Last minute equaliser denies Brakes

A last minute equaliser by high flying Chorley held Leamington to a 1-1 draw at the Phillips 66 Community Stadium this afternoon. Four minutes were added on, but the referee decided to go for more and the visitors seized their chance.

This was very much a game dominated by a strong wind. Leamington had the benefit in the first half and Chorley in the second.

The first half was relatively uneventful and quite scrappy, although two Chorley charm merchants were booked for obstructing Breeden. Then a good move started by Gudger (who had an excellent game throughout) enabled Colby Bishop to score on the half hour mark.

Chorley stepped up a gear in the last five minutes of the half and Breeden had to make a one handed save after he saw the ball late.

The visitors came out of the traps in determined mood after the break. Leamington held firm, although the wind meant there were few effective attacking moves. Breeden made a great save, tipping the ball over the bar. Leamington used all three substitutes, but I thought Dwyer was flimsy when he came. The Brakes withstood a series of corners, but were not able to hold on to the ball and eventually conceded.

Disappointing to lose in that way, but it was probably a fair result and one we would have taken before the game.

Brakes win hard fought contest

Leamington won 1-0 against high flying Chester in a hard fought contest at the Phillips 66 Community Stadium today in front of a crowd of 975 and two dogs. They are now 11th in the table. The Brakes played as well as I have seen them do all season.

It was a good game of football, only spoilt by self-important referee Elliott Swallow who issued a blizzard of yellow cards to Leamington players.

Leamington threatened early on with a great run from a Chester corner, but the keeper saved with his feet. After charm merchant Adam Dawson rolled around on the ground in agony, Callum Gittings was the first Brakes player to be booked. (Dawson was with AFC Telford until recently, the latest stage in a varied career, and Telford have reported Chester to the FA for an alleged illegal approach). The referee did then manage to book Chester captain Gary Roberts, although it was not clear what he had done.

Chester hit the crossbar from a free kick and Tony Breeden had to be very mobile in the follow up to make a great save.

The visitors came out of the traps at a fast and furious pace after half time, but Tony Breeden made a good save from Dawson. Chester had an open goal, but failed to take advantage.

After good work by Connor Taylor, Colby Bishop (who had been holding the ball up well) had a tap in to make it 1-0 on 82 minutes. Chester had a couple of good attempts on goal and Tony Breeden, who had been a rock throughout, had to be at his very best.

Very fair report from Chester here: Match report

Brakes power

This is a well written and lavishly illustrated article about the revival of Leamington FC: Not just another phoenix club

New owner for Nuneaton

Nuneaton's new owner Nick Hawkins is looking forward to starting his reign with the 'El Warwicko' derby against the Brakes tomorrow New owner

Are you Kidding?

Brakes were simply outplayed in their 0-4 defeat by Kidderminster Harriers at the New Windmill Ground last night. It showed the benefits of a full time squad.

I don't think that Leamington played badly, indeed I think that they played better than they did against Darlington. The ball was on the ground more and there was some crisp passing. But Kidderminster had an ability to pass accurately over long distances. They simply knew where everyone else was.

Their second goal was a cracker from distance. Breeden could have done better with the third. Our best chance came when one of their players headed against the crossbar and we could have scored if we had been more clinical.

Brakes didn't give up and a flurry of late corners gave hope of a consolation.

At least Colby Bishop got another run out to improve match finish. (Dwyer in my view is not the answer). The crowd of 785 was good for a midweek game. But it's going to be a long old season.

Courier report here: Put to the sword

10 man Brakes fight back

Ten man Brakes fought back from a 0-2 deficit to secure a 2-2 draw against Darlington at a very wet New Windmill Ground this afternoon.

Junior English received an early yellow card after he brought down Darlo's Harvey Saunders just outside the box. Breeden made a great save from the resultant free kick.

Darlington were, however, dominant and soon went ahead. (Just how dominant is evident now that I have watched the video, they were slicing us apart.) Breeden made another great save, but then the visitors broke at pace and secured their second. Dwyer then received a red card for a foul.

Once again Brakes were often out paced to the ball. They lacked width and the tactic of hoofing the ball up to a lone striker failed to work. At this stage it looked as if a rout could be on the cards.

Leamington looked livelier in the second half and even more so after Colby Bishop came on after his long spell out injured, followd by a double substitution.

A handball in the box gave Bishop the chance to show what he could do and he struck a decisive penalty to make it 1-2. Brakes then piled on the pressure and Jack Edwards scored the equaliser from a corner.

Both sides tried to get a third goal in an entertaining game.

Leamington are now 15th in the table.

No dogs were in attendance. Humans 765.

