Ashford Town 1-1 Chipstead - Lovell: Why can't the Ryman League extend their season?

Wednesday 24th March 2010

ASHFORD TOWN 1-1 CHIPSTEAD
Ryman League Division One South
Wednesday 24th March 2010
Mike Green reports from Homelands Stadium

A GOAL eight minutes from time denied Ashford Town three vital points in the relegation battle at the foot of Ryman One South.

Liam Wright bundled the ball over the line after substitute Kofi Quarty had raced clear to deny Steve Lovell’s side three vital points.

After the game Ashford boss Steve Lovell admitted to www.kentishfootball.co.uk: "That’s just the way its been going for us all season long. It’s the way it’s gone week after week after week.
“We have most of the game - create chances but don’t take them and then come 84, 85 minutes or whatever it was concede a goal that bounces off of three people into our net.
“We then go down the other end - have four attempts at it and can’t get a decent contact. Nothing seems to go in for us. But a point is a point - it was important for us to win today; we didn’t but the performance was more solid than it was on Saturday and the second half was much better.
“We've just got to look now to our trip to Godalming on Saturday to see who can pick their legs up to play the next game."
Ruefully the Ashford boss then reflected upon the run of fixtures that his side now face. "We've got something like eight games in fourteen days," Lovell said. "Its ridiculous - why the Ryman League won’t entertain extending the season is beyond me. But its the same for everyone - we got our games called off for one reason or another, so we'll have to deal with it, hopefully with enough fit players!"
It was Chipstead who had the first chance when Sean Rivers saw a 4^th minute free kick well tipped over by Scott Chalmers Stevens on the Ashford goal. Then came Wright’s amazing miss – released by a long ball over the top, the striker sprinted clear of Danny Lye (who pulled up with a hamstring injury), but just as the striker was about to round the keeper, the ball took a ridiculous kick off of the surface and rebounded off of Wright’s knee and behind for a goal kick.
Mitchell Sherwood then had Ashford’s first chance with a terrific volley that took a big deflection and seemed to be loping over Peck. Yet somehow the keeper backpedalled and changed direction and got just enough on the ball to tip it over the bar for a corner that came to nothing. Six minutes from half time a Lee Hockey long throw caused absolute chaos in the Chipstead box, as keeper Peck came for a ball he had no right in making, and the keeper was relieved to see his defence hack the ball to safety.
11 minutes after the break, the keeper was again embarrassed and this time it counted on the score sheet. A long ball was played in from the right and Lovell beat the keeper to the ball and with the keeper not on his line it almost apologetically crawled over the line to give Ashford the lead.
Sadly it was a lead that they couldn’t keep, as on 82 minutes Wright levelled from Quarty’s run. Ashford could have won the game during stoppage time but in one amazing sequence Laurence Harvey (twice) and Lovell both had shots blocked.
Manager Lovell admitted afterwards that whilst he was focused on Saturday’s trip to Godalming, Monday’s visit of Whitstable Town

“There are still four or five teams involved at the bottom and we knew that even if Whitstable had not have won last night, tonight was important that we didn’t lose. We haven’t lost and haven’t lost ground on anyone around us – its still tight and we’re still in the mix, and I’m still convinced that it will go to the wire – I just wish it was a bit later than the league have scheduled it!”

Ashford Town: Scott Chalmers-Stevens, Carl Harrold, Danny Lye (Toby Ashmore 14), Lee Hockey, Laurence Harvey, Ronnie Dolan, Mitchell Sherwood, Ross Morley, Mark Lovell, Chris Borchescu (Matt Newman 80), Nick Smith.
Subs: Joe Fuller, Ben Morley, Darren Ibrahim.

Goal: Mark Lovell 56

Booked: Lee Hockey 44

Chipstead: Adam Peck, James Russell, Nathan Green, Louis Hollingsworth (Micky Collins 82), Lee Coburn, Dan Moody, Wayne Grizzle (Arron Smith 74), Russell Bedford, Sean Rivers (Kofi Quarty 70), Liam Wright, Ray Freeman.
Subs: Rob Lynch, Jason Thompson. Goal: Liam Wright 82
Booked: Sean Rivers 44, Louis Hollingsworth 72 Attendance: 131
Referee: Mr Tony Goddard (Dagenham, Essex)
Assistants: Mr Tom Brooks (Dagenham, Essex) & Mr Pat Shanahan