Periodic showers of the persistent soaking variety driven up the pitch by a gusting wind didn’t help the quality of play a great deal. Both sides were guilty of misplaced passes and over hitting the ball whilst supporters sheltered from the conditions. Perhaps the players wished they could too.

In the end Ware were the side to benefit from having the wind at their backs, scoring the only goal of the game shortly before the first half ended. They then withstood Abbey’s attempts to claw something back from the game after the break.

Looking back neither keeper was required to make many saves. Abbey’s first effort of note on 17 minutes was straight at Fred Burbidge and he gathered easily. Ware meanwhile, fielding both Jamie Ewington and Leigh Rose as a strike partnership, had come close on a couple of occasions that promised more than it proved possible to deliver.

A break upfield caught out the home defence before Jimmy Parker in the Abbey goal did enough to deflect the ball away. For a moment it looked as though Ewington would be able to make something of this as the ball looped across the goal but the conditions were against him and the ball drifted away.

Liam Dulson was wide with a good chance from Dan Rumen’s cross before Chris Arthur’s run from deep ended with Parker fumbling the ball. Once again there was a momentary glimpse of an opportunity but the ball was scrambled away from immediate danger.

All this was interspersed with breaks by the Abbotts and it was one of these late on in the half that led to the crucial moment of the match. The ball was given away by the Ware defence and driven past Burbidge. For a moment it looked a goal but it pinged off his right hand post, rebounded across goal to where Ben Baker was waiting.

Baker hit it first time but somehow drove the ball well wide of the gaping net. It was a real let off for the visitors who took advantage soon after when Liam Dulson broke the deadlock with a drive from more than 20 yards out. There was the sound of a deflection though how much difference that made is hard to say and the ball found the top corner of Parker’s goal.

The second half was something of a mirror image of the first with Abbey quick to bring Burbidge into action but they too were now wasting chances as they misread the wind and there was little more danger for the Ware keeper to contend with. The same could be said of Parker who, not the tallest of keepers, might have been given more to do.

Abbey picked up two more yellow cards to add to the one shown to Kieron Cathline, who had a good game, in the first half. Ware fielded their full compliment of substitutes in the last fifteen minutes as they sought to see out the game. Theo Alexandrou again hinted that he might have a lot to offer though he had little chance to prove it in the few minutes he was given.

Ware: Fred Burbidge, Richard Bryan, Chris Arthur (Joel Jacobs 87mins), Leigh Rose, Louis Rose, Dan Rumens, Marcus Milner, Tom Bruno (Freddy Moncur 75mins), James Ewington (Theo Alexandrou 84mins), Sam Chaney, Liam Dulson. Unused subs: Rechan Esprit, Joshua Steele.