Saturday 3rd April

‘Bluefin’ Insurance Brokers Hellenic Challenge Cup Quarter Final

Slimbridge 4-2 Woodley Town
Manager James Cole declared himself 'delighted' by the second half display of his side, which saw The Swans overturn a 2 goal deficit to power their way into the Semi-Final of the Bluefin Insurance Challenge Cup at Wisloe Road.
Trailing at Half Time to opponents Woodley who fully deserved their advantage at the break, the combination of Cole's inspirational team talk, together with some impressive second half finishing from Rob Hine, Ross Langworthy, Ben Wood and Lewis Wilton saw Slimbridge run out 4-2 winners at the final whistle. As the 3pm Kick Off time approached, Slimbridge club officials were still furiously sanding the pitch in an attempt to keep the game on, as the heavy rainfall soaked the playing surface at Wisloe Road. To the credit of Referee Andy Davies, he gave the game the go ahead despite the continuing downpour, but with a warning to both sides that the game would be called off immediately if at any point he deemed that the pitch had become too dangerous for the players. His judgement paid dividends as, thankfully, the rain eased during the afternoon and the tie was completed.

Cole made one change to the side which beat Clanfield last weekend, replacing Jamie Inch with Tom Cole and shuffling his back four, although it took the Swans a while to adapt to playing without their ever-reliable central defender. Initially, Slimbridge made the brighter start to the game, as both Marvyn Roberts and Adam Philp just failed to connect with good through balls early on, while at the other end, Dave Evans was called into action and forced into a brave dive at the feet of Woodley Striker Lyle Smith with 11 minutes on the clock. Both teams were struggling to play any kind of football in the conditions, but Woodley certainly had the momentum of the tie as they harried and fought for every ball, allowing Slimbridge no time to play the flowing football they favour, and which has proved so valuable to them this season. The Swans had the next good chance when Philp headed just wide after a Carter corner was headed back into the box by Roberts on 21 minutes. Woodley Winger Luke Williams was giving Shane Anson a particularly torrid time at the back for Slimbridge, and a good run from Williams a minute later saw Woodley create a good opening from a corner, but fail to take advantage as the chance went begging in the Swans' box. As conditions worsened still further, Woodley again upped the tempo of their game, and began to take control, with the Swans looked increasingly vulnerable. It was not all one way traffic though - Slimbridge also came close to breaking the deadlock when Woods' shot was blocked following a Carter corner after half an hour, but Woodley held firm and looked solid at the back. It was no surprise when two goals in the last ten minutes of the half put the visitors seemingly in control of the tie. Two close range efforts, both of which should have been cleared by the Slimbridge defence, saw Carl Davies (36 minutes) and Tom Williams (42 minutes) send the visitors in with a deserved 2 goal advantage at the break.
Half Time: 0 - 2
The Swans obviously had a strong reminder of their responsibilities during the interval, and started the second half more convincingly. Early in the second half, a Carter free kick saw Rob Hine head just wide of the Woodley goal, but in the 52nd minute, the same combination of players saw The Swans pull a goal back - Carter's corner decisively netted by Hine's powerful header. Following a further series of Slimbridge corners, Woodley broke away and hit back in the 67th minute with a powerful Luke Williams run which was placed just wide of the Swans goal by Tom Williams. As he tried to convert the chance, Williams was involved in a collision with Leon Sterling. Sterling was injured in the challenge and replaced by Ross Langworthy who immediately brought a new dimension to the Swans attacking options, and after Roberts had gone close following a powerful run and shot, a delightful move involving Philp and Roberts saw Langworthy convert Roberts' cross to pull the Swans level after 76 minutes. As both clubs fought to avoid the game progressing into Extra Time, Wilton brought a great save from Woodley Keeper Skinner, while Dave Evans at the other end made an impressive stop to deny Tom Williams, who was still proving very dangerous for the away side. With 6 minutes remaining, it was the Swans who broke the deadlock - some great interplay between Langworthy and Woods saw Woods place his shot beyond the dive of Skinner, and gave the home side the late advantage. Langworthy wasn't finished though, and capped his fine performance with a run down the left wing, which resulted in him playing a great ball to Lewis Wilton, who found some space in the penalty area. Wilton gleefully netted The Swans' fourth goal as the game entered stoppage time, and capped a fantastic second half comeback for the home side.
Manager James Cole said that he stressed at Half Time how important the next goal was going to be, and he confessed himself delighted with the Players' response to his team talk at Half Time. Slimbridge's opponents in the Semi Final and the date of the tie have still to be confirmed. The Swans are scheduled to travel to Lydney Town on Easter Monday (KO 3pm), before making a trip to Trowbridge Town on Wednesday, ending their week of travels at Wootton Bassett next Saturday (KO 3pm).

