Match Report: Tooting & Mitcham Utd 2 -3 Basingstoke Town Saturday 4th February 2023

Isthmian South Central Division – Saturday 4th February 2023
Tooting & Mitcham Utd 2 v 3 Basingstoke Town Attendance 281
Where: Imperial Fields, Bishopsford Road, Morden, Surrey SM4 6BF
Stoke Pushed All The Way, But Leave Tooting With All Three Points
Dan Brownlie’s line-up for tonight’s game: 1. Paul Strudley, 2. Ben Mason, 3. Callum Winchcombe, 4 Ben Cook, 5. Billy Upton, 6. Scott Armsworth, 7. Bradley Wilson, 8. Simon Dunn (Capt), 9. Paul Hodges 19. Sam Argent, 11. George Reid
On the bench: D’Andre Brown, Brody Peart, Marcio Neves, Nathan Smart & Markus Johnson-Schuster
Referee – Ciaran Fidler

With another large travelling Stoke fans, the game got underway and an early shot by Bradley Wilson goes wide of the left-hand post.

A header by Wilson is comfortably held by the keeper, and Tooting break and spend the next couple of minutes in our half, but a shot flies wide of the goal.

Stoke then start to string some neat attacking moves over the next few minutes and including a chance for Wilson, that he hits straight at the Tooting keeper.
We win two further corners and from the second one, the ball falls to George Reid at the far post, and his shot from eight yards takes a slight deflection, but beats the keeper and finds the back of the net. GOAL ! TMU 0 – 1 Basingstoke Town (George Reid 21 mins)

Then minutes later from a throw-in, the ball is slid to Sam Argent who finds Paul Hodges who knocks the ball home from close range. GOAL !! TMU 0 – 2 Basingstoke Town (Paul Hodges 26 mins)

Then on the half-hour a lovely through ball finds Wilson, but after he initially beats his defender, the ball gets tangled under his feet and the defender is able to recover and clear.

Minutes later Tooting come close when they win a corner on the right. The corner is met by a Tooting header at the far post, who heads it back across the goal, where another Tooting player heads the ball against the underside of the bar, and Stoke are able to kick the ball clear.
Then on the 34 minutes Simon Dunn find Wilson with a lovely through ball finds Wilson, who beats his defender, but the shot again is at the keeper who makes the save.

Then on 40 minutes, Tooting get back in the game, as a good passing move down the left, is finished by a Tooting forward. TMU 1 Stoke 2
Tooting push forward again, but a good tackle by a Stoke defender puts a stop to that attack.
The referee plays two minutes of added-time, before he blows for halftime.

Halftime – Tooting & Mitcham Utd 1 v 2 Basingstoke Town
With no Stoke changes, the game gets back underway and Tooting attack from the kick-off and push forward and on 48 minutes a Tooting player picks the ball-up just inside our half then takes the ball forward and hits a shot from all of 30 yards, that flies and curves past Strudley’s dive into the top of the right-hand corner of the net. TMU 2 v Stoke 2.

They then come forward again and another shot goes in that Strudley pushes away for a corner. From the corner, we are able to defend, but the referee’s whistle has gone and he has awarded a penalty to Tooting. Billy Upton goes in the book. The penalty taker hits the ball low to Strudley’s right, but Struds has guessed the right-way, and gets a hand to it and pushes it away and we are able to kick the ball out for a corner. (54 mins). It’s Strudley again as he catches the corner-kick.

We then have a legitimate call for a penalty as Wilson gets knocked off the ball as he goes past another defender in the penalty area. The referee waves away that call and Tooting clear.

Another through ball finds Wilson on the left and he takes the ball thirty yards to the edge of the penalty area, but two Tooting defenders are able to get back and block and recover the ball.

We have a bit more possession deep in the Tooting half, which results in a Hodges shot that flies over the bar.
We make our first change on 63 minutes with Sam Argent being replaced by D’Andre Brown.

Hodges then receives the ball and then finds Wilson once again on the left, who drives into the penalty area, and then sends a pass over which, Ben Cook is first to and he takes a touch then hits a shot that takes a deflection as it beats the Tooting keeper and finds the back of the net. GOAL !!! TMU 2 – 3 Basingstoke Town (Ben Cook 65 mins)

Very little over the next few minutes as both defences are able to shut out any attacks.
Tooting miss a chance on 74 mins as a shot from a corner rolls wide of the goal.

Scott Armsworth then goes in the book for a tackle (77 mins).
Stoke then have a few bits of possession, in Tooting’s half as we move into the final ten minutes of the game.

Brody Peart is our second substitution on 85 minutes, replacing George Reid, and Aaron Nicholson goes in the book, presumably for something he’s said.

Tooting are trying to get back in the game, but our defence is holding firm.
Our final change is Nathan Smart replacing Ben Cook (88 mins)

We are now in added-time and Tooting win a free-kick which Strudley is up and catches the ball.
We are now three minutes in as we edge the play down the left wing, winning back-to-back throw-ins.

Now five minutes into added-time, Tooting look to come forward, but the referee has seen enough, and blows the final whistle, and Stoke head home back to Hampshire with all three points.

Full-time Score: Tooting & Mitcham Utd 2 v 3 Basingstoke Town
Hudson 41 mins & Ceesay 48 mins                       Reid 21mins, Hodges 26 mins
Cook 65 mins

Match Thought’s
A tough game where Tooting got back into the game, and a pivotal penalty save by Paul Strudley, could have turned the game in our favour. Paul Hodges first of hopefully many goals this season and another goal for George Reid, plus a winning goal for Ben Cook, is just enough against a battling Tooting side, who never gave up. Missed chances in the first-half fortunately did not harm us in the end.

Up Next:
We head home for two matches at Winklebury, firstly Saturday’s visit by Marlow, then Chertsey Town on the following Tuesday evening.

Match Report by Martin French..