League

Welford
Spectators: 7000 (Terracing: 5000, Seating: 2000, VIP seats: 0) Dark clouds were building up when the players entered the field. None of the them looked very eager to play. Kasey Hatcher started the match with the kick off. The crowd rose to their feet as Nicky Hodges kicked a wonderful shot that went in to the left of a diving Zeeshan Chaughtai. That made the score 1-0 in the 4 minute of play. Akif Qamar recieved an excellent pass in front of the goal in the 9th minute. Unfortunately, he received the ball on his off foot and could only manage a weak shot that went over the goal. Malik Faisal blasted a shot towards the goal in the 10th minute, but the shot hit the top of the crossbar and went out without Pierce Tipton having to make a save. With a little luck, Leytonstone's Zeeshan Chaughtai got control of the ball when Nicky Hodges tried to sneak it across the goal line. 22 minutes into the match, Khurram Rafi had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Pierce Tipton. Welford's manager could be seen yelling to the referee that Khurram Rafi was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 1-1. Pierce Tipton took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Mir Satti, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. After 28 minutes of play, Leytonstone's Malik Faisal made it 1-2 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Pierce Tipton was left in no man's land by his defense there! The audience thought a goal was coming when Nicky Hodges got free with Zeeshan Chaughtai in the 31st minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. The supporters of Leytonstone booed when Welford was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 35 match minutes in a wonderful position. Aaron Steed didn't get a good kick on the ball. Welford's Pierce Tipton played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Nafih Bahadur in the 36th minute of play. Thanks to some nice moves Nicky Hodges could shoot a difficult shot in the 38th minute, which Zeeshan Chaughtai however easily saved by the left post. Pierce Tipton stood for a superb save when he managed to get hold of Akif Qamar's shot from short distance in the 39th minute. After 40 minutes of play, Leytonstone's Malik Faisal made it 1-3 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Pierce Tipton was left in no man's land by his defense there! After having played for 43 minutes, Akif Qamar managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. Leytonstone's supporters crossed their fingers, but Akif Qamar was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. Nafih Bahadur recieved an excellent pass in front of the goal in the 47th minute. Unfortunately, he received the ball on his off foot and could only manage a weak shot that went over the goal. The crowd was extremely unhappy with the home team's performance in the first half. They were losing 1-3.

Zeeshan Chaughtai showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Ash Truscott in the 57th minute of the match. In the 60th minute, Babar Musharraf left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The Leytonstone fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 1-5. With a little luck, Welford's Pierce Tipton got control of the ball when Malik Faisal tried to sneak it across the goal line. Akif Qamar's shot was meant for the net just under the crossbar, but Pierce Tipton read the situation well and was quickly in position to make a wonderful save in the 65th minute of play. Akif Qamar who was well placed in front of the goal fired away a dangerous shot that in the 67thth minute tested the skills of Pierce Tipton when he managed to save the team from getting behind. Pierce Tipton showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Akif Qamar, who was totally free with the ball in the 68th minute. The audience thought a goal was coming when Mir Satti got free with Pierce Tipton in the 72nd minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. The long shot by Nafih Bahadur in the 73rd minute really tested Pierce Tipton's skills. The ball was on its way into the goal to the left of him when he managed to stretch himself and save the shot and avoid a goal. When the match had gone on for 74 minutes, Akif Qamar took a quick shot and it went in 1-6 without a chance for Pierce Tipton to make any attempt to save it. Leytonstone's Zeeshan Chaughtai played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Denzil Westlake in the 78th minute of play. In the 82nd minute, Kasey Hatcher ran past the defenders and hit a shot which went straight ahead into goal. Zeeshan Chaughtai was frozen by the shot and now it was 2-6. Leytonstone's Akif Qamar got a good chance for a goal in the 87th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. An unexpected shot in the 88th minute by Babar Musharraf got the crowd on their feet, but to their dismay it went out on the left side. Akif Qamar sent away a hard shot on goal in the 94th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. After a defensive mix-up in Welford's zone, Malik Faisal stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Pierce Tipton came out of the goal and Malik Faisal tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. When the match was over Leytonstone could go home with a victory in their luggage, having controlled the game far better than Welford throughout the match.