Slimbridge 4 – 2 Woodley
Town’s Challenge Cup aspirations came to an end at a wet and soggy Slimbridge, where they were unable to withstand the home team’s second half onslaught that resulted in a two goal half time lead being surrendered.
Such was the comfortable way in which Town had controlled the first half, the way the team succumbed was disappointing and out of character when compared to how they have played since joining the Hellenic league.
On a pitch made boggy by continuous rain in the hour and half before kick off, Town started brightly with Luke Williams making light of the playing surface to cause problems on the left flank and with his corner kicks. Name sake Tom Williams shot wide on seven minutes while Slimbridge keeper Dave Evans smothered a Lyle Smith effort and caught a Chris Hatton header that was directed straight to him. Slimbridge’s main threat was forward Adam Philp who worked hard and looked to get behind Town’s defence when on the ball but apart from Matt Skinner comfortably picking up a through ball to Philp and Philp having an effort go wide, Slimbridge caused Town little problems. Town looked the most likely to open the scoring with Jamie Fairchild going wide from a corner and Evans having to palm another Luke Williams’ corner away from under his cross bar. The break through came on thirty six minutes when Lyle Smith put Carl Davies in one on one on goal and this was followed six minutes later when Richard Thomas’ cross found the unmarked Tom Williams to head home Woodley’s second.
Half Time: 0 - 2
As is to be expected from a team two down at home in a cup tie, Slimbridge started the half strongly resulting in Town struggling to get their passing game going and having to defend a series of corners that saw Skinner push one from Paul Carter out from under his bar and Jim Nightingale head another off the goal line. It was from another corner on fifty two minutes that Rob Hine was allowed to direct his header through a crowd of players to ignite the Slimbridge fight back. Town responded with Tom Williams being adjudged to have fouled Evans from a James Roberts’ cross, while a Luke Williams low cross evaded a sliding Tom Williams at the far post and an appeal for a penalty following a Slimbridge handball were turn down. The equaliser came on seventy six minutes when a Skinner goal kick was received by Marvin Roberts who found substitute Ross Langworthy to equalise. Pushing for a winner, Town were caught on the counter attack on eighty four minutes when good passing allowed Ben Wood to give Slimbridge the lead and the fight back was completed five minutes later when Langworthy got the better of Alex Jarratt to allow Lewis Wilton to finish the scoring and give the team a deserved semi final tie.
With this being the first of four matches in eight days, Town need to put the defeat behind them and seek maximum points to cement a creditable first season in the league.

Premier Division

Ardley United 6 - 0 Pegasus Juniors
Ardley Utd bounced back from a below par performance against Ascot Utd just two days earlier to prevail against Pegasus Juniors at the Playing Fields.
With the visitors fielding a depleted team, the home side began to dominate the early exchanges but it took until the 20th minute for the first goal when good work on the right flank by Jason Castello resulted in a fine pass to Jordan Ayris who burst into the penalty area and fired the ball into the top left corner of the net. Ardley’s lead was doubled ten minutes later as a Murray Nicholls free kick beat the Pegasus keeper and barely a minute later it became 3-0 when Troy Bryan was played through by Nicholls and he made no mistake by lashing the ball into the far corner to send the home side into the break comfortably in the lead.
Half Time: 3 - 0
The second half began much as the first had finished, with Ardley dominating play and the visitors struggling to find any rhythm and Ardley increased their advantage in the 63rd minute when from a long throw-in the ball was not cleared resulting in a goal mouth scramble in which Ayris managed to score his second. Although the game was effectively over, the home side had to wait until the 85th minute to add to the score-line when substitute Andrew Stidder was sent clear by Adam Garner enabling him lob the keeper for Ardley’s fifth and the score was complete two minutes from time when Bryan scored his 20th league goal of the season to give Ardley an emphatic home victory.

