Cray Wanderers 5 Carshalton Athletic 4 – Isthmian Premier, Saturday 22nd January – Match Report

Cray Wanderers vs Carshalton Athletic –  Isthmian Premier – Saturday 22nd January, Match Report

 Cray Wanderers                                                        5

Carshalton Athletic                                                  4

 PIcs:  Jon Hilliger/www.hilligerpix.com

Cray Wanderers moved out of the bottom three in the Isthmian Premier after an incredible victory against playoff contenders Carshalton Athletic which saw nine goals shared and a feast of attacking football.  This saw Cray to their first league double of the season.

 It looked like being a tough afternoon for Grant Basey’s side after going 0-2 down in the first 23 minutes to two clinical Dan Bassett strikes. However, the Wands showed fight and heart and Cameron Brodie pulled a goal back on 34 minutes with a terrific finish after a slick passing move.  The two goal lead was restored for the Robins five minutes later as a deflected Bassett shot meant a first half hat-trick.

Cray though were given a lifeline a minute before half time when Chris Dickson latched onto a short back pass and went round keeper Bradley House to scored.  Then incredibly in added on time at the end of the half, Brodie made it 3-3 with a sweet volley just outside the area.

Carshalton went back in front on 49 minutes when Kwaku Frimpong was on hand to divert a Lewis White cross-shot into the net.  Once again though the game went from end to end and on 68 minutes Luca Albon converted Jamie Yila’s cross for his first goal for the Wands to make it 4-4.  Then ten minutes later Cray went in front for the first time when Yila finished clinically after Dickson’s blocked pass fell into his path and fired home down the right.  Cray were able to hang on despite a late scare when Harry Ottaway’s overhead kick crashed into the net but was disallowed for offside.

Cray were looking to build on the point gained from a rather edgy game with Leatherhead on Wednesday night and from the side that started that game there were two changes to the starting lineup. Into the side came Chris Dickson and Jai Reason in place of Erald Desa and Kyel Reid.  Peter Adeniyi’s Carshalton side had won their last three games and had just one defeat in the last eight.  There was one change to the side which won 1-0 at Bowers & Pitsea last Saturday with Paris Hamilton-Downes in for Luke Read.

This was Cray’s fifth successive home league game in January and their fourth in the last two weeks. This looked on paper with respect to be the toughest test against 8^th placed Carshalton and that is how it proved from the opening kick off.

The Robins started in very slick fashion and had a fair amount of possession in the Wands half and in the 4^th minute took the lead.  Ezechukwu Ebuzoeme and Hamilton-Downes combined down the right and the ball came to Lewis White and he set up Dan Bassett who from just inside the area hit a well struck shot which gave Bailey Vose no chance to save.

Shortly after from a free kick just outside the area, White fired in a shot which Vose got down to parry and did well to react as Ebuzoeme looked to follow up before getting clattered.

Cray were just looking to get a foot hold in the game when again down the right, Bassett sent in a cross into the six yard box where White reacted quickly to see his shot well saved by Vose and the ball was cleared.

 A minute later, Cray threatened when Jai Reason played a ball forward looking for Jamie Yila when Bradley House looked to clear and the ball came to Chris Dickson who lifted the ball towards goal and over the bar.  Then Luca Albon fired over as Cray were looking to have weathered the early storm.

 However, in the 23^rd minute, Carshalton went two in front with another well worked goal down the right and this Bassett exchanged passes with Harry Ottaway to break into the area and place a shot wide of Vose into the net.

Cray almost got back into it straight away but down the left Dickson was unlucky to see his lobbed effort cleared almost off the line by Carshalton skipper Paris Hamilton-Downes.

 Cray though continued to try to play football to get back into the game and on 34 minutes scored a superb team goal with at least fifteen passes with Luca Albon heavily involved. The ball came to Reason who played the ball to Albon who then found Yila who strode forward and played a fine pass through to Cameron Brodie down the left of the area and crashed home a fine finish into the top right corner.

Five minutes later and Carshalton showed their quality once again by scoring a third goal when Bassett this time down the left cut inside and saw his initial effort blocked but following up hit a goalbound shot which took a deflection off Freddy Barton and into the net for a first half hat-trick.

 It looked like being a difficult team talk for the Wands management but just going into the final minute of the half Dan Bennett back pass was slightly underhit and Dickson latched onto the pass down the left of the area, went round House and rolled the ball into the net to make it 3-2.

