Tring were on the wrong
end of a 6-1 hammering for the second week in a
row, and they can have few complaints about the
result, as they were thoroughly outplayed by a
team with better players all over the park, who
are not flattered by their runaway lead at the
top of the table.
Cheshunt had the slope and a strong wind in their
favour during the first half and immediately put
Tring under heavy pressure. They got the ball
forward quickly, were not afraid to attack in
numbers, and it was merely a question of when,
rather than whether the goals would arrive. The
opening goal came in the 15th minute and was the
result of a goalkeeping error. David Clark failed
to gather a corner from the right, and the loose
ball dropped for Ryan Harris to tap in from a
yard out.
Further chances came and went before Cheshunt
doubled their lead on 26 minutes. Steve Wales
sent in a superb cross from the right touchline,
and Harris nipped in between two statuesque Tring
defenders to head powerfully home. It should have
been 3-0 on 33 minutes when the wind carried a
long ball over Gary Donaldson's head to leave
Leon Archer clean through, but he shot wide of
the goal. It was only a temporary respite,
though, as four minutes later Wales struck a
tremendous shot from long range which curled
around Clark's outstretched arm and went in off
the post.
Tring were scarcely able to get the ball out of
their own half, let alone create any chances, and
could only hope that they could similarly use the
conditions to their advantage in the second half.
It turned out to be a forlorn hope, though, as
Tring did not have the desire to get forward in
the same kind of numbers that Cheshunt had in the
first half. Often Dave Butler and Alex Kinsley
were left to battle for the ball alone against
three or four Cheshunt defenders. Cheshunt
adapted their tactics to play the ball more along
the ground against the wind, and continued to
reap the rewards. On 57 minutes Harris got on the
end of a cross from the left to head home for his
hat-trick, and on 65 minutes Archer danced
through the Tring defence before slotting in a
fine solo goal. In the 79th minute David Crate
played a ball over the top to put Mark Seller in
to score the sixth goal within a minute of coming
off the substitutes' bench.
Over the last 15 minutes Tring had finally
managed to get in a few efforts at the Cheshunt
goal, and they were rewarded with a consolation
strike six minutes from time. Kinsley's corner
was headed down by Butler, and Wayne Barber
steered the ball past the keeper. This was a just
reward for Barber, as he had been Tring's
hardest-working player on the day. |
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| Tring Town:
1. David Clark, 2. Joe Gibson, 3. Wayne Barber,
4. Rob Woolfrey, 5. Brian Johnson, 6. Gary Donaldson, 7.
Chris Gibson, 8. Adam Dale, 9. Dave Butler, 10. Alex
Kinsley, 11. Dean Hutchinson. Subs: 12. Steve Groves (for
Hutchinson 71 mins), 14. Dennis Fennemore, 15. Luke Reid,
16. Jack Copson (for Donaldson 64 mins), GK. Lee Turney. Cheshunt:
1. Russell Ling, 2. David Crate, 3. Sam Ledger, 4. Adam
Norman, 5. Carl Ashton, 6. Steve Wales, 7. Ryan Harris,
8. Steve Obeng, 9. Darrell Cox, 10. Leon Archer, 11. Glen
Parry. Subs: 12. Scott Beattie (for Archer 66 mins), 14.
Ross White (for Harris 71 mins), 15. Gavin Conway, 16.
Mark Seller (for Ashton 78 mins), 17. Glen Adams.
Bookings:
73 mins - Tring - Barber (tackle)
Referee:
Dele Sotimirin
Attendance:
47
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