Bath City 1-1 Eastleigh

BATH CITY v EASTLEIGH



SATURDAY 20th SEPTEMBER 2008
Blue Square South

By Ray Murphy

Before leaving for the West County and Bath City, a side still to record its first home victory of the season, a point would arguably have been well received in the Eastleigh camp having had two heavy defeats out of their last three away games. The way the game went though it was a disappointed Eastleigh squad that headed for their Southampton base. Having led since midway through the opening half, it took until the last minute of the ninety for the home side to score an equaliser.

With Tom Jordan out through suspension, Warren Goodhind made his first start of the season in an otherwise unchanged side that had defeated Welling United 4-2 seven days earlier. Bath had an early chance when Dave Gilroy headed goal wards after Eastleigh failed to clear a corner but the ball fell into the arms of Jason Matthews.

On seventeen minutes a last ditch tackle from Luke Byles stopped Gilroy en route to goal but the striker righted himself but Matthews again saved his effort. Despite a couple of half chances it was with their first real attack on twenty-three minutes that Eastleigh took the lead. Tony Taggart sent in a cross from the right wing that was nonchalantly headed home by Jamie Brown.

Eastleigh could have added a second on the half hour, another Taggart cross saw Matt Groves head over when well placed then ten minutes later Groves had time on the edge of the box but placed his shot not wide enough of home goalkeeper Paul Evans. As the interval approached Taggart exchanged passes with Anthony Riviere and then Brown but edged his shot just wide of the upright.

The second half turned into a tense affair that saw very few chances created. Seven minutes into the half Trevor Challis’ cross was headed wide by Taggart. Four minutes later Eastleigh were caught short in defence from their own corner. As Bath broke away neat interplay by the Bath strikers Gilroy and Darren Edwards were both denied by the retreating Byles. From the resultant corner Matthews’ clearance only fell for Gilroy who headed the ball over the bar.

Martin Slocombe sent a cross in from the left flank with eight minutes remaining, which substitute Jamie Gosling, fired over as Bath introduced another striker from the bench in ex Eastleigh favourite Stuart Douglas. As the home side issued warnings to an Eastleigh side looking for only their third clean sheet in ten games, Paul Cochlin fired over from the edge of the box.

In the final minute of the ninety Bath did force home an equaliser. I

n January this year Bath recovered from a 2-4 deficit to score last in the final five minutes to snatch a 4-4 draw at The Silverlake. Saturday was not as dramatic but as Sekani Simpson drilled a cross across the face of the goal Danny Carey-Bertram was delighted to be unmarked in the six-yard box to fire home an equaliser.