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Northwood 1  Leverstock Green 1

Saturday 18th October 2025

 

NORTHWOOD
     
     
   
1 Hafed Al-Droubi 
2 Ademide Baruwa
3 Mack Miskin
4 Manny Folarin ©
5 Bryan Mankumbani
6 Carl Stewart
7 Reece Price-Placid (88m)
8 Omar Rowe (79m)
9 Devonte Totesaut
10 Jon-Jo Bates (79m)
11 Dan Williams
Substitutes
12 Nasir Sharifi (79m)
14 Hicham Bouchareb (88m)
15 Jack Smith
16 Jamie Kennedy (79m)
17 Harry McKenna
   

The Woods finally picked up their first home point of the season, just holding on under pressure from draw specialists Leverstock Green who could have nicked a win in the last seconds.

There were three changes made to the starting line-up that had lost heavily to Leighton Town a week earlier with Reece Price-Placid and Devonte Totesaut recalled after injury while Omar Rowe came in on dual-registration from Chesham United.

The visitors arrived having lost at Hertford Town in midweek, a defeat which ended a run of five successive drawn matches and were able to welcome back skipper Dan Pett to the centre of midfield.

Northwood started the game well and got their first sight of goal on 12 minutes as Carl Stewart was put into the box but he saw his shot saved by goalkeeper Harry Way. A corner soon followed, fired in by Stewart. It was flicked on at the near-post by a Levy defender and a combination of Pett and Price-Placid forced the ball over the line at the far post to put the Woods in front.

Just five minutes later, another former Woods player, Juan Pablo Velasco almost levelled things up when he chipped a shot from distance which beat Hafed Al-Droubi in goal but came back off the corner of the crossbar.

It was after 22 minutes that the visitors went close again when a shot from Nat Connolly deflected off a teammate and only just wide of the target and the match was generally a battle in the midfield which neither side dominated.

On 33 minutes, Levy’s Jeffrey Sekyere hit the target with a low strike but it lacked power and was comfortable for Al-Droubi in goal and soon after another former Woods player, Tommy Boxer had a chance with a near-post header that the Woods ‘keeper claimed at the near-post.

PHOTOS by James Brown

The Woods finally forged an attack on goal after 37 minutes when Jon-Jo Bates latched onto a header from Dan Williams and jinked into the area, shrugging off a couple of challenges before seeing a left-footed strike parried by Way. Beating the ‘keeper to the loose ball he knocked it back across goal but the danger was cleared.

Leading at half-time, hopes were high that the Woods would be able to hold on to secure a much-needed home win after the break but it was the visitors who threatened early at a corner with Boxer swinging his left foot to steer a shot goalwards which was blocked by Al-Droubi and cleared to safety.

Pett tried his luck from distance on 62 minutes but the ball flew well wide and then Connolly went close again, stealing into the box for a shot which was saved by the Woods keeper. There was a rare attack from the home side a minute later as Bates battled through a couple of visiting defenders to play in Totesaut and he hit a strike from outside the box which flew wide of the far post.

Northwood’s deep defending was seeing Leverstock Green enjoy a lot more of the ball in and around the box but they had rarely looked like scoring before they did level on 77 minutes. A ball knocked into the box by Tom Georgiou saw a series of touches and attempted clearances before it fell to Sekyere and his shot took a big deflection off Mack Miskin to fly into the far corner.

It was only now that the Woods made substitutions but the visitors had their tails up and another ex-Woods player, Radu Stefanoaica, tested Al-Droubi with a chip that had the ‘keeper back-pedalling to tip the ball over the bar.

It was Leverstock that finished strongly, sensing the chance to win the game but Al-Droubi kept one shot out, another flew wide and then, in the seventh and final minute of stoppage-time, a long-throw was flicked on at the near-post to a completely unmarked Callum Neal who somehow swept the ball onto the bar from five yards. A scramble ensued but no-one was able to turn the loose ball home.

Northwood have a midweek rest ahead of next Saturday’s trip to play fifth-placed Hitchin Town where their unbeaten away record will certainly be tested.

REPORT by Alan Evans

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