HOOK NORTON 2 - 2 BICESTER TOWN
The atrocious wet weather leading up to the Easter Holiday and on both Good Friday and Easter Saturday meant that the ground staff at The Bourne in association with match referee Ben James were left with a difficult decision in determining whether this match should proceed or not.
The absence of rain in the hours immediately before kick off tipped the scales in favour of the match going ahead but, thereafter, continuous rain fell for most of the match, making good football most difficult and culminating in the pitch looking something like a ploughed field at the end of ninety minutes.
Hooky welcomed back Ryan Breslin and introduced another young player in the form of Callum Convey. From the off, the visitors started more confidently and they were awarded a penalty after 8 minutes when Breslin committed a foul in the area. Ryan Brooks scored comfortably from the resultant spot kick. But just 2 minutes later, Hooky were on terms when a through ball from Breslin found James Robbins who slotted the ball past the visiting ‘keeper. Hooky came more and more into the game and looked like taking the lead when Pete Moulder’s shot hit the right upright before rebounding back into play.
Half Time: 1 - 1
The second half was just 11 minutes old when Town’s Brooks was shown the red card for apparently abusing the referee. Although reduced to 10 men, the visitors held their own well and Hooky were unable to take advantage of the situation which, after 76 minutes, reverted to parity with the sending of Hooky’s James Hastie for receiving two yellow cards. Then, just two minutes later, Town again took the lead when Danny Green headed home at the far post from a right wing cross. Thereafter, it looked as if the visitors would take all 3 points until, in added time, substitute Ben Spiero scored with a precise drive into the far corner of the net from a move down the left wing when he collected a pin point headed pass from Danny Poole.

Division One West

Tytherington Rocks 0 – 3 Headington Amateurs
What a terrible homecoming for Tytherington Rocks.
After five weeks on the road the Rocks came back on home soil, but they were hopelessly beaten by a rampant Headington Amateur’s.
The visitors were 2-0 up at the interval, with goals from striker Aftab Hafiz and midfielder Neil Lockhart. In the latter period Hafiz scored his second goal in the 84th minutes and if it was not for a miraculous clearance from Ross Irwin, the diminutive striker would have had a hat-trick. As Paul Staddon , assistant manager at the Rocks, said after the final whistle:- “At half-time at 2 goals down , the confidence of most of our team was really down, And for many they knew that were they not coming back against a fine Headington team who played some good football, to keep our team on the back foot”.
On a sticky pitch, Headington started well and right away Mark Stutter made a fine save from Jay Hill’s high shot. Then Olly Zaji was just wide but on a quarter of the hour, a perfect pass from Hill put Hafiz through to score. The Rocks could not match the mobile Headington players whose movement and quick passing provided another goal two minutes before half-time, when Lockhart moved in from the right to hammer the ball into the corner of the Rocks net!
Half Time: 0 - 2
Tytherington came back in the second – half and they worked hard to get the ball back but they never troubled the visitor’s goal. And with six minutes to go, Hajiz scored again from close rang, to give his team a comfortable victory.
As Paul Staddon said: - “We have to give Headington praise for their football, once they scored we were under pressure to get back into the game”.
After meeting Winterboure at home on Easter Monday the Rocks are away to Easington Sports next Saturday (April 10th) kick off 3p.m

