Kentish Football 
Whitstable Town 2-2 Leatherhead - There's a lot to build on, says new boss Peter Nott
Saturday 29th January 2011
WHITSTABLE TOWN 2-2 LEATHERHEAD
Ryman League Division One South
Saturday 29th January 2011
Stephen McCartney reports from Belmont Road
WHITSTABLE TOWN boss Peter Nott says he’s disappointed that his battling side threw away two leads before settling for a point against fourth-placed Leatherhead at a bitterly cold Belmont.
Nott’s first game in charge was a goal-less draw at Chatham Town seven days ago - after caretaker manager Steve Nolan (who stays at Nott’s number two) picked up eight points in five games following Mark Lane’s departure.
But Nott felt two goals from striker Ian Pulman should have been enough to secure the club’s fifth league win of the season.
“I think it’s a bit of a mixed performance,” admitted the former Maidstone United manager, who played a major part in Chris Smalling’s development, which took the central defender into the Premier League with Fulham and Manchester United.
“We’ll start of with the negatives,” continued Nott. “We were twice in the lead and you can’t give the lead away twice.
“I think we showed a bit of naivety. All throughout the game we failed to keep possession of the ball, we gave it away too cheaply.
“Leatherhead are a good team, you can see where they are in the league. They’re a very attack minded team and when it is like that you’ve got to keep possession of the ball, keep working and it will come.
“But we’ve taken the lead twice and we haven’t retained it.”
Nott, who emerged from the home dressing room to speak in the warmth of the club shop, added there is plenty to build on after collecting two points in his first two games in charge.
He said: “But we shouldn’t be disappointed with a point today. I don’t think our performance warranted any more - you take the point.
“To get a point, we would have been delighted six weeks ago. Now we’re saying it’s not good enough so we’ve moved on a hell of a lot but we’ve got to start getting some three points on the board as well.”
Leatherhead arrived with the most lethal strike force in the division, with Greg Andrews (25 goals) and Tom Hutchings with 41 goals between them, although their manager Mick Sullivan played Hutchings as the lone striker with Andrews in a more deeper role on the left.
Nott pushed Gareth Cornhill further up the pitch as right-midfielder, with Kieran Morris slotting in behind him at right-back. Tom Parker was exploited at left-back as Leatherhead’s attacking play came down that side of the pitch. Whitstable’s left-midfield play was poor as Michael Yianni was pushed inside due to Leatherhead playing three men in the middle of the park.
And Morris released Cornhill galloping down the flank and he whipped in a curling effort which forced Leatherhead keeper Chico Ramos into making a diving save to palm the ball away inside the opening three minutes.
Leatherhead’s first chance arrived exactly a minute later when following a two-man move down the left, Andrews’ low right-footed drive from the corner of the penalty box rolled into Shaun Smith’s arms.
In what was a start-stop opening twenty minutes, Leatherhead thought they had opened the scoring, but Smith made a fine one handed save.
Pulman lost the ball to Mu Maan inside the Leatherhead half and he released Andrews (who had beaten the offside trap) though on goal, and his right-footed chip seemed destined to drop into an empty net, but Smith stuck out a right arm and caught the ball.
Whitstable grabbed the lead - against the run of play - through Pulman’s fourteenth goal of the season - with his first chance after 28 minutes.
Cornhill’s ball over the top of the Leatherhead defence released Pulman through on goal and Ramos advanced off his line towards the corner of his penalty box, but Pulman nicked the ball away from his feet, rounded the keeper and from an acute angle slotted the ball past Jon Boswell on the line to the delight of the home faithful.
“It was against the run of play,” admitted Nott. “Puly’s like that, he’s dug in there, he’s worked hard and he’s taken the goal really well. He’s a natural goalscorer, which is hard to find at this level.”
Nott added: “The keeper didn’t really cover himself in glory!
“I always felt, attacking wise, Lloyd (Blackman) and Puly looked sharp and I thought we could always get something. Twice we got on the end of two good opportunities but I felt in midfield we got over-run and we struggled. They played three in the centre of midfield with our two and we were shouting at Yarns (Michael Yianni) to push in, eventually he did, but by that time they got themselves in the game and we was up against it.”
Andrews swept a fine pass through for Hutchings, who was denied by an excellent sliding tackle from behind by Steven Lloyd, who was correctly handed yet another man-of-the-match award.
But Leatherhead levelled in the 37th minute, courtesy of the underside of the crossbar and an eagled-eyed assistant referee, Bexley’s finest, James Macey.
Right-back Alex Mackay released Hutchings down the right and after cutting inside Parker he rolled the ball across the penalty area to the unmarked Maan, who hooked a right-footed snap shot towards goal from 10-yards, which came crashing down off the underside of the crossbar before Smith caught the ball, but the assistant referee flagged for the goal.
