Grays Athletic 0 Histon 1
Mon, August 27, 2007. Kick off: 3:00 PM
Match Report by Martin Candler
New boys Histon, last season‘s Conference South champions, took the spoils against a disappointing Grays Athletic side and consigned the homesters to their first defeat of the season. With the impressive defensive pairing of Matthew Mitchel-King and Patrick Ada barring the way at the back, Histon stuck to a game plan that frustrated and finally overcame a Blues outfit who seemed to run out of attacking invention the longer the game went on. Cliff Akurang, a player who always seems to score against Grays whoever he plays for, scored the only goal and kept the Grays defence on edge throughout with a fine display of lone front-running.
In the first half, Ben Watson, James Lawson and Danny Kedwell all had good scoring opportunities but it was only Akurang who found the net but his header was ruled offside. Grays‘ main threat came from the flanks where Lawson and Dennis Oli looked more than capable of opening up a stubborn Histon defence, but too often the ball was chipped up to the front two, Kedwell and Watson who found it tough going against the tall Stutes rearguard.
Jamie Day replaced the ineffective Donny Barnard at the interval but three minutes into the half Grays were rocked by a Histon goal. A Craig Pope pass set Akurang galloping down the right and after he played the ball on to Ernie Cooksey‘s heel, he received a fortuitous rebound off the sprawling Cooksey and calmly hit a near post strike past the despairing home custodian, Ross Flitney.
Home fans now looked for the Blues to mount a sustained assault on the visitor‘s goal but it just did not materialise; despite Justin Edinburgh introducing Mark Marshall and Aaron O‘Connor, the Blues stuttered and stumbled. Histon, for their part, smelt a win and kept their shape well as Grays‘s attacks became increasingly ragged, one or two of the players looking a little “leggy”. Shouts for a home penalty were ignored by referee Stretton but Grays were, by then, clutching at straws and Histon duly ran out winners to record their first Blue Square Premier victory. Grays were left to reflect on a missed opportunity to collect three points and a sharp reminder that, in this league, if you are a bit below par, you will be punished.
Grays Athletic: Flitney, Sambrook, Ashton, Stuart, Cooksey, Lawson (Marshall 73), Hearn, Barnard (Day 46), Oli, Kedwell, Watson (O'Connor 58).
Subs Not Used: Knowles, McAllister.
Booked: Sambrook.
Attn: 1290
Ref: G Stretton (Leicestershire).
Matchday pictures supplied by GAFC Official Photographer Graeme Truby
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