Clevedon Town 3 Abingdon United 0 - Match Report

By Dave Wright

CLEVEDON TOWN 3 ABINGDON UNITED 0
(EVO-STIK SOUTHERN LEAGUE DIVISION 1 SOUTH & WEST 17/03/12)

Clevedon Town entertained strugglers Abingdon United on a slippery pitch and had the game sewn up by half time as they ran out 3-0 winners to complete a league double over their opponents.

Abingdon had an early chance to take the lead but Sam Collier put the ball over the bar when well placed to score. And minutes later the same player hit a left foot volley at the back post that narrowly missed the target. Clevedon debutant Gianni Kapika then shot over from close range and Chas Hemmings had a goal-bound shot blocked. The wet pitch and slippery conditions were making it difficult for Clevedon to get their passing game going but they finally took the lead on 29 minutes when skipper Ashley Kington beat the offside trap to go one-on-one with Abingdon keeper James Foster and calmly picked his spot to make it 1-0. The goal gave The Seasiders the confidence to push forward for more and a neat passing move set up Sam Teale to hit a scorching 25 yard shot that Foster did well to get a hand to. But the pressure from the home side soon produced results when a pass from Hemmings found Johnny Moss on the edge of the box shoulder-to-shoulder with a defender and he struck a low left foot shot that skidded off the wet surface and found the bottom corner of the net. And just before half time it got even better for Clevedon as the impressive Kapika burst down the left wing into the box and slotted the ball under Foster at his near post to send The Seasiders into the break leading 3-0.

Ashley Kington opened up the second period with an audacious 30 yard free kick that went wide and Chas Hemmings also tried his luck from distance with the same result. As the home fans waited for more goals and the away supporters looked for a fight back from their team the game descended into a scrappy affair with misplaced passes and no real efforts on goal. With 20 minutes left Abingdon started to impose themselves more and Collier hit a left foot screamer that Jason Mellor pushed away for a corner. Clevedon replied through Moss who attempted to lob Foster but missed the target. In the last 10 minutes a long throw into the Clevedon area caused some problems before the ball was eventually hacked clear. And in the dying seconds substitute Sam Packer missed a golden opportunity to grab a consolation goal for the visitors when he blasted the ball over the bar from a corner that was not cleared. That was the end of the action as Clevedon recorded a 3-0 victory and a league double over their opponents to move three points above them in the league table.

Team: 1. Mellor, 2. Walker, 3. Rich, 4. Thorne (12. Fisher 71m), 5. Kingdon, 6. Teale, 7. McKenna (15. Edwards-Samuels 65m), 8. Kington (c), 9.Moss, 10. Hemmings, 11. Kapika (16. Henderson-Hudson 80m).
Subs not used: 14. Mills & 17. Best.

Scorers: Kington (29m), Moss (33m) & Kapika (41m)

FT 3-0 (HT: 3-0)

Attendance: 90