WOKING 3 BOGNOR REGIS TOWN 0
Setanta Shield Round Three
8 November 2008
The Cards secured a fairly comfortable win over the Rocks on another wet and gloomy afternoon at Kingfield. The win, including registering three goals in the process, will have pleased Phil Gilchrist but James Aughterson, Finance Director, will have been even more relieved that we secured the ?3,500 prize money to aid our hard-pressed finances. The Cards are away to Salisbury City in the next round.
Woking lined up with Pidgeley in goal, making his last appearance at Kingfield before his return to Millwall; Spence, Hutchinson, Miles and Bunce formed the back four; the midfield comprised Lambu, Quamina, Vernazza and El Kholti; and Domoraud and Marum were the front two.
The game got off to a fairly scrappy start but it looked as if Domoraud?s power and Marum?s pace might bring some joy for the Cards. The former broke down the left and put in a dangerous cross and the latter had a shot beaten away by the Rocks? keeper, Tardif. But it was Paolo Vernazza who calmed the home side?s nerves with the opening goal in the 14th minute, showing superb technique as he seized on a loose, dropping ball in the box and volleying it unerringly into the far corner.
Five minutes later the Cards found themselves in the unaccustomed position of being 2-0 up, thanks to an excellent free-kick by Colin Miles. From a central position he bent the ball round the wall and just inside the post, giving Tardif no chance.
The Rocks, to their credit, did not fold and produced a spell of attacking football which threatened to open up the game once more. The Cards had Lenny Pidgeley to thank for an instinctive save ? sticking a leg out to prevent a deflected shot from reaching its target ? which prevented their lead being reduced almost immediately and then Tom Hutchinson had to make a crucial interception.
The game settled down again, with both sides failing to make the final ball pay. The closest either side came to scoring before the interval was when Marum fired over the second of two fine crosses from wide right, with Domoraud poking out a leg and seeing the ball arc over the bar.
Half-time: Woking 2 Bognor Regis Town 0
It looked as though Phil Gilchrist had told his players to come out and grab the crucial third goal as, in the first minute after the break, Domoraud spun and shot and El Kholti fired across the goal. Marum went closer still as he curled a Lambu cross just over the bar with five minutes gone.
Following another scrappy spell there was a flurry around the 60 minute mark at both ends. Marum strode into the area and fired across. The ball was half-stopped by a Rocks defender. Domoraud?s close-range shot was blocked and then Lambu, stepping inside a defender, hit the bar. At the other end some poor defending by Bunce and Miles forced Pidgeley into a fine save and, from the resulting corner, the Woking goal was protected only as a fierce drive hit one of the visitors? own players.
Charlie Moone, on for Liam Marum, made up for a poor cross with a fine strike which Tardif tipped over. But the Rocks refused to lie down, breaking quickly from a Miles header from a Woking corner to force Pidgeley to parry a shot at his near post.
It was Colin Miles who finally made the game safe for the Cards in the 75th minute. After Tom Hutchinson had seen his downward header parried away by Tardif for a second corner, Miles, coming in behind Tom, buried his own header for his second goal of the afternoon.
Domoraud tried to add a fourth as he attempted to round Tardif but the keeper took the ball off his feet and then he and Matt Pattison (on for El Kholti) combined well to set up another attack. A poor clearance fell to Bradley Quamina but he placed his shot just wide of the post.
Charlie Moone caught the eye again as he took the ball on his chest five yards out and dinked it cleverly over Gary MacDonald?s head but the wily Gary managed to do just enough to prevent Charlie finishing the move. In injury time, Charlie showed up once more as he hit a fine dipping shot from distance over Tardif and onto the bar.
This was a good work-out for the Cards and a decent win, although it was perhaps a little disappointing that none of the forwards could hit the target.
Woking: Lenny Pidgeley, Daniel Spence, Tom Hutchinson, Colin Miles, Danny Bunce; Goma Lambu (Joel Ledgister, 69), Bradley Quamina, Paolo Vernazza, Abdou El Kholti (Matt Pattison, 80), Liam Marum (Charlie Moone, 62), Wilfried Domoraud
Unused subs: Carl Pentney, Patrice Konan
Attendance: not announced
My MOTM: Colin Miles (pictured): an under-rated player who demonstrated his usual good positional sense and scored two fine goals.
