Spitfires grounded as City continue to soar (From St Albans & Harpenden Review)

Spitfires grounded as City continue to soar

11:04pm Saturday 6th March 2010

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Drew Roberts scored his 13th goal of the season and fourth in three games as St Albans City moved to within four points of a Blue Square South play-off place on Saturday with a remarkable odds-defying victory over high flying Eastleigh at a heavily sanded Silverlake Stadium.

Although on the back foot for much of the opening 45 minutes City fully deserved their third successive win on the strength of a resolute team performance built around the phenomenal dominance of central defensive partnership of skipper Ryan Frater and one time Spitfire player Adam Everitt.

Special praise must also go to right back James Quilter, who played with a very sore right foot when he would have surely given the game a miss had Castle’s options not been so limited.

The game itself was close to instantly forgettable but the Saints win merits many accolades. City went into the game without striker Ian Dunn, believed to be the first casualty following one more cut to manager Steve Castle’s playing budget.

Fellow strikers Paul Hakim and Gary Cohen were missing due to business commitments, Cohen will also be absent for City’s next two Saturday matches. Solomon Shields, the Saints February Player of the Month, was out as he sets out on the long road to recovery after suffering a ruptured Achilles.

Just for good measure promising teenager Ross Dedman was sidelined by an injury picked up playing for the Reserves in midweek.

With these absentees coming in the wake of Godfrey Poku and Jonathan O’Donnell’s move to Luton Town, Castle was unable to fill the substitutes bench.

And of the three names listed as substitutes, local lad Harry Wheeler has no experience of Conference South football while former Arsenal youngster Peggy Lokando did not even make it to the ground.

It seemed that City may well be lambs to the slaughter as Eastleigh looked to record a fourth consecutive victory.

Spitfires boss Ian Baird, possibly the most vocal manager in Conference South, made no less than five changes to the side that won at Lewes in midweek including a debut for Northampton Town goalkeeper Billy Lumley.

Homes debuts were given to central defender Luke Wilkinson – who marked the occasion by being at fault for the deciding goal – and substitutes Sam Butler and Lee Roache.

The game began ominously for the visitors with both Rob Magwood and Peter Smith requiring treatment inside the opening four minutes after being smacked in the face by the ball.

Eastleigh appeared lively early on with right sided Shaun McAuley posing most problems, gradually, though, City got to grips with the former Hampton & Richmond man who switched flanks for the start of the second half.

Eastleigh won six corners to City’s nil during the first 45 minutes with the first one, curled in just under the crossbar left-footed by Brett Poate, being watchfully tipped over by Paul Bastock.

But the Spitfires bright start was swept away in the 12th minute when Wilkinson misjudged a high ball and allowed Roberts to seize possession, cut into the penalty area, skip to the right of keeper Lumley and slide a left footed shot low into the centre of the goal.

Eastleigh saw plenty of the ball as they strove to avert a third successive home defeat, during the previous two games at Stoneham’s Lane the Spitfires had conceded an astonishing twelve goals. But for all of their possession the threat to deny City a second win in Hampshire in less than two weeks was minimal.

Tom Jordan headed over from a Danny Smith corner and just over midway through the half Eastleigh skipper Jordan departed on a stretcher with a cut to his lower right leg following a challenge by Roberts, for which the home side received no more than throw-in.

Lumley saved from Roberts with ease before a cut back by Ross Bottomley teed up Smith for a clean strike from 18 yards that Bastock did well to parry to his right and smother before Anthony Riviere could pounce.

On 36 minutes City received what appeared to be a slice of good fortune when a corner on the Eastleigh right by Poate floated over Bastock, struck the inside of the back post and was hammered home by Wilkinson only for referee Antony Coggins to rule out the effort following a foul inside the six yard box.

No City players appealed for a free kick but Bastock later claimed he was fouled by Wilkinson, pictorial evidence suggests the foul may have been by Tony Taggart on James Lindie.

The first half was most noteworthy for City’s dogged determination and this was maintained during a second period that simply refused to flow, but given the Saints disrupted preparations throwing caution to the wind was hardly likely to be their chief objective.

Jake Beecroft epitomised St Albans’ work rate and almost set up a second goal with a clever chip over the home defence that Roberts was quickly onto. Wilkinson and Lumley combined to thwart the Saints leading scorer but a second goal looked to be on as the ball rolled into the path of Lindie only for Wilkinson to recover lost ground and get in a tremendous block.

Eastleigh responded with McAuley sending a tame effort through to Bastock but the tide was turning and the Spitfires no longer dominated as they had before the interval. This fact was underlined by City registering five corners to Eastleigh’s zero.

Eastleigh’s cause was hardly helped by further injuries to midfielders Andy Forbes (knee ligament) and Riviere (ankle). Bizarrely, the home side did not win a free kick in any of three incidents that saw their players leave the pitch with injuries.

Goal chances virtually dried up during the half despite both sides getting in good positions down the wings on a number of occasions.

But the Saints, on two occasions, did come close to adding a second goal during the final minutes. James Fisher won the ball out on the right of the Eastleigh half and played it inside to Beecroft who quickly passed up to the unmarked Roberts.

Unselfishly Roberts tried to set up Chris Sullivan for a simple finish but an over-hit pass led to the former Stevenage Borough player doing well just to win a corner.

Sullivan then forced Lumley into a good diving save to his right with a cracking drive from 25 yards – it was only the fifth on-target effort of the match.

The home crowd, well down on Eastleigh’s average for the season, had been relatively silent until the closing stages when there was a succession of complaints that City were wasting time.

Referee Coggins appeared disinterested in the appeals but it was certainly an unusual sight when City won two corners during added time but declined to put a single player into the home penalty area on either occasion.

Eastleigh: B.Lumley, W.Goodhind, B.Poate, A.Riviere (I.Oliver 67), T.Jordan (A.Cook 31), L.Wilkinson, D.Smith, A.Forbes (L.Roache 50), R.Bottomley, T.Taggart, S.McAuley, subs; S.Butler, J.Matthews.

St Albans City: P.Bastock, J.Fisher, P.Smith, R.Magwood, A.Everitt, R.Frater, J.Beecroft, J.Fisher, J.Lindie, D.Roberts, C.Sullivan, subs; M.Peters, H.Wheeler, P.Lokando.

Goals: 0-1 Roberts 12.

Booked: Goodhind, Riviere, Poate, Magwood.

Referee: Antony Coggins (Bicester). Att: 479.

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