the game, we had a good chance when Victor Osobu found himself in a one to one situation with the last defender but instead of taking him on, he opted to slide the ball through to Charlie Baverstock who was in an obvious offside position. Victor then headed wide on the far post after a good cross field ball by Darren O'Callaghan gave Danny Edwards the chance to cross the ball over on to Victor's head. Minutes later, Harefield's Ben Hammond raced through with only Jakub Machlowski to beat, but he pulled his shot wide of the far post, much to our relief. On the stroke of half time, a quick free kick set up Harefield's Craig Totton with a good chance but he scooped the ball over the bar.

Harefield should have taken the lead within a minute of the restart when Paul Haines was right through with only Jakub to beat but his shot was too close to Town's keeper who blocked the shot with his feet. Harefield were made to pay for this miss and three minutes later Town took the lead. A weak back pass by Lee Curtin put his keeper Nathan Cobb in trouble as Charlie challenged for the ball which ran into the path of Victor, who ended his ten game run without a goal by prodding the ball home. Harefield fought back strongly and began to enjoy a lot of possession, winning a stream of free kicks and corner kicks. The majority of these were taken by the diminutive Hammond who whipped the ball in towards Town's goal, but Town's defence stood firm and Jakub was rarely called into action. In the final minute, Victor cut in from the left and curled the ball beyond Cobb into the far corner to assure Town of victory and then straight from the kick off, Danny gained his reward for a hard working display with a low cross shot which found its way into the far corner of the Harefield net.

However,credit must be given to the home side who's display made a mockery of their lowly league position. As a team they were sharper, more decisive and made a much better effort of controlling the ball in the blustery difficult playing conditions than we did. Oxhey opened the scoring after just two minutes, when not for the first time this season, we failed to deal with a long throw in into our box. For some reason we simply do not seem to have anybody who is prepared to take the responsibility of attacking the ball as it is launched into our box. On this occasion, the long throw by centre half Anthony Shepherd was flicked on by his central defensive parter Marc Ayres at the near post for Tim O'Hara to turn the ball past former Oxhey keeper Paul Taylor from point blank range. Spurred on by this goal, Oxhey dominated much of the first half with the Oxhey keeper Ross Channer a virtual spectator. However, Paul was not seriously troubled until on the stroke of half time when challenged by O'Mara as he came to collect a long free kick into our area, he dropped the ball leaving Wayne Gladdy with the simple task of steering the ball into our unattended net.

We started the second half in much brighter fashion with Victor Osobu, who had been almost totally anonymous in the first period, embarking on a thrilling run down the left flank which culminated in a high cross which Channer only just managed to palm away to safety. Stefan O'Brien then had a half chance as the ball rolled to him just outside the Oxhey penalty area but he drove the ball wide. We made two substitutions in quick succession, with debutant Lucas Ciezarek and Ryan McIntosh replacing Aziz Khoshimov and Danny Edwards, but neither had any real effect on the game with McIntosh twice in quick succession sending free kicks from dangerous positions weakly wide of the near post. Our fate was sealed in the seventy ninth minute when a long wind assisted clearance found O'Mara in space and he reached the ball before the onrushing Taylor to lift it deftly over him and into the empty net. Such was the paucity of our display that at the end of the ninety minutes, we were left to reflect on the fact that other then palming away Victor's cross that Channer had not had a single shot to save throughout the game.

We gained some revenge for our recent defeat at Tring when running out 4-2 winners on Saturday in a game that had plenty of goalmouth action to warm the small hardy band of spectators. Due to the late arrival of the match referee Carl Henry, the game did not start until 3.45 pm and we were almost one behind by 3.46 pm as a short pass by Blake Goodman was intercepted and the ball was played into the path of Mark Burfoot who had a clear shooting opportunity but he failed to beat Jakub at his near post. This was virtually the only action that Jakub was to see for the rest of the half as we played some fine football and we looked like scoring almost every time that we got into the Tring half. Our first real opportunity fell to Danny Edwards who shot wide after a good passing movement across the width of the pitch but we opened the scoring in the twelfth minute when Charlie Baverstock who had not scored in his last thirteen games headed home Ryan McIntosh's accurate free kick. Two minutes later we went further ahead when a cross come shot by Danny from way out on the right wing found its way past Lee Clark in the Tring goal into the far corner of the net.

