Former Woods striker Ryan Debattista came back to haunt his former club with a remarkable hat-trick that turned this BigFreeBets.com League Cup tie around in the final dozen minutes. With a League meeting between the two sides coming up at the weekend, this midweek hors d’oeuvres was played in incessant rain. Borja Loeches-Teixeira came in for his first game of the season between the sticks for Northwood while there was a first start for Tom McDonnell in midfield while Egham, under the management of former Woods players Chris Moore and Wayne Carter, rested a number of players.

The game took a while to warm up and it was Ryan Phillips who was first to record a shot on goal with a speculative strike that sailed well over the bar. A few minutes later Tayshan Hayden-Smith combined well with Mahlondo Martin with a dangerous cross being cleared for a corner. Hayden-Smith was also the first player to find the target with a 26th minute strike that forced goalkeeper Patrick Ohman to push the ball out and it was cleared to safety.

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Unfortunately the Woods lost Pat Adamson to injury, replaced by Pat Kelly and right-winger Kyjuon Marsh-Brown almost took immediate advantage when racing down the flank, cutting in but his eventual shot lacked the power to beat the Woods ‘keeper. Loeches-Teixeira pulled off a good save from a Mitchell Wiseman header after 35 minutes but it was Northwood that finished the half strongly. Evans Kouassi was beginning to make an impression and made space to unleash a shot that took a deflection to flash just wide for a corner. Then Meshach Williams fired a free-kick that had Ohman stretching to his left to push the ball wide of the post.

It took just six minutes of the second half for the Woods to get their noses in front. Kouassi again produced that extra burst of speed in the box which saw him clipped by Wiseman and the same player neatly tucked away the resulting penalty. Four minutes later Kouassi turned provider with a well-worked corner and cross which was headed just over the bar by Tom McDonnell while another cross from Kouassi fell to Hayden-Smith whose shot was well saved by the solid Egham ‘keeper.

Egham should have levelled the scores on the hour when Carter was picked out by a ball from the left but somehow directed his shot straight to Loeches-Teixeira when it was easier to steer it home. It was end-to-end at this stage. Martin curled a shot just over the crossbar and then young striker Jay O’Connell fired over after a good run from substitute Louis Stead who had been introduced at the same time as Debattista on 66 minutes.
Williams did well to find space just outside the box for a shot at goal but only to fire straight at Ohman and after 72 minutes the Woods made a change with defender Tommy Boxer replacing the tiring Tom McDonnell.

Jordan Berry tried a couple of long-range efforts that flew over the top but on 79 minutes the visitors were level when O’Connell crossed again from the left and Debattista showed his typical poachers instinct to flick the ball home. Kouassi tried to get his side back in front seeing one effort blocked and then firing another into the side-netting but in between those Egham had taken the lead, Debattista again tucking away a cross from Phillips.

The Woods gambled to get the equaliser that would have forced a penalty shoot-out but were then made to pay again in the final minute of normal time as Debattista completed an eleven minute hat-trick with a fierce shot from outside the box. The Sarnies now go on to the first round where they play away to Chalfont St. Peter.