Tytherington Rocks 0 - 3 Headington Amateurs
A sparkling first half display on a tricky surface that had been 'quickened up ' by a pre-match downpour, saw fifth placed A's on their way to a deserved three points as they closed the gap on the teams' above them.
Headington established early control as they moved & passed the ball at speed on a slick surface, Jay Hill twice going close after strong runs before they took a deserved 14th minute lead. Hill & Shaun Jacobs creating the opening for Aftab Hafiz to finish from close in. The visitors continued to dominate but could not add to their score & were almost made to pay when James Hicks pulled his shot wide from a good position in a rare Tytherington attack. Three minutes from the break & Headington were rewarded for their persistence. Jacobs chased what looked a lost cause down the left wing before dispossessing a defender & then produced a superb cross to the far post for Neil Lockhart to finish clinically.
Half Time: 0 - 2
Although Tytherington came out for the second half in determined mood it was still Headington carving out the better chances. Hill drew a fine full length save from Mark Stutter before a sweeping sixty yard move ended with  Ollie Zaja's shot deflected wide. Jacobs then saw an audacious effort from fully thirty five yards sail just over. With fifteen minutes left Hafiz thought he had his second when he delicately chipped Stutter from a tight angle only to see the ball hacked off the goal line. Not to be denied Hafiz finally made the game safe in the 83rd minute, dribbling round a defender & the 'keeper before rolling the ball in to complete another fine passing move that had ripped open the home defence.
 
Division One East

Chalfont Wasps 1-1 Milton United
The heavy April showers that had poured havoc on the Hellenic fixture list elsewhere had fortunately not come as far east as Chalfont and, despite a boggy surface, the match at The Nest was never in doubt. This was good news as we were treated to another entertaining afternoon of football.
This high charged encounter saw both sides determined to compete for every loose ball, assisted by a referee who let the game flow, with The Wasps looking to continue their recent good form and Milton continue their push for title ambitions.
The first goal mouth action came in the 7th minute when Matt Skinner drove a dangerous free kick across the six yard box and from the resulting corner Ryan Sweales headed just over the cross bar. Two minutes later Danny Gray had to repeat the feat at the other end by clearing a Milton effort off the line. The game continued as a high tempo, ever competitive, with both sides smothering each other at times. Then Milton had a good 5 minute spell after the 20th minute mark and did put the ball into the Wasps net, but it was ruled out for offside; and two minutes later the ever dependable Neil Jones mopped up a threatening Milton foray which had caught the Wasps short on numbers. Wasps did break away in the 33rd minute through Skinner but Fred Tripp, under pressure from the advancing Milton keeper, just scooped his effort over the top of the target. The first goal of the afternoon came in the 35th Milton’s Warren McKabe latched onto a low cross to put the visitors 1-0 up from close range. The Wasps response was excellent; they immediately upped their game and put Milton under the cosh. The Stingers deservedly levelled the score line at 1-1 two minutes later through Liam O’Neill and thereafter had opportunities to take the lead. Notably when a Ross Crawford free kick found Skinner free in the box on 42 minutes and one minute later O’Neill’s pace got him round the back of the Milton’s defensive line and when bearing down on goal he was brought down by the keeper just outside the box, the keeper being lucky to only receive a yellow card. Danny Moakes free kick just scraped the upright. The match continued competitively until half time but the score remained at 1-1.
Half Time: 1 - 1
Wasps brought on Mark Heffernan for Tom Seddon during the interval. The first opportunity fell to Tripp who, with the ball stuck in the goal mouth mud and slightly behind him, could only hit a tame effort.  Then Crawford headed over from a corner and after some great wing play O’Neill’s solid strike hit the upright. Wasps’ momentum was curtailed a little after two consecutive incidents saw Gray and then Crawford attempted to pass their way out of defence gifting Milton possession but they were unable to capitalise on the half chances provided. Wasps regrouped and continued to pass the ball around neatly under constant pressure from a hard working Milton and could have been awarded a penalty after a good delivery from Stephen Rogers found Heffernan who was felled in the area, the referee gave a corner. The corner was delivered to the far post and after some head tennis Gray’s cross was received by Tripp who was unlucky not to get Wasps second. Milton added a third attacked up front and all three possessing pace started to look dangerous forcing Chris Tullett in the Wasps goal into a brave save at feet in the 72nd minute. O’Neill then broke away minutes later but Tullet’s peer in the Milton goal also made a good stop. The game was building to a great crescendo as both sides continued to develop chances as the match became more open. The only pause in the frenetic action followed an unsavoury incident from a corner when the referee and his assistants were called upon to calm the players down. Fortunately the officials did a good job and the entertainment continued a few of minutes later. The final chance of the game fell to Wasps O’Neill but the ball bobbled and the moment was gone. So, this highly competitive match ended with the score at 1-1.

