Lullingstone and Vista just don’t do simple games. Our last battle ended in Vista snatching the victory in the last minute of the game. This match was equally dramatic and had similarities but ended differently. Vista expects such high levels of quality that a draw or imperfect performance can change the changing room from a quiet hub into the House of Commons. Last week’s draw against Eden Park was unexpected and with Bickley lingering behind by just two points the aim today was to win regardless of performance.
With that in mind we still started the game well moving the ball about but in the final third we were lacking the killer instinct needed. Its unknown to us why we’ve started to miss certain opportunities, as during the season we have been mostly prolific but maybe last week’s game was playing on the player’s minds. A few chances were squandered from Andrew Thompson and Victor Okisor but due to our defensive discipline we were able to stay on top. I wouldn’t say we were about to make changes but as a management team we were definitely thinking about alterations with the shape and what we could do to avoid anything similar to last week but our important players stepped up once again. Andrew Thompson span off his man while receiving the ball before putting a knee high across into the box with Siao Blackwood meeting it with a diving header. Lullingstone appeared to be getting aggravated and that was visual when they gave away a penalty, which Andrew Thompson converted brilliantly.
The second half is where the action really began. 2-0 down Lullingstone came out with the aim to frustrate and get themselves back in the game. Their captain appeared to move from center midfield to center back and that solidified them and they battled from start to finish. Perhaps the way they scored was quite frustrating from a Vista viewpoint but the issue laid more with the referee rather than Lullingstone. While making a substitution of our RB the player was only half way on the field before the referee allowed Lullingstone to play. With one direct ball a pass was made into the Vista RB back position and their winger exposed our player just entering the field. A pass was played across the box and under pressure Vista player Jordan Taylor tapped into his own net.
A 2-0 lead now shortened to 2-1 and with Vista under threat we needed heroes and defensive displays from Jordan Taylor, Ambrose Kamara and Danny Doyle as well as great saves from Steve Hanley was exactly what we needed. They fought for every ball and made very important clearances. On the flipside Vista had numerous opportunities via Ohran Stewart and Andrew Thompson. One of them was an exquisite chip from Ohran Stewart but unluckily it hit the underside of the crossbar but bounced out. The rest of the opportunities we can’t justify as we couldn’t convert even though some of the opportunities were some of the clearest we’d had this season. Later substitutions included Andrew Dalhouse and Dominic Weston whose appearances helped retain the ball as well as provide defensive support and we were able to see the game out.
M.O.M – Ambrose Kamara