Match Report: Basingstoke Town 0 – 1 Northwood Fc Saturday 15th October 2022

Isthmian South Central Division – Saturday 15th October 2022
Basingstoke Town 0 v 1 Northwood Attendance 470
Where: Winklebury Sports Complex, Winklebury Way, Basingstoke. RG23 8BF
Stoke go down to solitary goal from the penalty spot against Northwood.
Dan Brownlie’s line-up for the Northwood game was: 1. Mark Scott, 2. Ben Mason, 3. James Haworth, 4. Stefan Brown, 5. Scott Armsworth, 6. Billy Upton, 7. Bradley Wilson, 8.James Clark, 9. Ezio Touray, 10. Ashleigh Artwell, 11. George Reid,
On the bench: Brody Peart, Callum Winchcombe, Dan Williamson, Nathan Smart & Anton Rodgers
Referee – Steve Hawkes

It was Northwood who kicked off this Saturday afternoon game, attacking the carpark end and they win a throw-in down the left-hand side, and it becomes noticeable, they have a player who can throw the ball forty yards into our penalty area, as we scramble the ball away.
We win a corner in the fifth minute, which is taken short and James Clark sends over a cross that is half-cleared to George Reid, whose shot is mistimed and Northwood are able to clear to the halfway-line.

On nine minutes Northwood break down the right and their forward cuts inside and shoots, but is dragged wide of the near post.
Some strange refereeing decisions over the next few minutes is a fore-runner for the whole game.
Northwood then attack on 15 mins and the ball pings from one side of the penalty area to the other, as we struggle to clear the ball.
Another Northwood attack has their player send a cross straight into Mark Scott’s hands.

Ben Mason wins a corner down the right in the 22nd minute, and the kick is falls to Upton whose shot is heading wide, as Northwood scramble the ball clear.

Another attack from man-giant Ibie down the right, but his cross flies across the face of the goal and out for a goal-kick.
Northwood continue to push forward and Scott makes a solid punch clear from a dangerous cross.

Stoke are unable to hold onto the ball in Northwood’s half which allows them to break again down the right and further crosses from Ibie are either blocked away, or are hit straight to Scott who catches the ball.

We have our first shot on target on 36 mins, as from a free-kick, which is cleared we come forward again and the ball is slipped to Artwell, whose shot is not hit with much power and the Northwood keeper makes the save.

We move into the last couple of minutes of the first-half with neither team creating anything of note, although Northwood have had more crosses into out penalty area, that we have dealt with to-date.
The referee allows just over a minute of added-time before he blows the halftime whistle.

Halftime – Basingstoke Town 0 v 0 Northwood
The game gets back underway with both teams struggling to create anything.

Then on 49 mins, Northwood attack and a neat one-two has their forward breaking into our penalty area and a tackle brings him down and the referee despite calls for an offside are ignored as he blows for a penalty spot. It is Ibie who sends Scott the wrong way and we trail one-nil. Scott Armsworth is booked.
Two minutes later, Northwood miss a guilt-edged chance to make it two.

Then on 58 mins, we create our best chance of the game as we break through Ezio, who hits a left-foot shot, that beats the keeper but hits the far right-hand post and bounces away.

We have another shot on the hour, but it’s easily held by the keeper.
James Howarth then goes in the book for a culmination of tackles.
Very little to note and we make our first change on 68 mins, with Anton Rodgers replacing Ashleigh Artwell.

Then on 72 mins Northwood create another chance and Scott gets a slight touch to the ball and the ball hits the bar and flies away.
Minutes later, they break once more through Ibie who sends over a dangerous cross that Armsworth at full-stretch is able to hook the ball away for a corner.

We clear from the corner, but a minute later a mis-timed tackle from Haworth should surely be a second yellow, but the referee somehow does not book James and he stays on the pitch.
Northwood break again but Ben Upton makes a timely interception.

On 82 mins we break down the right through Ben Mason, who sends over a cross that Ezio just fails to get a touch too, and the ball rolls out for a throw-in on the far side.

We then make a double substitution on 83 mins, as Brody Peart replaces Stefan Brown, and Callum Winchcombe replaces James Haworth.
Northwood seem able to waste the next few minutes, with little care of the referee.

Then on 90 minutes, we break down the left, and the ball finds Ezio in front of goal who turns and hits the ball but it is blocked up in the air, and Ezio hooks a shot on the outside of his right-foot and the ball flies a yard over the bar.
Wilson tries to create another attack, but the Northwood defence see the ball out for a goal-kick.

The referee plays six minutes of added-time before he blows the full-time whistle.

Full-time Score: Basingstoke Town 0 v 1 Northwood
                                                                  Ibie 50 (Pen) mins
Match Thought’s
Stoke created very little until we went behind and apart from Ezio’s shot that rebounded unluckily away off the post and his late shot over the bar, Northwood pretty much kept us in check for the whole game. For parts of the game we could not control their forward Ibie on the right, but the defence and Mark Scott in goal kept us in the game.
It is clear we badly need some midfield players back for next week.
Up Next:
We open our account in the Velocity Cup as we have our fifth consecutive home game as we host fellow league side Binfield this Tuesday evening, with the usual 7.45pm kick-off time.

Match Report by Martin French..