HEYBRIDGE SWIFTS 0 HORNCHURCH 0

With Richard Goddard out with the injury sustained during the Dover match, Josh Oakley came into the squad for the first time, Frank Curley moved to centre half, and Steffan Ball started for the first time. A strong cross wind made conditions difficult. Urchins wore their all red third strip, whilst Heybridge wore had pink numbers.

Heybridge worked the ball downfield and Brightly saved comfortably from a long range shot from King, and Tomlinson took the throw out from Brightly, pumped the ball up to Parker, who set off on a long weaving run, before slipping the ball out to Green, whose centre was headed away by Everett. Hodges then played a long ball into the middle, where Parker hit in a first time shot which appeared to be touched over the bar, although a goal kick was awarded. A rapid run along the left wing by Wright ended with a timely tackle by Goodfellow, and a Curley clearance to Hodges saw the ball played out to the left to Parker, who was tackled by Hawes. A Hodges corner came to nothing, and a long upfield kick from Brightly found Ball, who quickly controlled the ball, turned and slotted a neat pass to Green, who quickly found Boateng, and Des hit in a shot which Morris-Sanders saved at full length, and from the corner Hodges played the ball deep, and Styles, on the left, fired the ball back into the goalmouth where a further corner resulted, again taken by Hodges, but cleared by King.

A Ball cross from the left found Green, whose header lacked power, and a quick exchange of passes between Styles and Hodges saw Styles’ hard shot hit the bar. When Parker turned and sent Ball speeding away, the defence was opened up but Steffan, with no one between him and the goal, was tripped by ex-Urchin Danny Kerrigan. With the EastSide behind the goal calling for the red card, the referee took a long time to decide, and then simply awarded the free kick, which was probably the correct decision as it appeared to be an inadvertent trip, although one which cost the Urchins a possible goal. Hodges took the free kick but misdirected the ball and it was cleared by Kerrigan, one of two ex-Urchins in the home side. If the referee’s decision was correct, the same could not be said for what happened a minute later, when Tomlinson played a good ball to Parker, who quickly flicked inside to Ball, who was promptly chopped down by Everett. Everett stayed down, and following a lengthy spell of treatment, managed to get off with just a yellow. Hodges hit the free kick into the wall of defenders.

Urchins continued to press, and Ball found Parker who was thwarted by Morris-Sanders who dived at his feet to save. In a rare home attack Wright crossed low into the middle and Brightly saved at the feet of Reddaway. A spectacular run by Wright saw him weave past four defenders, and Brightly again saved at the feet of Reddaway as the ball came across. Nelson headed wide from a corner, and at the other end Hodges put a free kick straight at Morris-Sanders, and then Parker made ground, took a return pass from Ball, and hit his shot too high and over the bar. Parker again, this time finding Boateng, whose shot was touched away for a corner, which Hodges took, but which was cleared comfortably. In the second minute of just two minutes added on, Urchins appeared to have scored. Curley won the ball in midfield, powered forward, found Simon Parker, who raced on, and prodded the ball past Morris-Sanders. The ball rolled goalwards, Kerrigan came in very late to kick the ball off the line and onto the post and it then went out for a corner. Biased Bob confirmed at the interval that it did not cross the line, although from where we sat, it appeared to be well over.

Swifts started the second half in the same way as the first, racing upfield and this time it was Wright who put his cross way over the bar. Urchins looked generally the more dangerous, and Tomlinson found Ball on the left and Steffan cross low into the middle where Parker was just beaten to the ball by Morris-Sanders. Nelson played a long low pass up to Ellis Remy, Purdie tackled, the ball fell to Wright and he quickly touched sideways to Reddaway, and Brightly made a good save from the first time shot, touching out for a corner, and then Dale made another good save as the ball came over, and Reddaway hit the ball hard goalwards. Purdie again tackled, when Tomlinson was caught upfield and Gillespie sped away on the right, and at the other end Boateng took a pass from Green, and his shot forced a magnificent save from Morris-Sanders, who tipped the shot over, and from Hodges corner, Morris-Sanders punched out under pressure from Ball.

Colin called the changes, and Barnard, Wall and Lee came on for Parker, Green and Hodges. Goodfellow went over to left back, Donny to right back, and a 4-3-3 formation, with Tomlinson moving to left half, with Wall, Lee and Ball up front.

Lee to Wall, and a good run on the right, which ended in a free kick, played sideways to Purdie, whose goalbound shot was tipped around the post, with Morris-Sanders catching the ball as Tomlinson floated the corner over. A long kick by Brightly was then backheaded on by Lee and Morris-Sanders just beat Ball to the ball at the edge of the area. Barnard sent Lee away and Morris-Sanders turned the shot out for another corner, and the then again caught the ball as Tomlinson swerved it goalwards. Wall gave Lee an opening, but he hit the ball wide, and a Tomlinson cross found Wall, on to Ball, but the shot was too high. Rushen hit a long cross over the bar for Swifts. And two crosses by Rushen both created danger, before being scrambled away, firstly by Curley and then by Purdie, who needed lengthy attention. Although this was with two minutes to go, the referee added five minutes on for the stoppage, eventually playing eight minutes stoppage time.