Stalemate at the Silverlake but other results sees Spitfires up to 3rd

EASTLEIGH v MAIDENHEAD UNITED

SATURDAY 28th FEBRUARY 2009
Blue Square South

Report by Jamie Montigue

Eastleigh ended the afternoon in third place in the Blue Square South, thanks in the main to play-off seeking rivals Chelmsford City suffering a 2-1 defeat away to Bishops Stortford, whilst at the Silverlake Stadium the Spitfires were held to a goalless draw with Maidenhead United.

Tony Taggart sustained a hamstring injury in the midweek win over Newport County and is expected to be out for around two weeks. This forced manager Ian Baird into making one change to the starting line up as Warren Goodhind was drafted into the defence at right back, allowing Steve Clark to operate in the midfield to fill the void left by Taggart.

In the opening stages either side had good opportunities within a matter of minutes of each other. Anthony Riviere was particularly lively from the start as he won an early corner kick and then forced a save out of Shane Gore on two minutes. Finding himself free in the area, the energetic midfielder had a low shot turned away by Gore, who had made himself big. The ball rebounded back off the goalkeeper and fell to Riviere whose follow-up shot was well charged down and deflected behind for another corner.

Maidenhead United perhaps had the best chance to open the scoring in the fifth minute following excellent approach play by burly centre forward, Mustafa Tyriaki. A low ball was fired across from the left by Tyriaki and into the Eastleigh penalty area where he had picked out the unmarked Ashley Nicholls to perfection. The on-rushing Magpies midfielder got it all wrong and should have done a lot better, instead he skied his shot out of the ground.

The hosts forced a further corner after Warren Goodhind and Peter Adeniyi had linked up well down the right hand side. From the resulting set piece, Riviere latched on to the delivery and lashed a stinging left-footed half volley so narrowly wide of the mark.

Eastleigh continued to press with Riviere appearing to drive the side on from midfield. It was his cross to the back post that so nearly found a way through to Ashley Carew, the loanee midfielder had stole in and would have been left with a simple finish were it not for the visitors' skipper Ashley Nicholls getting back to put in a vital header to avert the danger temporarily by nodding behind for a corner kick.

Jamie Brown rose to meet Ashley Carew's delivery and had a header well saved from point blank range as Gore denied Eastleigh the lead with a smart stop.

In the 22^nd minute Tyron Smith tested Jason Matthews to the limit with an extremely good effort from 25-yards, though fortunately for Eastleigh, the number one keeper tipped round the post diving at full-stretch low to his right.

Injury woes have become all too familiar for the Spitfires this season and there was about to be another name added to the list as Riviere, who ironically up to this point had arguably been the best player on the pitch, limped out of the action eleven minutes before the break. His replacement Bertie Brayley, made a welcome return to the club following his release from Chelmsford, and made his first appearance back in the 1-0 win over Newport on Wednesday night. It was good to see him back at the Silverlake Stadium again too.

Just like the previous time out for Eastleigh, a first half injury led to a premature forced substitution and similarly, the unforeseen events led to Jamie Brown switching from centre forward to central midfield.

On the stroke of half time Matthews clawed the ball away from goal to make a crucial save to keep out Nevin Saroya's header.

HALF TIME: Eastleigh 0-0 Maidenhead United

Maidenhead started the half brightly as Bobby Behzadi sent in a teasing low cross from the right flank that was spilled by Matthews and had to be swept away by Warren Goodhind.

Moments later Bertie Brayley had a penalty claim turned down after the forward showed inspiration in flicking the ball up with his back to goal from the edge of the penalty area and in one swift movement turned to fire goal wards. This is where the ball appeared to strike an arm though it wasn't clear cut in my opinion. The referee was uninterested in any case.

After his wonder goal in midweek, Ashley Carew looked for a repeat today just after the hour mark as he beat Tyriaki to the right of goal, 20-yards out and let fly after Tom Jordan had held the ball up well and fed the ball back to him, though the fine attempt was off target.

Eastleigh had a further chance two minutes later when Jamie Brown won possession in the Maidenhead penalty area and rolled the ball back to Warren Goodhind who had found time and space running in. The defender just couldn't keep his shot down as he watched his skied effort sail high and wide.

The Magpies' Jon Stevenson picked up a loose ball in the 65^th minute, and with space opening up in front of him approximately 30-yards from goal, the striker hit a speculative curling shot that was only inches wide with Matthews scrambling to get across and was the closest the game had came to a goal for a good period of time.

As the game wore on it seemed to drag as a contest in places where the match had become so tight and had been a stalemate for so long. For obvious reasons it was important that neither side lost the game and perhaps this contributed to more of an emphasis on defence rather than attack.

Brett Williams was booked for an over-exuberant challenge, nothing more – no harm intended, but catching his opponent all the same. The Maidenhead players crowded round the youngster, clearly not taking a liking to the look of the tackle and in the aftermath Saroya appeared to lash out at Williams while he was on the ground, yet the towering defender escaped without even being spoken to.

