Wokingham Town v Wallingford & Crowmarsh
Combined Counties League Premier North
It’s always a pleasure to visit Lowther Road and catch up with the good people of Wokingham Town, a club I’ve followed on and off for nearly fifty years now. You always get a nice welcome and great hospitality there. It was another rainy day but at least the game wasn’t subject to a pitch inspection. I’d joked on Twitter that in the three years of the Wandering Tractor project, every time I’ve visited Lowther Road it had rained so I guess they don’t look forward to my visits very much!
So, after gaining entry, £9 including a programme, I headed into the clubhouse to catch up with Mark Ashwell, President of the club, and Andrew Batt the local sports photographer and club historian. Then it was time to set my sights on the food options. This time I decided on something a little different, chilli & chips for £8.75, which turned out to be a lot larger than I imagined and to say it was filling would be an understatement! A very tasty start to days the proceedings!
Onto the match itself and the visitors made the better start to the game, pushing their hosts back but without making a clear chance in the first ten minutes. The closest they came early on followed a loose pass from a Wokingham defender which was picked up by Tryhys Lukonyomoi on the right side of the area. He tried a speculative shot with the outside of the right foot but couldn’t get enough curl on the ball and it sailed harmlessly wide of the far post.
Wokingham’s best effort in the early exchanges came from a nice move down the left, Connor Richardson finding Joao Jardim in space. He fired a ball into the area where Brandon Curtis tried to find space but was crowded out by the visitors defence. Shortly after, at the other end, Aiden Higgs and Denis Haxhui tussled on the edge of the area with Wallingford’s Higgs going down in the box under the challenge but the referee waved away the penalty appeals.
In the 15th minute the visitors did take the lead. A long clearance towards the Wokingham box saw the keeper Emilio Fantocchio come out to clear but a mix up on the edge of the box left Wallingford’s James Williams with the ball and he rolled the ball into the empty net. 0-1
The Sumas responded well to going behind and came close to levelling from a corner swung towards the penalty spot where it was flicked on by Curtis and fell to Thomas Jordan. A good first touch gave him space to get a sliding shot in which just went past the far post.
In the 34th minute the home side did achieve parity when a good run and cross down the left from Richardson picked out Jardim and his deft flicked header beat Alex Pratt and lodged in the net just inside the far post. 1-1
For the last ten minutes of the half both sides went toe to toe but without creating any clear-cut chances.
H-T: Wokingham Town 1 Wallingford & Crowmarsh 1
The second period started in much the same vein, both sides probing but without really testing either goalkeeper. In the 55th minute the visitors regained the lead and again it came from a long ball behind the Wokingham defence. Higgs and Daniel Bailey ran after the loose ball, with the Wokingham defender Bailey slipping leaving Higgs free on the edge of the box and he coolly lifted the ball over the advancing Fantocchio and into the roof of the net. 1-2
Wokingham again battled to try to get back into the game and made one glorious chance when Joseph Allchurch made a surging run down the right flank. He pulled the ball perfectly into substitute Ollie Turner’s feet but under pressure his flick went wide of the far post.
Wallingford came close to increasing their lead in the 80th minute following a swift counter attack. A cross from the right picked out Higgs running to the edge of the six-yard box but his header drifted narrowly wide.
The game got a little fractious in the last ten minutes with the visitors picking up a couple of yellow cards but they did enough to see the game out and take the three points with the result taking them above their hosts in the table.
F-T: Wokingham Town 1 Wallingford & Crowmarsh 2 Att: 112
An entertaining game on a testing surface with the visitors deservedly taking the points. The home side played some lovely passing football in the game but lacked the killer pass in the final third.
After a few blank weekends recently due to waterlogged pitches it was nice to get to a game! Thanks to Wokingham for their usual top hospitality and best of luck to both clubs in the remainder of the season.
Click here to go to Andrew Batt’s photo gallery from this match.