Chishill Soc it to ’em

Great Chishill 2 Eaton Socon A 0

CHISHILL'S first game of 2007 saw them secure a comfortable home win without ever reaching top gear.

A strong wind made playing conditions awkward, but the hosts managed to play some neat football against the wins in the first half.

Their best chance came from Luke Tyler's curling free-kick, and Jonathan Drury also went close early on with a back-post header than went just over the bar.

The defending was solid throughout the first half, and this allowed Chishill to take a deserved lead just before the break when Tyler's 20 yard effort took a wicked deflection to wrong-foot the keeper.

The visitors had their best spell during the opening stages of the second half, and Socon kept Chishill camped in their own half as they searched for an equaliser.

However, Ian Gallagher was equal to their only effort on target, and after that the home side had numerous chances to seal the victory.

Steve McGee curled an effort just over the bar, and his replacement, Peter Jackson, did the same from a similar position.

Oli Fitzgerald blasted an effort over from Jackson's good cut-back and Dan Manning saw a 30 yard effort whistle just wide.

The clincher came with eight minutes remaining when a low cross from the left was poorly cleared, and Jonathan Drury stuck out his right foot to poke the ball home and settle any nerves.

- Chishill are at home again on Saturday, with Withersfield the visitors.

Hempstead United 3 Steeple Morden 1

STEEPLE Morden suffered another setback as they crashed to defeat at Hempstead United.

A bright start by Steeple was rewarded with the opening goal after 15 minutes.

Good work by Dave Watters and Ben Holt down the right flank was capped by a venomous shot from top scorer Holt which flew in from the edge of the box.

The lead could have doubled when a Charlie Prothero header was cleared off the line following a well worked corner.

This seemed to jolt the home side into action and they became much more threatening going forward.

An equaliser followed after a cross from the right wing was met by a firm header which hit the unfortunate Paul Hutley leaving keeper Brian Sarll helpless.

Shortly afterwards Steeple were forced to make changes when the lively Haslop went off injured to be replaced by Joe Morris who was denied an immediate goal by a fine diving save.

The second half was a struggle for Steeple with the home defence standing firm and making a number of vital interceptions.

Hempstead were finding it easier to create openings and after a couple of close escapes Morden went behind when a cross from a tight position on the byline was poked home.

A third always seemed likely and came with 12 minutes to go when Hempstead got in behind the Steeple defence and Sarll was beaten to the ball by the advancing striker, Farrant, who rolled it into the unguarded goal to complete his hat-trick.

The final whistle ended a frustrating afternoon for Steeple who now have a group of teams gaining on them in the promotion race.

Steeple will be aiming for their first victory of 2007 when Eaton Socon are the visitors on Saturday.

Clannad Celtic 0 Baldock Town 0

THE Reds returned to domestic action after two excellent cup wins, but they could only draw a disappointing blank with rivals Clannad Celtic.

Baldock, second in the Premier Division, were up against third placed Celtic, who were only two points behind with a game in hand at the start of play.

The first half saw one decent chance apiece. First the Reds went close when a free kick from Beadsworth was flicked on invitingly by Rusbridge for Nunn.

The in-form Baldock forward lifted his effort onto the crossbar. Rusbridge was the first to follow up, but despite hurling himself at the loose ball, his tame header was well saved by home keeper Tony Caines.

Clannad Celtic had their best chance of the half from a corner, when a home defender rose unchallenged and somehow headed over from six yards.

After the break, the sides continued to struggle with the gusting wind and sticky pitch, with chances very few and far between.

Karl Beadsworth went close at the wrong end as he chased back. With the Baldock defence in disarray, his attempted clearance flew into the side netting.

Holland nearly won it at the death when he was put clear one on one, but just as he went to shoot, a home defender got a toe to the ball and edged it to safety, summing up the match in a nut-shell.

Overall neither side deserved all the points, but Baldock will feel disappointed with their performance after some excellent form of late.

Banyers 5 Trumpington Tornadoes 3

BANYERS jumped four places up the league from second bottom to fifth by beating top of the table high fliers Trumpington at the Eternit ground on Sunday morning.

On a blustery day, Banyers opted to kick with the wind, and the move paid off as they went 1-0 up when Jeremy Clements neatly finishing a good individual effort on the second attempt.

The visitors soon equalised when a striker just got ahead of the centre backs to poke an effort underneath keeper Adrian Pigg.

A 25-yard effort from Neil Smith was handled by visiting defender, with Barry Wood converting the resulting spot kick.

Banyers nicked a third before half-time. A kick from Pigg was headed on by Wood, and Darren Dyer's deft touch set Dave Ratcliffe bearing down on goal, slotting the ball through the keepers legs.

With the wind against them, it was set to be a difficult second half for the hosts, and Pigg was outstanding to keep the Royston side ahead.

Banyers then scored two breakaway goals in quick succession, Darren twice beating the offside trap after through balls from Ratcliffe, and rounding the keeper to put Banyers into a comfortable 5-1 lead.

But Trumpington bounced back with two quick goals of there own. First a route one ball neatly finished off by the pacy striker, and then when Banyers failed to clear there lines a tame effort bobbled past everyone into the bottom corner.