CHALFONT WASPS 1 – 1 MILTON UNITED
Milton deserved to come away from Chalfont with all three points on Saturday but had to settle for a draw from a good match played on a very sticky pitch.
For a change this season Milton actually started the better side and put the home team under early pressure. The Milton captain Ryan Williams was available for selection and his cross early in the game almost found the head of Warren McCabe in the six yard box but was just too high. Both sides were playing good football despite the conditions, and Wasps Matt Skinner broke down the left and shot across the goal but nobody was on the end to finish the move. Then they broke again and Milton keeper Steve Howe was quick out of his box to clear the danger but was deemed to have committed a foul but as the player was going away from goal was only cautioned, much to the annoyance of the home supporters who were looking for a red card. The visitors responded to this with more pressure on the home goal and thought they had taken the lead in the 20th minute when Scott Dewar put the ball in the net but the effort was ruled out for off side. Milton were not to be denied and got the opening goal in the 34th minute when Ben Taylor crossed for Warren McCabe to score from inside the 6 yard box, his third goal in two games. Unfortunately the lead was only to last a few minutes when from a corner Milton did not clear their lines and Wasps captain Ryan Swales scored the equaliser.
Half Time: 1 - 1
Chalfont started the second period very quickly and had the visitors defence under pressure but the central partnership of Thorne and Midwinter held firm and Milton soon got into their usual pattern of playing football and Jonny Summers had several good chances to score the second but was denied by some good work from Chris Tullett in the Chalfont goal. Although the home side tried to catch Milton on the break, they were lucky not to go behind when a snap shot was cleared off the line. Both sides made substitutions to try and get the winner but the game ended in a draw.

Thame United 4 – 0 Kintbury Rangers
United strengthened their position as league leaders at Wallingford on Saturday with a 4-0 win over Kintbury Rovers. All four goals came in the second half.
The first 35 minutes were uneventful with neither side creating any real chances and very little to choose between the two sides. With about 10 minutes of the half remaining however, Thame left winger, Luke Ricketts and Right winger, Stuart Barr, swapped positions and United were immediately more of a threat. Thame found the back of the net when Mark Jones met a Ricketts free kick but he was ruled off-side. Minutes later another Jones header was cleared off the line by a defender. Both Barr and Jones forced good saves from impressive visiting keeper Kane Roberts before the break.
Half Time: 0 - 0
Three minutes after the restart Roberts made an outstanding save, with his legs, from a Ricketts shot. Thame were now in control but the game was still goalless. The breakthrough came in the 63rd minute when another Ricketts shot on the right was blocked by a defender but this time the ball fell to Jones who did well to hit a strong, acutely angled shot pass Roberts from 15-Yards. Thame’s second goal came with 15 minutes remaining when Lawrence El-Kassir met a corner near the far post and headed back across goal, where the ball struck a defender, and was deflected over the line. Following Barr’s substitution, Ricketts moved back to the left wing from where he created the third goal. With 9 minutes remaining, Ricketts collected a ball from Aaron Rogers and ran at goal before unleashed a strong shot which Roberts parried, but which then fell into the path of the onrushing Jones, who finished well from close range. Thame’s final goal came 3 minutes later and, if the TV cameras had been there, it would have been a strong contender for ‘goal of the month’. Talented striker Rogers robbed an opponent of the ball on the right, about 10-yards into the visitor’s half, and ran to the corner of the area from where he hit a superb shot over Roberts and into the top left corner. Although Kintbury tried to respond, they were a spent force and Thame kept another clean sheet.
This was United’s ninth successive win. They are now 15 points clear at the top of the league and are one of only three clubs who could now take the title.

