Northwood 1 Guernsey 1
Saturday 12th February 2022
NORTHWOOD | |||
1 | Daniel Hosier | ||
2 | Sam Jenkins | ||
3 | Alex More | ||
4 | Keagan Cole © | ||
5 | Tommy Boxer | ||
6 | Luke Tingey | ||
7 | Kyal Williams (79m) | ||
8 | Teddy Stacey | ||
9 | Josh Helmore | ||
10 | Yiannis Constantinou (66m) | ||
11 | Carl Stewart (89m) | ||
Substitutes | |||
12 | Micah Jackson (79m) | ||
14 | Andy Lomas | ||
15 | Sydney Ibie (66m) | ||
16 | Matt Surmon (89m) | ||
17 | James Gurteen | ||
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Woods extended their unbeaten league run to seven games in a closely fought affair with the Green Lions in the early kick-off at the Fenton.
Northwood shuffled their pack – Yiannis Constantinou and Alex More being given starts with Sydney Ibie and Andy Lomas reverting to the bench, while Tommy Boxer returned to the defence in place of James Gurteen.
The Channel Islanders, who were making their third visit to the mainland in seven days, were quickly into their stride with Charlton Gauvain rattling the woodwork with a long-range shot before Northwood keeper Dan Hosier was quickly off his line to deny Glenn Le Tissier after he was played in by Kieran Mahon.
Guernsey maintained their early pressure with Le Tissier failing to capitalise on a miscued clearance from Hosier as the striker scuffed his shot. But after a subdued start, Woods began to find their rhythm with Kyal Williams beginning to make an impression – exchanging passes with an overlapping More but unable to find sufficient purchase on his shot to trouble keeper Lucas Hanley.
Williams was involved again as he set Constantinou on his way, the latter being forced wide and laying off to More whose low cross was met by Josh Helmore, the in-form striker’s effort being cleared off the line by Gauvain.
Chances continued to be created at both ends, Hosier having to deal with a speculative effort from Ben Acey while Williams executed a smart shot on the turn which was blocked, after good work from Carl Stewart. And Woods produced a strong finish to the opening period as Constantinou tried his luck from distance before the same player released Williams whose low shot was gathered by Hanley.
Photos by JAMES BROWN
The second half was slow to ignite after a flurry of yellow cards for nothing more than a bit of petulance from both sides. But once proceedings settled down, Luke Tingey wasn’t far away with a header from More’s corner while Williams dragged his shot across the face of goal after a neat flick from Teddy Stacey.
Northwood were growing in ascendancy and the slightly overused weapon of Tingey’s long throw into the box almost paid dividends on this occasion as the ball was only cleared as far as Stacey who scuffed his shot when well placed.
But the Green Lions continued to offer a threat as Keanu Marsh fired a shot wide of the far post before substitute Kyle Smith saw his shot saved by Hosier after a quick breakaway following a Northwood attack.
Woods made their first change on 66 minutes as Constantinou made way for Ibie and the hosts renewed their efforts towards breaking the deadlock, Keagan Cole’s goalbound half-volley from the edge of the box being diverted by Jacob Fallaize while Helmore had a close-range attempt deflected wide.
But Northwood finally reaped the reward for an improved second-half performance as they took the lead on 76 minutes, Williams setting up Ibie on the corner of the box, the substitute delightfully sending a curling effort inside the far post for his fifth goal of the campaign.
Micah Jackson was introduced for Williams, who had enjoyed his best game in a Northwood shirt, as the hosts looked to put the game beyond Guernsey. But the Green Lions had other ideas as the Woods squandered possession in a dangerous position allowing Smith to fire in a shot which was deemed to have been blocked by the hands of Sam Jenkins - the wing-back receiving a yellow card for his efforts - before Matt Loaring made no mistake with the resultant penalty kick to draw the visitors level with eight minutes left on the clock.
Matt Surmon replaced Stewart for the final minutes as Northwood summoned up their last efforts to claim the points, the referee turning down appeals for a penalty after Helmore appeared to be impeded in stoppage time – a share of the spoils a fair outcome on the balance of play.
Report by ROBIN PIPER