Haringey Borough 1-1 Walthamstow
Walthamstow and Haringey Borough played out an entertaining 1-1 draw on Easter Monday in north London.
It was a must-win game for Borough who find themselves in another relegation battle after dropping from the Isthmian Premier at the end of last season. For Stow, it was a rather meaningless game, but they gave as good as they had which created a great contest for the 600 in the ground.
There were returns to the starting line-up for Hamid Bun-Seisay and Bilal Sayoud, with Tayo Oyebola and Wyan Reid dropping to the bench, the latter after picking up a knock on Saturday’s win over Cambridge City.
After a lengthy pre-match presentation from the home side, the game was finally underway and Stow started brightly. They were rewarded in the 8th minute when Louie Johnson scored his 18th of the season. It was a goal former Stow stopper Ashlee Jones will want to forget, as the Haringey keeper rushed out to collect a long ball, only for it to bounce over his head, giving Johnson the easiest of tap-ins.
Tyrone Baker then went close with a curling effort, before a lengthy delay as Haringey’s Scott Mitchell and Dwight Pascal clashed heads, with the Borough player defender to continue. When the referee halted play, Stow had the ball on the edge of the Borough six yard box. When play resumed, the ball was inexplicably given back to Haringey, in what was the first of a series of baffling decisions from the referee.
The pause in play knocked Stow off their stride, and the home side – backed by a big and vocal support – clawed their way back into the game. First Matt Young’s free kick clipped the bottom of the Stow post, before Mekhi McLeod had a good effort saved by Lamar Joseph-Johnson in the Stow goal.
But Stow couldn’t keep Borough out, and on 26 minutes McLeod levelled following some pinball in the box, and despite the best efforts of Malaki Toussaint on the line.
Haringey hit the woodwork again, before Johnson had a goal disallowed for offside just prior to the break.
Haringey were firmly in must-win territory, and they threw bodies forward throughout the second half. This created plenty of space behind them for Stow to counter, and it was an end-to-end 45 minutes.
Joseph-Johnson made two good saves to start the half, as Louie Johnson and Baker spurred good chances on the break for Stow.
But the game became increasingly niggly, and the inconsistency of decisions vis-à-vis free kicks began to frustrate both sides.
On 70 minutes Borough missed their best chance of the game, and possibly at survival, with relegation rivals Newmarket Town now ahead. A first shot was saved by Joseph-Johnson, and it looked like Matt Young would drive the loose ball into the back of the net. But he hadn’t counted on one of his own players blocking the ball just a couple of yards out. Tosin Olufemi then hit the third effort well wide.
With ten minutes to go, the game boiled over. A foul from each team was waved way, before Stow’s Alie Njie put the ball, and Borough forward Derek Asamoah, out for a throw-in. Asamoah did not take kindly to the tackle and first shoved, then stamped on the defenceless Njie on the ground. To the shock of most in the ground, Asamoah escaped with just a talking to.
Tayo Oyebola was then taken down twice in the Borough box, but Stow’s shouts for a penalty were turned away.
Deep into injury time, both teams had chances, but time was eventually called, with a draw the fair result.
Stow end the season at home on Saturday to champions Brentwood Town, while Borough will have to better Newmarket Town or Wroxham’s result to stay up.