In the twenty fifth minute, Charlie through on goal with only Clark to beat was brought down by the keeper as he rounded him and Mr Henry had little option but to show the red card to the keeper and award us a penalty kick. Without a substitute keeper on the bench, outfield player Terry Gibbs donned the keeper's jersey and immediately distinguished himself by diving to his left to turn Charlie's spot kick around the post. He then made another good save from Charlie's header from a clever chipped cross by Lucas Ciezarak. On the stroke of half time, Tring almost reduced the deficit with Jakub clawing the ball back from the line after Burfoot had flicked on a free kick by Danny Gray.

However, Burfoot was not to be denied as in the opening minute of the second half from another free kick by Gray he headed decisively home from close range. Our response was immediate as Ryan McIntosh with a fine strike notched his first ever goal for the club. Our play became rather disjointed after this and despite only having ten men, it was Tring who were looking the more threatening and they pulled a further goal back in the seventy seventh minute when substitute Rob Duncan with virtually his first touch of the ball pulled it back across goal for Burfoot to score from close range. We clinched victory when Stefan O'Brien having his best game in a Town shirt to date found Victor Osobu in space on the left and Victor cut in to steer the ball beyond Gibbs where Michael Chukuroah had a simple task to turn the ball into the Tring net.

We followed up our 4-2 win over Tring Athletic three days earlier by completing a League winning double over Welwyn Garden City, with both games having finished 3-0 in our favour. However, even more so than in the first encounter, the scoreline flattered us and had Welwyn capitalised on the excellent football that they produced in the opening thirty minutes, the result of the game would have been a lot different. In that opening period, the young Welwyn side played the ball around with a lot of confidence and came close to taking the lead after just eight minutes when Danial Griggs fired just wide of our far post. Minutes later, Craic Tompkins having bundled the ball past the advancing Jakub Machlowski somehow managed to lift the ball over our open net when no more than six yards from our goal line. Completely against the run of play we took the lead in the twenty eighth minute. A long throw in by Craig Farrell from the right was only half cleared to Stefan O'Brien who fired the ball goal wards where it took a deflection of Welwyn's Richard Teixero, completely wrong footing Simon Bartley between the Welwyn sticks. This goal seemed to knock Welwyn out of their stride and we began to enjoy an equal amount of the game and should have increased our lead before the interval when an astute through ball by Stefan sent Mark Gallagher racing through with only Bartley to beat, but Mark playing in an unaccustomed front position delayed his shot and the chance was gone.

Welwyn almost equalised immediately after the restart when Jakub made a fine save to turn aside Jake Parratt's header. On the hour mark we went two ahead. We were awarded a free kick just outside the Welwyn penalty area. Darren O'Callaghan's free kick struck Welwyn's defensive ball and the ball rebounded goalwards where Charlie Baverstock challenged and the ball spun free to Mark, who scored his first goal for the club, volleying home. We now began to take control of the game and Ryan McIntosh should have made the game save when another good ball by Stefan saw him cut inside the full back, before wastefully shooting into the side netting with the goal at his mercy. At the other end, Tompkins blasted over our bar when right through on goal and with this miss, ended Welwyn's challenge on the evening as minutes later, Ryan made amends for his earlier miss firing past Bartley on the far post after a strong run into the Welwyn box by Mark Gallagher. On the stroke of full time,Bartley made a tremendous save when he turned Ryan's shot that was destined for the far corner over the bar. A final word for referee Mark Mellor from Hemel Hempstead who was excellent throughout aided by his two young assistants Jake Hillier and Lee Marshallsay

Biggleswade dominated the early part of the game to the extent that their keeper Aaron Springham was a frozen spectator for long periods. However, our back four of Craig Farrell, Blake Goodman,Mark Gallagher and Darren O'Callaghan stood firm and it was not until twenty minutes had passed before Jakub Machlowski had a serious save to make as he turned Scott Field's header over the bar after a long throw in. Minutes later Field volleyed over the bar with only Jakub to beat. Ten minutes before the interval, Biggleswade took the lead when Heron's in swinging corner kick from the right went straight into our goal off the far post. We equalised five minutes later when a long ball forward from Blake found Ryan McIntosh. Ryan played the ball forward to Charlie Baverstock who did very well to evade a tackle and then as Springham advanced to narrow the angle to steer the ball past him into the net.

