Hanwell Town

ALLIED COUNTIES SUBSIDIARY CUP QUARTER-FINAL
Monday 14th April 2008

Hanwell Town (3) 4 aet 4
Oxford City (3) 4 aet 4 (Forbes 3, 37, 71, Veal 6)
Hanwell won 6-5 on penalties

Oxford City bowed out of the Subsidiary Cup at the quarter-final stage at the end of a long evening at Hanwell.

Anyone seeing that the game ended 4-4 and was only decided on the 9th penalty of the shoot-out will imagine that this was a classic. In fact, the ball spent far too long up in the air, and the whistle sounded far too often, for this to be the case. There was no shortage of effort from all of the players on view but quality was at a premium throughout.

City looked to have sewn the game up in the first six minutes – first Corey Forbes slotted home from Lawrence El-Kassir’s pass, then Forbes set up Rhys Veal for the second. However, City relaxed and Hanwell pulled a goal back in the 12th minute after a good passing move, and were on level terms just after the half-hour from a free-kick.

City restored their lead within a minute as Forbes ran on to a long clearance to finish coolly, but two minutes later Hanwell equalised again from a corner.

City were on top for much of the second half but could not translate their pressure into a goal until Forbes completed his hat-trick with an excellent free-kick from the edge of the penalty area in the 71st minute. Hanwell were content to play long balls and shoot from long range and it looked like City would hold on, until a right-wing cross found a Hanwell substitute unmarked in the 84th minute.

Forbes hit the bar twice in extra time and Kyle Harris seemed to be denied a clear penalty, but there was no addition to the score.

Alex Williams saved two of the first five penalties (as well as managing to score one later on), but City also missed two of theirs. The two teams continued to match each other goal for goal and miss for miss until Hanwell won it on the 9th penalty.

Team: Alex Williams (capt) – James Harris, Simon Reeves, Mitchell Meredith, Craig Duncan – Kyle Harris, Lawrence El-Kassir (sub Richard Higgs 50 min), Luke Carnell, Kieran Collins (sub Alex Eadle 85 min) – Rhys Veal, Corey Forbes

Thame Utd

Allied Counties Subsidiary Cup 2nd Round Monday 7 April 2008
THAME UTD YOUTH (1) 1
OXFORD CITY YOUTH (1) 3 (Craig Duncan 21, Tom Holmes 49, 72)

City progressed in the Subsidiary Cup after running out comfortable winners over Thame United.

The first half was a largely scrappy affair with few clear-cut chances created. The nearest either side came to scoring in the early stages was when Kyle Harris, who was full of energy throughout, charged down a clearance only to see the ball loop over the bar.

City took the lead halfway through the first period when Craig Duncan’s cross-cum-shot from wide left 25 yards out deceived the keeper and sailed into the top corner.

Thame equalised ten minutes later when a right-wing cross was touched in from close range. City’s stand-in front pairing of Tom Holmes and Rhys Veal both saw shots saved towards the end of the half but neither side really created enough to deserve a half-time lead.

The second 45 minutes was a different story. Holmes could have put City ahead before he did make the breakthrough, racing on to a Veal through ball and forcing home the rebound from a tight angle after the keeper had saved well.

Holmes capped an excellent display with his second and City’s third in the 72nd minute, knocking in another rebound after the keeper had failed to gather a Luke Carnell header cleanly.

This was just reward for City who had dominated the midfield in the second half, with Carnell prominent as always, and Kyle Harris and Joe Bull looking dangerous in wide positions. Simon Reeves and Mitchell Meredith were as solid as ever at the back and Thame’s only real chance of the second period came in injury time, when Alex Williams tipped a free-kick over the bar.

The was a good team performance by a hard-working City side, particularly in the second half. They will need to repeat it when they visit title contenders Edgware in the league on Wednesday.

Team: Alex Williams – James Harris, Simon Reeves, Mitchell Meredith, Craig Duncan – Kyle Harris, Luke Carnell, Lawrence El – Kassir (sub Kieran Collins ht), Joe Bull – Tom Holmes, Rhys Veal.