WOKINGHAM & EMMBROOK 1 - 2 FINCHAMPSTEAD
Finchampstead put a huge dent in Wokingham & Emmbrook’s promotion prospects as they recorded a well-deserved 2-1 victory in this Hellenic League local derby at Cantley Park.
Finchampstead arrived at Cantley wondering whether the ground would be in a fit condition for play, with the match only getting the go ahead from referee John Barlow after some drastic measures by club stalwarts in sweeping away surface water from patches throughout the playing surface. In the end, the hosts probably wished they had not bothered. The hosts battled hard from the opening whistle, with Richard Bland taking an early shot at Nick Rumsby’s goal as things looked ominous for Finch. The Satsumas had an air of domination, with Richard Bland making effort after effort to give his side the upper hand, an approach he continued throughout the game, even helping out in defence at times. Despite their best endeavours, Wokingham were thwarted by the Finch’s tireless defending, with Scott Bursill, Tom Hopper and Russell Carter all making important contributions as they dominated everything in their danger zone without conceding any free-kicks. They were aided by Junior Arquimbau who helped clear Finch lines in the first half. It was in the last minute of the first half that Finch made the all important breakthrough, with Dean Thomas potting his first real opportunity of the game to put the visitors 1-0 up and stun the partisan Wokingham supporters.
Half Time: 0 - 1
Having returned from the break, Wokingham began fairly strongly again, clearly frustrated at being a goal behind after dominating much of the first-half. Richard Bland was ambitious in his challenging runs at the resolute and solid Finch defence, and when he did get an opportunity to shoot, Nick Rumsby comfortably dealt with it.
However he scored an equaliser in the fiftieth minute as he returned in the next phase of play around the visitor’s penalty area, firing home with a great finish after a skilful run through the defence. Both sides were now level again and this stung the Finchampstead players into action, and they upped their performance and soon had the hosts on the back foot. Rob Yorke-Goldney forced a great save from Stuart Harris and Steve Ryan missed a chance to put Finch back in front. A calamitous moment occurred when Garry Sargeant, on as substitute, had all the world to himself except the goal-keeper and took a prod from further out, narrowly missing his left-hand post. He quickly redeemed himself on the hour mark when he scored Finch’s second and eventual winner. Finch pushed forward at every opportunity in an effort to increase their slender lead, Steve Ryan took a couple of long range shots that were dealt with by Stuart Harris. The visitors troubled the home defence with a series of from high aerial supply balls for Garry Sargeant, now joined by substitute Ben Knight, to chase. As the final stages of the game loomed, the Satsumas began to pile on the pressure seeking the all important equaliser. Richard Bland was the main driving force, but David Bellis had a shot saved by Nick Rumsby followed by another from Richard Bland, but determined defending by Scott Bursill and Junior Arquimbau helped Finchampstead to hold out for a sweet victory.
With league leaders Thame United securing a comfortable 4-0 home defeat of Kintbury Rangers, they now have a fifteen point lead on second placed Wokingham & Emmbrook, who have three games in hand.

