HORNCHURCH 2 WALTHAM ABBEY 0

[Dagger03]

Saturday 19-December-2015

HORNCHURCH 2  WALTHAM ABBEY 0

 

HFC – Mott – Coyne – Bentley – May – Cooper – Goodacre – Knight (Chouman 84) – Styles © - McKenzie (Thompson 79) – Purcell – Luke (Poku 83)

Subs – Collis – Dove

 

WA - Omand – Attard – Joynes – Robbins © (Jones 76) - Johnson – Daniel (Ukayode 83) – Russell – Blackman – Assombalonga (Wood 81) – Adelani – Flack

Subs – Daveney – Page

 

Officials – Ollie Morris-Sanders with Joe Wrigley and Thys Battye

 

Scorers – Purcell 51p – Styles 64

Bookings – Joynes 2 (WA) – Attard 50 (WA) – May 52 (H) – Knight 59 (H)

Attendance 155

Duration 48.00 + 51.00

Weather – 14 degrees, cloudy

 

HORNCHURCH 2  WALTHAM ABBEY 0

 

Although much of the attention is with the Urchins’ free-scoring forward line, today’s match marked the twelfth clean sheet of the season, with Billy Coyne, Paul Goodacre and Nathan Cooper comfortably containing any threat from the Abbey forward line.

 

When George Purcell went close in the opening minute, lobbing the ball over Aaron Omand but also over the bar, it signalled a 45-minute onslaught on the visiting goal, but the widely anticipated goal rush did not happen, as Hornchurch failed to find the net in the opening half, despite having 80 percent of the play.

 

Macauley Joynes went into the book for a foul on Billy Coyne a minute later , and Joey May’s free kick went begging across a packed goalmouth.

 

Purcell went close when he cut in from the right, but his shot was tipped around the post for a corner, and although Leon McKenzie had the ball in the net soon afterwards from a David Knight pass, the flag was already raised for offside.

 

Play continued in the same vein, and Knight fired just over the bar when put through by Billy Coyne.

 

Hornchurch won several corners but could not get the ball into the net, although a Knight shot was touched around the post following a long throw from Junior Luke into the goalmouth.

 

Elliot Styles hit the bar with a header from a May corner, whilst in a rare Abbey breakaway Sam Mott saved first from Christian Assambalonga and then from Yemi Adelani.

 

Close to half time Omand did well to save at the feet of Knight, who had run on to a Coyne pass.

 

Hornchurch continued the momentum after the interval, and Purcell had his shot cleared off the line from another long throw, this time from Billy Coyne.

 

Hornchurch went ahead when Matt Attard fouled David Knight, and George Purcell made no mistake from the resulting penalty.

 

Abbey could do little other than defend, and it was no surprise when Hornchurch went further ahead, when a May free kick reached Elliot Styles, who promptly scored his fourth goal of the season.

 

Junior Luke almost made it three with a fine run, which ended when Omand came out of his goal to save well.

 

Abbey went close in a good move which ended when Mott made an excellent save from Assambalonga.

 

Leon McKenzie went close with a header, and Purcell went not-so-close with a shot on the turn, as Hornchurch cruised to a well-earned three points, although perhaps they had not scored as many as their territorial play merited.

[blackballed]

Dagger the first booking after 2 mins was the result of a foul on Billy Coyne not David Knight.

[Dagger03]

Thanks - now amended