BEACONSFIELD TOWN 3         HARTLEY WINTNEY 3                         

Rams Man Of The Match: CHARLIE LOSASSO

The phrase ‘a game of two halves’ has never been more accurately used than in summing up this encounter as Beaconsfield Town and Hartley Wintney served up an absolute feast in the pouring rain at Holloways Park.

The conditions were perfect for speculative shots and on six minutes Louis Stead sent one in that narrowly missed the visiting goal. Two minutes later a Charlie Losasso cross picked out Alex Cathline and he saw his effort fly across the face of goal and past Stuart Norman to put the home side one up.

On the quarter hour mark Brendan Matthew was brought down by Norman and ref Steve Rae pointed to the spot. Up stepped Losasso to fire past The Row keeper and chalk up his third goal of the campaign.

A dominant Rams then saw a 20^th minute effort by Matthew cleared off the line by a Row defender before, six minutes later, Matthew let fly from distance and his effort crashed off the underside of the bar and was adjudged to have crossed the line and Beaconsfield were three up. They then should have had a penalty on 35 minutes when Matthew ran through and was taken out. Indeed it looked more of a penalty than the first one but Ref Rea waved play on.

A strangely subdued Hartley Wintney didn’t register a real effort on The Rams goal until the 27^th minute whilst on the 42^nd a diving header by Michael Campbell was well saved by Constable.  Their woes got considerably worse on the stoke of half time when Jack Ball was sent off for pulling back Cathline and the visitors went in at the break a man and three goals down.

Anyone who thought it was ‘game over’ was massively mistaken as the ten men of Hartley took the game to their hosts who seemed split between going for a fourth goal or holding on to what they had but in the end doing neither.

On 66 minutes Josh Webb pulled one back for the visitors when he fired through a group of players and past a seemingly unsighted Constable. Hartley now had the bit between their teeth whilst The Rams were guilty of over playing, particularly in the last quarter. On 84 minutes Baj Pashaj rounded Norman but saw his effort, from a tight angle, cleared off the line – thirty seconds later the ball was in the Rams area where Nic Ciardini was tripped and Tyron Smith slotted home the resulting penalty.

With five minutes to go The Row sensed another goal and they got it on 88 minutes when – after a cross by Pashaj had found Cathline who went down and was then booked for diving – the ball was launched up-field by Norman and met by Ross Cook who held off his markers to shoot home and draw the sides level.

With all the injuries and unavailable players The Rams have at present they would probably have taken a draw prior to kick off. However, to be three goals and a man up, the draw seemed almost like a defeat. Time to pick themselves up, take the many positives from the game and go again at the weekend.

Come On You Rams! 

BEACONSFIELD TOWN TEAM

1. Ravan Constable
2. Omar Vassell
3. Mayowa Balogun
4. Reece Yorke
5. Luke Neville
6. Wes Daly ©
7. Louis Stead (Sub: Nathan Webb, 70)
8. Dan Brown
9. Alex Cathline
10. Brendan Matthew (Sub: Tom O’ Regan, 75)
11. Charlie Losasso (Sub: Bajram Pashaj, 60)

Subs Not Used:

12.  Jerome Eccleston
14.  Stefan Powell

Attendance: 85