Rovers unbeaten in ten
Kempston Rovers rode their luck at times to extend their unbeaten run to ten matches at the expense of Hartley Wintney
Kempston signed off their home league campaign with a hard earned victory over high flying Hartley by a single goal. The game was initially delayed by fifteen minutes by the referee on the advice of the FA as the visitors had not arrived as early as they had hoped to.
As the game began, the visitors had the better of the chances, as Jack French was first closed down on the edge of the area before he could shoot and then stretched to fire across goal in the first fifteen minutes. It took Rovers twenty minutes to get their first real chance as Jamaine Ivy surged forward and played in Jake Newman, who saw his shot blocked. The loose ball fell to Luke Heneghan, who was unable to get the ball back into the danger zone, thanks to a last ditch block. Minutes later, a corner was swung into the box by the visitors, assisted by the gusty wind, where it required clearing off the line by the Rovers defence. Just after the half hour, Kempston took the lead, slightly against the run of play. A Heneghan corner was nodded down by Alex Collard and helped over the line by Jake Newman for his thirty second goal of the season in all competitions. Another Hartley corner was headed off the line by Kempston before Webb tested Martin Conway after a well worked move. Rovers held on to be in front at the break.
Ten minutes after the interval, Hartley played a free kick into the box, where Martin Conway came out to claim, only to see the ball slip through his hands. The resulting easy chance was stoically blocked on the line by Alex Collard. With ten minutes to go, Kempston should have made the game safe, sub Ash Fuller played an inch perfect ball over the top to Newman who raced toward goal. The forward’s thunderous shot came smacking back off the post and away to safety. Rovers had to ride their luck in the final few minutes as a succession of Hartley shots had to be deflected wide or over the bar but held on for a noteable win over their high-flying visitors.
The win lifts Kempston into eight place in the table, above Bedford Town with two games of the season to play. Saturday sees Rovers on the road to Thame United, while the season finished four days later with the re-arranged date at Hanwell Town.
Assist
Alex Collard
Star Player
Mason SpenceKey moments
Highlights
As it happened
- Kempston Rovers
- Hartley Wintney
- 0
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Kyal McNulty Yellow Card 21:00'
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Alex Collard Assist 31:00'
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Jake Newman Goal 31:00'
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Munashe Sundire Yellow Card 64:00'
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Luke Heneghan Sub Off 66:00'
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Ash Fuller Sub On 66:00'
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James Tennant Sub Off 66:00'
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Paul Hodges Sub On 66:00'
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Declan Shuttleworth Sub Off 79:00'
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Louis Paget Sub On 79:00'
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Ben Acquaye Sub Off 82:00'
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Harry Stratton Sub On 82:00'
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Jamaine Ivy Sub Off 88:00'
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Grant Fryer Sub On 88:00'
Team selection
- Kempston Rovers
- Hartley Wintney
League round up
Other East results
Comments
Standings
| # | Team | Pl | Pts |
| 1. | Beaconsfield Town | 42 | 92 |
| 2. | AFC Rushden & Diamonds | 42 | 91 |
| 3. | Hayes & Yeading United | 42 | 83 |
| 4. | Hartley Wintney | 42 | 82 |
| 5. | AFC Dunstable | 42 | 79 |
| 6. | Cambridge City | 42 | 77 |
| 7. | Kempston Rovers | 42 | 73 |
Team sponsors
Affiliations
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Club sponsors
