Three Horseshoes - League (14/12/2008)
2008 - 2009 Season, Afc Hithercroft



At the Hazlemere Rec the pitch was very muddy with water being swept from the kick-off point before the game could commence. The weather began overcast but then the sun broke through but it remained very cold throughout. The referee was Mr Ray Solomons, Shakib Latif ran the line for Afc Hithercroft and Phil Lines carried the flag for the Shoes.

The game got under way at 10.32am and within the opening minute the referee spoke to the Shoes’ No.7 following a foul tackle on Ryan Forbes. In the 9th minute there was a race to the ball between the Shoes’ No.9 and Hithercroft keeper Neil Stretton; Neil raced to the edge of the 18-yard box and hit a powerful clearance but the ball struck his opponent on the chest and rebounded high over Neil’s head into the goal to give Shoes an early 1-0 lead. Afc Hithercroft continued to attack and were awarded a number of free-kicks following foul tackles by the Shoes’ players but had few shots on goal. The Shoes’ No.7 received a second warning from the referee following another foul tackle on Ryan. In the 19th minute the No.7 had a shot at the Hithercroft goal but the ball hit the crossbar. The home side continued to have a number of off-target shots at Hithercroft’s goal and, on the rare occasions that the visitors had scoring opportunities they too hit the ball wide of the target.

At 11.22am the second half began with Hithercroft now playing downhill on the slight slope. In the 46th minute Baz David received the ball and hit an 18-yard shot that passed just outside the top left-hand corner of the Shoes’ net. Then, 3 minutes later following a free-kick to the Shoes, Gary Lines hit a 25-yard shot through a cluster of players and the ball found the back of the net to put the Shoes 2-0 ahead. At this point Niko Catigoudis went on to replace Zeesham Ullah and, within minutes headed a Baz cross over the crossbar. On 54 minutes Hithercroft put themselves on the score sheet when Baz sent the ball into the middle from out on the right and Ryan struck the ball into the net. The Shoes’ players were complaining to the referee that he should have stopped the game before the goal was scored as one of their players had gone down but they ended up with one of their players being booked for protesting too persistently. Following a ‘ball-to-hand’ incident the referee awarded a free-kick to the Shoes 25 yards out but the No.10 hit the ball wide of the goal. However, the referee said that they should have waited for his whistle and ordered the kick to be re-taken! Fortunately nothing came of this second chance. In the 62nd minute Shoes made a substitution sending on No.11 to replace their No.9. In the 70th minute Baz crossed in a high ball from the right and Frank Smith, about ten yards from the goal-line, mis-hit a shot wide of the goal with only the keeper to beat. The referee then had occasion to speak to a Shoes’ player and, whilst doing so, their No.5 was shouting and swearing at his own team’s supporters earning him a talking-to as well. On 84 minutes Hithercroft sent on Jamal Blake to replace Ryan. Baz sent a ball into the middle, the keeper blocked the ball but Jahmel Sutton put the ball into the net to level the score at 2-2. Shoes made a substitution three minutes later replacing their No.2 with No.14. Hithercroft continued to put pressure on the Shoes’ goal but their shots were again off-target. On 90 minutes Shoes had a shot rebound from the Hithercroft goalpost and, as the visitors failed to clear the ball from the 18-yard box Paul Pigeon hit the ball into the net to give Three Horseshoes the winning goal.

Hithercroft scorers: Ryan Forbes (54m), Jahmel Sutton (84m)

Hithercroft team (starters): Neil Stretton (GK), Luke Revell, Kris Clark, John Harry, Ross Drabble, Dan Allman, Ryan Forbes, Frank Smith, Zeesham Ullah, Baz David, Jahmel Sutton (capt)
Hithercroft subs: Niko Catigoudis replaced Zeesham Ullah (49m), Jamal Blake replaced Ryan Forbes (84m), Shakib Latif (unused)