Reserve Section
Hungerford Town 3 - 1 Highworth Town
Highworth no match for The Crusaders
Highworth came to Bulpit Lane needing a win to keep their title hopes alive however it wasn't to be.
An excellent victory left Hungerford needing just one more point to secure the league title in their first season together as a team. With the first team not in contention for any silverware the reserves are the clubs only chance to bring success to Bulpit Lane this season.
Hungerford started off strongly in what was always going to be a competitive match and wasn't long before the action started. Both teams in the opening 10 minutes were testing the water, trying to exploit each other defences and Highworth probably had the better of the possession but not really creating any clear cut chances with only a few dangerous shots from distance. Steve Rackham was lucky to stay on the field after 15 minutes when after shielding the ball out of play the Highworth number eleven dangerously challenged from behind but to Rackham's disgust only the throw in was awarded, after the ball had been cleared Rackham spat & threw a punch in the opponents face off the ball which was missed by all the officials. It was ten minutes after this when Benham found his latest form to put The Crusaders ahead, a delightful ball from Rackham from left to right beat the last defender and Benham controlled the ball on his chest and fired past the Highworth Keeper. Collin and Jones both played well in the middle of the park winning their battles and bring Thorp, Benham and Dyke into play. Dyke was his normal tricky self twisting the left back inside an out and delivering one cross after another. Town & Benham nearly grabbed a second with a glorious left foot volley from the edge of the area after a Dyke Corner was cleared only for the defender to clear off the line. Hungerford were made to pay for their missed chances and after 40 minutes when a moment of stupidity came over Ponsford playing at right back, with a throw in parallel to the edge of the area looped the ball back to Lemmin in goal with the attacker challenging, Lemmin just got their first but couldn't get enough on his header, the attacker picked the ball up and fired into the open net with Lemmin trying to get back. The linesman flagged after seeing Lemmin fouled when winning the header but the referee decided to overrule his assistant and the goal stood. The teams went in at the break level on a difficult pitch with Hungerford knowing they had the downhill advantage in the second half.
Half Time: 1 - 1
Hungerford came out after the break like Champions and within 10 minutes of the re-start Dyke scored his first of the season, this time cutting back onto his left provided a whipped cross into the box but with no one getting a connection saw the ball fly into the far corner. Hungerford were in control and were desperate to put the game to bed as Highworth were looking dangerous and strong up top. Once again Head was commanding at the back and Mandry marshalled his defence at all times. Matthew Howe keeping Brown out of the side had a good game at left back with the help of Rackham whose tracking back was tremendous. Benham found himself through on goal with only one defender with him, he cut in on his left side turning the defender and struck the post with a left foot strike, Thorp also had a half chance when Benham flicked the ball through to him, his weaker left foot let him down though and saw the ball go wide of the right post. It was to be Hungerford's day though and after a dogged display Head managed to get forward and a squared ball from Thorp saw Head slide in and get the all important touch past the keeper to top off his Man of the match performance. Highworth had a goal disallowed for offside just after and later hit the bar from their Jamie Green look alike upfront.
But Hungerford held on for the three points in a convincing display leaving them needing just one point on Monday to win the title.

Penn & Tylers Green 2 – 0 Holyport
Holyport Reserves missed the opportunity to close the gap on the leaders to two points as they lost two nil at Penn & Tylers Green.  With Penn having no first team game a few made an appearance for the Reserves.
It was Holyport who started the better and Etienne had a header from 5 yards fly narrowly over, Hill hit the side netting after a good through ball by Dave Butler and Etienne's free kick forced a good save from Penn’s Matt Brion in goal.  After having the majority of procession and controlling the game for large phases Ports lack of clinical finishing cost them as a few errors in one phase of play led to the Penn forward slotting past Grant in Ports goal.
Half Time: 1 - 0
Port turned around at half time having done the hard work kicking uphill and into the stiff breeze.  They dominated the second half even more but whenever a cross or final ball was played Port found themselves off side.  With 10 min’s to go and Grant a spectator in Ports goal Holyport went 3-4-3 but a Penn breakaway got them goal number two. Hill then scored with three minutes remaining but this was once again disallowed for 'offside'.
Some times no matter how well you play and how many chances you create you know it's not your day.

