Sarnies come from behind to win 2-1 in final league match of season
Ascot United lost 2-1 against Egham Town on Saturday in both side’s final league game of the season. The Yellamen took the lead just after half time, before Egham fought back and eventually won it in stoppage time.
The smart money ahead of kick off would have been on a draw – this being the meeting between the league’s top-two draw specialists – and with Ascot and Egham having lost just two and four of the previous twenty matches respectively it looked like it would play out exactly that way until the 94th minute.
Duarte Surpanu, making his 50th appearance for Ascot, produced a moment of wing-wizardry too tee up Tom Scott in the ninth minute, although Scott couldn’t get enough purchase on his shot to trouble the visitors.
At the other end, Brendan Mathew’s brace of cheeky headers almost yielded a goal – firstly in the 20th minute when his back-header found the roof of the crossbar albeit with ‘keeper Sam Gray right underneath it – and then in the 38th minute but his near-post effort went narrowly wide.
Ascot struggled to retain possession and rarely threatened, although Taylor Morgan forced Michael Edegme into a decent save with his feet midway through the half and Chris Ellis’s long throw-in late in the half almost led to an opener when Edegbe got a touch before it was cleared.
Ascot were more incisive after the break and broke the deadlock two minutes after the restart when Surpanu’s cross found its way to an unmarked Sean McCormack via a touch from Morgan; McCormack burying the ball low, just off centre of the goal (pictured, shooting-stars.co.uk).
At the other end, a scrambling Gray saved when Louis Bouwers inadvertently diverted Mathew’s cross towards the near post, but Ascot might have added a second goal firstly when Surpanu’s shot was well saved after he had placed a one-two with Josh Masters and then when Kai Walters took too much time when clean through after racing onto George Lock’s through-ball.
But just after Mathew had shot narrowly over under pressure from Dan Bailey, the visitors levelled when Luke Maguire rifled a free kick through Ascot’s defensive wall and past Gray via a faint deflection at the mid-point of the half.
Gray was almost caught out by Dan Brown’s deep free kick although home substitute almost caught out Edegbe at the other end with a cross-shot that bounced off the crossbar in the 89th minute, but Egham would have the last laugh deep into stoppage time when Mathew wriggled into space and squeezed home to the delight of their sizeable travelling support.
But there are bigger conquests ahead than Egham; Reading FC and a county cup final an two weeks’ time.
Ascot United: Gray, Lock, Masters, Merrick (Davies), Bouwers, Ellis (Walters), Bailey, McCormack (Harper), Scott, T. Morgan (August), Surpanu (C. Morgan)
