19th March 2022
Lakenheath vs Brantham Athletic @ The Nest - Lakenheath
Thurlow Nunn Premier League (Step 5)
15:00 KO
£7 entry
Attendance - 65
Half-time score: Lakenheath 0-1 Brantham Athletic
Goals:
Brantham Athletic: Lee - 15'
Lakenheath: Avis - 80' (P)
Leigh Simons has footage of each goal, see links below:
Final Score: Lakenheath 1-1 Brantham Athletic
I was pleased to be making the short journey up to The Nest to watch some non-league football again, it had been a while due to Covid passing through the family, and long work shifts getting in the way. It had been a good few months since I was last at Lakenheath, which seems crazy, but there have been a lot of fixture clashes recently. I was looking forward to seeing the new stand which was part-constructed last time I was there. The game today was a chance for Lakenheath to get more points to move further into mid-table, but it was going to be difficult as Brantham Athletic are a team fighting for their survival down at the bottom of the league, in amongst a group of teams including Thetford Town, Haverhill Rovers and Long Melford, all trying to avoid that final relegation spot.
It was a beautiful sunny day, albeit a little nippy, but nice to see Spring on the horizon, and feel the sun on my face whilst watching football. The game got off to a frantic start, with both teams creating chance after chance in the first 5mins. In the first minute, Lakenheath went close when Grogan launched a long ball into the box from a deep position, to which star striker Avis managed to get his head on it, and the ball was heading for the top of the goal if it were not for Brantham keeper Bedingfield tipping it over the bar with his fingertips. Brantham replied in the 2nd minute, some scrappy play from Lakenheath saw Druce breakthrough and he managed to get off a shot that forced and excellent save from Beckwith who managed to stay big to block the strike. In the 3rd minute, Brantham had another excellent chance, a poor pass at the back from Beckwith put Grogan under-pressure, and he returned an even poorer pass that was intercepted by Thorne, and for what looked to be a certain goal, he blasted wide of the far post, much to the relief of Lakenheath. In the 5th minute, Manels stole the ball and played in Avis on the edge of the box, he turned his man and shot from outside the area, but it went straight down Bedingfield's throat for a comfortable save.
Following the fast start, both teams managed to settle a bit, but Lakenheath were attacking well, and in the 14th minute, they looked sure to break the deadlock. Cartner launched a ball to Manels down the left wing, he ran on and put in a perfect ball for Thulborn at the far post, all that required was a tap in, but he mis-hit the ball, and the chance went begging. In the following minute, Brantham went up the other end and hit the back of the net, courtesy of a direct run from de la Paz, he rounded a Lakenheath defender and slid in James Lee who easily slotted the ball past Beckwith.
Following the goal, Brantham began to dominate the game, playing with more intensity and winning the midfield battle. That was until the 36th minute, when a moment of madness saw them go down to 10-men. Yallop and Thorne got a bit tangled up, and in the heat of the moment, Thorne saw the red mist and stamped down onto the back of Yallop's neck/head area, which looked really nasty. Despite the protestations, the referee rightly dismissed Thorne for the nasty, dangerous and downright idiotic play. He had let his team down, the rest of the game would be an uphill challenge for his team desperately fighting to remain in the league.
However, despite going down to 10-men, Brantham rallied and became very organised and compact, and as Lakenheath struggled to break this down, they looked to counter-act quickly through the pacey attack force. At the end of the half, in the 45th minute, de la Paz went on a excellent run down the right wing, and forced another good save from Beckwith, who got down well to make the stop.
In the second-half, the same pattern of play from the end of the first half continued, and Brantham actually made the better chances on the counter. In the 49th minute, there was a scramble in the box that ended with de la Paz turning and shooting and the ball scraped the outside of the upright. In the 61st minute, Northwood cracked off a 30 yard strike that went close, forcing Beckwith to dive, but it sailed marginally wide. In the 68th minute, a Riley corner curled to the far post where goalscorer James Lee was running in unmarked, he knocked the ball towards to goal and it came off the leg of the upright Beckwith who had positioned himself well in the goalmouth.
Lakenheath slowly started to play themselves into the game, and began creating moments where they broke through the resolute Brantham defences. In the 72nd minute, Bailey played a neat pass that unleashed Peters down the left wing, he burst into box, rounded two players and fired a shot at the near post, but it was well covered and saved by Bedingfield. In the 78th minute, under sustained Lakenheath pressure, a Lakenheath player, who looked to be substitute Underwood, was brought down in the box, after what looked to be a 50/50 challenge, but the referee immediately pointed to the spot. I was the other side of the pitch so it was difficult to see exactly what happened, so I can only guess that it was considered a dangerous challenge, perhaps studs were up, judging by the Lakenheath player in clear pain? Nevertheless, the penalty was on, and ever reliable striker, and captain for todays game, Shaun Avis, stepped up and blasted the ball home to bring the score level at 1-1.
The final 10 minutes finished with Lakenheath dominating possession, but Brantham making dangerous breakaways, and they went close on two occasions. In the 89th minute, following a Brantham attack, the ball fell to de la Paz, but his snap shot from outside the area was directly at Beckwith. In the following minute, there was another scramble in the box, and the ball came out going just outside the post. In the 93rd minute, Lakenheath had a perfect opportunity for the smash and grab, from the left wing, Manels whipped in a dangerous ball, and Avis headed towards goal, keeper Bedingfield batted the ball away, directly into the path of Thulborn, where all he had to do was guide the ball home, but he managed to tap wide to the agony of the crowd. And with that, despite Lakenheath desperately pushing for one last chance, the game ended up with both team sharing the spoils.
That was a interesting game to spectate, both teams had chances to put the game to bed, and despite being down to 10-men for a large part of the game, Brantham looked the more organised and dangerous team. Lakenheath seemed to have lost their spark today, but when you consider that Lakenheath are mid-table, with not a lot to play for in the league, whereas Brantham are fighting tooth-and-nail for their survival, perhaps this is understandable, so in some ways, both teams will likely be happy with the point. If it weren't for the moment of madness in the first half, it is conceivable that Brantham could have taken all the points, as they were on-top at the time of the incident. Overall, I think Brantham look to have enough to stay up, de la Paz and Lee looked sharp, and captain Marshall was a really handy player. For Lakenheath, I enjoyed seeing Manels get a bit of space in the game, and substitute Dan Olive looked lively. I hope to see Lakenheath win a few of the remaining games to finish as high as they can in what is their first season at this level. I will be back soon, UP THE HEATH!!
Line-Ups:
LAKENHEATH: Charley Beckwith, Finley Logan, Sam Peters, Ryan Yallop, Dean Grogan, Lee Hammond, Kaine Manels, Tatum Cartner, Shaun Avis (C), Tom Thulborn, Ross Bailey. SUBS: James Morley, Dan Olive, Casey Underwood, Craig Nurse.
BRANTHAM ATHLETIC: Ryan Bedingfield, Jack Marshall (C), Tom Lawson, Liam Riley, Alfie Owen-Jones, Craig Hughes, Jose Santa de la Paz, Tommy Northwood, Rob Thorne, James Lee, Liam Druce. SUBS: Jack Madley, Kieran Lawler, Tom Watkins, Stefano Mallardo.
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