CHESHUNT 2 LEYTON 3
Ryman League Division 1 North
Saturday 11th October 2008
Harry England reports...........
This mid-table battle saw two clubs with similar standings face each other. Leyton finished bottom of the Ryman Premier last season, similar to the Ambers, who finished bottom of the Southern League. This season, both had won and lost the same amount, with Leyton picking up a draw in the extra game.
It looked set to be a cracking game as after two minutes, Shayne Mangodza headed a Yohance Lewis corner across goal only for Duane Jackman to head wide. Mangodza had to do the defending minutes later though, as a Glen Parry ball went wayward. 
The scoring was opened as early as seven minutes though by the home side, as debutant Daniel Francis (left) unleashed a thunderbolt to put us one up. He obtained the ball on the edge of the area from a corner, and rifled his shot inside the near post, hopefully a sign of things to come!
Duane Jackman hoped to double the Cheshunt lead five minutes later but hit his effort over, before the equaliser came. A double-tackle by Bradley Harrison and Glen Parry on Fabio Jesus was judged to be a penalty by the referee, and Stuart Blackburne hit the spot-kick down the middle.
Jesus (!) had a chance on the half-hour mark but didn't connect well with the volley, and put the effort wide. Yohance Lewis could've possibly been booked in the thirty-fourth minute, as after a heavy touch, he ploughed into the goalkeeper, but the referee said fifty-fifty.
Cheshunt's second goal was somewhat controversial, as a corner was given despite Leyton's dispute of it being a goal-kick. After discussing with the linesman, the referee gave a corner which Lewis swung in. The ball fell to Bradley Harrison outside the area, who lashed a shot goalbound only for Gbenga Sonuga to pull off a superb save off the line, which if he'd been in goal he could've been proud of. However, he was sent-off for handball, and Ashley Taylor-Forbes converted the penalty.
Leyton's last remaining chance of the first-half fell to Ross Edwards, but he blistered his shot way, way over.
Leyton came out looking bright for the second-half, although Edwards headed narrowly wide of his own goal early on and Harrison tested the 'keeper with a long-range attempt. The second equaliser of the day for the visitors came from Fabio Valenti who hit a powerful free-kick. It deflected off the wall and into the top-corner, well out of Chris Goodchild's reach.
Daniel Francis made a superb run in the fifty-eighth 
minute and squared for Yohance Lewis, who disappointingly failed to hit the target. The pressure was on for a winning goal for either side, and Nick Thorogood was left to clear off the line in the sixty-sixth minute - his second goal-line clearance in as many games.
Despite numerous attacks from both sides, neither team could capitalise on their chances until the eighty-fifth minute, when Andy Jones' shot took a nasty deflection and flew into the top-corner, winning the game for Leyton. Fabio Jesus and Stuart Blackburne had picked up bookings before this but the last four minutes, all stoppage time, were by far the highlight of the game. Relentless Cheshunt attacks were broken down at the last minute before a last-second corner, where even Chris Goodchild came up, was headed just wide by Shayne Mangodza, making sure Leyton held all three points.
Cheshunt: Goodchild, Thorogood, Parry (c), Mangodza, Dobson, Harrison (Prestedge 55'), Taylor-Forbes, Ramshaw, Jackman (Bradford 69'), Lewis (Oshitola 82'), Francis
Unused: Schillachi, Abraham
Leyton: R Blackburne, Locki, Kane, McKay, Sonuga, Edwards, Marks (c) (Thomas 22'), Jones((c) from 22'), S Blackburne (Killick 75'), Valent (Smith 87'), Jesus
Unused: Tanner, Lewis
Attendance: 164
