League Play-Off

Stafford Park
Spectators: 37 (Terracing: 29, Seating: 8, VIP seats: 0) It was fairly windy and cold on the field when Sukhminder Johl kicked off to start the match. In the 4th match minute, Stafford FC was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Bhavaniprasada Gasnette to maneuver through the defense. In the 8th minute Asvavan Vurghese shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Batuka Diyali saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. 9 minutes into the game, Cetana Sandhu cracked a shot to the right of the goalkeeper, 0-1. Batuka Diyali was not in position, and could only watch the ball fly in. In the 13th minute, Stafford FC's Sukhminder Johl ran free of his marker and smoothly shot the ball into the goal behind Devavid Denhoy. Devavid Denhoy yelled at his defense, as they had left him out to dry. 1-1. When Cetana Sandhu came up free with the goalie in the 17th minute, the Elsdon fans jumped to their feet. But the shot missed the goal by a fraction of an inch, and the fans sat back down disappointed that Cetana Sandhu couldn't finish the play. Vishnu Sabdhu took a chance and fired a shot far from the goal in the 22nd minute, but it turned out to be a dangerous situation for Devavid Denhoy. Elsdon's goalkeeper really had to stretch himself to stop the ball from crossing the goal line. In the 23rd minute the ball was on its way in behind Stafford FC's goalkeeper Batuka Diyali, but with the help of a sacrificing defense, he could catch the ball at the crossbar. Devavid Denhoy made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Sukhminder Johl in the 26th minute of play. Asvavan Vurghese received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 30th minute. Batuka Diyali tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. Devavid Denhoy showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Bhavaniprasada Gasnette, who was totally free with the ball in the 35th minute. Devavid Denhoy made an important save on a dangerous shot by Harimbhara Girgla in the 39th minute. Asvavan Vurghese fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 40th minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Batuka Diyali having to interfere. If Asvavan Vurghese had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 44th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Asvavan Vurghese struck a weak shot in the 48th minute. Batuka Diyali didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Elsdon. The fans had the chance to grab some refreshments as the whistle went for half-time. The score stood at 1-1 after a close first half.

When the second half was about to start, both teams quickly lined up and Asvavan Vurghese made a kick off. Asvavan Vurghese could have scored with his fast shot on goal in the 55th minute of the match, but Batuka Diyali made a huge save. In the 57th match minute, Elsdon was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Bhanuratha Shetty to maneuver through the defense. After a defensive mix-up in Elsdon's zone, Sukhminder Johl stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Devavid Denhoy came out of the goal and Sukhminder Johl tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. Elsdon's Bhanuratha Shetty managed, thanks to a brazen rush, stole the ball on a throw-in made by Ashokvardan Lamichaney in the 60 minute of the game. Harimbhara Girgla fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 62nd minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Devavid Denhoy having to interfere. Asvavan Vurghese sent away a hard shot on goal in the 67th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. Cetana Sandhu struck a weak shot in the 69th minute. Batuka Diyali didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Elsdon. Thanks to some nice moves Asvavan Vurghese could shoot a difficult shot in the 71st minute, which Batuka Diyali however easily saved by the left post. A hard shot 72 in the game by Asvavan Vurghese from a close distance when the talented Batuka Diyali managed to make a qualified save. Stafford FC's players were relieved. After a rather tough play, Elsdon's Avajita Samran got a free kick in the 73rd minute. Avajita Samran was shown his second yellow card after 79 minutes, following a rather ugly tackle on opponent. That was the end of his participation in the match. A collision led to Elsdon getting a freekick after 80 minutes play. Avajita Samran hit a great ball. Devavid Denhoy showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Sukhminder Johl, who was totally free with the ball in the 83rd minute. After 84 minutes of play, Elsdon's Asvavan Vurghese made it 1-2 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Batuka Diyali was left in no man's land by his defense there! After a defensive mix-up in Stafford FC's zone, Asvavan Vurghese stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Batuka Diyali came out of the goal and Asvavan Vurghese tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. Batuka Diyali showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Cetana Sandhu in the 91st minute of the match. After a rather tough play, Stafford FC's Devanabha Khatri got a free kick in the 95th minute. The Stafford FC fans had already started to leave before the final whistle blew. Elsdon were clearly better and deserved to take the win.