Woodbridge Town Football Club

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 RIDGEONS LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION
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Woodpeckers win by the odd goal in three
Saturday 29th September 2007
Woodbridge Town 2 Histon Reserves 1
WOODBRIDGE could count themselves fortunate to pick up three points from a game that never reached any great heights. Just as the week before in the FA Vase at March, the Woodpeckers won by the odd goal in three without playing to their full potential.
Still, back-to-back wins are not to be sniffed at, especially as the injured  quartet of Jon Bickers, Tony Boto, Ben Garnham and Lee O'Neill were once again absent from the squad.
The turning point came early in the second half when goalkeeper Marcus Garnham produced two saves out of the top drawer to deny the dangerous Robbie Nightingale. Garnham dived to his left to tip an acrobatic overhead kick around the post for a corner and then showed smart reactions to claw away a close-range header following a right-wing cross in the space of just five minutes.
Woodbridge capitalised by going in front after 68 minutes, when Allicion Blake got behind the visitors' defence and cut in before laying the ball back to Paul Hart, who scuffed his shot but the ball fell kindly for Paul Berry to sweep home.
Blake could have all but wrapped the points up three minutes later when Woodbridge were awarded a penalty for a foul by Luke Upcott on Hart, although Blake appeared to be brought down before the ball broke to his fellow striker. Blake's spot kick was saved by Matt Cowell diving to his left and the keeper got up quickly to then block Blake's follow-up from the rebound.
Garnham was called upon to keep the lead intact, saving with his feet from Neil Kennedy's close-range effort, and the only other action of note thereafter came when substitute Liam Hillyard sprayed a good ball out to Ben Seaman, who cut in and let fly with a well-struck right-foot effort that forced Cowell to parry away.
Woodbridge had taken the lead in the 13th minute in their first meaningful attack of the match, Hart skilfully lobbying over Cowell from just inside the area after Jamie Scales had played the ball in behind the defence at the end of a patient build-up by the home team.
However, the lead lasted just two minutes before Nightlingale, who had been denied by Marcus Garnham as early as the sixth minute, did find a way past the Woodbridge keeper, getting goalside of Ben Miller following Russell Short's long ball over the top to run on and finish clinically.
Seaman curled a free kick over the bar in the 20th minute before Mark Roper displayed some good footwork in the box to turn and cross for Blake whose flick went over the bar.
Seaman then turned full back Short, who otherwise kept a tight rein on the winger, and fed Blake who cut into the box from the left but delayed his shot and it was blocked at the expense of a corner.
Berry tried his luck with a speculative effort from all of 40 yards but Cowell saved comfortably before that man Nightingale got away down the left wing and crossed for Dean Bradshaw to volley over the bar from a tight angle.
Woodbridge Town: Marcus Garnham, Arran Sheppard, Mark Roper, Ben Miller, 
Grant Monaghan, Aaron Churchyard, Jamie Scales, Paul Berry (sub Luke Read 85 
mins), Ben Seaman, Paul Hart, Allicion Blake (sub Liam Hillyard 78 mins). 
Unused sub: Tom Ross.

 © WTFC 2007

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