That would have been enough excitement for one half but there was still time for Cray to draw level with an exceptional strike again from Brodie who after good play by Yila laid the ball across to the right of the area towards Reason who left the ball for Brodie to strike a cracking volley which went into the top left corner of the net.

From nowhere and looking down and out Cray were very much now back in the game at the break.

 HT:      3-3

 Often after a high scoring first half the second usually becomes a bit cagey and defensive but there was no chance of that happening in this game.

 Carshalton started the second like the first, on the front foot and Dan Bennett played the ball across to Tommy Bradford who was denied by a great block from Brodie and behind for a corner.  From the corner in the 49^th minute, Carshalton went back in front when the ball was eventually played out to the lively White down the left and his driven cross-shot was tapped in by Kwaku Frimpong.

 Once again Carshalton were just beginning to get on top and Cray survived a penalty shout down the left of the area when White was brought down but was deemed to be just outside the area. 

 Then in the 63^rd minute came another great save from Vose as White set up Bobby Price in the area who looked certain to score but the Wands keeper made a brave stop and two follow up shots were blocked.  Then down the right, Eze Ebuzoeme saw his cross-shot down the right fizz across goal with no-one to apply a touch.

 Those near misses would prove important as in the 68^th minute Cray drew level once more as again down the right Brodie found the pacey Yila who burst into the area and laid an accurate short cross to Luca Albon who did well to place a shot into the bottom left for his first Cray Wanderers goal.

The game was still going from end to end going into the last quarter of an hour and Carshalton came close to scoring a fifth when Ottaway was set up once again by White who hit a near post shot which came back off a post down the left.

 A minute later in the 78^th minute, Cray went in front for the first time in the match when Vose found Dickson who saw his ball into the area deflected and Yila got to the ball first, laid the ball back to Dickson whose shot was blocked and fell invitingly to Yila who scored his tenth goal of the season.

 The question now was could Cray hold on after so many points had been lost late in games but Cray managed to stem the Carshalton tide although Bradley Williams inside the area saw a close range effort blocked by Tom Hanfrey for a corner. The corner kick eventually came to White who hit a shot over the bar.

Then in the second minute of added on time it looked like Carshalton had made it 5-5 when a ball into the area was met by spectacular overhead kick from Ottaway which went into the bottom right corner but the flag was raised for offside which was a massive relief for the Wands supporters.

There was still time late on for Anthony Cook to cut inside the area and saw his effort curl just over the bar with House seemingly beaten.

 In the end the final whistle went on a remarkable game and Cray had pulled out a fine team performance against a very good side with a host of attack minded players to win the game and pick up a big three points.  The win moved Cray up one place to 19^th in the league table on 23 points and now go into a run of three successive away league matches starting at 3^rd placed Lewes on Tuesday night.  This victory should do wonders for the confidence of what is mainly a very young team and the likes of Jamie Yila, Cameron Brodie, Luca Albon, Tom Hanfrey, Freddy Barton and Jacob Munting when he came on all look to have matured years in the last few weeks.    

There are still plenty more games of football still to be played this season but if any are as good as this game (and I remember writing that after the Enfield Town match) then there will be some special games in the next three months.       

Cray Wanderers:  Bailey Vose, Freddy Barton, Richie Danquah, Tom Hanfrey, Kasim Aidoo, Cameron Brodie, Jai Reason (Jacob Munting, 73), Anthony Cook, Luca Albon, Jamie Yila, Chris Dickson: Subs: Erald Desa, Stefan Wright, Emmanuel Oduguwa, Kyel Reid

Scorers:           Brodie 34, 45+2, Dickson 44, Albon 68, Yila 78  

 Booked:         Cook, Yila

Carshalton Athletic:  Bradley House, Bobby Price, Paris Hamilton-Downes, Kwaku Frimpong, Ezechukwu Ebuzoeme (Ronaldo Kapica, 82), Bradley Williams, Daniel Bennett (Luke Read, 72), Daniel Bassett, Lewis White, Harry Ottaway, Tommy Bradford: Subs: Adeyinka Adenyi, Abdul Sankoh, Omar Koroma   

Scorers:         Bassett 4 mins, 23, 39, Frimpong 49

Booked:         Frimpong, Price

  

Referee:   Howard Collins

 Assistants:  Kennedy Kikulwe, Richard Myers               

 Att:      314