1st Team
Matches
Sat 19 Oct 2024  ·  Division One Central
Thame United
G Hackett (33'), H Alexander (38'), M Riddick (52'), (66')
4
0
Ware FC
1st Team
F Moncur (79' Sent Off)
Thame United 4 Ware 0

Thame United 4 Ware 0

Stephen King20 Oct - 16:27
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No light at the end of the tunnel.

People tell you that things have to get worse before they can get better. This defeat, Ware’s heaviest against Thame in the 25 meetings between the two clubs, satisfied the first part of the saying but it appears to leave them some distance from the second. There is, though, enough about the team and its players to suggest that they just need to get a win to ease the current burden and free up their potential.

So each new fixture comes with the prospect of it being the one to turn the corner whilst defeat dashes hope and gnaws a little deeper into morale. This game was an illustration.

With Mackye Townsend-West returned and Jay Rolfe as his new centre back partner plus Stef Georgiou at right back Paul Halsey was getting close to his preferred defensive line up. Whilst the game took some time to come to life Ware were having plenty of it. By contrast Thame had Jack Tutton suspended and only three players available for the subs bench. Not a good place for them to be as they looked to make up for the previous week’s heavy defeat in Bedford.

The opening exchanges were disjointed, it wasn’t a good advert for Step 4 football, but Ware started to settle and before ten minutes were up Joe Dearman’s cross almost put Johnny Allotey in for a good chance. What seemed like last gasp defending robbed him of the opportunity but this became something of a recurring theme of the match. Ware were denied with the ball being scrambled away on a number of occasions. Often enough to suggest it wasn’t so much luck as good defensive work; and good enough to limit Ware’s chances throughout the match.

There was less of that at the other end. Thame’s first goal was a surprise as Gregory Hackett was allowed to bring the ball in from wide and across the edge of the Ware penalty area before shooting low just inside Fred Burbidge’s right hand post. It wasn’t a powerful shot but seemed to have Burbidge wrong footed, was there a deflection as some suggested?

There was no reason to think that Ware couldn’t come back from this and Stef Georgiou’s run released Jon Clements for a shot that was deflected away for a corner. Yet, once more at the other end, things went wrong. The ball was lost and reached Thame’s Harry Alexander whose looping shot from distance went over Burbidge before dipping low enough to just make it under the bar.

The opening minutes of the second half saw Ware pressuring the home side in an effort to pull back an early goal. Once again the ball was scrambled away from danger by the home side who then enjoyed a period when the ball was seemingly trapped in the Ware half. Thame made the most of the situation.

A corner on Ware’s right was sent deep to the far post where the tall Mark Riddick outjumped the defence to nod the ball home for the first of his two goals. The second came in similar circumstances though this time it was a free kick on Ware’s left, driven wide for him to loop a header beyond the defence.

Substitutions had already been made but now the task was to limit the damage so Halsey put on the rest of his complement. These are the days when you can finish a league game with only 50% of the outfield players you started with. We had already seen it in the match against Hadley. It hadn’t helped then but at least in this game no further goals were conceded.

But the team knew the game had slipped from their grasp like sand through the fingers. Clements was making his usual calls of encouragement and to put in the extra effort but there wasn’t the usual response. The chance to turn the corner had gone. That chance is now transferred to Tuesday night’s home game with Enfield.

Ware: Fred Burbidge, Stef Georgiou, Isaac Evans (Josh Okotcha 59mins), Freddy Moncur, Mackye Townsend-West, Jay Rolfe (Lewis Thomas 74mins), Johnny Allotey (Sam Mayuma 59mins), Max Granville (Tom Kay 70mins), Jon Clements, Mitch Hahn Gabriel Chapps 59mins), Joe Dearman.

Match details

Match date

Sat 19 Oct 2024

Kickoff

15:00

Location

Attendance

85

Competition

Division One Central

League position

7
Thame United
11
Ware
Team overview
Further reading

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