James 2nds have finally got off the mark in Group 4 with a dominant 4-1 win, in which they could have – and probably should have – scored more.
Lewis Wilkie opened the scoring; running on to a Lase Laleye through-ball and drilling past replacement Wentworth goalkeeper Matt Brennan, who was in for an eventful hour.
Brennan was left helpless minutes later by a Laleye effort, but was rescued by the post. He then produced a top-class save to deny Jack Fisher’s long-range curling effort. He was, however, heavily culpable for the second goal: a long Dom Hallas throw-in was goal bound, but it was Brennan’s desperate flap at the ball that was the goalscoring touch.
Wentworth were struggling to gain a foothold in the match, and were denied time and time again by an organised defence marshalled by Matt Bainbridge. However, they were tossed a scrap of encouragement against the run of play. Tom Doe was the first to get a decisive touch in a scramble in the James area.
But James were soon back on top; Johnny Hyde crossed for James Worthington, whose header had Brennan at full stretch. Worthington then found Hyde, who went close with an audacious thirty-yard drive.
For all James’ dominance, the game was still in Wentworth’s reach, but slipped further from it when the postgrads had goalscorer Doe sent off following an altercation with the James defenders and goalkeeper. A third James goal laid comeback hopes to rest in some style; substitute Alex White smashing home via the crossbar from well outside the box.
Lewis Wilkie almost completed a spectacular brace after spotting Brennan off his line, and driving the ball at goal from near the halfway line. In a moment reminiscent of Lampard’s goal against Germany, the ball came down off the crossbar, appeared to cross the line, and bounced away from the goal. The referee decided that the ball hadn’t completely crossed.
Alex White found himself in a similar position just before the end of the game, and Brennan managed to get a hand to the ball and bat it away, but left-back Ben Cook was on hand to lob the ball into the net with the last touch of the game.
The result sees Wentworth 3rds deserted at the bottom of the table, with a -13 goal difference, whereas James 2nds pull away, but qualification chances remain bleak.
Man of the Match: Matt Bainbridge