Southport 4-1 Bishop’s Stortford Match Report

Southport 4-1 Bishop’s Stortford Match Report

26/3/24

Vanarama National League North

Hamish Arnold

Three goals in five minutes for Southport condemned Bishop’s Stortford to a 17th consecutive defeat in the Vanarama National League North on Tuesday night. The hosts won 4-1, with Ryan Charles scoring the first Stortford goal for five matches. The original fixture was postponed due to Stortford’s progress in the FA Trophy from 13 January, when Kane Crichlow’s five goals helped the Blues to a 6-1 win over National League Aldershot Town.

Darren Foxley and Gio McGregor played a one-two, with Foxley curling a left footed shot into Tony McMillan’s arms. From a left wing cross, Marcus Carver took a touch and shot at goal on the turn but Jack Giddens was equal to it. Matt Lloyd’s low cross from the left was blocked by Harry Beadle for a corner, from which Carver’s header was blocked by Foxley, and Richie Bennett hit the post from the rebound at close range. Josh Hmami fired over the bar with a left footed shot after dribbling in off the right wing, before Ben Hockenhull’s long throw down the line found Carver, his cross was blocked by Beadle and the corner came to nothing. McGregor pressed the defence and won the ball back in the Southport box, he passed to Lordon Akolbire who crossed for Amadou Kassarate, he cushioned the ball into the path of Jack Thomas, but his shot was deflected for a corner. McGregor’s inswinging corner kick looked to be goalbound but McMillan managed to punch it clear, before Foxley shot straight at the goalkeeper from 25 yards. The hosts opened the scoring on 37 minutes with Hmami volleying home after a left wing cross hadn’t been cleared. Foxley was then dispossessed in midfield, with Cavrer working the ball onto his left foot and finding the bottom the right corner from the edge of the box. A low cross from the right missed everyone in the middle but Bennett unmarked at the far post converted the tap in. Foxley’s powerful strike was saved by McMillan before Sam Robbins and Giddens combined to diffuse a chipped cross from Carver on the left side of the box.

HT 3-0

Charles’ flicked header fell to McGregor who held off the defender and fired a half-volley on the turn from 25 yards, but it drifted wide of the right post. Giddens punched clear a left wing cross and the follow up acrobatic effort by Bennett was also saved. Carver’s through ball to Hmami was taken on first time but he curled his low shot wide, before Carver forced Giddens into a fine low save with a low shot across goal from Bennett’s cut back from the goal-line. Hmami skied a shot from 15 yards from Bennett’s lay off when he had the chance to take a shot on himself, and Lloyd’s powerful strike from the corner of the box went wide. Charles netted with 16 minutes to go to give the 10 visiting supporters a glimmer of hope, when Thomas’ right wing cross was cleared as far as ‘Spider’ he half-volleyed into the bottom left corner form the edge of the box. Bennett’s powerful shot moved in the air and Giddens did well to parry it for a corner, which the Blues skipper punched to safety. Carver’s glancing header from a right wing corner was goalbound but for Foxley’s block on the line. Substitute George Lusardi failed to clear from a corner, Carver pounced on the loose touch but Giddens was equal to the near post shot with a reflex save.In the last of the four minutes of injusry time at the end of the game, Port added a fourth with Danny Philliskirk firing in with a first time shot from a left wing cut back.

FT 4-1

TEAMS

Southport XI

13 Tony McMillan

3 Jack Doyle

5 Adam Anson (c)

7 Danny Lloyd (Yellow card 44’) (Burgess 78’)

10 Marcus Carver (Goal 38’)

14 Keenan Quansah

15 Josh Hmami (Goal 37’)

16 Festus Arthur

21 Ben Hockenhull

25 Danny Philliskirk (Goal 90+4’)

26 Richie Benett (Goal 42’) (Russ 81’)

Subs

4 Harry Flowers

6 Declan Evans

17 Finlay Heath

20 Luke Burgess

24 Will Russ

Bishop’s Stortford XI

1 Jack Giddens (c)

3 Lordon Akolbire

4 Amadou Kassarate

5 Sam Robbins

6 Harry Beadle

7 Gio McGregor

10 Darren Foxley

12 Emmanuel Oke (Harvey 12’)

14 Jack Thomas

15 Ryan Charles (Goal 74’)

20 Fraser Alexander (Lusardi 79’)

Subs

13 Adam Messaoudin

16 Aidan Harvey

17 Aaron Greene

18 George Lusardi

Attendance 607