Marlow 1 Leatherhead 3
Report by Rod Ellis
Leatherhead produced another outstanding performance to win 3-1 at high-flying Marlow on Saturday. Two first half goals from Omarr Lawson and a superb tight-angled finish from Alpha Diallo saw Tanners brush aside the Blues and move up to tenth place in the League table.
Leatherhead could not have wished for a better start, taking an early lead after five minutes. With Tanners pressing forward, Dave Tarpey won possession on the edge of the box before squaring to an advancing Lawson on his right who smashed the ball into back of the net.
A rare defensive lapse allowed Marlow to level eight minutes later, as Junaid Bell stole into the Tanners’ six yard box unchallenged to fire home from close range.
Leatherhead kept their composure and won three corners in quick succession midway through the opening half. Kenny Beaney’s probing in swingers created all kinds of difficulties for Marlow’s defence. The first two were flicked behind by Blues’ defenders before Fikayo Atewologun’s glancing header sent Beaney’s third corner just wide of the post.
Tanners were awarded a free kick just outside the Blues’ penalty area on 28 minutes. Tarpey’s goal-bound effort bounced just in front of Aaron Watkins, forcing the Marlow keeper to make an acrobatic save to turn the ball behind for a corner.
Leatherhead continued to push forward and were duly rewarded with a second goal after 31 minutes. Maxwell Mullins shook off his marker down the right before delivering a perfectly weighted cross into the box for Lawson to latch onto and score from close range.
Marlow produced a positive response in the closing minutes of the half. Efforts from Curtis Chapple and Josh Masters were deflected behind for corners before Tanners keeper Slavomir Huk dealt with a looping Dawid Rogalski free kick, grabbing the ball from the feet of an advancing Naheer-Omar
Nawaf.
Tarpey missed out on an opportunity to build on Leatherhead’s slender lead on 50 minutes, with the Tanners skipper breaking clear of a Marlow defender before shooting wide from the edge of the box.
The hosts almost levelled after 67 minutes when another Blues attack was cleared off the line by Leatherhead full back Louis Collins.
Tanners maintained their shape and focus and sealed the three points with an excellent strike from Alpha Diallo on 78 minutes. The young midfielder collected the ball deep on the left and advanced towards goal, striking the ball into the opposite corner of the net from the tightest of angles.
It all got rather messy in the closing stages as Tanners succeeded in their attempts to run down the clock. An ill-tempered touchline confrontation in the dying minutes resulted in a batch of yellow cards being shown to both sets of players before the referee finally blew the whistle for full-time.
Marlow: Aaron Watkins, Curtis Chapple (Adam Green 90), Josh Masters, Louis Rogers, Chris Ovenden, Junaid Bell, Ben Mulley, Tom Soares (Josh Boorn 76), Naheer-Omar Nawaf, Toby Raggett (Charlie Samuel 76), Dawid Rogalski
Leatherhead: Slavomir Huk, Maxwell Mullins, Louis Collins, Jerry Puemo, Fikayo Atewologun, Alpha Diallo, Keane Anderson (Olly Allen 86), Kenny Beaney, Dave Tarpey (Archie Burnett 77), Dan Hector (Lewis Pearch 90), Omarr Lawson