Hanworth Villa 0 Leatherhead 1
Leatherhead kept alive their play-off ambitions by securing a dramatic injury time
winner at Hanworth Villa on Tuesday, thanks to a powering header from Alex Pearce.
With the match still goalless and moving into the third minute of added time, Tanners
skipper Kane Fitzgerald delivered a looping free kick across the hosts’ goalmouth,
picking out centre back Pearce at the far post to guide the ball past Villa keeper Mark
Smith and into the corner of the net.
Tanners created some strong breaks going forward in the opening minutes but the
visitors were unable to break down the well organised Villa defence.
Villa tests Leatherhead on 15 minutes when goalkeeper Sonny Wheeler was forced to
punch away from his penalty area. But the ball landed invitingly for midfielder
Abdullah Javaid, who squandered his opportunity by firing wide.
With the match moving quickly from end to end, Leatherhead striker Kareem
Akinnibi was denied a half chance by a last ditch clearance, before Villa midfielder
Ben Mulley’s long range effort went just wide of the post at the other end.
Tanners continued to press forward with pace and determination. Kelvin Massango
set up a chance for the visitors on 33 minutes, but his fine delivery from the left was
just too long for an advancing Akinnibi.
Villa’s best chance of the opening half came just before the break. A long ball was
played forward into Leatherhead’s penalty area. Sam Merson headed on to Louis
Collins, but the former Tanners midfielder was unable to take control of the ball and
his glancing toe poke was gathered up safely by Wheeler.
The visitors missed a chance to break the deadlock on 70 minutes. Niren Butler
played a long ball forward into Villa’s area but substitute Ty Butler was unable to
gain sufficient control, heading straight to the keeper.
Leatherhead stepped up the pace following the substitution of Akinnibi for Ruben
Bartlett-Antwi on 78 minutes. Within moments of his introduction, Bartlett-Antwi
jinked his way past a Villa defender before setting up a shot for Fitzgerald, who fired
just wide from the edge of the box.
With Tanners gaining in momentum, Anuar Ceesay produced a fine turn and shot on
80 minutes, forcing a low diving save from Smith.
Villa pushed forward in search of a winner, with skipper George Wells’s powerful
header well saved by Wheeler on 85 minutes.
But with a last throw of the dice, Leatherhead produced a set-piece winner deep into
added time. Tanners won a free kick out wide on the left in Villa’s half. Fitzgerald
struck the ball long and hard to the far post, with the excellent Pearce heading past the
keeper to ecstatic roars from his team mates and the large group of Leatherhead
supporters behind the goal.
The result moves Tanners up to eighth place in the table on 57 points from 34
matches, five points behind fifth-placed Hanworth Villa, who have played the same
number of matches.
With eight games of the league campaign remaining, Tanners are back in action on
Saturday when they visit bottom of the table Badshot Lea. Kick-off is at 3.00pm.
Hanworth Villa: Mark Smith, KJ Osu, Josh Casey, Ben Mulley, Joe Peters, George
Wells, Abdullah Javaid, Sam Mead (Ben Geraghty 63), Sam Merson, Louis Collins
(Rayan Djouadj 75), Finlay Macnab (Dylan Randall 87)
Leatherhead: Sonny Wheeler, Cameron Black, Alex Pearce, Niran Butler, Kelvin-
Manuel Massango, Anuar Ceesay, Alfie Huckle, George Hedley, Matt Everitt (Ty
Butler 59), Kane Fitzgerald, Kareem Akinnibi (Ruben Bartlett-Antwi 78)