League

Jo Dunlop Stadium
Spectators: 8560 (Terracing: 6421, Seating: 1968, VIP seats: 171) It was fairly windy and cold on the field when Sidney Doyle kicked off to start the match. After 5 minutes of play, Rickmansworth's Codrin Şelaru made it 0-1 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. John England was left in no man's land by his defense there! John England took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Codrin Şelaru, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. When Rickmansworth's Codrin Şelaru in the 14th minute got a chance for a shot 14th didn't hesitate and placed the ball to the right of the goalie. A beautiful save bye Hilsea's goalie prevented a goal. John England stood for a superb save when he managed to get hold of Codrin Şelaru's shot from short distance in the 14th minute. When the match clock showed 15 minutes, the score became 0-2 when Codrin Şelaru sped through Hilsea's defense and sent away a curving shot that went into the net to the right of John England. After a defensive mix-up in Hilsea's zone, Vince Digby stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. John England came out of the goal and Vince Digby tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. In the 19th minute Codrin Şelaru shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but John England saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. 21 minutes into the match, Hilsea's goal looked a bit too open when Codrin Şelaru came free, but John England reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. 26 minutes into the game, Rickmansworth's Samuel Löfskog nearly tore a hole in the net with a booming shot. John England made a valiant effort, but he could not reach the ball in time, 0-3. With a couple of smart ball manuevers Codrin Şelaru in the 29th managed to get into a good position. With a left leg John England saved Hilsea from getting behind. In the 30thth minute of the game Codrin Şelaru who was perfectly placed tried to make a shot on goal, but Hilsea's John England was lucky and managed to grab hold of the ball. Hilsea's John England played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Codrin Şelaru in the 32nd minute of play. Barry Foreman took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Christopher Gray, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. An unexpectedly hard shot by Vince Digby in the 39th minute of play forced Hilsea's goalkeeper John England to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. In the 40th minute Sidney Doyle shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Barry Foreman saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Codrin Şelaru took the ball and in the 43 minute, shot a rapid shot to the right of a surprised John England. John England dived to the right, and did manage to get a hand on the shot, but it still went into the right corner making it 0-4. In the 49th minute Rickmansworth were awarded a corner. Felipe Maura went to the cornerflag to take it. After the first half Rickmansworth were leading 0-4. They had played with great self confidence throughout the first half and fully deserved their lead.

The players of the away team seemed most concentrated when Codrin Şelaru stepped up to make the kick off in the second half. The supporters of Rickmansworth booed when Hilsea was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 58 match minutes in a wonderful position. Verne Lemerond didn't get a good kick on the ball. Felipe Maura was probably a little too eager to shoot when he, in the 59th played minute, shot the ball from way out. The shot was hard, but the ball flew wide of the goal. Barry Foreman took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Sidney Doyle, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. Rickmansworth's Vince Digby got a good chance for a goal in the 62nd minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. Hilsea's attacker deliberately struck the ball against an opponent to win a corner for his team. The corner was taken by Kenny Dobson in the 65th minute. A nice corner shot did that Kenny Dobson got away a dangerous shot. Despite this Barry Foreman quite easily got ahold of the ball to make the save. John England had great luck who in the 70thth minute grab hold of the ball when Vince Digby from a short distance tried to put the ball inside the right post. 71 minutes into the game, Seth Sharples was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. Hilsea's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave Rickmansworth the free kick. A collision led to Hilsea getting a freekick after 71 minutes play. Seth Sharples hit a great ball. Codrin Şelaru's shot straight on target was not completely harmless. The ball had pretty good speed, but John England firmly grabbed it by the left post. An unexpectedly hard shot by Vince Digby in the 80th minute of play forced Hilsea's goalkeeper John England to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Hilsea's John England played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Codrin Şelaru in the 81st minute of play. John England was out of position in the 84 minute of play, and Codrin Şelaru capitalized on the mistake with a soft shot into the goal. Codrin Şelaru really showed his touch with that goal: 0-5. Samuel Löfskog scored 0-6 in the 88th match minute with a shot that went into the goal to the right of John England, who was just a little too slow in reacting to the shot. In the 91st minute, Christopher Gray hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. John England made a fantastic save in the 94th minute, when Codrin Şelaru sent off a good shot on target. When the match was over Rickmansworth could go home with a victory in their luggage, having controlled the game far better than Hilsea throughout the match.