Blunt Blackheath lack Bite at at Ball Lane

A challenging matchday for the Club as we tackled a selection week from hell for the Men’s 2nd and 3rd XI. The 2s regular starting midfield and forward line were stripped away due to injuries, illness, and family commitments plus with key personnel from the 3s also unavailable it was a task just getting 11 players on the pitch. But it’s a testament to the strength in depth of the club, selfless members and the hard working Skippers that we fashioned some squads with minimal impact on the teams below.

So, without regular GK Sam Hannon and a host of other 3rd XI regulars missing a rejigged ‘dirty dozen’ made the trip down to Ball Lane to try and overturn the team our all-conquering 2nd XI beat 4-0 the week before. Ashford HC is a great set-up with lots of teams, spectators, good hospitality and a warm and welcoming clubhouse but alas our results there have always made the journey back disappointing - a fact the Mighty 3s hoped to reverse.

The game started well for BOE who proved equal to their counterparts as each team traded half chances and openings in the early stages. Ashford won a pc corner and forced a few shots but they didn’t trouble the solid defence as 15yr old GK Roman Buckle making his 3rd XI debut after being drafted in from the 5th XI grew in confidence. Jason Barkworth in his new position at RH was untroubled by the Aussie style sledging from the foul mouthed Ashford winger and began to find inroads down the right adding some choice aerials into the attack. Jake Owen had another impressive game at LH and with some better choices will improve further. Yes he lost the ball when he took on one too many or tried passing through the strong side but his head never dropped and he fought hard to win the ball back again. However, success or any pressure in the final 25 eluded the BOE forwards as a combination of naivety on our part and experience on theirs nullified the 3s goal scoring chances. Ashford dealt with it all and although BOE absorbed most of the attacks Ashford came with they couldn’t make anything count in the opposition final third. A stat of only one penalty corner in the whole game says much about the bluntness of our attack.

Then just as BOE started to get a foothold in the game the first of two first half penalty flicks (yes folks two!) was awarded by the Ashford Umpire. They were both hotly disputed and both came within 5 minutes of each other and changed the complexion of the game. It was a shame as a competitive match became niggly and antagonistic as tackles and elbows began to fly. Lots of people had lots to say and this spilled over into aggression. A number of cards were brandished including a yellow for an ugly tackle and some afters by the usually passive David Golbey who let the sense of injustice cloud his usually disciplined performance. Of the flicks - one was very debatable, the other (on reflection) was formally (but very harshly) within the rules.

The Mighty 3s had to get on with it and began to settle again and even had a great chance to pull one back when James Goldsmith ran onto a neat pass from the left at the top of the D but his shot fired wide. So BOE went in at half time 2-0 down feeling let down and hard done by. They were still very much in the game as a significant goal threat from Ashford in open play wasn’t forthcoming. However BOE needed to be more effective in the D. A strong team talk of harsh words and a rallying call sent the boys back out with a do or die resolution.

The lads took it on and the second half saw a much improved performance from Blackheath as they pushed hard for a goal. Tom Cleall (MOTM) joined the front line and this introduction made the difference. The midfield began to find him and he began to get something going in the final 25 with free hits and plenty of D penetration. It was the impetus the team needed and a goal came courtesy of this dogged play. A tenacious foray down the left saw the ball find its away pinging across the D from Cleall which was hunted down by Earnshaw far on the right. He fired it back across to the far left post where a galloping Matt Soames swiped a rising ball hard into the net. Great goal, a superb finish from the young Soames and BOE were back in it. The Mighty 3s now had real belief they could get at least a point and worked hard for a goal scoring chance but it began to be too little too late. With the inevitable push came the gaps in the BOE defence and several Ashford chances were inches from giving them a third and finishing goal. But Blackheath battled on until the clock beat their attempts to draw level.

It was a narrow defeat and to be fair BOE had the better of the second half scoring the games only goal from open play and dominating the last 15 mins in search of an equaliser. But throughout the game the Ashford defence had a lot of the ball and our forwards didn’t trouble them enough or put them under sustained pressure to get scores on the board. We gave a very good account of ourselves and know that in the return fixture a victory is very possible. Hopefully, the return of some experience in the 3s frontline will give us the ingredients we lacked today in our valiant attempts to leave Ball Lane on the positive side of the result.