With seven minutes remaining Joe Maxwell was brought on to replace Williams in attack.

The last of the action saw a neat through ball from Jamie Brown cut off by the alert goalkeeping of Shane Gore, who was quick off his line to collect the ball ahead of Brayley.

Goalless it remained and on reflection it was probably about right.

FULL TIME: Eastleigh 0–0 Maidenhead United

Match pictures by Jozef Montigue

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Newport County 0-1 Eastleigh

NEWPORT COUNTY v EASTLEIGH

WEDNESDAY 25th FEBRUARY 2009
Blue Square South

Report by Malcolm Clarke

Eastleigh completed their second double of the season when they won 1-0 at Newport. They announced an unchanged line up from Saturday's game with Bishops Stortford, which meant that new signing Bertie Brayley who was returning to the club after a short spell in 2006 was on the substitutes bench.

Early on, Tony Taggart had a shot saved and Newport's Kris Leek also shot just wide. For Eastleigh Jamie Brown and Brett Williams came close with headers following crosses by Peter Adeniyi and Anthony Riviere respectively, however after a bright start from the Spitfires, at the other end Newport who included former Eastleigh defender Ashley Vickers, and familiar names to Salisbury followers in Wayne Turk and Aaron Cook, came close twice with Cochlin having one shot saved one-handed by Matthews, and another of his efforts hitting the bar.

Eastleigh again started the second half brightly and forced a few corners.

They took the lead in the 52nd minute when Ashley Carew scored from the edge of the area with an excellently executed curling shot for his first goal for the club, having just extended his loan spell from Barnet.

Brown came close to converting a cross from the left for a second goal, but for most of the remainder of the game Newport had more possession,but Eastleigh were defending well and denying them chances. Foley shot wide, but although Newport were using Vickers as a striker and their goalkeeper was coming up for set pieces late in the game, Eastleigh were able to complete the win that moves them further ahead of the teams below them.

Brayley came on in the first half for the injured Taggart, and was in the winning side for Eastleigh in his first league game for the first time.

Back in the Cup, Bertie Brayley returns and Carew's loan stay is extended

Eastleigh reinstated into Hampshire FA Senior Cup

By Wendy Gee -

Ian Baird is "pleased" that Eastleigh have been given a second chance of glory in the Hampshire FA Senior Cup.

The Spitfires' interest in the competition looked to be over when they lost their quarter-final 2-1 at Andover on February 12, writes Wendy Gee.

But it emerged that Andover had unwittingly fielded an ineligible player - midfielder James Roden having already appeared in the competition for Winchester City against Bashley.

The Spitfires were willing to play the tie again but, following yesterday's Hampshire FA hearing, the Lions were thrown out of the cup and Eastleigh reinstated.

It means Baird's promotion chasers, currently fourth in the Blue Square South, are now favourites to make the St. Mary's final on April 30.

They are joined in the last four by Sydenhams Wessex League duo VT FC and Brockenhurst - plus Fleet Town, who defeated Bashley 2-1 after extra time last night.

Eastleigh boss Baird said: "I'm pleased to be back in it. I've got a lot of respect for the tournament.

"We didn't take it lightly at Andover, we were very unfortunate to lose that game. We totally and utterly dominated, but our goalkeeper Gareth Howells had an off-night that he will never have again.

"I know Andover didn't field an ineligible player on purpose and I'm sure they're disappointed, but we can't let that affect us."

Eastleigh's one concern should they get to the final is that it falls between the two legs of the BS South play-off semi-finals, which could mean them field a weakened side.

"We're not in either yet. It's a bridge we'll have to cross when we come to it," said Baird.

Eastleigh have completed the signing of frontman Bertie Brayley (pictured above) in time for tonight's BS South trip to Newport County. They have also extended Ashley Carew's (below) loan from Barnet for a further month.

Eastleigh Ladies 4-1 Farnham Ladies

Eastleigh Ladies’ campaign for the Hampshire Division 1 title continued to be back on track with a 4-1 win over Farnham Ladies. A fixture that had already been postponed twice, saw the Spitfires take another step towards the top of the leader board.

Goals from Amy Boucher, two from Night Akhonya and a cracking left-footer from Tash Gwyther saw all three points in the bag.

Next week is a 6-pointer against title rivals Pompey Uni.

Please come and support the team in a game which could make or break the title chase!

Williams opener cancelled out as Stortford find equaliser against 10 man Eastleigh

EASTLEIGH v BISHOPS STORTFORD

SATURDAY 21st FEBRUARY 2009
Blue Square South

Report by Jamie Montigue

In search of their fifth consecutive league win, Eastleigh were without one of the goalscorers from their 2-1 win over Fisher Athletic on Wednesday night. Jonny Dixon whose loan from Brighton has been renewed, netted the opener inside ten minutes but later sustained an injury as the Spitfires did a professional job ignoring the 'side story' and media interest with regard to Donna Powell taking charge for the night.

