Northwood 0 Hanwell Town 3
Monday 27th December 2021
| NORTHWOOD | |||
 |
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| 1 | Daniel Hosier | ||
| 2 | Sam Jenkins (86m) | ||
| 3 | Andy Lomas | ||
| 4 | Keagan Cole © | ||
| 5 | Tommy Boxer | ||
| 6 | James Gurteen | ||
| 7 | Yiannis Constantinou (63m) | ||
| 8 | Teddy Stacey  |
||
| 9 | Sydney Ibie | ||
| 10 | Micah Jackson (90m) | ||
| 11 | Carl Stewart | ||
| Substitutes | |||
| 12 | Sam Cahill (90m) | ||
| 14 | Lewis Batten (86m) | ||
| 15 | Kyal Williams (63m) | ||
| 16 | Daniel Purdue | ||
| 17 | - | ||
|
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Once again it was not ‘home sweet home’ for Northwood as their long losing streak at the Fenton continues.
Having survived two pitch inspections after the recent heavy rain, the local derby went ahead in front of a bumper festive crowd. Northwood went into the game with a number of the squad missing due to injury and Covid restrictions, setting up with a new formation which saw skipper Keagan Cole deployed as sweeper in a three-man defence w
ith Andy Lomas and Carl Stewart returning to the starting line-up.
Woods started well as Hanwell keeper Hugo Sobte kept out a long range effort from Yiannis Constantinou before Micah Jackson saw his low shot saved.
And Northwood maintained their bright as Jackson’s mazy run ended with his shot being deflected behind for a corner while Sam Jenkins saw his effort clear the bar after Jackson’s freekick on the edge of the box rebounded of the Hanwell wall.
Having dealt with the early pressure from Northwood, the visitors began to find some attacking momentum, Cole making a timely clearance from Dan Carr’s cross into the six-yard box before the referee waved away vociferous appeals for a penalty as Woods looked to clear their lines following a Tom Collins miscue. The Geordies were looking increasingly threatening as Collins dragged his shot wide following a quick break while Carr’s shot from the edge of the box narrowly cleared the Northwood bar.
However, the contest turned on two crucial moments in the last five minutes of an entertaining opening period – Woods being denied the lead by a questionable offside flag as Andy Lomas converted from Jackson’s clever through-ball before Collins gave Hanwell the lead on 44 minutes after keeper Dan Hosier had saved his initial effort following Tomas Siemienczuk’s ball over the top.
Photos by CHRIS BENN
Northwood needed a swift response in the second half but their task became more difficult as Hanwell increased their lead on 55 minutes, Woods failing to defend a floated freekick into the box with Calum Duffy ghosting in unchallenged to head the ball home.
Woods regrouped as they looked for a way back into the contest and they gave Hanwell a little reminder of their threat as Teddy Stacey released Jackson whose cross-shot was clawed away by Sobte.
Northwood made a change on 63 minutes as Constantinou was replaced by debutant Kyal Williams to give some fresh impetus to the Woods attack. However, the contest was effectively over on 66 minutes as Collins grabbed his second of the afternoon with a simple, close-range finish.
Northwood continued to search for something out of the game with Williams earning a freekick on the edge of the box, Sobte dealing with Jackson’s effort before Tommy Boxer headed narrowly wide from a Lomas cross. Meanwhile, Sam Jenkins made way for Lewis Batten in the right wing-back berth.
However, the Geordies squandered the opportunity to put an more uneven slant on the scoreline a Hosier produced a superb save to keep out Ogi Obi’s penalty kick after Trevan Robinson was upended in the box.
There was still time for Woods to introduce a second debutant as Sam Cahill replaced Jackson for the final minutes and they went close to grabbing a consolation as Sydney Ibie and Williams saw shots deflected wide, but it wasn’t to be for unlucky Northwood.
Report by ROBIN PIPER
