3/1/00: Ryman League Division Three

Tring Town 0 Corinthian Casuals 1

Tring kicked off the new year, but are still dogged by the same problem they had all of last year, namely scoring goals. Once again they came up blank in this match and a single goal was enough to end their three-match unbeaten run.

Tring put the visitors under some early pressure, and went close on 9 minutes when Steve Bateman headed a free kick across the face of goal, but nobody could get the touch needed to put it in the net. At the other end Keith McLoughlin was being brought into action, having to turn a long-range shot from John Watney round the post on 11 minutes, and tip over a fierce shot from Iain Waghorn on 25 minutes. Tring's best chance of the match came on 32 minutes when Marcus Davis ran onto a chipped pass from Steve Groves which beat the last defender, but Davis shot over the bar with only the keeper to beat.

Casuals scored the goal that was to win the game five minutes into the second half. Tring failed to clear a soft cross, and Micky Owen was there at the far post to fire the ball home. Tring created very little of note in the second half, and it was the visitors who looked far more likely to add further goals, only being foiled by some excellent keeping by McLoughlin on several occasions.

The most notable occurrence for Tring was the appearance as a second-half substitute of 45-year-old Gary Harthill. The legendary striker has previously played for Tring at various times in the 70's, 80's and 90's, and thus joins what must be a very select band of players who have appeared in four different decades for one club.

Team: McLoughlin, Underwood, Groves, Bateman, Bartlett, Davis (Harthill), Gerrard, Boad, Myatt, Walters, Oliver.