Waltham Forest 1-3 Stansted
Waltham Forest’s recent form took another hit in the shape of a 3-1 loss at home to Stansted. A goal from Solomon Ofori was not enough to take any of the points in what was Forest’s second defeat to the Essex side this season. It was also their fifth league defeat at Wadham Lodge.
Striker Ofori levelled the scores late in the first half but goals from Jinan Lewis and Oliver Fortune secured a win for the visitors.
Despite remaining 4th in the league, the ‘Stags’ have not won for three games and with every other team in the league having at least three games in hand to them, it’s important they get back to winning ways soon if they are to avoid slipping down the league table. The recently postponed away match against bottom of the league Sporting Bengal United has been rearranged to the 25th October.
Despite the recent run of results not going Forest’s way, Manager Turgot Esendagli remained positive and felt his side were unlucky at times during their most recent defeat, “It was an enjoyable game to watch for the spectator and that is what the game is all about. We dominated the first half but we did not convert enough of our chances. We needed to do that as we were not as effective in the second half.”
The resilience of Stansted has certainly grown since an inconsistent first half of the season and the home side found it difficult to create much in the opening stages. Solomon Ofori linked up well with Jose Agua, after 12 minutes, and went close to opening the score sheet but his effort flew wide of the target. After managing to amount some pressure, Forest conceded a sloppy goal from a corner. A lack of communication meant the set piece flew into the box unchallenged which left Goalkeeper William Hunt with no option other than to try and punch the ball clear. The 17 year-old was put under great pressure as he fumbled the ball into his own net. Hunt did, however, deny a second goal minutes later when a powerfully hit free kick from the half way line had to be tipped around the goalkeeper’s left-hand post.
Esendagli believes Hunt has been fantastic this season despite the mistake against Stansted, “I cannot fault Hunt’s performances this season. He is still young and is only going to get better. As he grows in strength and prowess, he will be able to have more of a presence when dealing with set pieces.”
Midway through the first half, Forest began to respond to the one goal deficit and a catalogue of chances followed. A brilliant piece of individual skill saw look Luke Ifil hit the post after he controlled the ball with his left foot and then volleyed it with his right from the edge of the box. Ofori also went close after latching onto Flatie Traore’s diagonal long ball but his first time shot was straight at the keeper. Though, it was Hassana Traore who would have the most spectacular chance of the half. With the keeper beaten, his superb over head kick rattled against the crossbar. The attacking midfielder rose well to meet Ibrahim Sari’s cross from the right wing.
Spurred on by their dominant spell, Forest finally got their break through. Flatie Traore started a counter attack that was followed by a quick one-two pass with Ofori and Agua. Ofori kept his composure as he calmly dribbled around the outrushing goalkeeper and ran the ball into the net.
After the break, Stansted would have more joy from the set piece. This time a corner was met by centre half Jinan Lewis who made no mistake in putting the visitors back in front. Their lead was soon extended to two when Oliver Fortune’s snap shot beat Hunt from 10 yards.
The two goal lead gave Stansted some breathing space as they began to control the pace of the game. Despite Forest trying to get themselves back into it, Stansted’s efficiency was superior as they defended tightly and made little errors.
Stansted are now hot on Waltham Forest’s heels, trailing them by just two points in the league with five games in hand. Esendagli is confident however, that his side’s results will pick up going forward, “I believe we will win our next two league games. I am also confident we will challenge for the league cup.”
Report by Jack Ball.