Reading Junior Challenge Cup Quarter-Final
HIGHMOOR IBIS RESERVES 2 - 3 FINCHAMPSTEAD RESERVES
The Finchampstead reserve team band wagon kept on gathering momentum as the side bravely saw off a tough Highmoor Ibis outfit to reach its second cup semi-final of the season.
All the pre-match stats pointed to a really tough encounter for Finch as Highmoor Ibis had not lost a cup game all season as well as riding high in the Reading Football League Premier Division. The stats proved correct, as with their direct physical style of play and an intense will to win, the hosts tested the young Finch sides resolve to its limit. 
From the kick off Finch produced a pleasing performance, their work rate and passing putting them in control of the game. Richard Kell and James Brazier once again put in ninety plus minutes of midfield brilliance that was the rock on which the Highmoor Ibis ship would eventually flounder. Finch had signalled their intent by having plenty of possession in the Highmoor half, but their lack of quality in delivering the ball into the danger zone meant that many promising situations came to nothing.
Highmoor also carried a threat upfront as Dan Seeward was quick, powerful and had an eye for goal. He proved this as his shear pace enabled him to get the better of a one on one with Jack Skinner and bravely put Highmoor 1-0 up with eighteen minutes played. Finch didn’t buckle at this setback and although the next twenty minutes were Highmoor's best period of the match, the youngsters battled hard with skill and an inextinguishable team spirit to get back on level terms. The equaliser was a fine goal on forty-five minutes. With skill and pace, Adam Merritt cut in from the left wing and slipped a pass to James Brazier, who linked up brilliantly with Adam Bowyer. The duo played a superb wall pass move that left James Brazier on his left foot at an acute angle with the keeper to beat, but his chip was perfect as it nestled into the far corner and it was deservedly 1-1 bang on half time.
Half Time: 1 - 1
With James Brazier's goal putting Finch on level terms, things had almost gone to plan. It was expected that Highmoor would find their first half efforts had sapped much of the energy from their legs, as they were not a young side, and that Finch would gain the upper hand with our guaranteed fitness and younger legs. This pretty much happened. The only blemish to the plan was being forced into the early substitution of Dan Willis, who had played well but had taken the brunt of the defensive duties in trying to contain Dan Seeward. Ross Knight was called on at half time to fill the breach and he rallied round the flag for the team and did well at centre back whilst Andre Kelly, having a great match, filled in at right back and looked strong and secure. Finch began to dominate as Highmoor began to look leggy on the soft muddy pitch. In the fifty-eighth minute, after several good phases of play, Finch took the lead. Adam Merritt delivered from the left wing the first devastating cross Finch had managed from many opportunities. It was just the invitation Lewis Frostick needed and as the ball arrived at the far stick, so did he to bullet a header high into the Highmoor goal and make it 2-1. Visibly shaken, Highmoor were there for the taking. Five minutes later after brilliant right wing play involving Freddie Baron and Andre Kelly, Finch should have put the cup tie to bed.  Lewis Frostick's trusty left boot for once let him down as the keeper blocked his miss-hit shot from six yards. As the ball ricocheted out to Adam Bowyer, his low drive was blocked on the line by a defender. You sensed those missed chance's would come back to haunt Finch and they did. Dan Seeward, even with Finch on top, still posed a real threat. He had genuine pace and quality and it still meant Finch's defence, wonderfully led by Marc Brown who was nursing a dead leg, had plenty to think about. As the match moved into its final quarter another Finch hero emerged in the shape of young Jack Skinner, who three times came off his line to bravely block goal bound efforts from Dan Seeward. All these saves were of the highest class and were as good as goals to the Finch cause. Battling Highmoor grabbed an unlikely equaliser in the seventy-third minute. It was controversial to the point that Ben Winship and Marc Brown were adamant the ball had gone out of play for a goal kick, the neutral linesman disagreed, and Ben Winship, not playing to the whistle, allowed a devastating pullback to be bundled into the back of the Finch net for a gut wrenching Highmoor equaliser. As per the norm this goal lifted Highmoor and slightly knocked Finch out of their stride and this game now turned into a titanic struggle between two proud sides both unused to the taste of defeat. Extra time loomed and Finch lost the impressive Andre Kelly through injury with seven minutes to go. This brought to the fray substitute Adam Barnard at right back, and it turned out to be him seven minutes of injury time, that instigated Finch's winning goal. His wonderfully timed tackle on Dan Seeward released the impish Freddie Baron down Finch's right flank. Jinking past yet another scything tackle, he raced into the box and from the bye line pulled back an inch perfect cross for Adam Bowyer, who capped off another fine all round performance as, under serious pressure from the host’s keeper, with a fair amount of composure, tucked the ball under the keeper’s body for Finch's glorious winning goal. 3-2 up but physically and mentally drained, Finch completely switched off. From the restart Jack Skinner won the match for Finch with a fine save from the last kick of the match as Highmoor burst straight through a Finch side who were still celebrating their winning goal. It was a close shave but a fitting finale to a great cup tie in which both teams had given everything.