Epsom Eagles 1 AFC Wimbledon Youth 3
West Surrey Premier Elite - Sunday 20 November 2005
The AFC Youth result machine ground out another victory at Alexandra Park to move into third place in the table behind AFC Wimbledon and Woking Cougars. After largely cruising through the first half hour, AFC Youth were then punished for their now trademark wasteful finishing, when the opposition netted with a great strike. The game then degenerated into a battle on a narrow pitch not conducive for good football. Epsom played with tremendous determination and spirit to make AFC fight all the way for the three points, which were eventually sealed with strike inside the last ten minutes from man-of-the match Timi da Silva.
Play began with the Epsom defence having a lot of work to do in keeping the AFC forwards at bay. After 2 minutes a series of short passes sent Troy Murray clear, but with only the keeper to beat he shot narrowly wide. A minute later Sonny Russell made a strong run and went clean through on goal, but the keeper was quickly off his line to block the shot. After weathering the opening onslaught, play switched to the other end, where Epsom would have scored on 12 minutes but for a great saving tackle in the penalty area by Jack Malin on James Stenning. A minute later AFC went into the lead when Timi da Silva received a pass from Troy Murray, and then shot high into the net from the edge of the box. AFC continued to dominate and Timi da Silva went through on goal once again, but this time shot well wide of the target. Any Epsom attacks were dealt with comfortably by the solid AFC defence, which saw Charlie Dennis, Sam King and Jack Malin all on top form. After 21 minutes AFC doubled their advantage when Timi da Silva left the home defence for dead with a run down the middle, and then saw his shot beat out by the keeper, before Troy Murray made no mistake from close range. Three minutes later the Epsom keeper made a superb diving save to prevent James Snishko heading home a corner. There then followed a very scrappy period with the play becoming progessively more physical. Eventually Epsom came right back into the game and pulled a goal back on 33 minutes. James Stenning broke through down the left, and crossed low for Ross Harris to finish with crisp shot into the top corner of the net. The rest of the half was all Epsom, with bungled clearances adding to the pressure on the hard-working AFC defence. During this period, the hosts went very close with three shots that were only narrowly off target.
The second half was riddled with fouls and dubious offside decisions, and completely ruined by the scrappy, unimaginative play of both sides. The midfield was a battle ground with the referee struggling to keep the match under control, and both teams becoming incensed by some of the reckless challenges. Moreover, the ball was in the air are large proportion of the time, and so both defences had plenty of practice with their headwork. Consequently, the opening twenty minutes of the second period produced negligible football, and there was no goalmouth action apart from two long-range Epsom efforts that dipped sharply over the crossbar. Finally on 63 minutes Sonny Russell raced onto a through ball and forced the keeper to make a good save, and in the ensuing scramble Timi da Silva somehow managed not to score from five yards with a shot so weak that it did not even reach the goal line. After this glaring miss, it was not long before William Taylor burst into the penalty area after a run down the right, only to shoot straight at the keeper from ten yards. The game was still evenly contested, but AFC finally sealed the points on 72 minutes when Timi da Silva twisted and turned past several defenders down the left, before cutting inside and firing past the Epsom keeper.
A solid, if uninspiring performance from AFC Youth, with Timi da Silva earning man-of-the-match for his massive contribution, and this despite carrying an ankle injury. There were excellent performances from Scott Fullerton, Jack Malin and Troy Murray, and also from Charlie Dennis and Sam King who dominated the aerial battle with the Epsom forwards. There were also very effective contributions from Sonny Russell and Tee-Jay Ryan in a physical, midfield battle that was not for the faint-hearted.
Reporter's man of the match: Timi da Silva
Team: Nick Greaves; Sam King, Jack Malin, James Snishko, Charlie Dennis; Scott Fullerton, Sonny Russell, Tee-Jay Ryan, Luke Ewing; Timi da Silva, Troy Murray. Sub: William Taylor, Matthew O'Brien, Sahil Patel.