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| Saturday 15th March 2008 | |||||||||||
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Magpies clash abandoned
Blue Square South relegation rivals Welling United and St Albans City both picked up victories to move eight and seven points clear of the county town side. The Dorset Magpies had cancelled out the Berkshire Magpies' opening goal but the Jewson Stadium pitch resembled more of a swimming pool as the game progressed. An early warning for Dorchester saw Maidenhead's top scorer Manny Williams force Francisco Ramos into action inside the first minute of the game. The visiting striker, after creating shooting space for himself, should have done better from ten yards and in the end it was a simple save. Nick Eastham, making his home debut, had a frustrating time in the first period, constantly having to leave the field of play due a head injury sustained in the sixth minute. Two minutes later Jon Docker, coming into the starting XI at the expense of Mark Jermyn, saw a 20-yard drive pushed wide by new signing Chris Tardif for a corner, which came to nothing. James Rowe then sent a shot from outside the box wide after a clever free-kick routine with Jamie Gleeson. The game was still only ten minutes old when the visitors opened the scoring. Williams laid the ball back to James Hamsher on the left wing and he delivered a high cross into the Dorchester area. Ramos chose not to come and Jake Smeaton was easily beaten by the towering Carl Wilson-Denis whose header crept inside the far post to the dismay of the home support. As the rain continued to lash down and hamper any chance of flowing football, the game entered a quiet patch until the 31st minute when Wilson-Denis almost doubled his side's tally, but his acrobatic effort was kept out by Ramos. Ashley Smith then shot wide after Ramos failed to gather Jack Bradshaw's deep cross. The Avenue faithful were given a major lift when Docker equalised seven minutes before the half-time interval. Jones Awuah was pushed in the back, right on the edge of the United box, and Docker's beautifully curled free-kick found the top left corner. The Dorset Magpies suffered another early scare when three minutes into the restart Rowe was forced to clear from his own goal line after Williams' shot took a deflection off Danny Clay. The visiting Magpies went close once again as defender Mark Nisbet beat Ramos to the ball from Smith's free-kick but fortunately for the Portuguese keeper, Nisbet's header went just over. Two minutes after the hour mark, when it was clear the game was no longer playable, Docker was left scratching his head as to how the score was still 1-1. Maidenhead keeper Tardif somehow got a hand to his fierce effort to palm it to safety. Eastham, who returned for the second period with a bandage on his head, suffered a second knock, this time on his ankle, and was subsequently substituted. Dorchester's top scorer should have put them ahead, but after a neat one-two with Docker, Awuah was thwarted by the feet of Tardif. On 80 minutes, referee Andrew Coggings asked the two sides whether they wished to continue in the downpour and both parties agreed. But six minutes later, after a near collision between substitute Ivan Forbes and Tardif due to the conditions, the man in black called an immediate halt to proceedings. Both teams are now expected to contest a rearranged fixture on Tuesday, April 1. Prior to kick-off, James Rowe was named Dorchester Town Supporters Club's Player of the Month for February.
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© 2008 Dorchester Town F.C. All Rights Reserved. |
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