Desford’s Deserved Win – But Four Flatters

The 4-1 scoreline was a little flattering to Desford; the visitors arguing that two of the goals were a direct result of some erratic refereeing.
Nothing controversial about Desford’s opener, though. After just seven minutes Harvey Webb picked out his strike partner Jamal Allen-Inman who’s right-footed drive squeezed inside the near post.
But a somewhat ragged overall first-half performance saw Desford doing the lion’s share of defending as Caterpillar came close with good efforts from Alex Bruce, Matt Burt and Adam Zia. The visitors did eventually level; Chris Foster scrambling home from close range.
Webb restored Desford’s lead ten minutes before the break, as Caterpillar were left fuming at the referee for ignoring their cast-iron claims for a handball in the buildup.
Ash Morris missed a golden opportunity to level when Desford failed to defend a set piece adequately. The ball floated perfectly to him, but his drive powered harmlessly into the side netting.
Desford manager Hilroy Benjamin’s half-time talk inspired his team to a stronger and more urgent display, with Jamal-Inman and Adam Parry both going close soon after the restart. Their newly-found attacking flair was finally rewarded after 62 minutes when Man-Of-The-Match Shaun Hunt turned neatly and fired past advancing ‘keeper Ricky Blewitt.
Their fourth, which came deep in stoppage time, was not only controversial but had a touch of farce, too. Blewitt was judged to have handled beyond the left-side of his box. While he and a number of defenders were arguing with the referee, Stewart Iddisah seized the opportunity to roll a quick free kick square for Webb to calmly tap into an empty net.
Afterwards Benjamin praised his solid back four for thwarting Caterpillar’s three-five-two formation, and was pleased to see three different names on the scoresheet, as the team’s league form has seen them struggling to find an end product.