Saturday 10 November 2012. Ryman League, Division One South.
Hythe Town 1 Walton & Hersham 1.
A minute into stoppage-time the home side were awarded a contentious penalty that could have denied Swans a share of the spoils, which was the least they warranted from a good, battling performance at the second placed club, but goalkeeper Sheikh Ceesay saved the spot-kick to preserve a deserved point for his side.
Although Dan Sintim was able to return from suspension, Greg Ngeno was unfit with a knee injury, and so for the second match running Chris Wales had to play in central defence, and he put in a fine, solid performance. Unfortunately this was the versatile player’s last match, at least for the foreseeable future, in a Swans’ shirt, as a job change means he is no longer able to commit himself to regular training and matches. Jerome Maledon was not considered fit enough to start as he recovers from his recent illness, so was among the substitutes.
On a pitch made heavy by persistent, drizzly rain, Sintim twice had to clear crosses behind for corner-kicks inside the first four minutes as Hythe looked determined to bounce back from their midweek home defeat. Firstly Taser Hassan broke down the left to get in a low cross, and then Jake Hobbs drove in a ball from the opposite flank. Lee Winfield then lobbed over the bar from the edge of the box after Dave Cook had laid the ball off to him.
It was Swans however who had the chance to take the lead after twelve minutes. Gary Frewen sent in a free-kick from outside the box on the right, and Graeme Purdy put a glancing header wide at the far-post when well-placed.
Ceesay almost gifted the home side a goal when his throw out went straight to Hassan, but the Swans’ keeper went down to save the Hythe winger’s low shot from the edge of the box.
Ceesay’s opposite number, former Swan Dean Ruddy, was soon brought into action at the other end, beating down at his near-post a good strike by Frewen from the left.
Hassan continued to look lively on the left for Hythe, and he made another good run before crossing to the far-post, where the ball was put wide.
Swans had the ball in the net after nineteen minutes when a fine pass through the middle sent Ashley Quashie clear to slip the ball past Ruddy, but he was adjudged just offside. But after 23 minutes Aryan Tajbakhsh set up Harold Odometey just inside the box on the right, and his low shot was pushed onto the inside of his left-post by Ruddy. The ball ran along the goal-line to the other side of the goal, leaving Purdy a simple tap-in to give Swans the lead.
Hythe soon had a chance to equalise when a cross from the right found the head of James Everitt, but Ceesay made a superb save to push the ball round his right-post.
Swans won a corner on the left, and when Phil Williams played it short to Liam Collins, he crossed the ball in for Quashie to put a header over when well-placed.
The home side replied with Ronnie Dolan striking a low shot from the edge of the box for Ceesay to just scramble the ball wide of his left-post.
Swans finished the half strongly, and in the final minute Frewen got in on the left to get in a shot that Ruddy blocked well at his near-post. Then in stoppage-time Collins volleyed in a cross from the left for Purdy to strike a good half-volley, but it was straight at Ruddy.
Early in the second-half Hythe’s Cook took a corner from the right, and a far-post header from Nick Reeves had to be scrambled away. The home side introduced substitute Craig Thompson after 52 minutes, and just two minutes later he equalised. Everitt’s clever back-heel flick from the right sent the ball to Thompson on the edge of the box, and he sent a terrific, left-foot half-volley dipping over Ceesay and into the top of the net. Soon after the restart Thompson put a header over at the far-post after a ball from the right had been nodded on to him. Hythe continued to press, and when a free-kick was played in from close to the left corner-flag Ceesay had to clear the ball away from under his crossbar.
Jason Henry replaced Williams for Swans, and soon he flicked on Purdy’s nod forward to free Frewen on the left, but his cross was cut out by Ruddy.
At the other end Ceesay did well to save on his line when Everitt put in a good, low strike from the edge of the box.
Henry then almost got Odometey in, and when the ball came back to him Henry struck a first-time shot over. Swans had come back into the match well, and following Ceesay’s long kick the ball came to Purdy inside the left of the box, but his shot lacked the power to beat Ruddy.
With five minutes remaining Swans’ substitute Adriano Moraes misjudged a header, allowing Hobbs to get clear down the right and drive a low ball across the six-yard box, but both Thompson and Brendon Cass just failed to get a telling touch.Hobbsthen cut in from the right to send a good, left-foot strike over the bar from outside the box.
Then with a minute of stoppage-time played Hythe played a ball in from the right to the far-post, where several players came together, but the referee signalled for a penalty, apparently for a push by Tajbakhsh. Cass took the kick that would have deprived Swans of a deserved point, but Ceesay made a fine save, diving to his left to push the ball away. Thompson followed up, but his shot was deflected wide of the right-post.
Swans’ Team: Sheikh Ceesay, Aryan Tajbakhsh, Ashley Quashie (Adriano Moraes 71’), Victor Kiri, Dan Sintim, Chris Wales, Harold Odametey, Liam Collins, Graeme Purdy, Gary Frewen (Will Turl 90+3’), Phil Williams (Jason Henry 64’). Subs. not used: Jerome Maledon, Audie Matheson-Light. Scorer: Purdy (23’). Cautions: Kiri, foul (57’), Purdy, dissent (62’), Tajbakhsh, dissent (72’).
Hythe Team: Ruddy, Savage, Walker, Reeves, Cloke, Dolan, Cook (Thompson 52’), Winfield, Hobbs, Everitt (Cass 75’), Hassan. Subs. not used: Blackman, Porter, Elliott. Scorer: Thompson (54’). Cautions: Winfield, foul (12’), Everitt, dissent (39’), Cook, handball (40’), Cloke, kicked ball away (88’).
