Report by ALAN EVANS

A meeting between North and South Divisions brought a break from League action for the Woods as they met Redhill for an opening round League Cup competition and it provided an entertaining tie which saw Northwood somehow lose their grip on the game twice.

The home side were able to welcome back their six players who had been cup-tied the previous week in their Vase win over Midhurst & Easebourne while also giving a debut to new striker Guiseppe Delgaudio, who has joined the club from Kings Langley. Former Under 18s midfielder Josh Havard also started a League match for the first time. The visitors arrived at the Skyline in third place in the South Division and felt able to leave their two top scorers in the bench for the start of this match, their first visit to Northwood for over thirty years.

And it was the Woods who enjoyed the better of the opening exchanges, finding an opening goal after just seven minutes. Mark Osei did the damage with a typical run down the left before cutting the ball back to Delgaudio. His shot failed to hit the target but the deflection took the ball kindly into the path of the unmarked Ilyas Khader who slotted home.

In response, Tom Harland-Goddard tried a snapshot from outside the box which goalkeeper Finn Rushton pushed away but the Woods were quickly back on the attack with Osei still enjoying himself down the left. Another pacy run took him past his marker and into the box, setting up Delgaudio again but his shot was easy for goalkeeper Sam Allen.

It was quite a surprise though when the Lobsters found an equaliser after 21 minutes. A corner was headed away by Rafiq Bettamer but then recycled by Ethan Ford who chipped a cross to the back post. It was headed back into the danger zone and Tom Harland-Goddard had time to take a touch before swivelling and shooting past Rushton from close-range.

Northwood continued to hold the upper hand though and they regained the lead after 35 minutes when Osei fired over another deep cross which was headed back across goal at pace by Johnny Wilson with Bettamer able to head powerfully past Allen.

Six minutes later, Osei was rewarded further for his endeavours when he raced through centrally and planted a shot past the keeper into the roof of the net to make it 3-1 at the break. All three of the Woods scorers had bagged their first goals for the club.

Osei had another effort early in the second half which drifted wide of the post but Redhill showed that they were far from out of things on 55 minutes, just after a series of substitutions, when one of them, Hamza Abubakari netted with an excellent strike from twenty-five yards, the ball arrowing into the top corner of the net with Rushton clutching thin air.

George Bond forced Rushton into a save at his near-post as the visitors continued to press for an equaliser and they did have the ball in the net ten minutes later but it was ruled out for an offside decision.

The Woods had brought on youngster James King and he created a chance for himself after 77 minutes, cutting in from the left, but his shot flashed wide of the near-post and Northwood were made to pay for that two minutes later when substitute Aidan Brown netted from close-range to level things up and peg the Woods back after their two-goal advantage.

Things were heading for a penalty shoot-out but Northwood could have snatched it in stoppage-time when King found space to knock an inviting, curling cross to the far post and substitute Juwon Akintunde stretched to try to knock the ball in but only managed to kick it high and wide of the target.

A penalty shoot-out was to follow and again it was Northwood who raced into a huge advantage. Substitute Johnny Moura was called on to start things off, converting with a confident strike and then Rushton pulled off a fine save to deny Josh Neathy. Akintunde made no mistake with the second and the Woods were still 2-0 to the good when Rushton saved again, this time from Brown.

Skipper Johnny Wilson was up next but he saw his penalty saved by Allen so when Tyrese Sutherland converted, things were much closer. Kayne Connor was next up and had the keeper well beaten but the ball cannoned back off the crossbar so when Abubakari netted Redhill’s fourth, it was suddenly back to all-square at 2-2.

The pressure was on Maksym Fostyk as he stepped forward and again, he sent the ‘keeper the wrong way, only to be denied by the post and when Jayden Smith slotted home, the Lobsters had secured an unlikely victory.

PHOTOS by PAUL HEASMAN

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• 1.jpg
  Finn Rushton punches away the danger
• 2.jpg
  Josh Havard in for a challenge
• 3.jpg
  Kevin Mustali launches into a tackle
• 4.jpg
  Mark Osei scores the Woods' third goal