We had high hopes at half time that this goal would prove to be just the fillip that we needed to go on to win the game, but our second half display was very subdued and it was not until the eightieth minute that Springham had a single save to make, safely gathering John McKnight's long range effort. Jakub was also not seriously troubled and the game became very ordinary with neither side being able to master the difficult conditions. However, the exception to this was Heron and it was he who scored Biggleswade's winner in the seventy fourth minute. We were awarded a free kick just inside our half wide out on the right touchline. The ball was played short to Victor Osobu who was immediately dispossessed and the Biggleswade skipper Peter Gatti played the ball through into the path of Heron who raced away to expertly steer the ball past Jakub into our net. It was a high class finish. In the final minute, Heron put Bradley Harrison through with only Jakub to beat. Jakub saved Harrison's shot but the ball rebounded to Heron who lifted it goalwards only for Ryan to hook the ball away from our goal line to deny Heron his hat trick. Special mention must be made of Mark Gallagher who had a superb game in the centre of our defence.

In the very first minute we thought that we had taken the lead when Ryan McIntosh blasted home a tremendous drive from way outside the box only for the referee to rule that there had been an infringement and the goal was disallowed. There was no such confusion when Jon Moniatis found our net at the other end as he was clearly in an offside position before he steered the ball across Jakub Machlowski into the far corner. In this opening period, Cockfosters produced some fine flowing football and Jakub was called into action twice in quick succession as he turned aside free kicks by Steve Weldon and Dan O'Connor respectively. It was against the run of play when we took the lead on the half hour mark. Jamie Diston breaking out of defence played the ball into the path of Victor Osobu who after rounding Kevin Reade on the by line crossed for Mark Gallagher to head home from close range. Cockfosters scored a deserved equaliser eight minutes later due to a rare mistake by Jakub who was beaten at his near post by Lee Barker's rather weak effort. On the stroke of half time, the Cockfosters keeper Chay Morris was very fortunate when from a cross by Ryan McIntosh, Victor volleyed the ball goalwards where it struck Mark and the ball rebounded straight into the arms of the stranded keeper.

Five minutes into the second half,Jakub almost gifted another goal to Cockfosters when his attempted pass out of his area went straight to Dan Hutchings but Jakub retrieved the situation as he turned Hutchings's shot wide of the post. As the game progressed so we began to gain the upper hand with everybody working hard for each other and we regained the lead when a neat interchange of passes between Charlie Baverstock and Darren O'Callaghan sent Darren racing through to score his first goal for the club as he calmly steered the ball past the advancing Morris.

Shortly after, Darren again burst through from midfield with just one defender between him and the goal and with both Victor and Charlie up in support but Darren instead of slipping the ball into the path of one of his waiting colleagues opted to go it alone and was dispossessed. Whilst, we certainly finished the stronger of the two sides we still had some anxious moments in the final stages none more so than in the final minute when Moniatis had a clear run to goal on the right but he over ran the ball behind the goal line much to our relief.

We began the game in excellent fashion and might have taken the lead in the very first minute when a long ball forward found Mark Gallagher through on goal with only the Colney keeper Tom Blackman to beat, but Mark's shot went just the wrong side of the far post. However, there was no relief for our opponents as in the fourth minute some excellent build up play between Victor Osobu and Charlie Baverstock culminated in Charlie pulling the ball back into the path of Stefan O'Brien who scored with a precise low drive into the corner of the net. At the other end, Paul Taylor in our goal made a fine save to block Greg Deacon's close range effort before we increased our lead when another movement between Charlie and Victor set up the chance for Mark to turn the ball home from close range. Five minutes later, Colney Heath pulled a goal back when the unmarked Ashley Amaikhu headed home Dan Cornock's cross.

As was to be expected the second half was a much more mundane affair with the game effectively over as a contest at the interval. In the opening minutes of the half, a flying save by Blackman denied Charlie what would have been a very deserved goal. Shortly after, John McKnight came close to notching his first goal for the club when he rifled a shot just over Blackman's bar. Mark completed his hat trick on the hour mark when he headed home Darren O'Callaghan's cross on the far post. We continued our ascendancy and wasted a couple of good chances before we made it seven ten minutes from time when the Colney Heath captain Anthony Muthusamy on trying to block Mark's low shot towards goal only succeeded in turning the ball past the wrong footed Blackman into his own net.

