Gary Elphick and Djoumin Sangare repel another Crawley attack
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St Albans City's disappointment at the loss of Magnus Okuonghae and Elliot Benyon in recent weeks to Crawley Town was magnified at Clarence Park on Saturday as the duo struck the blows that denied the Saints a crucial third consecutive Nationwide Conference victory although, on the balance of play, it was not really a result Colin Lippiatt's side could have too many complaints about.
For the third time since the start of the year City successfully came from behind to move into a match-winning position and but for a strike that is almost certainly the high-point of Benyon's career thus far, St Albans would have clinched an important and impressive victory. Goals by Ram Marwa and Leon Archer put City ahead but credit for the Saints moving into a favourable position belongs to a defence that won an incredible number of headers and tackles as Crawley piled on the pressure. Djoumin Sangare was the Saints man of the match but it would be hard to believe he was far ahead of Gray Elphick and Patrick Ada in the ratings.
The chances of this match going ahead on Thursday afternoon when Clarence Park was under four inches of snow seemed as likely as our boys Down Under winning three One Day Internationals in a row - nigh on impossible. But, quite remarkably, not only did City play their 99th league match under Lippiatt's leadership but also the pitch stayed firm throughout despite heavy overnight rain, fortunately the next downpour had the good manners to hold off until the final whistle.
The inclement weather possibly contributed to the third lowest gate seen at the Park this season but the losers were those spectators who decided to snuggle up by the fireside for although this game contained no shortage of misplaced passes it also embraced enough goalmouth incident to satisfy even the most ardent booing England fan.
With Damian Batt and Paul Hakim having left the club since the Saints most recent outing on 27 January, and Dean Cracknell suspended, City recalled Chris Seeby, Marwa and Chris Watters. New signing Faly Basse was on the bench where he was joined by Scott Cousins whose name was back on the team sheet for the first time since breaking an ankle at Tamworth in January last year.
Attacking the Hatfield Road goal City got the ball forward quickly and within 15 seconds visiting keeper Ben Hamer had to be alert in diving to his right to gather the ball following a slightly risky headed back pass from David Woozley. Two minutes later a loose header across the edge of his own penalty area by Lloyd Blackman gifted possession to Lee Clarke who slipped a pass into the path of Watters but his low shot went gently wide of the Town goal.
On seven minutes Tom Davis sent Matt Hann down the right flank and from his cross Woozley conceded the first corner of the game, it was also fifty percent of City's tally of corners for the entire afternoon, neither of which, looped high into the box by Watters, caused Hamer any problems. A minute later Okuonghae announced his return by putting the ball onto the cricket pitch via the roof of the cantilever stand. Already, though, it was becoming clear that one of the most important battles of the afternoon was being fought deep in the City half between Elphick and Marcus Richardson. Richardson is a formidably strong player and maybe the Saints defender did get away with climbing on the odd occasion but it was a captivating encounter in which the honours, eventually, went Elphick's way.
An excellent tackle by Elphick, after Richardson seemed to have broken away, denied an early Crawley attacking foray before Scott Rendell, from a Tony Scully corner, headed just wide. The Red Devils were thwarted again on 13 minutes when Dannie Bulman's low cross from the right went between Elphick and Richardson and was met by Jamie England who seemed certain to score before the brilliant Ada dived in to concede a corner. City's joy, however, was short-lived as from Scully's outswinging right-footed corner Okuonghae, some ten yards from goal, headed down and across Paul Bastock to score to the keepers right; it seemed a somewhat ungracious act after 20 goalless appearances for the Saints earlier this season.
Within a minute City responded with Clarke forcing Hamer to save low down but only quick reactions by Bastock, saving with his feet, prevented Rendell from increasing the Crawley lead. The match took another twist on 18 minutes with a well-worked City equaliser. Receiving the ball out on the City left, Watters played it inside to Archer who was forced wide before twisting inside and crossing into the goalmouth where Marwa's header was helped over the goalline by a retreating defender.
City followed this breakthrough with one of their best attacking periods of the day but other than Lee Clarke and Archer setting up Watters for a shot that Hamer saved with minimal fuss there was little to seriously trouble the visitors from Sussex. Indeed the closest a City player came to scoring again was Sangare whose glancing header from Ronnie Bull's cross flew not far wide of the home goal. On the half hour City did what they do best, play fine football with the sphere on the deck, the move ending with Clarke being blocked. The main criticism of City's performance has to be number of times possession was wasted with high punts down the park, once the ball was on the deck the Citizens caused Crawley no end of problems.
As the half drew to a close chances became more scarce at either end, Hann had a couple of promising runs snuffed out without too many problems while a harmless looking throw from the City right was allowed to bounce its way towards the six yard box where Marwa threw himself at the defenders clearance and maybe on another day the ricochet would have shot high into Hamer' goal - sadly, on this occasion, it didn't.
