Match Report: Basingstoke Town 0 – 1 Bracknell Town Saturday 26th February 2022

Isthmian South Central Division – 26th February 2022
Basingstoke Town 0 v 1 Bracknell Town Attendance 802
Where: Winklebury Sports Complex, Winklebury Way, Basingstoke. RG23 8BF
Stoke lose to Bracknell in a game short of entertainment.
Dan Brownlie’s line-up today was: 1. Paul Strudley, 2. James Haworth, 3. Daryl Wollers, 4. Robert Sheridan, 5. Nathan Smart, 6. Anton Rodgers, 7.Bradley Wilson 8. Simon Dunn (Capt), 9. Stefan Brown, 10. D’Andre Brown, 11. McKoy Palmer
On the bench: Brody Peart, Lloyd Snell, Marco Magalhaes-Nevez, Ben Cook & Aiden Lewis
Referee – Roger Ablitt

The game got underway under the sunny sky with Stoke attacking the car park, and there was nothing of note until the fifth minute, when Bracknell attack down the left and a cross finds there no.7 who hits a first time but it’s an easy save by Paul Strudley in goal.
Still very little to note until but it is the visitors on the attack, as we seem unable to build any real attacking moves.
On 21 mins another attack, earns Bracknell a corner down the left. The kick to the far post is headed back into the goalmouth and there was a before Nathan Smart hooks the ball clear.

Stoke are still unable to create any anything of note as we move past the half-hour mark, although Bracknell have had lots of possession, they have created very little themselves.
Simon Dunn goes in the book for an innocuous tackle (35 mins).
Stoke have their first attack of note on 36 mins as a crossfield pass finds McKoy Palmer on the left, who takes the ball past his defender and then sends a left foot shot, although hit well is a couple of yards wide of the left-hand post.
McKoy Palmer then goes in the book.

A couple of heavy tackles by both sides and one on Simon Dunn sees him receive treatment but he is able to continue.
From a Bracknell attack there is a shot that flies over the bar, but still very little action to note.
The referee plays a couple of minutes of injury-time before he blows the halftime whistle and we go into break goal-less.

Halftime – Basingstoke Town 0 v 0 Bracknell Town
The second-half gets underway with Stoke attacking the railway end, having made a halftime change with Dunn being replaced for concussion concerns, by Ben Cook. Nathan Smart takes over the captains armband.

On 48 mins, we lose the ball at the back and Bracknell’s no.11 breaks down the left wing and sends a pass across the six-yard line, but without any Bracknell forward able to get a touch on it, the ball rolls out for a throw-in.
On 53 mins we win a free-kick about 30 yards out. The kick is headed out for a corner by ex-Stokie Dan Bayliss, but there is a delay to the corner, as their no.4 continues to question every decision by the referee. Nothing comes from the corner.

Bracknell continue to push forward but are still being held by Stoke’s back four.
Then on 63 mins their leading goal-scorer Seb Bowerman breaks down the left and sends a shot that finds the far corner of the net and Bracknell take the lead

We make our third change with Marco Magalhaes-Nevez replacing McKoy Palmer.
We have our next attack on 66 mins but Bradley Wilson’s shot is dragged across the face of the goal and out for a goal-kick.

The game continues with very little to note over the next few minutes, as we move into the last 15 minutes of the game.
We make our final change with Stefan Brown being replaced by Lloyd Snell (76mins).
Marco brings a little bit of hope as some nice touches allows him to go past a couple of players, but he then gets fouled. Nothing comes from the kick.

The game continues to drift as Bracknell seem happy with the one-goal lead.
Marco then controls the ball from a Strudley clearance, but gets fouled by Bayliss, who goes in the book. The kick from 35 yards is taken by Anton Rodgers, whose shot although well hit is always going over the bar, without troubling the Bracknell keeper.
We win a corner on 89 mins, but then waste it with a short pass, that then sees an offside decision end the attack.

Now in injury-time, we seem unable to hold the ball in their half.
The referee plays five minutes of injury-time, that has no incidents of note, before he blows the full-time whistle.

Full-time Score: Basingstoke Town 0 v 1 Bracknell Town
                                                                  Bowerman 63 mins
Match Thought’s
Well the rematch was a huge disappointment, with us rarely looking like we would score or create a real chance on goal. Bracknell who were not much better are Champions because they control games and rarely look like conceding a goal. With other results around us, we slip outside the playoff places into sixth.
Up Next:
The third of three key six-pointers as we travel upto Middlesex to take on fourth placed Uxbridge at the Honeycroft next Saturday.