16/04/01: Ryman League Division Three

An injury-hit Tring side crashed to their fourth successive defeat at Flackwell Heath in their Easter Monday fixture. Tring were without Tony Cook, Antony Beamish and Alex Kinsley and had several other players carrying injuries on the field.

The damage was done in a ten-minute spell early in the match. On 14 minutes Tring had three chances to clear the ball from the left edge of their penalty area, but each time it was blocked and eventually Christian Bartlett found space to shoot home from the edge of the area. Three minutes later Tring defended a corner very poorly, allowing the ball to bounce inside the six-yard box where Matthew Flint was able to finish from close range. On 23 minutes Tring were caught on the break, and Lee Watson took the ball around Simon Bartley before slotting home the third.

After that, Tring began to settle down and play their way into the match. On 28 minutes Sean Sangster floated a ball into the box which Scott Walters met with a volley that Flackwell keeper Jamie Jackson did well to save. Shortly afterwards Sangster joined the injured list when he limped off and had to be replaced by Steve Groves, but on 31 minutes Tring went close again when Walters got on the end of Mark Underwood's free kick with a header that brought another good save out of Jackson.

Tring continued to play well in the second half, and again almost pulled a goal back on 49 minutes when Walters just failed to make contact with another Underwood free kick at the far post. Bartley prevented Tring falling further behind on 55 minutes when he saved from Jamie Charles at point-blank range.

Tring's resources were further stretched soon after when substitute Groves picked up an injury and had to be replaced by Mark Burfoot. Another chance went begging on 68 minutes when Steve Boad connected with another Underwood free kick with a header that brought the best save yet out of Jackson.

However, a couple of minutes later Tring received a further blow when striker Lee Kelly went down in agony after a challenge and had to be stretchered off with what looks like a cruciate ligament injury. After a lengthy stoppage, Tring had to resume with only ten men, having no fit third substitute.

The match was somewhat subdued after Kelly's injury, and Tring held out until five minutes from time when Charles played a one-two before shooting home Flackwell's fourth goal. Tring's luck was out again in stoppage time when Flackwell's Jamie Cochrane headed over his own keeper, only for a defender to hack the ball off the line and deny Tring even a consolation goal.

Team: Bartley, B.Johnson, Gibson, Bartlett, L.Johnson, Boad, Sangster (Groves) (Burfoot), Hibbert, Walters, Kelly, Underwood.