Grays Athletic finally tasted defeat in their 2022-23 pre-season campaign, with a 2-0 defeat, on the road at the hands of Welwyn Garden City. The home team played a fast, hard, pressing game that the Blues never really came to terms with; but on the night their own quality of play did not reach the level of previous recent outings.
Welwyn came out of the blocks quickly pressing Grays back and it was on the cards when they took the lead in the 10th minute. A lovely left-to-right switch and ball into the box, found the tricky Chayce Grant who finished smartly past Danny Sambridge for a 1-0 lead.
The goal seemed to settle Grays, and they started to exert some pressure of their own. Correy Davidson, Brian Moses and Kieron Jones all shot at goal but couldn’t trouble home keeper (and former Blue) Charlie Crowley. Welwyn were defending with a very high line, leaving a lot of territory behind for the Blues to exploit. However, to do so requires a set of officials who appreciate runs from midfield or bent behind the defensive line. Sadly, those running the line tonight failed the test. On 38 minutes, Josh Osude was cruelly flagged off side when clear through on goal with a perfectly-timed run. That decision set the tone for a series of questionable decisions over the evening.
Then just before the break Osude was cynically tripped by home full-back Callum Taylor, who was very fortunate not to be invited to take an early bath, when the referee only saw fit to show the yellow card. In a competitive game, the decision would surely have been different.
Half time: Welwyn GC 1 v 0 Grays Ath
Grays came out with more purpose in the second half but couldn’t break down a resolute home defence. Chances a-plenty went begging far too easily. Football is all about taking your chances and Welwyn did this expertly in the 56th minute, with a rare foray into the Blues box. Grays failed to clear the ball when they had the chance and Max Jessup shot home to double the lead.
With Sam Bantick and Aron Gordon off the bench, the Blues attack had more direction and purpose. The night for Grays was summed up on 72 minutes when Gordon swung a high cross falling under the crossbar, the home keeper fumbled the ball which hit Bantick on the top of his head and then Davidson sliced his shot wide. The class and sharpness seen in recent weeks just wasn’t there.
Five minutes from time, an almighty scramble in the Blues six-yard box was only ended when Sambridge finally grabbed the ball at the third attempt. Sadly though, the night finished with an unseemly brawl between the two sides, with tempers lost all round. It was no way for any of the players to carry on and the referee had no option but to show red cards to Bantick and Welwyn’s Jaedon Phillips for their actions.
If there are more lessons in defeat than in victory, Grays manager Lewis Dark will have learned a lot this evening. Blues were unable to break through the home side’s well-marshalled midfield and lacked the clinical edge seen in other encounters this pre-season. We wish Welwyn well for their season in the Southern League, with Blues having just one final pre-season game at home to Harlow on Saturday, before things get serious .
Final score: Welwyn GC 2 v 0 Grays Ath