Bishop’s Stortford 1-0 Boston United Match Report

Bishop’s Stortford 1-0 Boston United Match Report 28/8/23

Vanarama National League North

Hamish Arnold

The run of defeats for Bishop’s Stortford ended at three games on Bank Holiday Monday, with the Blues benefitting from a 1-0 scoreline of their own at home to Boston United. Ryan Henshaw scored the only goal of the game, with Stortford picking up a second home win in three matches at the RDA Stadium, but the first anywhere since the opening day against Chester.

Aaron Powell – who signed on the morning of the match on loan from Peterborough United – put in a teasing cross from the left towards Ryan Charles at the back post but he couldn’t reach the ball at full stretch. Ollie Peters volleyed wide on the edge of the box from another Powell cross from the left wing, making an overlapping run past Zain Walker. Charles moved to the striker position when Andre Godfrinne was withdrawn through injury on 15 minutes, and tried his luck with an acrobatic volley but couldn’t hit the target from Peters’ free kick that wasn’t cleared. Walker received the ball from Powell on the left wing and dribbled into the middle, the Aldershot Town loanee tested Cameron Gregory with a fierce drive from 20 yards. Ola Ogunwamide fired over the bar from the right side of the box after patient build up play in the attacking third, before the Blues #7 chipped a cross from the goal line, but it was too high for Charles and Walker in the middle. Henshaw crossed from deep into Charles, he jumped highest and headed goalwards but Gregory made the save. Jordan Richards struck powerfully but straight at Jack Giddens from the edge of the box, and Kelsey Mooney was flagged offside as he tried to poke hom the rebound.

HT 0-0

Peters fired over the bar from Ogunwamide’s lay-off from the right wing, before Brad Nicholson headed over the bar from a right wing free kick for Boston United. A foul on Walker on the edge of the box gave a free kick opportunity to Peters, but he hit the wall and Gregory caught the ball after the deflection. Substitute Keaton Ward forced Giddens into a low save, aiming for the bottom right corner from 25 yards, but Stortford’s #1 was equal to it. Mooney pickpocketed Shogbeni in possession and dribbled into the box in the right channel, he squared to Tyler Knowles, his shot beat Giddens but not the last ditch block of Henshaw on the line to keep the score at 0-0. Ogunwamide had most of the ground thinking he had broken the deadlock, when he struck powerfully but into the side netting from a tight angle on the end of a swift Blues counter-attack. Jimmy Knowles fired over the bar with a first-time shot when maybe controlling the ball would have been more sensible, when he received the ball from Mooney’s lay-off. From Darren Foxley’s right wing free kick, Henshaw rose highest in the middle and headed home, off the crossbar in the top right corner in the 89th minute to take the lead. But with a minimum of five added minutes after the 90, his defensive work wasn’t done, winning headers in his own box as he had done all afternoon with the visitors looking for a late, late equaliser. Substitute Michael Gyasi had the best chance, from Nicholson’s long throw, Michael Bostwick flicked it on to Gyasi, but he only kicked the air and Giddens dived on the loose ball.

FT 1-0

TEAMS

Bishop’s Stortford XI

1 Jack Giddens

3 Aaron Powell

4 Jack Thomas (Yellow card 47’) (Foxley 73’)

5 Ayo Shogbeni

6 Ryan Henshaw (c) (Yellow card 67’) (Goal 89’)

9 Andre Godfrinne (Ogunwamide 15’)

11 Tosin Olufemi

14 Rob Howard

15 Ryan Charles (Yellow card 3’)

16 Zain Walker (Alexander 82’)

18 Ollie Peters

Subs

2 Morgan Mahoney

7 Ola Ogunwamide

10 Darren Foxley (Assist 89’)

19 Fraser Alexander

20 Billy Cracknell

Boston United XI

1 Cameron Gregory

4 Brad Nicholson (Yellow card 64’)

5 Michael Bostwick (c) (Yellow card 38’)

9 Kelsey Mooney

10 Keziah Martin (Ward 44’)

11 Jimmy Knowles

19 Jordan Richards

21 Sam McLintock (Gyasi 68’)

23 Zak Mills

29 Tyler Knowles

33 Finley Thorndike (Edge 57’)

Subs

7 Keaton Ward

12 Michael Gyasi

18 Tom Edge

24 Dylan Hill

30 Jake Lovelace

Attendance 962