Dixon's absence was filled by manager Ian Baird handing striker BRETT WILLIAMS his first league start for the club in this afternoon's encounter with Bishops Stortford.

The youngster could not have wished for a better way to celebrate the occasion as he fired the Spitfires into a 6^th minute lead to make an immediate impact. Jamie Brown headed on a clipped ball forward for his strike partner, who had got into an excellent position to create the opportunity and competently shrugged off his marker. Having done the hard work in beating the last man, Brett found himself one on one with goalkeeper Nicky Eyre and displayed excellent composure in front of goal making no mistake to slot home from close range. The perfect start.

Just prior to the goal, Bishops Stortford had a half chance from range when Narada Barnard caught the ball extremely well on the volley. Jason Matthews watched the ball safely wide of his near post as the 25-yard effort sailed behind.

Eastleigh had an excellent opportunity to double the lead with 10 minutes on the clock. Luke Byles' delivery from the left found Tom Jordan completely unmarked inside the six-yard box. The towering centre half and Eastleigh skipper went in for the diving header but miscued it miserably with the ball coming off of his shoulder.

After a bright start, the game dwindled into a somewhat scrappy affair. Steve Clark was pulled up for going in over the top of the ball and allegedly catching Harlee Deen, which was dubious. The referee pulled out a yellow card nevertheless.

Stortford's Bai Mas Lette Jallow registered a shot on target for the visitors in the 18^th minute as he slid in at the edge of the penalty area, but despite the blazing sun, Jason Matthews had no problem in dealing with the low attempt.

There was little else by way of goalmouth action for a good twenty minute spell. A minute before the break Danny Harris nodded wide from a Mark Wright free kick.

HALF TIME: Eastleigh 1–0 Bishops Stortford

The second half began at a frantic pace. Moments after the restart, Williams looked to capitalise on Tom Champion's sliced backward clearance as he burst forward squeezing past the centre back before being stopped in his tracks by two covering defenders.

Anthony Riviere made a bright run forward after exchanging passes with the goalscorer Williams, only to have his shot blocked. Luke Byles took over and fed the ball back to Riviere who was tripped just yards outside the penalty area to the left of goal.

Stepping up to take the free kick, Ashley Carew drove the ball in hard and low. The Bishops' Bai Mas Lette Jallow deflected the delivery towards his own goal and was relieved to see that his goalkeeper had reacted well to make the save.

A flurry of yellow cards were shown by the referee throughout the match and Aaron Martin became the latest to get his name in the book for a foul on Danny Green. Mark Wright had the chance to test Jason Matthews with the free kick, but despite his left-footed effort being on target, there was no real problem for the Eastleigh stopper.

In the 54^th minute, disaster struck for the Spitfires. Steve Clark picked up a second yellow card and the hosts found themselves down to ten men with over half an hour to play.

Matthews was at full stretch to keep out the resulting free kick from Green as Bishops Stortford looked to take full use of the numerical advantage as early as possible. The former Weymouth goalkeeper, did well to get across his goal and tip around the post.

Two minutes later, Williams had the better of Champion for pace and the only way he could be stopped was his marker tugging at his shirt. Tony Taggart let fly from the free kick though Eyre watched the stinging drive all the way into his gloves.

Reacting to the unfortunate circumstances of losing Clark and being a man down, Baird and Matt Gray drafted Ashley Carew into the back four as a right back, leaving a three man midfield and the two in attack unchanged.

On the hour mark, Riviere was caught again outside the box providing another chance to pose a threat from a set piece. Carew's free kick this time came off his own player as Williams couldn't quite get out of the way.

Two successive Eastleigh corners kept the hosts on the front foot momentarily as Taggart's first delivery was met by a Tom Jordan header that was blocked en route to goal. The second, saw Aaron Martin rise highest to find the back of the net but the celebrations for the 'goal' were short lived as the card-happy referee blew up instantly for an alleged hand ball.

Nine minutes after coming off the bench, ROY ESSANDOH made his presence felt as he embarked on a powerful run down the left hand side, got into the penalty area and squeezed a shot past Matthews with the help of a slight deflection.

Brett Williams and Tony Taggart were both sacrificed for defensive purposes as Neil Sharp and Trevor Challis took to the field in the closing stages of the game in order to steady the ship and deal with the predictable onslaught from the visitors who inevitably stepped up the pressure in search of a winner.

Eastleigh were made to endure a few tense moments at the end of the game but had a couple of chances of their own. Matt Groves held off his marker in the 83^rd minute and, with the ball sitting up nicely the forward struck it well enough but just couldn't quite keep it down. Energetic midfielder Anthony Riviere made a charge into the Bishops' penalty area deep into injury time only to blaze high and out of the ground, perhaps slightly off-balance when shooting.