But did the ball actually cross the line?
“I certainly couldn’t see it,” added Nott. “In fairness to the lino he was in a good position. It didn’t seem to be a lot of reaction from our boys. None of us moaned about it after the game so I would say he’s got it spot on unfortunately.”
A move down the right, involving Mackay and midfielder Jack McLeod, set up a decent chance for Hutchings, who swept a shot past the foot of the far post from 20-yards.
Leatherhead created the second half’s first chance when Andrews’ right-footed free-kick from 28-yards, curled over the four man wall, but the ball bounced wide with Smith struggling.
But clinical Pulman scored his second goal with only his second chance, in the 55th minute.
Full credit, again, must go to the hard-working Cornhill, whose header released Pulman down the inside right-channel again and the striker drove a right-footed drive into Ramos, who failed miserably to prevent the ball finding the far corner.
Whitstable missed a good chance to move two goals in front when Lloyd nipped in front of his marker to head down and past the post after Cornhill floated in a free-kick from 40-yards.
Quiet Yianni blasted a right-footed volley towards the housing estate behind the goal after Cornhill’s out-swinging corner from the right-hand side.
A disappointing Parker gifted possession to Elliott Thompson some 30-yards from goal and the Leatherhead midfielder raced through four Whitstable players but his drilled shot bounced off the goalkeeper’s legs and just missed the foot of the near post, nestling into the side netting.
But Leatherhead levelled again in the 66th minute.
Whitstable switched off following Andrews’ corner from the right and following Chris Boulter’s lay-off, Mark Simmonds cracked a right-footed curling shot from the right-hand side of the penalty area, which flew over the keeper’s head into the roof of the net.
“The disappointing thing for me, both goals that we gave away we’re too cheap,” said Nott. “We’re allowing players to pull off us and then put us under pressure and we’ve got to be so tight in these situations.
“If we’re beaten by good goals, you would have said that, but we’ve been beaten by two very poor defensive goals and that’s something we need to work on.
With Whitstable flagging on the sticky pitch, a near post volley, following Cornhill’s left-wing corner, flashed wide and at the other end, Leatherhead substitute, striker Kwab Agyel planted a header over following Hutchings’ corner from the right, but resurgent Whitstable Town are a difficult side to beat nowadays and deserved to hang on to a point, but it leaves them in nineteenth place in the table, just four points above the relegation zone.
Nott felt Leatherhead gave his new club little respect.
He said: “I think they came, we could see their attitude, I used it to wind the boys up before the game. They moaned about the pitch, they were moaning about the facilities, they came here expecting to pick an easy three points up.
“But any team that I will manage, what I do demand out of them is they play for the badge, they battle. I think the work-rate was good today. I think the quality of retaining possession was poor and when we get ourselves in front we’ve got to start killing games off and we didn’t today. We was naive in a lot of areas today.”
Nott explained why his side didn’t create more chances at an uncertain Ramos.
“I think the reason why we didn’t create many chances today was because we were under pressure a lot because we didn’t retain possession,” he said.
But Nott can take positives out of his first home game in charge of the club, the best supported Kent club in the division.
He said: “There’s a lot to build on there. I’ve seen a couple of games and if I’m being totally honest I think we need to strengthen but we need to strengthen within our budget, which is fine. I understand that. We just need to bring in quality players that will help us retain possession and will be a spur for the other boys.
“We’re not far away. I’m not looking to come in and make major changes. I think I’ve got a good bunch of honest boys that enjoy playing for the club. There’s a lot of loyalty here and I just need to add the finishing touches to a good bunch.”
Whitstable Town: Shaun Smith, Kieran Morris, Tom Parker (Dan Wisker 86), Jim Sherman (TJ Moncur 63), Steven Lloyd, Louis Smith, Gareth Cornhill, Ant Bodle, Lloyd Blackman, Ian Pulman, Michael Yianni.
Subs: Stuart Vahid, Adam Douglas, Kevin Fewell
Goals: Ian Pulman 28, 55
Booked: Jim Sherman 33, TJ Moncur 72, Ant Bodle 90
Leatherhead: Chico Ramos, Alex Mackay, Steve Rowe, Chris Boulter, Jon Boswell, Elliott Thompson, Jack McCloud, Mark Simmonds, Greg Andrews (Mark Elson 77), Tom Hutchings (Callum Donaghey 86), Mu Maan.
Sub: Liam Pestle
Goals: Mu Maan 37, Mark Simmonds 66
Booked: Chico Ramos 29
Attendance: 223
Referee: Mr Ian Fissenden (Gillingham)
Assistants: Mr James Macey (Bexley) & Mr Aji Ajibola (Erith)
Red Dragon I.T. Ltd