Andover Town3–1○New Milton Town

At the start of the day Andover Town were bottom of Wessex League One - now they’re not ! Andover came to this home game against New Milton having won their last two league matches with late goals. This week they were by far the best team in every department. From the keeper, Kieran McHardy to the fast Lewis Wakeford and exquisite ball control of Waledin Ahmed each and every team member outplayed their opponents. Even though they conceded the first goal, once they had equalised the three points were always going to be theirs.

The first half was end to end. However it was Andover who created the most viable chances and did so within the first minute when Liam Callaghan put the ball over the crossbar barely before the Referee had removed the whistle from his mouth. Only minutes later Callaghan played a ball into Josh Bertie who was unable to apply enough force and accuracy to beat James Mayo, so he saved with ease. Even though Andover were creating the best chances it didn’t mean McHardy was without challenge. In the first ten minutes he was called upon twice to calm an attack on the home side’s goal, which he did without fuss. The Andover forwards were able to find gaps in the New Milton defence on many occasions. The squad this week was ‘attacker rich’ and this was apparent as every midfield mistake made by the visitors was punished with a goal scoring opportunity. Wakefield and Shaquille Gwengwe, were at time, running rings around the Milton defence. This combined with the instinctive control demonstrated by Ahmed was an intoxicating site to see. Before the first goal was scored Bertie had found himself with chances to put Andover in the lead on a number occasions. Wakeford and Gwengwe set him up for a chance which was finally deflected back onto the stand roof and the next chance provided by Gwengwe and Callaghan was put wide. Then, against the run of play, Jake Carswell received the ball from a long cross and took his chance to put his team ahead. McHardy got his hand to the ball and it looked like a spectacular save but the trajectory took it onto the goal post and it ricocheted into the net. However Andover continued to control the game. Both Brendan Holmes and Owen Trapnell gave of their best and kept the pressure up on Milton’s defence. It wasn’t long before Andover received their reward for the constant attacking play. Callaghan passed the ball into Shaquille Gwengwe, who placed the ball beautifully into the right hand side of the opponents net. Mayo had no chance as Gwengwe doesn’t miss these type of chances. This first half allowed the fans to see Dean Smith and Wakeford combine as a strong duo down the stand side of the Portway. A cross from Smith was so accurate that Mayo needed to clear with a punch to prevent his team conceding two goals in as many minutes. Throughout the first 45 minutes this effective interaction between the two players was a combination not seen before. However Smith clinched the Reporters accolade from an action later on in the game. After the equaliser it was a while before Milton had any action in front of the Andover goal . Even then it was a weak header which McHardy had no trouble with. The passing accuracy from Holmes was stunning. One of his crosses to Bertie was akin to something you would expect to see on a training video. Unfortunately on this occasion Bertie was presented with a chance to chip over Mayo’s head to score but he chose to keep the ball low and the keeper had no problem preventing the celebrations. For long spells in the game McHardy must have felt quite alone. But when called upon he delivered. About half an hour into the game a shot was awkwardly deflected and only his agility in changing direction of dive stopped Milton unexpectedly going back into the lead. The first half continued with a constant onslaught on the Milton goal. There were at least another eight good goal scoring opportunities before the break but at half time the teams were even.

Half time Andover Town 1 - 1 New Milton Town

The second half began with a midfield battle. Both teams waited for their opponents to make a mistake and it was a defensive error following a goal kick which gave Josh Bertie a clear shot at goal. His strike was good and it cruised passed Mayo who was not close enough to make a difference. Almost immediately after the re-start Milton retaliated and had forced McHardy to punch clear. The ball rebounded back to an open goal and it was a stunning clearance on the goal line by Smith which kept Andover in the lead. This thwarted attempt by Milton seemed to be a turning point in the match. The final thirty minutes of the game were all about Andover. Callaghan only just missed when a dipping ball hung high in the air too long and Wakeford had a run at Mayo but had kicked the ball just too far ahead of himself. Even his speed couldn't make the final contact count. Ben Emans came on to replace Bertie and straight away created chances in his own style. He seemed to find himself with acres of space on a number of occasions but each time couldn’t find the right person in the right position to pass to. Milton’s last try involved their captain Aaron Scott who gave the crossbar a whack from a header following a corner. As the game entered its last ten minutes Andover applied even more pressure and the attempts were coming thick and fast. Emans continued to create and receive chances, Ahmed just missed with a long shot and Holmes looked to seal the deal when he controlled a ball in from Emans but couldn’t quite get the accuracy on the shot. As added time was being played Trapnell made a pass which curled in so effectively it could have been a shot and then finally Shaquille Gwengwe scored his second and made the result look much more like the run of play. The winning streak continues, with this game being undoubtedly the most convincing. A truly exiting one to watch and now Andover are heading up the league table with surely even better results to come.