It was interesting to see some individuals wander up from the boardroom end of the main stand to lambaste the officials at half time, or more accurately one of the linesmen for some supposedly questionable offside decisions. Maybe it was something to do with angles for the decisions looked pretty good from the press area and after the game Colin Lippiatt also added he saw little to complain about.
Crawley began the second period looking a side not content to settle for a point as they, like the Saints, sought to clinch a third consecutive victory. Within two minutes Crawley had blazed well over through Blackman while a second promising attack broke down due to offside in a goalmouth scramble. City hit back impressively with Archer and Clarke again combining although Clarke's attempted through ball to Watters was well intercepted by Scott Hiley. Moments later Marwa and Ada worked the ball out to Hann on the right, after turning inside the winger saw his shot from close on 30 yards rise above Hamer's goal. But this proved to be just a just a temporary lull before Crawley cranked up the pressure on the home, the snow of Thursday morning was nothing compared to the storm the Saints were about to face. A dangerous whipped cross from England zipped between Rendell and the sprawling Bastock before Chris Seeby hacked the ball to safety.
Elphick produced one of a succession of wonderful tackles to terminate a good run by Rendell and from Scully's ensuing corner Woozley ballooned a header over the target. A good City move down their left ended with Clarke having a shot easily taken by Hamer but on 58 minutes City successfully came from behind against full-time opposition to take the lead for third time since the turn of the year. Seeby, from inside the City half, pushed the ball up to Tom Davis, the midfielder swiftly helped it on to Clarke who arrowed a perfect ball into Archer's path for the striker to send a fine first time effort high to Hamer's right from the edge of the box for his second goal in successive matches.
Sangare tested City hearts again with a wild sliced clearance that came within a snowflake of pulling Crawley level while a Woozley header went untouched across the face of the Saints goal. Midway through the half, and with the Hatfield Road goal under constant threat, Crawley added to their attacking prowess with the introduction of Benyon, his arrival soon proved significant. That said, it was City, by an 8-4 margin, who had the greater number of on target efforts. Credit for this has to go to Ada, Sangare and Elphick in particular as they repelled the Red Devils time and again.
A spell of Town pressure was curtailed when Elphick blocked Bulman's drive and from the counter-attack Hann won City's second, and final corner of the day, as with the first it came to nothing. Benyon neatly brought down a pass from Bulman before having his first shot on 71 minutes, which Bastock took in comfort, before another headed clearance by Elphick sparked one more City breakaway. With the ball on the deck Hann, Clarke, Archer, and Clarke again, worked the ball to the right hand side of the Crawley penalty area. Clarke appeared to be illegally blocked by Scully as he turned into the box but no free kick was to be forthcoming.
In the space of a matter of minutes both sides squandered their clearest opportunity to possibly decide the outcome. First up was Richardson who, finding space from Bulman's cross, headed tamely to Bastock's right from close in while Archer, from a Watters cross, was equally wasteful in front of the York Road goal.
For sometime the match had ceased to have the feel of a league game and was consumed by sudden-death fever. Sangare majestically tackled Bulman at a crucial moment while Richardson, for once, got the better of Elphick and set up Rendell for a shot across and wide of the home goal.
Five minutes from time Archer, under pressure from two defenders, did well to hold up Bastock's long punt and after a quick exchange with Clarke turned and shot crisply forcing Hamer to save just under his crossbar. There was a feeling that City were nearly home and dry. But with just a minute remaining the alarm bells were ringing as Benyon, quite superbly, twisted on the goalline and cut into the penalty area only for his teasing low cross to elude players on both sides before rolling out of the far side of the box. A minute later, at the start of four minutes of added time, Benyon headed over. More seconds were ticked off as Clarke seized upon Elphick's headed clearance and played the ball square to Hann. With players thrown forward Crawley were stretched but they suffered no further damage when Watters, taking a pass from Hann, fired over Hamer's goal. Almost three minutes of the added time had passed when City's dogged, determined and at times quite brilliant, rearguard action was finally punctured. Woozley, carelessly given space down the Crawley left, failed to beat the first man with Ada managing to glance the cross to the edge of the penalty area. Tragically for City, the ball fell to Benyon and with as stunning a right-footed volley as one is ever likely to witness the ball was flashed to Bastock's left and into the corner of the net. It was Benyon's seventh goal of the season, his first for Crawley, and was followed seconds later by his sixth booking of the season - second for Crawley - after taking his celebrations too far with the 148 supporters who travelled up from Sussex. City were broken and felt as desperate as the snowman school children had built on the pitch did as he tasted the first drops of rain on Friday night. |
