Posted by Padz on March 9, 2008, 5:56 pm, in reply to "Re: City 1-2 Godalming Town: A View From The Terraces"
He's still playing for Slough on saturdays, but he's signed hellenic forms for Kidlington.
--Previous Message--
: I see from the Hellenic wbsite that Lee
: Rendell has signed for Kidlington.
:
: --Previous Message--
:
: City were lacklustre in the first half and
: to be honest could easily have gone in 3-1
: down. Second half was better, especially
: after Gardner came on. His passing made a
: difference--before that City were giving
: away possession too easily. His return was
: the only really bright spot today. I don't
: agree with Padz about Leon, though. He
: wasn't great today, but neither were quite a
: few others...and overall I think he's done
: quite well. But I'd like to see Lee Rendell
: back in a City shirt.
:
: Our real problem this season has been
: scoring goals. Compare our tally with Didcot
: and Farnborough, both of whom hit five again
: today, and you can see why they're at the
: top. We've been unfortunate in losing our
: three most creative, dangerous players in
: the middle of the season--McSporran, Anya
: and Gardner. Anya has gone and McSporran
: looks like being out long-term. Their
: replacements have worked hard, especially
: Michael Lyon, but they are not worrying
: defences as much as the others did, and not
: so many chances are being created. It looks
: like we need to aim for a play-off spot now,
: but Fleet are going through a bad patch too
: and we must recall that we'd gladly have
: settled for third position in March when the
: sesason began.
:
: I don't agree
: --Previous Message--
: Not for the first time in recent weeks a
: gusting wind made the high ball something of
: a lottery and as early as the first minute
: the visitors benefited as a bouncing ball
: spun loose to a yellow shirt but Andy Gunn
: was alive to the problem and made a good
: saving tackle on Chris Wales.
: As City moved into attack they were often
: faced with line of five across the back of
: the Godalming defence, and it was Steve
: Davis who tested keeper Matt Mann first for
: the home side from a free-kick.
: It was Godalming who were getting the better
: chances in the first quarter, though. Wales
: pushed a shot wideas the ball fell to him in
: the area; Mark Avery got in a good block as
: Graeme Purdy teed up his shot; Steve Smith
: beat away a well-struck effort from Brahim
: Elouhmani; and the same player held his head
: in his hands after an aggressive run at a
: retreating defence ended with his low drive
: crashing back into play off Smith’s
: left-hand post.
: City were finding themselves closed down
: quickly in midfield but at the end of the
: first quarter Michael Lyon spun well off his
: marker and slid a pass through to Yashwa
: Romeo who was fouled on the edge of the box.
: Steve Davis’ free-kick was parried upwards
: and onto the bar by Mann and eventually
: behind for a corner.
: The visitors, belying their unremarkable
: record of only two wins on their travels
: this season, continued to test the City
: defence and on the half-hour Elouhmani was
: again given too much space, but chose to
: shoot from distance when he might have done
: better to have taken the ball on further.
: Five minutes later though Town moved in
: front when a sliced clearance was returned
: from the City left to the far post and
: Purdy ’s leap just beat Smith and his header
: found the far corner of the net.
: Godalming had their tails up and twice went
: close in the next five minutes. Purdy
: released Elouhmani and just failed to get on
: the end of the return pass; and then Haddad
: picked out Elouhmani whose headed pass was
: struck straight at Smith by James Mariner
: from ten yards.
: City gave themselves a lifeline with five
: minutes of the half remaining when Lyon won
: a tackle in midfield and Romeo raced onto
: his pass to finish well with a precise shot
: across Mann and into the net.
: Just as the queue for the bacon rolls was
: beginning to form Godalming pulled
: themselves back in front as captain Richard
: Taylor stole a few yards for a throw-in on
: City’s left flank and his long throw seemed
: to catch the home defence flat-footed as
: Purdy jumped and back-headed the ball over
: Smith and beneath the bar.
: And matters almost got even worse as another
: projectile from Taylor found Elouhmani in
: the area and his shot on the turn was only
: just smothered at the base of the post by
: Smith.
:
: HALF-TIME : Oxford City 1-2 Godalming Town
:
: A long cross from James Saulsbury gave Lyon
: a chance soon after the break, but his shot
: was scrambled away quickly and worked to
: Elouhmani whose run on goal was stopped at
: the last moment by a fine tackle from Mark
: Avery; and Andy Gunn had to time his tackle
: to perfection five minutes later as Purdy
: broke through.
: Jon Gardner, on in place of Steve Davis for
: his first game for several weeks, hit a long
: pass that Lyon controlled well on the run
: and sprinted on to play the ball in for
: Romeo by the near post, but his strike span
: up and was eventually cleared to safety.
: Darren Pond battled hard around the top of
: the Town box and got Mark Bell in to win a
: corner, and Andy Gunn was only a few inches
: away at the far post from converting the
: subsequent cross.
: And Gunn was in action at the other end
: moments later when he and Elouhmani battled
: for a high, bouncing ball, but, having won
: the tussle, the striker cleared the stand
: from close range.
: The final ten minutes saw City press hard
: for an equaliser, but attacks foundered on a
: very solid and uncompromising defence, and
: the closest that they came to a breakthrough
: was from two Gardner free-kicks. The first
: gave Bell a chance, but his strike cannoned
: of a defender to safety, and the second
: found Mann well positioned to save.
:
: FULL-TIME : Oxford City 1-2 Godalming Town
:
: City : Smith, Saulsbury, Woodruffe, Gunn,
: Pond, Avery, Bell ( Carbon 85 ), Malone (
: Redknap 70 ), Romeo, Lyon, Davis ( Gardner
: 60 ).
:
: City came up against an experienced and
: well-drilled defence today, and found it
: difficult to create any really clear-cut
: opportunities and could probably have no
: real complaints about the outcome.
: An interesting match in prospect on Tuesday
: in the Senior Cup, before a break of ten
: days and then three home league games in
: seven days that could go a long way towards
: shaping the final appearance of the
: division.
:
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