Hendon 0 Boreham Wood 2
Silver Jubilee Park
30th July at 7:30pm
Pre-Season Friendly
Man of the Match: Erico Sousa
A goal in each half from Tyrone Marsh and Erico Sousa was enough to give Boreham Wood a comfortable 2-0 victory against Isthmian League Premier Division side Hendon at Silver Jubilee Park.
First Half
Wood took the game to their hosts from the start and went in front on eleven minutes when a good move involving Femi Ilesamni and Mo Sagaf created a chance for Tyrone Marsh who finished well from just outside the penalty area. At that stage it looked like it would be the first of many goals for Boreham Wood on the night. However, a well marshalled Hendon defence were able to tighten up and make it difficult for Ross Jenkins’ men. Chris Bush went close with a header from a corner on twenty-seven minutes but was just off target. Two minutes later, Sousa played a great ball to Marsh who was unable to beat the Hendon goalkeeper from close range. On thirty-one minutes, an excellent pass from Marsh picked out Lee Ndlovu who was fouled by a Hendon defender. Referee Elliot Mayer reached straight for his red card to reduce Hendon to ten men. While in a competitive game it would have been a justifiable sending off, it is unusual for a referee to send a player off in a pre-season friendly for anything but violent conduct. Josh Hare struck the resulting free kick straight into the wall.
Second Half
The start of the second half was slightly delayed as there seemed to be a conversation behind the scenes between both managers and the referee. It resulted in Hendon coming out for the second half with eleven men, despite the sending off. This meant that common sense prevailed, and the match would remain a. competitive tie. The hosts nearly took advantage of this good fortune five minutes after the restart, but Nathan Ashmore was on hand to pull off an excellent save from a Hendon forward. A minute later, Charlie O’Connell had a shot clear off the line for Boreham Wood. On fifty-seven minutes Sousa was just off target. Ten minutes later, Wood doubled their lead when an excellent pass from Chris Bush found Marsh who instinctively played it into the path of Sousa who finished well in the corner. On seventy-five minutes an excellent run and cross from Cameron Coxe was met by Marsh but he was just unable to steer the ball home. Ten minutes later some excellent play by new boy Abdul Abdulmalik created a chance for Charles Clayden who fired just wide
Although they weren’t quite as fluid and free playing as in previous games, it was a comfortable victory in the end for Ross Jenkins’s men. With only Dartford away, to complete Boreham Wood’s pre-season, the Boreham Wood Head Coach will be looking to finetune his squad before the big kick off against Bath City on 10th August
Boreham Wood: Ashmore, Hare (Coxe 63), Ilesamni (Clayden 63), Bush, Agbontohoma, O’Connell, Mafuta, Sagaf (Goddard 56), Sousa, Marsh, Ndlovu (Abdulmalik 56)
Subs not used: Morley, Isaac
By Brett Lewis