A point-apiece, all things considered, was probably a fair result and for Eastleigh it was positive to see them hold on and maintain their discipline for what could have turned out to be a very different result after the sending off.

FULL TIME: Eastleigh 1–1 Bishops Stortford

Match pictures by Jozef Montigue

Check out the gallery here:

Professional Eastleigh avoid 'side show' banana skin to win again

FISHER ATHLETIC v EASTLEIGH

WEDNESDAY 18th FEBRUARY 2009
Blue Square South

Report by Ray Murphy

The press and media coverage surrounding Fisher Athletic and the manageress for the day Donna Powell, saw a testing evening for Eastleigh Football Club to ensure they remained focused on their objectives of the Wednesday trip to Fisher and gain three points to keep their hope of a play off place firmly in their sights.

Whatever was happening off the park, Eastleigh had to face a side that made five changes from their previous fixture and also on a run of eleven consecutive defeats in the Blue Square South. What the home side did offer was a strong team performance with a couple of really pacy strikers/wingers amongst their side. For Eastleigh Warren Goodhind was ruled unfit and Steve Clark took over the role of right back, with that exception it was the side that had beaten Chelmsford City ten days earlier.

With the loan signing of Jonny Dixon renewed hours earlier from Brighton & Hove Albion F C, it was the loan striker who opened the scoring with the first attempt on goal after ten minutes. Luke Byles' long throw into the Fisher area was flicked on by Tom Jordan, with the Fisher defence unable to get a full clearance on the ball, Dixon saw his original shot blocked before being able to shoot home the rebound for his second goal in an Eastleigh shirt.

With an attendance of 287, which is considerably higher than normally expected at Fisher Athletic nowadays, it seemed to all that Eastleigh would cruise to a comfortable victory. If Eastleigh could have executed their approach play to a better advantage then that may have been correct. Fisher although forced to defend for large parts of the game, were always looking dangerous on their breakaways.

With Dixon having to limp away from the action on twenty minutes, and Fisher using the pace of Seb Schoburgh and Carl Gibbs, Eastleigh always had to be on their guard to prevent the home side from scoring. That said though Jason Matthews had an untroubled first half.

Ashley Carew sticking to the right flank having just switched over after thirty eight minutes, cut in from the wing and sent a left foot shot just wide of the target as first half goal action was pretty much non existent. On forty-two minutes though Eastleigh grabbed the all-important second goal. Ex-Fisher midfielder Anthony Riviere nipped the ball in behind the Fisher defence whilst stood just outside the area. Tony Taggart collected and fired a rising left foot drive into the roof of Fisher's net.

As half time approached Tom Jordan headed wide from a Carew corner and then in stoppage time Taggart laid the ball off for Peter Adeniyi who neatly side stepped his defender before placing the ball just the wrong side of the upright.

The second half retained much of the same story. Again goalmouth incidents were few and far between. Jordan headed another Taggart corner over the bar on fifty-six minutes whilst Aaron Martin had a somewhat cheeky goal bound attempt from deep inside his own half that bounced kindly for Fisher goalkeeper Ashley Jones after he had strayed a long way from his goal line.

Fisher caused their first real concern in the Eastleigh defence on sixty-seven minutes. Gibbs’ pace took him through the Eastleigh rearguard but his shot was pushed away by Matthews. From the resultant corner Caleb Kamara-Taylor completely miss-kicked in front of goal and Eastleigh cleared to safety.

Eastleigh were not creating much at the opposite end either. Brett Williams took an early shot from Carew's pass but Jones was positioned well enough to handle. But the final few minutes caused Eastleigh some flutters. With two minutes remaining, Fisher substitute John Raus was brought down on the edge of the area by Jordan. The American midfielder got up to guide a free kick over the Eastleigh wall and nestle inside the post of the Eastleigh net to give the home side hope of an equaliser to follow.

Despite there being an additional three minutes stoppage time at the end of the fixture though, neither goalkeeper was called into action in an attempt to change the score. The win leaves Eastleigh in fourth place, twelve points clear of their nearest play off rivals with thirteen games to play.

Reserves cruise to five goal demolition

Eastleigh Res. 0-1 Tooting & Mitcham United Res.
Suburban Premier League

TEAM: Fred Toomer, James Powell, Gareth Bachelor, Tom Nicholas, Adam Gatcumb, Chris Mason, Youssuf Bamba, Adam Wiltshire, Chris Flood, Brett Williams, Steve Hall.

Subs: Justin Hall (on for Nicholas 65), Joe Crook (on for Wiltshire 68), Scott Waters (on for Hall 76).

By Jamie Montigue

Match Photos - Here

Eastleigh Reserves put in a top rate performance against Three Bridges in front of first team manager Ian Baird, who was in attendance due to his side not having a game this weekend.

The hosts took control of the game throughout and always looked comfortable. In the opening stages right winger Youssuf Bamba posed the most threat to the visitors with positive running and the end product to match.

