TUDOR TALK

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Tuesday 9th October
Southern League Premier Division
Bedford Town 1 Hemel Town 1

The Tudors escaped from the Eyrie with a point, despite a lashing from the pace of a young Eagles side.
From the start the quickness of the Bedford forwards proved to be problematical as Hemel’s defenders struggled to contain them.
Michael Lyon in particular was the main early culprit, and it was he that missed the first effort on either goal, shooting across keeper Ian Brown’s far post five minutes in.
Brown then held onto another Lyon shot three minutes later and for a while it looked as if the Eagles could score a hatful as the Hemel central pairing of Nathan Bowden-Haase and Yiadom Yeboah dithered in clearing their lines.
At the other end Bowden-Haase just failed to connect with a Chris Herron corner at the far post, and Matt Gearing fired into the side netting on eighteen minutes. But for the most part the Tudors were trying to match Bedford for speed, by playing one touch football that wasn’t coming off - players then being caught out of position on the break.
Bedford eventually took the lead on the half hour. Once more Yeboah took far too long to try and clear the ball out of his area, and at the second attempt it cannoned off striker Andrew Phillips and rebound at pace into the net past a bemused Brown.
Brown had to be on his toes again on thirty eight minutes- saving superbly low to his left to deny Lyon once more, but the half ended with home keeper Michael Armitt grabbing Chris Dillon’s back heel at the second attempt near the foot of his post.
The second half initially continued where the first had left off - with Bedford finding space on the flanks and using pace to exploit it.
On fifty minutes Phillips slipped past Simon Sweeney but fired his shot across the far post just wide, and then the same player repeated the move (and finish) two minutes later.
Then on fifty five minutes, Lyon slipped past Mark Coulson on the other wing, before running into the area and unleashing a stinging rising shot that beat Brown easily but smacked off the bar to safety.
Incredibly however in the next move Hemel drew level. Gearing raced into the area past Grieve to reach Dillon’s lob only to be brought down by the defender from behind when it looked as though he wouldn’t reach the ball before it went out of play. Roberts stepped up to convert the spot kick, scoring his tenth goal of the season so far and Hemel’s first goal in four outings.
Manager Steve Bateman then changed things around, sending skipper Paul Edgeworth into the back four as he replaced Yeboah with Jamie Kearns, and at last Hemel seemed to settle down a little as Kearns began to have an effect in the middle of the park.
Phillips however was still wasting openings at his end - firing straight at Brown from six yards out twice within a minute, and Brown again proved to be the saviour as he brilliantly held onto Stuart Sinclair’s header with a quarter of an hour left.
Bateman then surprised the travelling support by replacing Dillon with Danny Nicholls Jnr, but to the young strikers credit he proved to be the catalyst for a couple of good attempts that nearly swung the points Hemel’s way.
With ten minutes left a one-two with Ollie Burgess ended with Nicholls forcing Armitt into his one real save of the night, and with a minute left Nicholls then headed a yard over the bar as he just failed to jump high enough to convert Herron’s free-kick into the box.
A hard earned point then for the Tudors which following King’s Lynn’s hammering the same night still keeps them second in the table. But worryingly for the Hemel fans is the general form of the side at the moment that has in recent matches succumbed to pace, and has seen its early season goal’s dry up.
With a trip to leaders Brackley this Saturday on the horizon, they will be hoping the players work out their problems soon to get back on form.

Hemel Town:
Ian Brown, Simon Sweeney, Mark Coulson, Chris Herron, Nathan Bowden-Haase, Yiadom Yeboah (Jamie Kearns), Matt Gearing, Ollie Burgess, Chris Dillon (Danny Nicholls Jnr), Drew Roberts, Paul Edgeworth. Subs (Not Used): Garry Sippetts, Robbie Kean & Steve Sinclair.

Bedford Town:
Michael Armitt, Rob Miller, Eddie Lawley, Jon Darby, Craig Grieve, Ben Farrell, Jonathon Woolf, Derwayne Stupple, Andrew Phillips, Michael Lyon, Stuart Sinclair (Luke Knight). Subs (Not Used): Ian Draycott, Shane Brown, Steve Gentle & Andrew Stevens.