Francis Double Sinks Saints

Didcot earned their second home win of the season by seeing off St. Neots Town 2-1 on Saturday. The Railwaymen reacted well to losing an early goal, ultimately deserving the three points courtesy of two close range finishes by Mark Francis.

George Reid was to prove a nuisance to St. Neots’ all afternoon and after he was clattered on the edge of the area, the resulting free-kick took a deflection before being well saved by keeper James Philp. However, the first goal of the match came at the other end. George Gilmore, who otherwise had an assured game, was dispossessed by Joe Sutton just outside the area. The Saints forward took full advantage of the opening, slipping the ball past the helpless Leigh Bedwell.

Diddy were jolted by that setback and their West Cambridgeshire opponents nearly made them pay, further defensive uncertainty allowing Sam Bennett a close range opportunity to double the lead. Fortunately for the Railwaymen, the strike was smashed wildly over the crossbar.

The next twenty minutes saw Didcot probing to little effect until the complexion of the match changed shortly before half time. A St. Neots attack was broken up and Jack Dark was left to scamper clear with possession. Reid then collected the ball before cutting it across the by-line
to the centre of goal, where Francis was presented with an easy tap in.

The half time interval made no difference to the Didcot momentum and they nearly took the lead ten minutes after the restart in bizarre circumstances. Sam Goode tried to snuff out an attack but his back pass from an acute angle was misdirected and with Philp stranded, the ball bounced up and cannoned off the post before falling behind for a corner.

Jake Kerins was denied by Bedwell twice in quick succession as the Saints mounted a rare foray up the other end, but it was the St. Neots goalmouth that was becoming the centre of the action. Seth Humphries had a shot bundled behind from off the line, Reid forced defender Joe Walker into clearing against his own post from which Francis scissor-kicked the rebound inches over and Reid just got a slight nudge when presented with a sight of goal that caused him to stumble and fire the effort harmlessly wide.

Amidst the Diddy dominance there was a flashpoint where Liam Tallboys pulled Tim N’kala down and conceded a foul. There was a brief moment where the players wrestled, but unused substitute Stevan Shaw took the law into his own hands, racing off the visitors bench and piled into Tallboys. After that all hell let loose with players from both sides wanting a piece of the action. Once the dust had finally settled, Shaw was sent packing with a red card and both Tallboys and N’Kala were booked for the initial altercation.

The incident did not affect the way the match was heading and Diddy duly notched the winning goal with ten minutes to go. Cameron McNeill swept down the left flank and a low cross into the area found Francis who was once again in the perfect position to turn the ball home from five yards.

Connor Mattimore was denied by Philp as the Railwaymen threatened a third goal towards the end but the three points were in safekeeping. The result enables Didcot to climb into a midtable position ahead of their next match, a tough away trip to current leaders Berkhamsted.

Didcot: Bedwell; Tallboys; McNeill; Hayden; Carnell; Gilmore; Dark (Mattimore 84); Nash; Francis; Humphries (Pin 84); Reid.
Subs not used: Gardner; Heapy; Sampford.