Striker Chris Flood was the greatful recipient of an early delivery into the box by Bamba and came close to breaking the deadlock inside the opening ten minutes.

Flood then struck the post with a good early hit moments later before Brett Williams, who has recently signed a new contract with the club, powered his way through the defence only to fire over the top.

In the 26th minute, Bamba caused trouble once more for Three Bridges and did well to pick out Chris Mason with the pull back to the edge of the six yard box. The skipper made good contact as he latched on to the pass but his shot clipped the outside of the post and somehow it was still 0-0.

Then on the half hour, Eastleigh finally got a deserved breakthrough. Steve Hall forced a good save out of the goalkeeper, who could only parry. YOUSSUF BAMBA followed up and showed good composure to finish well as he put the Spitfires 1-0 up.

Ten minutes before the break, Williams strode forward and got into the penalty area but his run came to an abrupt halt as he was chopped to the ground. The referee had no hesitation in pointing to the spot. BAMBA stepped up to take the penalty and made no mistake from 12 yards as he confidently despatched the spot kick to double his and Eastleigh's tally for the afternoon.

Steve Hall was inches away from making it 3-0 a minute before the break as Eastleigh held a two-goal cushion at half time and were looking extremely comfortable.

HALF TIME: Eastleigh Res. 2-0 Three Bridges Res.

Into the second half, again it was Eastleigh who took charge. Brett Williams first shot just over the cross bar in the 51st minute, but more than made amends six minutes later.

A long ball forward from goalkeeper Freddie Toomer was taken into his path beautifully by WILLIAMS who finished sublimely in the one on one situation with a lovely chip over the goalkeeper to extend the lead to 3-0.

It was constant one-way traffic on the Three Bridges goal and Williams came close once more as he forced a good save out of the goalkeeper when put through by left-back Gareth Bachelor.

All the chances seemed to be coming Williams' way but he won't want to be reminded of his next attempt, a guilt-edged chance squandered resulting in the young striker hanging his head in shame.

Seven minutes from time, Williams rifled a shot from distance towards goal that whistled narrowly over the bar but it was only a matter of time before Brett put one of them away again. Bamba, scorer of two first half goals, lifted the ball forward down the left touchline and from here Williams did all the rest in exquisite fashion. Shrugging off his marker seemingly with ease, Williams advanced on goal unchallenged and kept his nerve to find the back of the net with a splendid lofted finish over the keeper.

A fine performance was capped in the final minute with a fifth goal. Bachelor's pass down the left channel was picked up by Flood who did extremely well in rounding the goalkeeper and unselfishly drilling the ball across the face of goal for Scott Waters to turn home from close range.

Toomer in the Eastleigh goal had a very quiet afternoon thanks in the main to a solid defensive display led by the outstanding Adam Gatcumb.

FULL TIME: Eastleigh Res 5-0 Three Bridges Res.

Andover 2-1 Eastleigh

ANDOVER v EASTLEIGH

THURSDAY 12th FEBRUARY 2009
Hampshire Senior Cup

Report by Ray Murphy

The matchday programme had reminded Eastleigh that on five previous cup encounters between the two sides, Andover had won all of them. It was unfortunate then for Eastleigh that their interest in this season's Hampshire Senior Cup came to an abrupt end at the Quarter Final stage thus making that statistic now six cup games. Having already lost to lower league opposition in the FA Cup and FA Trophy to Burgess Hill and Bashley; manager Ian Baird reminded his side before the game that they must be in the right frame of mind.

Though not their strongest line up Eastleigh by far had the better of the play though the home side created some clear-cut chances. Andover themselves were not what they considered to be at full strength with both Ben Buckland and Nick Eastham already cup tied and Rory Williams suspended. Eastleigh themselves had Brett Williams cup tied whilst both Andy Harris and Andy Forbes are injured but despite that the rest of the squad was available for inclusion.

Gareth Howells making only his fourth competitive start of the season in the Eastleigh goal was quickly into action coming out to collect a ball off the feet of Mike Turvey from Lloyd Webber's through pass. Eastleigh though took control for a long period following. Ashley Carew had a low shot saved by Stacy Harper in the second minute then Harper was in action again six minutes later to deny a Jamie Brown shot. Joe Maxwell was also close with a shot on the turn. Carew had another run at the defence and a shot saved by Harper.

Eastleigh did have a scare in the eleventh minute. James Roden's free kick was headed back across goal by Alex Ward, Bobby Swayne's goalbound header was then cleared away off the line by skipper Warren Goodhind covering for the beaten Howells. Andover suffered another blow on twenty-one minutes with leading goalscorer Ashley Jarvis limping away from the action with a hamstring injury.

As the half time interval approached, Carew again this time cutting in from the right fired a left foot shot just off target whilst Howells saved Webber's long-range shot.

The second half was only two minutes old when Eastleigh opened the scoring. Having defended an Andover free kick Peter Adeniyi collected the ball and strode majestically through a static Andover defence before slipping the ball past Harper and into the net.

