Match Report: Thatcham Town 0 – 2 Basingstoke Town Monday 10th April 2023

Isthmian South Central Division – Monday 10th April 2023
Thatcham Town 0 v 2 Basingstoke Town Attendance 475
Where: Waterside Park, Crookham Hill, Thatcham, Berkshire. RG19 4PA
Stoke Continue To Press Walton & Hersham, After Comfortable Two-Nil Win
Dan Brownlie’s line-up today was: 1. Mark Scott, 2. Markus Johnson-Schuster, 3. Callum Winchcombe, 4. D’Andre Brown (Capt), 5. Scott Armsworth, 6. Nathan Smart, 7. Bradley Wilson, 8. Ben Cook, 9. Paul Hodges, 10. Brody Peart, 11. George Reid
On the bench: Stefan Brown, Simon Dunn, Ben Mason, Sam Argent & Paul Strudley
Referee – Thomas Kelly

Our Easter Monday game got underway with a number of changes to the line-up, and we win a corner in the first minute, after Brody Peart takes the ball down the left and as he cuts inside, he lets a shot fly that takes a deflection off his marker and flies out for a corner. Nothing comes from the corner.

Peart creates another chance on five minutes, but his shot is dragged wide of the near post.
Then on eleven minutes, Scott Armsworth brings the ball deep into their half, then finds Peart on the left, who beats his marker then slides the ball across the face of the goal, but the keeper dives on the ball, just before Paul Hodges gets a foot to it.

Then on sixteen minutes, Thatcham create a chance as they break down the left and a Thatcham forward slides the ball past Mark Scott, but Nathan Smart is there to thump the ball clear.

Stoke then break again, as Bradley Wilson sends Ben Cook away with a neat pass, but as Cook breaks into the penalty area, he hesitates rather than shoots, and then slides a pass across that is cleared by a Thatcham defender.
Another Stoke attack on the twenty minute mark, this time from George Reid, as he drives past two defenders and unleashes a shot that is blocked out for a corner. Again nothing comes from it.
It’s now Callum Winchcombe whose inside the Thatcham penalty area, after his determined run goes takes him past two players, but the ball just doe not sit right, and another defender is able to block the ball away.

Then what we’ve all been waiting for arrives on twenty-three minutes, as a long ball finds Wilson, who takes the ball into the penalty area, then lets fly left-foot shot, that takes a touch off a Thatcham defender and flies past the keeper into the net. GOAL! Thatcham Town 0 – 1 Basingstoke Town (Wilson 23 mins)

More good work by Winchcombe down the left, which is halted by a foul from a Thatcham defender. The kick is a quick one-two from Reid to Cook, who finds space to shoot, but is dragged wide of the near left-hand post.
It’s still all Stoke, as we attack again through Hodges who finds space down the right, and sends the ball cross, but with no Stoke touch, the ball rolls away and out for a throw-in.

Very little over the next few minutes, but another long ball is brought down by Wilson, but just as he looks to shoot, the bumpy pitch does for him and he loses control of the ball.

Johnson-Schuster then goes in the book for supposed time-wasting at our throw-in (40 mins).
Thatcham then win a free-kick a few yards outside our penalty area and it’s Dre’s turn to go in the book. It takes two minutes to take the kick, as Thatcham have moved the ball ten yards to the left, and the referee finally wakes up and moves it back five yards to the right. The kick when takes hits the wall and we clear the ball.
The referee plays two minutes of added-time and then blows for halftime.

Halftime – Thatcham Town 0 v 1 Basingstoke Town
The second-half gets underway and the referee has got his cards out again booking Brody Peart this time.
The referee may need a new pencil, as he then proceeds to book a Thatcham player, then George Reid a minute later for a nothing tackle.
The game may get going soon, but it’s stopped once more for a second Thatcham booking.
With all the stoppages, the game just hasn’t flowed, but another booking this time to Paul Hodges does not help.

The first football action to note is on the hour, as Hodges wins the ball and sends Wilson away down the right, and his cross flies across the face of the goal, with no Stoke player just unable to get a touch to it.

Then Wilson a minute later sends over another cross, but the keeper gets to the ball just before Hodges gets to it.
That’s a booking now for Callum Winchcombe (69 mins).

Still very little action, but Thatcham have a break down the left, but the shot is awful and heads out the ground towards the river.

We make our first substitutions and it’s a double change with Simon Dunn replacing George Reid, and Stefan Brown replacing Brody Peart.
We then push forward and the ball is slid through to Dre who takes the ball into the penalty area, and then gets dragged down, and the referee points to the spot.
It’s Bradley Wilson who steps us and sends the keeper the wrong, as he places his kick in the bottom left-hand corner of the net. GOAL!! Thatcham Town 0 – 2 Basingstoke Town (Wilson 82 mins)

We then make our final change with Ben Mason replacing Paul Hodges (85 mins).
Simon Dunn is the next Stoke player to receive a yellow card from the referee (88 mins).
We are now in added-time, and Thatcham break towards our penalty area, and a shot forces a superb save out of Scott.
The referee then blows the fulltime whistle, and Stoke win again with another clean sheet.

Full-time Score: Thatcham Town 0 v 2 Basingstoke Town
                                                              Wilson 23 & 82 (Pen), mins,
Match Thought’s
A good first-half performance on a dreadful pitch, is more than enough to win today. More importantly is Brad found the net twice. Another strong performance by Brody Peart too.
Up Next:
It’s our last away league game of the season, as we travel to the Channel Islands to take on Guernsey in a must-win game to try and win the league.

Match Report by Martin French..