HORNCHURCH 0 THURROCK 0

[Dagger03]

Saturday 26-March-2016

HORNCHURCH 0  THURROCK 0

 

HFC - Chafer - Chouman - Bentley - Styles ©  - Cooper - Goodacre - Eyong - Collis - Knight (Freeman 78) - Purcell - Luke

Subs - McKenzie - Thompson - May - Dove

 

TFC - Madden - Morgan - Clark - Baker - Gregory - Toner - Agombar - Spence © - Wall - Ronnie Winn (Francis 86) - Cowley

Subs - Olfunmishe - Wheatley - George Winn - Gleed

 

Officials - Stuart Franklin with Ari Mendonca and Val Anekwe

Bookings - Cooper 3 (H) - Luke 42 (H) - Bentley 55 (H) - Eyong 57 (H) - Morgan 62 (T) - Agombar 84 (T)

Attendance 270

Duration 47.00 + 49.00

Weather 14 degrees, occasional light rain, wind speed up to 30 mph

 

HORNCHURCH 0  THURROCK 0

 

Sam Mott was making his 100^th appearance for Hornchurch, and this was probably one of the easiest afternoons he has had, as Nathan Cooper and Paul Goodacre were dominant in a defence which prevented Thurrock from managing a single shot on target.

 

Thurrock had the advantage of a strong downfield wind in the first half, as they kicked towards the windmill end of the ground, but the home goal was never under threat.

 

Apart from a Nathan Cooper booking for a foul on Ross Wall after just three minutes, little else happened until Tambeson Eyong was fouled ten yards outside the area. George Purcell, in his 150^th match for Hornchurch, took the free kick and the ball cannoned back off the defensive wall.

 

When Purcell played the ball through to David Knight, who in turn touched it back to Elliot Styles, the resulting shot was narrowly wide, although any goal would have been ruled out as a free kick was awarded against Knight.

 

In a rare Thurrock attack Harry Agombar fired wide of the goal, although this turned out to be the closest Thurrock would get in the entire ninety minutes.

 

Hornchurch pressed forward, and when Junior Luke cut in from the left, Rhys Madden did well to keep the ball out of the net. Madden was in action a few minutes later, turning a shot form Tambeson Eyong around the post.

 

Thurrock won two corners in succession as the half drew to a close, and that was the last time they got anywhere near to the home goal.

 

The second half saw Hornchurch win a series of corners, whilst a Purcell free kick again cannoned back off the defensive wall.

 

From one of the corner kicks, Collis floated the ball over to the far post where Cooper’s header was blocked on the line.

 

Madden did well to save another Purcell free kick, which had eluded the defensive wall, and when Eyong ran through the middle and opened up the defence, his shot was touched onto the post by Madden, who was then beaten by a Luke header from Jed Chouman’s centre, only for the ball to go wide of the post.

 

Ricky Freeman replaced Knight, but Hornchurch could not find a way past a packed Thurrock defence, which held firm when Luke made a penetrating run, before being crowded out before he could get in a shot at goal.

[Eastside Urchin]

Decent attendance