The home side took a little time to settle after the set back, three minutes after the goal Harper had to hold a header backwards from Bobby Swayne to prevent Eastleigh from doubling their lead. There was a flurry of substitutions; Andover changed their style to playing two strikers in lieu of their normal lone system. On seventy-one minutes a foray forward from Andover paid dividends.

Roden's long ball caused a misunderstanding between Howells and Aaron Martin with a defensive header falling kindly for Turvey to guide the ball over the Eastleigh defensive line and into the net for an equaliser. Immediately Andover returned to the attack and Howells did well to prevent both Ward and Turvey from putting Andover ahead.

With seventy-five minutes played Ward threaded a ball through for Phil Andrews who was manhandled by Neil Sharp some twenty-five yards from goal. Sharp escaped with a yellow card and substitute Kyle Swayne guided a free kick over the Eastleigh wall and past the flat-footed Howells to this time give Andover the lead.

Anthony Riviere had a low shot saved by Harper and then Tom Jordan was thrown into the action as an extra striker as Eastleigh strived to save the game but the final best two attempts of the evening both fell to Andover and Andrews and Stuart Gates with both attempts saved by Howells.

Young duo sign new Eastleigh deals

By Wendy Gee -

EASTLEIGH have confirmed that 19-year old centre-back Aaron Martin has signed a contract for the Blue Square South promotion hopefuls.

The former England Schools' defender, outstanding during Eastleigh's three-match winning streak against Bath City, Dorchester and Chelmsford (where he scored twice during that period and helped the team keep two clean sheets), has committed his future to the Silverlake Stadium club until the end of next season.

Last week 21-year-old former Winchester City and Eastleigh youth striker Brett Williams also penned a deal, underlining the Spitfires' commitment to bringing young players through.

Baird hasn't given up hope on Dixon

By Wendy Gee -

Although Saturday marked the end of striker Jonny Dixon's one month loan from Brighton & Hove Albion, Eastleigh boss Ian Baird has not given up all hope of getting him back – despite indications to the contrary last week.

“I've made enquiries for other strikers, but they're way too much money for us. I'm going back to speak to Mickey Adams to see if we can sort something out,” he said.

“Either I keep Jonny Dixon or I try and get a striker in who's played for me before or one that we know very well. It's imperative we get the right person.”

January Manager of the Month Awards

Blue Square Announce “Manager of the Month” Awards for January

“Westley Takes New Year Honours At Resurgent Boro”

Stevenage Borough manager Graham Westley has won the Blue Square Premier "Manager of the Month" award for January. Westley’s side started the year with a draw at Rushden & Diamonds but then went on to win four successive league games. The pre-season title favourites moved into the top five for the first time this season but Westley has been quick to dismiss the clubs usual summer tag. “We operate with a medium sized budget in terms of the division, so it did surprise me to see us as favourites in August” the Borough boss said. As the side tried to gel together in the opening weeks of the season Stevenage struggled at the wrong end of the table. Now they look to have a settled squad with Steve Morison and Mitchell Cole in particularly good form in attack. Westley’s side also progressed through two rounds of the FA Trophy during the month, the highlight of which was a comprehensive 4-0 victory over Blue Square Premier leaders Burton Albion.

In the Blue Square South the award goes to AFC Wimbledon manager Terry Brown. Brown follows up his August award after a cracking start to the year. The Wombles plundered 19 points from a possible 21 during the month scoring 22 goals in the process and only conceding 4. The club attracted an incredible attendance of nearly 4,500 to their table-topping clash at home to Chelmsford at the end of the month which they won 3-1.

Ian Bogie from Gateshead has won the award in the Blue Square North. Despite suffering a defeat at Kings Lynn on the final day of the month, Bogie’s side have put themselves in with a chance of successive promotions. Five wins and a goalless draw at Droylsden which preceded the visit to Norfolk has seen Gateshead climb to second in the Blue Square North table.

January Player of the Month Awards

Blue Square Announce “Player of the Month” Awards for January

“Garner Plays His Part In Stags Turnaround”

Mansfield Town defender Scott Garner has won the Blue Square Premier "Player of the Month" award for January. Garner came into The Stags team for the 1-0 home win over Crawley Town and has not looked back since with solid displays in central defence. The 19-year-old had impressed new Mansfield boss David Holdsworth during a spell at his former club Ilkeston Town. Garner has contributed to Holdsworth’s fantastic start at Field Mill, in a defence that only conceded one goal during the month. That came in the away match at Eastbourne Borough where Garner rose to score the vital winning goal in the second-half.

In the Blue Square South the award goes to goalkeeper Matt Lovett of Hampton & Richmond Borough. Lovett was beaten only once in 450 minutes of league action during the month as The Beavers closed the gap on Chelmsford and AFC Wimbledon at the top of the table.