We moved up to sixth in the table after a hard fought 2-1 win at St Margaretsbury but the result paled into insignificance following the disgraceful scenes that occurred at the end of the game when a mass brawl broke out which ultimately resulted in Victor Osobu and St Margaretsbury's Tom O'Neill both receiving straight red cards. The incident was triggered off by our winning goal four minutes into time added on at the end of ninety minutes and the joyful celebrations that followed it coupled with the referee blowing the final whistle immediately the game re-started. The melee that followed reflected very poorly on both sides and was the culmination of a game in which bad feeling festered just below the surface throughout.

Due to a floodlight failure, the game did not kick off until 8.15 pm and it was obvious from the early minutes that the game was not to be a classic as both sides struggled to control the light ball on the bumpy surface. We fell behind in the ninth minute when Ben Herod played the ball into the path of Loren Maxwell who steered it past Jakub Machlowski from close range. After this early set back we enjoyed a lot of possession but without ever seriously troubling Kris Smithers in the St Margaretsbury goal. Our best opportunities came when after an excellent build up involving Lucas Ciezarak and Charlie Baverstock, the ball was played into Victor's path but he blazed the ball high and wide and then shortly after Lucas sent a shot just wide of the far post.

Early in the second half, Jakub did well diving to his left to turn aside Maxwell's effort before we equalised in the twelth minute of the half, when Ryan McIntosh's driven corner from the left was volleyed home by Mark Gallagher. This goal arrived moments after Chris Boothe had changed our formation having moved Mark up front to support Charlie. We made our only substitution of the game mid-way through the half when John McKnight replaced Lucas. As the game progressed towards the latter stages, it was clear that tempers were getting frayed on both sides and the referee was finding it difficult to keep control as he issued a flood of yellow cards. At this late stage, St Margaretsbury began to press forward and Jakub made two good saves in quick succession to deny Matt Maskell and Paul Taylor.

Leverstock Green were much the better side in the opening thirty minutes and almost took the lead after five minutes when Steve Flain's in swinging corner kick hit out crossbar. Minutes later we might have conceded a penalty when James Armstrong's cross struck Maradona Mason on the arm, but the referee rules that it was ball against arm rather than the other way around. In what was a rare attack, we could have taken the lead when Chukuroah chasing a long ball from defence shrugged off the attentions of Antony Page leaving himself in the clear but instead of squaring the ball to unmarked colleagues Charlie Baverstock and Victor Osobu, he tried to beat Leverstock keeper Graeme Milner and only succeeded in steering the ball into the keeper's grateful arms. Ten minutes later, from Ryan McIntosh's corner,Charlie saw his looping header hit the crossbar with Milner at full stretch. The home side took a deserved lead after twenty eight minutes when a cross from the right by Flain found Armstrong on the left edge of our penalty area and he stepped inside the challenge of Craig Farrell before steering the ball past Jakub Machlowski. Before the interval, Charlie completely unmarked on the far post headed rather weakly into the side netting from Ryan's cross whilst at the other end, Allan Arthur chasing a pass from Matt Wardle rounded the onrushing Machlowski but his cross into our goalmouth was cleared to safety.

At half time we replaced James Louison with Darren O'Callaghan, but unfortunately Darren was partly responsible for the home side's second goal five minutes into the half. His rash tackle on Armstrong resulted in a free kick being given against us just outside our penalty area and Frankie Jowle made it count, curling the ball over our defensive wall and finding the bottom corner of our net. Two minutes later, Blake Goodman was booked after pulling Armstrong down right on the edge of our penalty area, the referee ignoring Leverstock's claim that the foul was inside the area. Darren almost made amends for his earlier error when he robbed Jowle and sent the ball through to Victor with a clear run to goal but Louis West got back to rob Victor with a terrific retrieving tackle. Leverstock Green should have made it three five minutes before the end when once again Arthur got round Jakub, this time squaring the ball to the unmarked Armstrong but his control let him down and the chance was gone.

The one highlight of the game was the second half appearance of the club's player/manager Chris Boothe who has announced his intention to hang up his boots at the end of the season. After making his first appearance for the club in the 1989/90 season, Boothe scored 99 goals in 153 games before moving on at the end of the 1992/93 season to Farnborough Town where he enjoyed a distinguished career which included an appearance in the Farnborough side beaten by Brentford in a First Round FA Cup tie in the 1995/96 season. Chris had made the odd appearance for the club since and this was his seventh appearance of this current season as he aimed to notch that 100th goal. His appearance almost had a story book ending as his very first touch after he had come on was to head a long cross by Craig Farrell just over the Brimsdown bar.

