Terras stunned by late winner from Berkhamsted after failing to take their chances
Summary:
Berkhamsted stunned their hosts with a goal deep in injury time to steal all three points from a game that Weymouth had dominated in terms of chances and possession. But the home side’s failure to convert their opportunities came back to haunt them, as goalkeeper Ben Clark fumbled a high cross which fell to a grateful Busari to tap in.
Match Report:
Weymouth have seen a number of new faces through the door in the last 7 days and two of these made the starting XI, with Evan Watt and Charlie Finney replacing the outgoing Mantle and Watts from last Saturday’s lineup. The only other change from that game saw Ben Clark return between the sticks following his health scare. The Terras also had a full complement of substitutes for the first time in several weeks as Burrows returned from injury, being joined by two more new faces – Kris Naicker and Harry Gray.
The Terras looked the brighter of the two teams in the early stages of the game and created some good chances, but the first efforts from Stone and Pollock were easily dealt with by Horlock in the Berkhamsted goal. The visitors’ first opening came from a corner which had to be headed off the line by Genesini and away by Douglas. The best chances of the first half came after 26 minutes. First Blake had a clear shot on goal for Berkhamsted but dragged his effort wide. Then 2 minutes later Pollock slipped the ball through to Stone in the penalty area and his fierce shot drew a great save from Horlock at his near post.
The second half continued in the same vein, with Weymouth on the front foot. A ball whipped in from the left wing by Genesini was well claimed by Horlock, a shot from Finney forced a corner which led to a strike from Bearwish deflected out for another corner. Watt tried his luck from distance but the effort went high and wide, then Robinson took a shot with the outside of his boot which flew narrowly wide of the post.
The Terras best chance came after 75 minutes when Pollock pulled the ball back to Bearwish near the 6-yard box, but the captain’s shot somehow hit the back of a defender who knew nothing about it, and the ball deflected wide. Weymouth had been largely in control up to that point, but Brooks fired a warning shot for the visitors on 79 minutes which went wide of the far post.
Then with the final attack of the game, deep into added time, Hyde sent in a high cross from the left which Clark was only able to push up into the air, and it dropped behind him where Busari was waiting to tap the ball into the empty net.
Reaction:
Speaking to Radio Terras after the game, Steve Claridge couldn’t fault the work rate of his team, saying “everybody gave everything, the two lads who came in today were fantastic … we deserved a lot more than we got out of that game”. But he addressed his team’s failure to capitalise on strong performances by pointing out a key weakness, saying “we’re not good at anticipating/reading the second phase … their keeper hasn’t been made to work as hard as he should’ve”.
The defeat sees Weymouth slip down to 21st place in the league, having already played more games than all the teams around them. With just a single point from the last 5 games, the Terras desperately need a change in fortune when they welcome Plymouth Parkway to the Bob Lucas Stadium next Saturday, in what has become a relegation six-pointer.
Lineups:
Terras: Clark; Betts, Watt, Douglas, Genesini; Robinson, Finney, Bearwish; Goodship (Gray, 83), Stone, Pollock
Subs not used: Burrows, Moss, Naicker, Stavrianos
Chertsey: Horlock; Rosner, Hyde, Brooks, Mitchell (Agboola, 71), Gurteen, Lacey (Barker, 89), Andrews, Wadkins (Busari, 65), Harding (Duodo, 71), Blake
Subs not used: none
Goals: Blake (90+6)
Attendance: 685
Media:
Watch Steve Claridge’s post-match interview here:
Check out the match highlights here: HIGHLIGHTS | Weymouth 0-1 Berkhamsted
Match Report by Ian Middlebrook
