Aylesbury United 2-4 Hertford Town
Report by Ben Slater.
Same opponent. Same scoreline. Same story for the Ducks.
Aylesbury welcomed Hertford Town to the Meadow on Wednesday, in what was a crucial game for both sides, with the Ducks having the chance to leapfrog the visitors and subsequently send them into the relegation zone. Hertford are the first team the Ducks will have played twice this season due to fixture scheduling. The first game came back on the 5th Sep, where the Blues ran riot to beat United 4-2. Ever since that point, though, both sides have been on a poor run of form. Hertford, coming into the game, had only won one of their previous eight matches in all competitions. Whilst United hadn't fared much better either, winning just two of their previous 10 matches in all competitions.
The game started slowly. Aylesbury just about edged it, but neither side were looking threatening with few clear-cut chances. This theme continued for the first quarter of an hour before Hertford began to take control. A well-taken shot in the 16th minute was a warning sign for the Ducks before the Blues did take the lead two minutes later on the 18th minute mark. Lawrence Ajong was played in behind before he curled a beautiful finish into the far corner to give the visitors the advantage. 1-0 Hertford.
Aylesbury, to their credit, did rally as a team after the goal, and within 10 minutes of Hertford taking the lead, the Ducks swung the game on its head. A cheap giveaway of possession saw Ike Okwusogu played in by Sonny French. He made his way into the penalty area, before composing himself to coolly place the ball into the bottom right corner to level the scoring. 1-1. Aylesbury took the impetus, as the visitors started to look shaky on the ball, and by the 27th minute had taken the lead. Sonny French, once again the catalyst for United's good play, as he played a sublime defence splitting through ball into Wil Turner’s path. Turner dinked the ball past the onrushing Josh Bowler in the Hertford Town goal. The ball skidded along the floor before cannoning off the post and hitting Jesus Mendoza in the process, but the Ducks striker rightly claimed the goal. A deserved goal after a sustained 10-minute spell of good play. 2-1 Aylesbury.
Hertford then took control of the game and did exactly what the Ducks had done to them. A host of chances within ten minutes saw the Blues eventually equalise. The first of those chances saw Ajong's header saved brilliantly by Jack Hopwood in the Aylesbury goal. He couldn't, however, stop Hertford's equaliser. A cheap giveaway of possession deep in Aylesbury's territory saw Abdi Mohamud pick up the ball. He drove towards goal with the ball before picking out the corner of the goal from the edge of the box. Frustration for the Ducks who couldn't hold out until halftime. 2-2. United did have one more chance of note before the referee blew his whistle for half time. Finlay Reeves' dangerous delivery into the box saw player manager Ben Herd almost slice the ball into the back of his own net. It went agonisingly wide, and the sides went in all apiece. HT 2-2.
Hertford started the second half the brighter of the two sides. The first 15 to 20 minutes saw a series of half chances, but with no end product for the Blues. Rocko Tamplin replaced Chase Matthew in the 56th minute for Aylesbury's first substitution. A rejig of personnel as Jake Bewley dropped into centre back and Bakary Daffeh dropped into left back. Aylesbury's first chance in the half came twenty minutes in. Finlay Reeves once again with excellent play down the left. He let fly with a powerful strike, but his effort clipped the crossbar. Instead, Hertford got the goal that they deserved. A free kick in a dangerous position saw Ben Herd step up. He shot was saved by Hopwood, however, he unfortunately spilled the ball into the path of Kye Tearle, who teed up Marcus Painter for an easy finish. 3-2 Hertford.
Aaron Onginjo replaced Pooya Karimi in the 74th minute. A welcome sight for the Ducks as September's player of the month returned from a short spell on the sidelines. Hertford were the team in the ascendancy, though, and looked most likely to grab the 6th and most crucial goal, and that is exactly what they did. In the 84th minute Ajong once again slipped in and timed his run to perfection before finding the bottom corner. A dagger for the Ducks but deserved on the balance of play. 4-2 Hertford.
Marvin Emmanuel replaced Archie Quinlan for the Ducks’ final change just before the 90 minute, but the game was done. Aylesbury huffed and puffed but never looked like scoring a third. The referee blew his whistle on another frustrating home performance. FT 4-2 Hertford.
Defensive errors prove the difference once again for the Ducks. Unlike the 4-2 away result against Hertford, the Ducks were much more in the game for the best part of an hour. Ultimately it wasn’t to be, and we remain in the relegation zone. Next up is a trip to Ware, which is set to be another six-pointer. Ware sit below United in the table, so it's hopefully a chance at a valuable three points.
Attendance: 151
Aylesbury United: Hopwood, Bewley (C), Matthew, Quinlan, Daffeh, Brown, Turner, Karimi, Reeves, French, Okwusogu
Subs: Emmanuel, Onginjo, Tamplin, Gray, Bircham
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