Non-League and Academy football writer

After an unbeaten start to the new Thurlow Nunn League First Division South season, with two wins and one draw from their opening three league matches. Hoddesdon Town welcomed an FC Baresi who were on a three match unbeaten run (in all competitions) to Lowfield on Tuesday evening, in what was both side’s latest league fixture. A very late winner for Hoddesdon, would see the home side win 2-1.

After a competitive start to the game, we had to wait until the 20th minute of the game for the first real goalscoring chance of the evening. As FC Baresi took the lead following a great surging forward run down the left flank by Eduin Saul Cruz Aguilar, who took the ball skilfully and quickly beyond a Hoddesdon defender. And after entering the penalty area, he would play the ball back to Israel Kabengele, who had made a clever bit of movement inside of the penalty area. The FC Baresi centre-forward, who only a couple of minutes later had to be substituted because of an injury, would clinically side-foot the ball low in to the goal, 0-1.

The game continued to be very competitive, but just before half-time (in the 43rd minute), Hoddesdon Town would draw level. And what a goal it was! With Connor Bolton receiving the ball following a short pass from a quickly taken free-kick down the left flank. After taking the ball quickly to the byline, he would deliver a good cross towards Harrison Cage on the right-hand side of the box. From where the Hoddesdon player would acrobatically volley the ball powerfully beyond the goalkeeper (Ilyas Baig), and in to the roof of the goal, 1-1.

During the early stages of the second half, the game continued to play out in a really competitive manner, despite it still being a very cagey game of football. Next, and some time after the second half had got underway. A good FC Baresi counter forward would result in Korede Da Silva taking the ball forward through the middle of the pitch, before playing a good pass forward to Mkay Kitoko’s run down the right flank. Mkay Kitoko would then play the ball across to Eduin Saul Cruz Aguilar, who from the edge of the box, would place his effort wide of the goal.

Hoddesdon Town would push FC Baresi late on in what was so far proving to be a relatively uneventful second half, by putting the ball in to their penalty area well. Hoddesdon substitute Ollie Babbage had placed a headed effort narrowly wide, following a looping cross in to the away team’s box. Then, just before we approached second half additional time, a well worked FC Baresi corner-kick routine came so close to leading to Yannick Kamanan’s side getting all three points. As Mubaarak Hameed’s short corner-kick delivery was cleverly left by Isaac Zumbu, to Korede Da Silva on the edge of the Hoddesdon box. Da Silva’s well hit low effort would hit the bottom of Liam Nugent’s right-hand post, before going behind.

From coming so close to winning the game so late on, FC Baresi would then go on to concede a very late Hoddesdon winning goal, in heartbreaking fashion. As Hoddesdon Town substitute Ollie Babbage’s powerful effort (from the edge of the FC Baresi box) had taken a significant deflection off a defender, with the ball bouncing awkwardly past Ilyas Baig and going in to the goal, 2-1. I personally don’t think that FC Baresi, for all their hard work as a team, deserved to lose this game. It was a cagey game of fine margins, and after coming so close to winning the game late on, to then concede that goal during the final minutes of the game, must have been very difficult to take. 

Credit must go to Hoddesdon Town though, who are more than capable of beating any side in this division, and their experienced group of players will continue to do well this season, after a good start to the season. However, the FC Baresi coaching staff will be very proud of their team’s efforts against Hoddesdon. For my player of the match award on Tuesday, I’m going to award it to Hoddesdon Town player Harrison Cage, who brilliantly scored their first goal, and who also put in a really good shift down the right-hand side of the pitch. For FC Baresi, I thought that their player of the match was their excellent left winger, Eduin Saul Cruz Aguilar. But a special mention must also go to central-defender Jeremiah Francis, who I thought had a really solid game.

Starting line-ups/match-day squads: 

Hoddesdon Town:

(1) Liam Nugent

(2) Jimmy Agnew

(3) Hadley Richards

(4) Jack Orchard 

(5) Blesson Asekolenga

(6) Maurice Abana 

(7) Harrison Cage 

(8) Blue Gallagher

(9) Jack Gibbs (captain)

(10) Freddie Wilkinson 

(11) Connor Bolton 

Substitutes:

(12) Connor Casey

(14) Jake Harvey 

(15) Ollie Finch

(16) Ollie Babbage 

(17) Reggie Pegrum

FC Baresi:

(1) Ilyas Baig 

(6) Daniel Alawode 

(10) Sajid Aziz (captain)

(11) Eduin Saul Cruz Aguilar

(21) Korede Da Silva

(17) Luis Fernando Flores Hernandez

(8) Archie Flynn

(15) Jeremiah Francis 

(9) Israel Kabengele 

(14) Mkay Kitoko

Substitutes:

(7) Amir Abbani

(4) Mahmut Emirali

(16) Mubaarak Hameed

(12) Eugene Sagoe

(18) Isaac Zumbu