Al Shabasi’s glancing header earns victory in ‘six-pointer’ with Spartans
Windsor FC 1, Spartans Youth 0 Windsor all but guaranteed their Combined Counties League Division 1 survival on Saturday as Jousef Al Shabasi’s late glancing header earned them all three points against Spartans Youth.
Spartans came into the game a point above the Royalists in 17th place, however, Garry Haylock’s side skipped back above them by winning this ‘six-pointer’ and now sit a healthy 13 points above the division’s drop zone.
Another victory against Brook House FC at Farm Park on Wednesday evening would rubber stamp their survival for another season, however, Haylock’s team are already well on the road towards achieving that.
Windsor came into the game with a 3-5-2 formation, with wing backs Liam Jenkins and Kingston White-Glean looking to press high and keep their opponents on the back foot. However, Spartans adopted a similar formation and both sides largely cancelled each other out, with Windsor looking more adept in the early stages. Dai Matani and Alex Peapell, along with White-Glean are masters of the pin-point pass into the channels and this created several chances for the hosts in the first half.
Jenkins came close to opening the scoring in the 12th minute when Allesandro Peliccia picked up the ball in the left channel and whipped in a brilliant cross to the near post, only for Jenkins’ downward header to beat Eric Megraph in the Spartans goal and bounce up over the bar.
A couple of minutes later, Peliccia was on the end of a Nathan Green cross, but his header flashed just wide of the left-hand post.
Spurned half chances and near misses became the story of the half for the frustrated hosts, while Spartans managed just one effort on target in the first period. The visitor’s goal was leading a charmed life in the 25th minute when Green Max Jazarbek and Jenkins had successive shots cleared in a melee from a Windsor corner.
Spartans improved after the interval and matched their hosts for chances, with their imposing centre forward Samuel Dodoo proving to be more than a handful.
However, Matani was in imperious form at the centre of Windsor’s defence and started several Windsor attacks with his passes into the Spartans’ defensive third.
As the game wore on you sensed one goal might win the match – and that the hosts might live to regret not taking one of their first half chances – however, one well taken opportunity was all that was needed to settle the affair. It fell to Windsor in the 82nd minute when substitute Melvin Kambamba’s persistence led to a free kick. Jamie Watson took it superbly, picking out Al Shabasi who glanced a diving header neatly into the right-hand corner of the net.
Both sides created further
half chances in the final 10 minutes but neither looked like scoring, so Al Shabasi’s goal was enough for the Royalists to take all three points.
Windsor Team: Dymott, Jenkins, Al Shabasi, Watson, Peapell, Matani, Peliccia, Smith, Green, Jarzabek, White – Glean. Subs: RandBrade, Kambamba, Inman, Supernak, Rudd.