United bowed out of the FA Trophy on Saturday after one of their most successful runs in the competition, but will be left wondering what might have been.
Facing a Haringey Borough side sitting fourth in the Bostik League, Division 1 North, the match also saw United playing their first ever competitive match on a 3G playing surface, with preparations hampered further by the pre-match news that neither Luke Ricketts nor David Lynn had fully recovered from injury.
Whilst United started brightly, forcing two corners in the opening minutes of the match, the first half belonged to the home side who, with the benefit of the breeze, put United on the back foot. The opening half-chance arrived on 10 minutes when a Haringey corner floated goalwards in the breeze and Craig Hill was forced to tip the ball over for another corner. That corner was cleared, but soon played back in to the danger area where a low shot from the edge of the box forced Hill low to his left, pushing the ball wide of the post.
United then created their best chance of the half as a ball out wide to Lynton Goss on the left saw the striker cross for Dan West whose header just cleared the bar. Shortly afterwards, on 26 minutes, the opening goal arrived. A cross field ball found Olufemi on the wide right and his cross along the six yard line was met first time by Edwards who scored off the underside of the bar, giving Hill no chance. Despite the home side dominating possession, they failed to create any further meaningful chances for the remainder of the half, largely due to the impressive centre-back pairing of Ellis Hercules and man-of-the-match, James McGowan.
What United may have lacked in the first half, they made-up for in the second half. On the front foot from the kick off, they gradually stretched the home defence and created space that Goss, West, Ben Sturgess and Tom Ashworth started to exploit, supported by the wide players, Adam Morris and Ben Connelly. Although openings were hard to find, the pressure was starting to grow on the home defence and, in the 69th minute a West free kick from 25 yards was pushed clear, with the follow-up headed wide. Two minutes later and another West free kick again forced the home keeper in to a save. Eventually, the pressure bore fruit as a ball in to the box fell to West who drilled the ball low and in to the corner for the equaliser.
At this point the momentum was all with United and if there was going to be a winner, it looked like United. West went close moments after the equaliser and, on 81 minutes, Goss saw a shot just clear the bar.
However, on 86 minutes United failed to clear and as the Haringey forward ran in to the box he cut across the retreating Morris whose momentum meant he inadvertently clipped the player, with the referee pointing to the spot. McDonald placed the ball wide of Hill to give the hosts the lead.
United were not out of the game and, after Harris in the home goal had almost carried the ball over the line following a Mepham free kick, two minutes in to injury time Goss won a corner. United filled the box, including keeper Hill, but Haringey broke away and the ball was played forward to Ademiluyi just inside the Thame half. Whilst Mepham was the covering defender, with the absence of Hill up-field, the Haringey forward was, at this point, in an off-side position. However, there was no flag from the Assistant Referee and the substitute beat Mepham to score in to an empty net.
Whilst the decision may not ultimately have affected the outcome of the match, it gave the score-line a false impression of the game.
United:
Hill, Harrison, Morris (Ricketts), Hercules, McGowan, Ashworth, Connelly (Gray), Goss, Sturgess, West, Mepham.