Phil McLuckie from Workington AFC has won the award in the Blue Square North. Defender McLuckie featured throughout the month as Workington pulled clear of the drop-zone in the table. The former England College’s player also scored two goals including a fantastic strike in the 3-0 away win at local rivals Barrow in the FA Trophy.

Three wins in a row as Spitfires seal super win over promotion rivals City

EASTLEIGH v CHELMSFORD CITY

SATURDAY 7th FEBRUARY 2009
Blue Square South

Report by Jamie Montigue

Eastleigh today secured a tremendous result over promotion hopefuls Chelmsford City. A third consecutive victory for the Spitfires sees Ian Baird's side up to third in the Blue Square South and has narrowed the gap to keep the pressure on both Chelmsford and league leaders AFC Wimbledon in a fine team performance. What impact will winning this six-pointer have on the outcome of the title race remains to be seen, but one thing is for sure is that Eastleigh can be very proud of achieving a result as important as this and the manner in which they went out about it.

It was a miracle in itself that the game went ahead and tribute has to be paid to those club officials and fans who gave up their time this morning to fork the pitch. This effort gave the game every chance of being played despite the recent snow which forced Tuesday's nights home game with St. Albans to be postponed once again, and, as a result the referee deemed the pitch playable on his inspection.

Jonny Dixon recovered from injury in place of Matt Groves, one of the goalscorers in the 4-0 away win at Dorchester Town, as the only change to the starting line up from last weekend's commanding win. It would appear that this would prove to be Dixon's farewell game for the club after Brighton & Hove Albion manager Micky Adams has informed Baird of his intentions to recall the forward from his brief loan spell at the Silverlake Stadium.

The hosts made a bright start to the game with Tony Taggart playing the ball to his left to find Dixon who in turn sent a teasing low, left-footed delivery across the face of goal. The cross caused panic inside the Chelmsford six-yard box and centre back Steve Ward so nearly turned the ball past his own goalkeeper Danny Gay. Fortunately for the visitors Gay was alert to the danger and managed to keep the ball out as Eastleigh won a corner kick.

An in-swinging corner from Taggart increased the pressure on City inside the opening stages with skipper Andy Duncan having to head behind for a further Eastleigh set piece.

In the 11^th minute Warren Goodhind sent the ball down the right channel where Jamie Brown chested expertly down into the path of Anthony Riviere. The former Fisher Athletic midfielder sent a lofted pass into the box in search of Dixon only for Gay to rush out of goal well and put an end to the free-flowing neat move.

Only three minutes later, Eastleigh took the lead inside the opening quarter of an hour. A direct ball up the park from Jason Matthews was nodded back by Brown for ANTHONY RIVIERE to take into his stride and shoot early with his left foot from the edge of the penalty area. Riviere's effort could not have been better placed as the ball was beyond the reach of the keeper and nestled low, right in the very corner of goal.

Warren Goodhind was in truly inspired form in what was arguably his best ever performance for Eastleigh. Thanks to his experience and expertise, Warren was well-placed to deal calmly with what could have been an instant reply from Chelmsford to cancel out Riviere's goal just sixty seconds earlier.

Lawrie Dudfield collided with Jason Matthews and Tom Jordan on the edge of the Eastleigh penalty area, which could have spelled disaster as Oliver Berquez found the ball at his feet and Matthews out of his goal. Aaron Martin made a great block to keep out the first attempt before Goodhind got back to cover his goalkeeper and avert the danger with a terrific goal line clearance.

There was little more threat or penetration from the visitors in the first half, though on the rare occasions when Eastleigh found themselves on the back foot momentarily, the defence of Goodhind, Martin, Jordan and Byles stood firm, kept their shape well with a high line and just generally looked neat, tidy and organised.

Young centre back Aaron Martin celebrated earning a contract this week having kept clean sheets in recent games not to mention scoring goals and forming a solid partnership at the back with Tom Jordan. The 19-year-old had the task of dealing with the physical presence of tricky customer Lawrie Dudfield but handled the job impeccably.

The visitors had to wait 41 minutes before their first shot on target. Ricky Holmes skipped past two challenges as he cut in from the right though his left-footed drive lacked power and posed no threat to Jason Matthews as the Spitfires held a well-deserved lead at the break.

HALF TIME: Eastleigh 1–0 Chelmsford City

Jeff King's Clarets improved at the start of the second half and began at a good pace after the restart.

Almost immediately a penalty claim was turned down. The early scare came about as Dudfield went to ground claiming he was tugged by Ashley Carew however referee Richard Kendall was uninterested.

In contrast, at the opposite end of the field Tom Jordan was fouled around 25-yards from goal. Carew was the man to step up and take the free kick in this glorious position but squandered the opportunity curling the ball around the wall and harmlessly off target.

Dudfield had the ball in the back of the net with 50 minutes played as he slipped the ball through the legs of Jason Matthews, though the whistle had already gone for offside.

