Brockham Badgers U11A found an early Saturday morning break in the rain to beat the weather and play their local derby with league leaders Leatherhead Youth. Both teams played well and put on an enthralling match of high quality to compensate for the damp conditions.
Brockham edged the first half with good possession, Louie Darlington and Owen Knowles in particular showing great awareness and composure to control the game from central midfield. Leatherhead were frustrating their hosts however, particularly in full back positions where they did well to blunt what is normally very sharp wide attacking play from the Badgers.
Brockham looked the most likely to score, both Callum Holder and George Wryde having a couple of decent chances each, and so it was the black and whites that took the lead shortly before half time. Joseph Rabbetts received from Knowles and cut the ball inside and square to Wryde who had followed the play down the left. Wryde struck a peach of a shot first time with his left, powerfully driving the ball over the advancing keeper with enough dip for it to fly under the cross bar.
The second half was also a close affair but Leatherhead began to exert more pressure. Nathan Page and Huw Morgan’s performances in central defence and goal respectively were critical, and when called upon they delivered, giving Brockham enough to stay a nose ahead in the game. Leatherhead hit the cross bar, Brockham hit foot of the post, Brockham then put the ball in the net from an off-side position, and the ball narrowly avoided crossing the Brockham line when Leatherhead whipped it across goal without a touch from the crowded area.
The last five minutes were nail biting, so when Leatherhead won a corner after a minute into stoppage time, the outcome was written in the clouds. The first delivery was cleared for a second corner. The second delivery cleared for a third. When the referee indicated it was all over once the corner was delivered for a last time, Brockham parents couldn’t look. The inevitable transpired. The best delivery of all three corners put the ball into a dangerous area. Morgan met the ball first but it dropped into the area where a scramble involving four players saw the final strike from a Tanner push the ball over the line for a last gasp equaliser.
Man of the Match: Luke Page
