A last minute goal denied the Woods their first point in seven matches and in truth this was a match that where they could have easily taken all three valuable points. The home side were missing top scorer Anaclet Odhiambo as well as goalkeeper Sam Warrell while Northwood had Myles Stephenson restored to the front-line while Jamie Doolan replaced Dan Taylor at right-back.
On a sunny day but with a strong breeze, the Woods started the game really well and after just three minutes Stephenson nodded down an Andrew White cross and Joakim Ehui should have pounced but failed to get a shot away. After eight minutes another good ball from White put Stephenson through on goal and he held off his marker before poking a shot through the goalkeepers legs only for the ball to come back off the post and cleared away.
Ehui was doing well down the right flank and put in a couple of tempting crosses but without reward while the home side notched their first effort on goal after 15 minutes as Jamie Coyle had a shot well saved by Borja Loeches-Teixeira. The Woods continued to push and from a well-worked corner, White picked out Malachy McGovern and the 16-year-old headed goalwards only for the ball to be cleared off the line by Jack Quainton.
On the half-hour another good ball from midfield put Stephenson through again, this time down the centre and he should have scored but in fact saw his effort blocked by the oncoming keeper Bojan Tetek. The home side still looked dangerous, especially from Coyle down the left but Jack Dunmall lacked a finish after being put through with the Woods ‘keeper saving comfortably.
Kidlington had skipper Tom Franklin booked for a body check on Kieran Barnes but from the resulting free-kick, Louis Bircham’s effort was too comfortable for Tetek. But the home side had a much better chance on 41 minutes as Coyle was given too much room again to square a ball to Mark Janes but he shot wide of the target from a good position as half-time arrived with the score still goalless.
The Woods had the wind at their backs in the second half as they looked to continue the pressure and after 48 minutes Stephenson flicked a header off to Ehui who knocked in an excellent cross which was missed by Franklin but then also by Stephenson as he looked to finish from just inside the box.
Suddenly, Kidlington began to get more into the game and Loeches-Teixeira was out quickly to save from a Janes strike. The home side continued to enjoy a good spell and from a corner on 68 minutes the ball was swung in and defender Tommy Castle rose unchallenged to plant a firm header into the net to give his side the lead.
A rare mistake from James Budden gave Dunmall a great chance for a second but he shot straight at Loeches-Teixeira who saved well. Coyle, who scored four at Northwood Park earlier in the season, went close to doubling the lead after 76 minutes with a crisp strike that clipped the crossbar.
But the Woods continued to battle hard and they should have been level when Bircham broke into the box from the right after 83 minutes but he chose to pass rather than shoot and the net failed to bulge. However, just two minutes later another good attack saw Stephenson fire for goal and this time he got lucky as the ball deflected sharply past Tetek for an equaliser.
A point would have been a good one for the Woods but it was not to be. In the final minute of normal time a long ball saw Loeches-Teixeira out of goal to head clear and although he was knocked to the ground in the follow-through it went unseen by the Referee as Dunmall got to the loose ball first and chipped it neatly past the back-tracking Budden and into the empty net.
It leaves the Woods just nine points clear of second from bottom Histon with five games to play for both teams. They are all tough ones. Northwood face Farnborough, Marlow and AFC Dunstable at home while travelling to Beaconsfield Sycob and Hanwell Town. Histon are away to Ashford Town (Middlesex), Farnborough and Kempston Rovers while they play hosts to Uxbridge and Bedford Town. The Woods need to start picking up some points. |