Chelmsford stepped up a gear or two and began to create chances. Oliver Berquez slipped the ball to his left to find Dudfield who lost his footing to the left of goal though still managed to fire a left-footed shot towards goal as he tumbled. The effort took a deflection to divert the ball out for a corner kick.

Sam Sloma was then denied by Matthews from a mid-ranged free kick before Ricky Holmes cut in from the right flank and flashed a shot wide of goal soon after.

Eastleigh had come through this tough spell and went about trying to conjure up some chances of their own to recapture their first half form.

An exquisite cross from Tony Taggart was so inviting and only needed someone to gamble and attack the far post shortly after the hour mark.

The Eastleigh fans were in great voice and created an atmosphere as good as I have ever known in my time of watching the Spitfires as they constantly sung their hearts out to get behind their team.

828 were in attendance to see this top of the table clash and went home thoroughly entertained as the game continued to unfold.

Tom Jordan had a header from a Taggart corner stopped en-route to goal and it was just a matter of waiting for the all important next goal. On the balance of play it looked like if a goal would come it would be heading Eastleigh's way.

The next chance fell to the Spitfires with Dixon sending the ball down the near touchline to set Adeniyi free who had broken the offside trap. Having got into the penalty area the towering midfielder shot straight at the keeper after four or five step-overs to lose the attention of James Lawson and create a yard of space.

Keeping the momentum going, Riviere was the next to come close following good work by Taggart and Adeniyi. The goalscorer received the ball to the right of goal and was denied by the legs of Danny Gay. From the resulting corner, JAMIE BROWN leapt highest to meet Taggart's fine delivery with an unstoppable bullet header for his fifth league goal of the season. This was the icing on the cake for Brown who had got his just rewards to find himself on the scoresheet. Once again the lion heart ran the line so tirelessly, full of enthusiasm and commitment. The Chelmsford defence were constantly harried by Brown's work rate and didn't have a moments peace.

Twelve minutes from time City substitute CHRIS MOORE rounded off a sweeping move to turn the ball home with his left foot to make an important impact for his side and set up a tense finish to the encounter with the goal that halved the deficit.

Former Spitfire's winger Kevin James had a free kick sliced behind for a corner by Adeniyi with ten minutes remaining. Ashley Harrison so nearly scored with his first touch of the ball seconds after entering the action as his side-foot effort was heading for the top corner only for Peter to get a vital touch with a header to nod the ball over the bar.

Brett Williams replaced Jonny Dixon before Steve Clark came back from weeks on the sideline when he saw out the closing minutes of the game in place of Ashley Carew.

Eastleigh's final change saw Jamie Brown receive a standing ovation for his afternoon's work when Matt Groves took to the field.

Taggart came close to killing the game off but his shot ricocheted off Steve Ward before rolling safely through to the keeper.

There was one last chance for the visitors when Chris Moore headed wide from a Kevin James free kick. The last of the action had the crowd on their feet as Matt Groves had a guilt-edged chance inside injury time. Steve Clark broke away down the left and opted to square the ball as opposed to going for goal himself. Groves had a couple of attempts but couldn't quite find a way through. It didn't matter as Eastleigh had already done enough to secure an excellent 2-1 win.

On this form, things are looking very bright for Eastleigh. It was fantastic to see so many outstanding performances right across the team. Come on you Spitfires!

FULL TIME: Eastleigh 2–1 Chelmsford City

Match pictures by Jozef Montigue

Check out the gallery here:

Snow joke, St. Albans game off again!

Tuesday's game against St. Alban's City (3rd Feb) has been postponed again due to the current climatic conditions!

Basingstoke Ladies 2-1 Eastleigh Ladies - Invitation Cup

Eastleigh Ladies lost 2-1 on Sunday to title chasing side Basingstoke Ladies.

On a day that would of made a snowman shiver, Eastleigh Ladies took control and had numerous shots on goal including hitting the woodwork a few times within the first 20 minutes.

Though once the home team picked up momentum, the Spitfires struggled to keep the attack up, battling against the strong winds.

Basingstoke scored just before half time with a well-worked goal that caught Eastleigh on the back foot.

Eastleigh tried to take advantage of the wind in the second half and continued to play the ball down the flanks to our speedy wingers. The Spitfires' strikers made some great runs and Basingstoke didn't know what hit them with Night Akhonya running rings around their defence. Though they played the offside trap well, Night managed to get on the score sheet and equalised for the Spitfires to much joy of the rest of the team and faithful supporters!

Game on! Both teams played some great football and tried to attack without prevail.

Eastleigh's defence held strong and made some crucial tackles to keep the game alive.

Both keepers worked hard to keep the ball out of their net. It took a long ball over the heads of the Eastleigh defence, which was met by a Basingstoke player who controlled it and slotted home to end the game 2-1.

Though Eastleigh tried their best it was just not meant to be! The ladies are back to the league this week with a home fixture against Farnham. 2pm KO.
Please come and support your Women's team.

Alex
Keeper