Saturdays Match with Staines....

[Matt]

It was a good game all in all. The first half had very few chances, Staines took one early on, slipping the ball in at the near post. Halifax definitely did not look 'Conference Quality'. Staines by far the better team in the first half.

 

In the second half, Staines increased their lead when some neat play led to the number 7 (Tomlin I believe) being put through and he managed to get it past the keeper and it crept just inside the post. Staines were well on top now, but Halifax pulled a goal back with a headed goal from a corner. From this point on Halifax dominated the second half. Both sides went close with Staines holding on for dear life (Halifax were playing some really neat stuff). Staines' frontmen looked dangerous on the break. However at the end, Staines' no.2 was sent off for his part in a scuffle. Then in the 4th minute of injury time, Halifax scored to make it 2-2 (didn't actually see it, was heading for the exit).

 

In extra time, Staines definitely looked jaded and gave away a penalty on 102 mins which Midgely scored. Halifax were happy to contain Staines and hold on to this lead although Staines did hit the bar (it was offside anyway).

 

Overall I believe the better team won although Staines' quality was there to see in parts, and gave Halifax plenty to think about. It should be noted that their star man Maskell was only on the bench - presumably not fit enough to play. Will be interesting to see if he plays any part tomorrow. Good crowd of 724 as well, probably more with comps etc. Very few Halifax fans though (obviously it's a long 8hr round trip and expensive) - I would guess about 20 or 30 made the journey, and some of the ones that did were very critical of some of their players, especially when they went 1-0 down. For a crowd of 700+, it really was quite quiet, although a few of the fans behind Staines' goal were making some noise all throughout the match. Heard almost nothing from the Halifax fans, they were too busy moaning.

 

The ground really does look nice, especially the grandstand, but surprisingly has no covering behind the goals - reminds me of Croydon Athletic's ground a little bit in that there is very little space behind the goals as well. Also with housing behind one end and a mobile phone mast behind the other, there's little chance of expansion behind the goals. Still plenty to be proud of though, as the main stand really is impressive, ranking alongside Tooting's Imperial Fields.

[Dominic]

When i first went to Staines last season i was really disappointed, at first i thought it was just me but i went with Chris S and Roy Lloyd and they had the same impression. It does look very impressive when you drive up but when you get in it is just like a brand new version of Stag Meadow, no covering behind the goals! The 3 or 4 times I’ve been there there has been no atmosphere at all so we are really gonna have to work hard to make a noise to tomorrow!

 

Sorry Matt I’ve got to disagree, Wheatsheaf Lane has nothing on Tooting's Imperial Fields.

 

 

[Matt]

True true but I didn't mean the ground as a whole, I meant the grandstand. Although Tooting's is bigger, Staines' is still very impressive.

[St Leonard]

No better than Dulwich's ground, the stand couldn't hold more than Wexham Park's.

[St Leonard]

No better than Dulwich's ground, the stand couldn't hold more than Wexham Park's. It wasn't a new ground, it was just a new stand with bits tarted up!