In the swirling wind and with a light ball, neither side seemed able to produce any cohesive football in the first half and there were very few goalmouth incidents of any note. The only time that Brimsdown looked like scoring in the half was when Aaron Churchouse volleyed just wide after a long cross to the far post by Bryan Taylor whilst at the other end, a neat movement gave Victor Osobu a clear run to goal but under pressure he delayed his shot and when the ball ran loose to Mark Gallagher, a defender blocked his effort and the chance was gone.

Town took the game to their opponents in the early stages of the second half and they almost took the lead when Gallagher just failed to get a touch to Charlie Baverstock's low cross into the Brimsdown box. The Brimsdown keeper was then called upon to make his only serious save of the game when he dived to his right to hold Blake Goodman's header from Ryan McIntosh's free kick. On the hour mark a shot from Churchouse drifted just wide of Jakub Machlowski's far post after a good interchange of passes with Ashley Taylor-Forbes. This was virtually the only contribution in the game by the latter who remained under the firm control of Goodman and Maradona Mason throughout. Other than Boothe, Town introduced Keith Rowlands and Danny Edwards to the fray in the latter stages as they varied their attacking options but the game petered out into a tame draw. A fair result as neither side really deserved three points.

We got off to the worst possible start when the home side scored through the prolific Kevin Cooper after just two minutes. After Attila Korsovecski was fouled out on the left, Lee Roberts floated a dangerous free kick into our area which Paul failed to reach as he left his goal line and Cooper scrambled the ball home from close range. Hertford were looking very dangerous in these early stages but having weathered the storm we fought back well and equalised when Mark Gallagher robbed Hertford's Glen Draper and fed Lucas Ciezarak. Lucas found Charlie Baverstock with a good through ball and Charlie drilled the ball across Mark Virgo in the Hertford goal into the far corner of the net. This goal gave us great confidence and we began to enjoy more of the game, although we looked vulnerable at the back with Cooper a constant danger. We missed a gilt edged opportunity to take the lead on the half hour mark when Darren O'Callaghan's cross found Charlie completely unmarked two yards from goal but Charlie missed the ball completely. Minutes later Victor Osobu hit the crossbar although his effort would have been ruled out for offside.

We were forced into as change at the interval with Blake replacing Maradona who had picked up a knock just prior to half time. Goalmouth incidents became very scarce with both sides battling it out in mid-field but we were again enjoying the greater amount of possession and looking the more likely side to break the deadlock. Charlie went close to putting us ahead and then Gallagher who was impressive throughout brought a fine save out of Virgo as we pushed men forward in an effort to find the winner, but we were caught out with just a minute remaining when Victor instead of laying the ball off to better placed colleagues was dispossessed on the edge of the Hertford penalty area and a long ball forward found Roberts who finished in style, driving the ball past Paul much to the delight of the Hertford crowd, particularly a group of former players who had been invited along to celebrate Hertford's centenary season.

The game itself was hardly a classic on the hard bumpy surface and it is difficult to recall any moments of real footballing skill through the ninety minutes. We took the lead after thirteen minutes and the goal aptly summed up the game. Ryan McIntosh's flighted free kick towards the far post was headed back across goal by Blake Goodman and Mark Gallagher scrambled the ball past James Harry from close range, Harry getting his hand to the ball but unable to stop it from crossing the goal line. Ruislip's direct style of play was more suited to the conditions than our attempts to put our foot on the ball and try to play some decent football and it came as little surprise when they equalised following a long throw in by James Kelsh into our goalmouth. Jakub appeared to be impeded as he came to punch the ball away and was left helpless as Anthony Baker volleyed home from point blank range. Just before the half time whistle we almost regained the lead when Mark shot across the face of the Ruislip goal from close range.

Both sides used all three of their substitutes in the second half and all three of ours had a significant part to play. Almost as soon as he came on Michael Chukuroah found himself through with only the keeper to beat but his first touch let him down and Harry was just able to parry his shot for a corner. Seven minutes from time, an excellent move between Michale and Lucas Ciezarak set up a gilt edged chance for the second of our substitutes Abidan Lewis but with only Harry to beat he side footed the ball weakly goal wards giving the keeper the opportunity to dive to his left to save. Two minutes from full time, the referee rather harshly adjudged that former Town player Kevin Dobson had fouled the third of our substitutes Danny Edwards and from Danny's resultant free kick, Michael steered his header across Harry for our winning goal.