© 1997- 2010
| Woking 1 Droylsden 1: 3rd November 2007 Scorers I hate to say this but I really think the performance for this one was worse than against Staines Town and York City. At least in those games the Cards created chances that they should have scored, where as today they looked awful in an attacking sense, hardly forcing a save and generally lacking any ambition to get the ball in the net. One big reason for this was the loss of Marv, who along with ex-Yeading counterpart Quamina were missing from the team sheet, presumably injured. Matt Gray came into the midfield with Gez and Gatting making up the two-man strike partnership. However, they rarely threatened, especially with some awful long punts as 'service' and with Droyslden offering little going forward it was no surprise the game was drab and that both goals came from long-range hopeful efforts. I say hopeful but Gez's half volley following a long throw and some head tennis was far from that, hit meaningfully from the edge of the box into the bottom corner it gave keeper' Paul Phillips no chance and Woking an early 17th minute lead. Before that the only efforts on goal were a tame long-range effort from Kevin Lynch, which went harmlessly wide, a slightly more troublesome effort from Terry Fearns, which Gindre had to tip over, and a cross from Pattison, which almost resulted in an own goal. Having gained confidence from the goal the Cards burst to life for a brief spell and on 23 minutes should have doubled the advantage. Kevin James intercepted the ball in the midfield and burst forward before being tackled by three defenders. However, the ball deflected into the path of Sole and Gatting but they got in each other's way when one of them should have tapped into an all but open net. Droylsden fought back with Lynch and Gareth Morris flashing long-range efforts wide of the target and some head tennis in the Woking area also caused problems before Lorraine bravely headed clear. At the other end James put pressure on keeper' Phillips from a long ball and his weak headed clearance fell to Sole but he couldn't take advantage miss kicking badly. On the 37th minute Droylsden hit back when Lynch capitalised on a loose ball just outside the box and placed an accurate shot just inside Gindre's right hand post to level the scores. That's how it stayed until half time and the second half did little to suggest the scores should change. Neither team really threatened and only had one real meaningful shot each. In fact, the best moments probably came from Droylsden's Jody Banim and substitute Chris Denham. Two incredible contributions for 'simulation in the penalty box' should earn them Oscars next year. Jamie McGuire skied an effort from the edge of the area on the hour and this was quickly followed by a great chance when Terry Ferns was released on the right hand side of the area but his right footed effort across Gindre was well saved by the Woking keeper'. Substitute Maledon almost carved open a great chance for fellow sub Marum on the 80th minute when he slid him through but he was adjudged to have been offside. He flicked his effort over the keeper' and wide anyway. Woking's best effort came on the 89th minute when Gatting unleashed a low drive from outside the area but Phillips was equal to it and palmed it away. Neither team deserved to win and a draw was a fair result, in a match which was between two poor sides who will both be down there come the end of the season if they continue to play like that. The sponsors gave the man of the match to Kevin James and there was no one who performed much better in a poor team performance. There is certainly a problem up front. Sole tried his best and took his goal brilliantly but Gatting was poor and Marvin was sorely missed. His urgency, pace, strength and determination is so important to the team. There certainly needs to be some changes up front to get the Cards back to their best. Woking (3-5-2):
Gindre; Lorraine, Hutchinson, Gasson; Lambu, James, Gray (Maledon 58), Pattison, Bunce; Gatting, Sole (Marum 70).
Man of the Match: Kevin James - did as well as anyone. Moment of the Match: Sole's finish. Attendance: 1,284 |
