Northwood 0 Beckenham Town 1

Saturday 6th September 2025

NORTHWOOD




1	Hafad Al-Droubi
2	Henry Atkinson (84m)
3	Mack Miskin
4	Manny Folarin © (87m)
5	Jack Empson
6	Carl Stewart (66m)
7	Reece Price-Placid (67m)
8	Ademide Baruwa
9	Devonte Totesaut
10	Jon-Jo Bates (77m)
11	Dan Williams
Substitutes
12	Freddie Ford (66m)
14	Osa Otote (67m)
15	Chama Torsiello (87m)
16	Jamie Kennedy (84m)
17	Dylan Kearney(77m)

The Woods passed up a glorious opportunity for further progression in the FA Trophy, failing to break down their Isthmian opponents who played for virtually the whole second half a man short.

Having been without a game since Bank Holiday Monday, the Woods had a much-fuller squad to choose from and there was a place in the starting line-up for a returning Dan Williams, golden boot winner in 2023-24, following his spell at Bedfont Sports. Devonte Totesaut started in preference to Dylan Kearney while Hicham Bouchareb was ruled out by a late fitness test.
The visitors had a squad packed with experienced players but, like Northwood, had made a slow start to the campaign and were also looking to record their first-ever FA Trophy win at their fourth attempt since rising to Step 4 football.

There was a very scrappy start to the game with neither side able to establish an advantage and there were a series of free-kicks for little niggly tackles from both sides in the opening fifteen minutes. While the Becks forced a couple of corners, they came to nothing while the Woods attacks ended with poor crosses into the area. That changed on 18 minutes when the visitors managed to take the lead with the first real effort on goal. A Jack Empson clearance was picked up by Freddie Nyhus deep in his own half and launched forward. Ace striker Louis Theophanous timed his run perfectly to take him past a static Woods back-line and with only Henry Atkinson able to get in a challenge, the Becks number nine controlled the ball and stabbed it past a stranded Hafed Al-Droubi.

Otherwise, both defences appeared to be on top as the half progressed with skipper Jack Holland dominating everything aerial for the visitors but Beckenham did go close to grabbing a second goal after 27 minutes. Sam Wood made a clever run into the box to lay off a cross from the left and Mark Marshall made space for a left-footed strike from just outside the box that crashed back off the bar.

PHOTOS by James Brown

Again, the play reverted to a battle, youngster Henry Atkinson was having his own contest keeping Abel Vendrells at bay as he attacked down the left, and doing well, but the Woods were unable to threaten in the final third.

They finally forced goalkeeper James Batt into a save just in 45 minutes when Totesaut spread a ball wide to Reece Price-Placid and he cut in to hit a low, left-footed shot that saw Batt dive to his left to push the ball wide of the post. Then, in just about the final seconds of the five additional minutes, a Carl Stewart ball crept through the Becks defence and Jon-Jo Bates hit a first-time strike across the ‘keeper who managed to push it away. It looked like falling kindly to Totesaut who was following in but somehow defender Casey Dudley was just able to do enough to put him off.

As the second half started, it seemed the Woods would need a different strategy if they were to get back into the game but just three minutes in, Dudley blotted his copybook, first with a stray pass and then with a lunging challenge to prevent Price-Placid from breaking through which was adjudged as serious foul play by the referee so was shown a straight red card.

Plenty of time for the home side to take advantage of the extra man, though from the free-kick, pumped down the middle, Manny Folarin and the goalkeeper collided with the Woods man receiving the first yellow card of the game.
Within a minute, Beckenham could have doubled their lead with Al-Droubi caught by Theophanous in two minds while attempting to clear a back-pass, Marshall picked up the loose ball and knocked it into Theophanous who missed the target but an offside flag saved his blushes.

The Woods first chance of the second-half came when Al-Droubi got an angled pass right and it sent Price-Placid past his marker on the left and into the box but his shot flew well over the target. Northwood were working hard, looking for a way through the Beckenham defence and Bates picked up a yellow card when trying to nick the ball off Elliott McKimm just outside the box. But the quality of passing was missing until Ademide Baruwa managed to thread one through to Price-Placid again. His cross picked out Williams but his header was merely glanced well wide.

Fresh legs were introduced in Freddie Ford and Osa Otote while there was an undeserved booking for Jack Empson when Theophanous simply slipped over just inside his own half as the game still struggled for any quick tempo.
Otote found some joy with a run into the box after 70 minutes but his cross was kept out by Batt at the expense of a corner but that came to nothing and then Kearney was brought on to bolster the attack with Bates making way.

Seven minutes later, Dan Williams sent over a cross from the right which was only half-cleared and Mack Miskin pou nced on the rebound to shoot but Batt did well to push his effort over the bar, the Woods best effort to date. But Beckenham’s ten-men continued to do their job well, breaking up play whenever possible and holding onto the ball when on their counter-attacks, which restricted the Northwood attacks. Otote looked the most dangerous when he drove into the area but a final pass, or shot, was lacking.

Time was ticking on and the Becks almost made the game safe as a lovely cross from Marshall picked out George Porter who headed down and goalwards but Al-Droubi did really well to palm his effort wide of the goal but the visitors had still done enough to win the tie.

REPORT by Alan Evans



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