Derek Brown gets up highest
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On Saturday the Saints were very unfortunate not to complete a Ryman League double over George Borg’s expensively assembled Hornchurch side that failed badly to live up to a reputation befitting a full-time outfit.
Back in September, City won at Hornchurch despite being down to ten men for 20 minutes and with better finishing at the weekend St Albans would have secured the two extra points required to move out of the relegation places. The endless jack-in-the-box antics of Borg in the visitors dug-out – and throwing of a cuppa - underlined City’s superiority but maybe also emphasised the obvious point that the Urchins were someway below their best.
Fielding an unchanged starting XI from the side defeated in midweek by Grays, the Saints looked promising early on and but for a well timed block Lee Clarke may have put Steve Castle’s side into an early lead. Instead it was Hornchurch, after just eight minutes, who opened the scoring when former Saint Mark Graham whipped over a corner from the Urchins left that the unmarked Vinnie John headed unchallenged over George Clark into the Hatfield Road goal.
City hit back in spectacular style when Steve Watts, in confined space, crossed the from the right to Gary Wraight who, from 12 yards out, sent a glorious right-footed overhead effort just wide of Daniel Gay’s left hand post. But Hornchurch should have put the game beyond City’s reach on 14 minutes when Bertie Brayley, a £17,000 capture from Canvey Island, was sent clear by the elusive Jon Keeling only to clip his shot over Clark as the keeper slipped but also a yard wide of the target.
Hornchurch’s early dominance faded once Clark stretched well to clutch a clever lobbed effort from Graham close to his goalline. A good chance went begging for City when Watts headed over following a fine cross by Richard Thomas but there was no escape for the Urchins on 42 minutes when, following a period of scrappy play, Thomas made light of Danny Kerrigan’s attempt to pull him back before sending over a powerful cross from the Saints right that was well met at the near post by Lee Clarke whose thumping header left Gay without a prayer.
But City still had one scare to survive before the interval when a low drive by Keeling was only parried by Clark and turned into the net by John whose joy was terminated by an offside flag which had been raised at the time of the earlier shot.
Given their miserable return of just four points from the previous nine home league games City’s second half showing was most encouraging. Wraight went close for a second time with a well struck low first time drive from a Watts pass while on the hour the offside looking Clarke forced Gay into a save low down.
A misjudgement by Clark, when he allowed a John Martin free kick to sail over his head, almost let in Hornchurch for a second goal before the Saints sliced the Urchins open with a wonderful move. Clark twisted between three Hornchurch players and sent the debut making substitute Neil Gough away down the left, the new boy did well to cut the ball back to Graeme Butler whose first time cross was expertly brought down by Clark 12 yards out but the youngster then fired wastefully over the goal.
With time virtually up City almost snatched a freak winner when Butler’s mishit but crisp corner from the right eluded those at the near post but was smartly caught low down and smothered by Gay as Clark moved in for the kill.
Report by Dave Tavener |
