A good first half for us

The last time that the Harriers won on the road was at Aldershot last season and there was the faint hope that Lady Luck would at last give us a smile and we'd come back with our first away win of this season.  Sadly there is no such woman and no such luck.

As is Colin Gordons wont we started the game with all our recognised strikers on the bench including our latest striker: Evan Garnett from Belper Town.  Alongside him was top scorer Gurjit Singh and a scoring midfielder in James McQuilkin while on the pitch was Ousmane Fané taking up the lone striker rôle all on his lonesome by himself with no-one else to play with.

Strangely, for us, we dominated the first half of the game without really achieving anything.  Our possession and passing was good but our talent for worrying a keeper was absent as usual.  Arthur Gnahoua saw a shot deflected away for a corner while soon after Luke Maxwell was just off target.  We had further chances through Keith Lowe and Zaine Francis-Angol but they came to nothing and it seemed that even with the possession we had no one capable of tucking the ball away.

With Aldershot not being able to muster anything in front of goal either we might see someone be brave at half time and start the second half with one, maybe both, of our strikers coming on in an effort to capitalise.

No was the answer to going for it as Gordon chose to continue the quest for a no score draw.  Instead the Shots came out in a different frame of mind after realising that we were there for the taking.  Danger man Alfie Pavey, on loan from Millwall, was the first to spot a chance of scoring but his shot was just off target.  Their second chance resulted in a goal.

Just five minutes was all it took to undo all our first half effort when Jared Hodgkiss mis-judged Reece Brownes run into the box to supply Charlie Walker with a pass that he finished at an angle in front of Dean Snedker and into the corner of the net.  We now had it all to do and the start of that should be to re-group with a fresh strike force because the existing plan wasn't working.

Instead we left things as they were and Aldershot began to apply more pressure.  Omar Beckles could have scored from a corner and Browne saw a shot go into the side netting.

We responded with Gnahoua sending one over the bar and then Ben Whitfield, still not in the form we know he is capable of, tried a one on one with the keeper and beat him but sent his shot way over the bar.  Elton N'Gwatala then had a shot deflect off a defender before Whitfield again screwed a chance wide with just the keeper to beat.

With the game, from our point of view, still crying out for a striker the football agent sent on a defender and a midfielder.

On came Tyrone Williams for his debut after three long years of being employed by us but playing elsewhere.  A long apprenticeship then.  The midfielder was James McQuilkin and we know he can score goals so it was obvious why he was sent on then.  Hodgkiss and N'Gwatala were the ones to come off for them.

There was no improvement with that change so a few minutes later we saw the change that should have been made in the forty sixth minute of the game with Evan Garnett coming on for Omari Patrick.  It really should have been the double change with Gurjit Singh coming on too.

It was all too late by then with Aldershot happy with the points and us nowhere good enough to get an equaliser.  The Shots had a late chance to make it 2-0 with a chance go begging from Charlie Walker and that was it.  Above us Torquay lost at Tranmere while, down there with us, Welling drew at Halifax and the Altrincham game at home to Boreham Wood was called off.

A great chance to close some gaps wasted then.

 Goal for Aldershot: C Walker 50

REFEREE:

Mr A Bromley Plymouth