Stenson joins Moors

Matt Stenson has been a key element of Leamington's relative success this season and it is a real blow that he has joined Solihull Moors for an undisclosed fee: No Christmas present

Nuneaton Borough face closure

Nuneaton Borough are in real danger of closure. Apart from the fact that I do not like to see even a rival club go under in this way, it wouldn't help us very much as we might have hopes of winning our upcoming fixture against them. I discuss their problems in greater depth here: Closure threat

More problems than the referee

Leamington are 14th in the National North after losing 0-1 at home to Curzon Ashton today. What is more worrying is that they have won only one of the last five league games. The good start to the season is fading fast.

Unfortunately, referee Amy Fearn had a poor game. When I have seen her before she has been good. But the decisive penalty she awarded early in the game was never a penalty, as far as I could see it was two players coming together.

Having said that, Brakes were poor in the first half. They were outplayed by the visitors, were slow to the ball and had just one shot on target.

The performance in the second half was better, but still not clinical enough in front of goal. Tony Breeden had to make one great save and Curzon could and should have scored a second.

The antics of Curzon's No.10, charm merchant Adam Morgan, towards the end of the game were a sight to behold. He kept falling over, but his basic problem was that he was carrying too much weight and had a low centre of gravity.

There's a lot of work to be done if we are to avoid being sucked into a relegation struggle. Too often we seemed to lack any width.

Attendance on Non-League Day was 705 and one dog.

Great win for Brakes

It was the longest away trip of the season, but Brakes secured a 2-0 victory over Blyth Spartans this afternoon.

Brakes had an excellent first fifteen minutes and a brilliant first half. On six minutes Edwards headed home from a Dunbar free kick. Dunbar himself then scored on 32 minutes with a 25-yard free kick that dipped over the wall and went off the inside of the post leaving the keeper stranded.

Ahmed Obeng and Matt Stenson both have chances to score before half time.

The home side got a penalty on 64 minutes for a push in the back, but penalties don't faze us and Breeden made the save, anticipating the right way to go.

On 70 minutes Clarke cleared off the line from a free kick.

Brakes could have added a third in injury time, but Dwyer opted to shoot rather than passing.

Brakes are now 8th, behind Brackley in the play off places on goal difference.

Attendance 596, no figures on dogs.

The coach had to stop at Leicester Forest East on the way back, but the players seem to have enjoyed themselves judging by the photos on social media.

Villain of the week?

Former Leamington player Courtney Baker-Richardson has been named Championship villain of the week by The Times after he was sent off after five minutes on his first team league debut against Millwall.

The chastened player tweeted, 'A day full of emotions for me. Thank you all for your support. Not how I pictured my debut, I let myself and everyone down No malice intended on the challenge, was just eager to get stuck in. A mistake I will learn from!

Hard won point

It was a hard won point for Leamington in a 2-2 draw with AFC Telford at the Phillips 66 Community Stadium this afternoon. It was a tense occasion at times and the referee had difficulty in keeping control despite issuing a flurry of yellow cards.

On August Bank Holiday last year Brakes went down 0-3 to the Bucks and I feared we would be relegated. This year it was a different story of fifth versus second.

Brakes went 1-0 ahead on seven minutes from a Matt Stenson penalty. Gittings put in a good shot. Telford were awarded a free kick in a dangerous position. It was well taken and there was nothing Tony Breeden could do to prevent the equaliser scored by Dawson. A Leamington effort was just over.

Telford went ahead immediately after half time following a defensive mix up right in front of goal. Brakes then equalised through Hood on 62 minutes when there was a scramble in front of goal from a corner.

Telford then won a penalty on 64 minutes, but it was well saved by Breeden. A deflected shot from Dunbar hit the post leading to a Leamington corner. Towards the end the match petered out with neither side dominant.

Attendance was 812 plus one dog.

Brakes remain in fifth place on goal difference.

Two points thrown away

Leamington were leading Guiseley 2-1 at the Phillips 66 Community Stadium this afternoon. They were putting the visitors under some pressure, but a stupid foul allowed the visitors to break away and score a late equaliser.

Brakes had lacked quality in the first half and seemed reluctant to create any width. However, on 37 minutes Matt Stenson provided a cool finish with the keeper out of his goal to put Brakes 1-0 ahead at half time.

Just after the break, Breeden fumbled a fierce shot from distance, allowing the visitors to scramble the ball home. Junior English, who had been having a good game, then put Brakes ahead again from a tight angle.

Brakes are now 7th in the table.

Attendance was a slightly disappointing 495 and one dog. There was a small but vociferous Guiseley contingent.

A valuable victory

Paul Holleran said in his programme notes that Boston United could be in the top seven at the end of the season. Maybe, but Leamington secured an emphatic 2-0 victory over them at the Phillips 66 Community Stadium tonight in front of 656 and two dogs. Some of Boston's passing was good, but their finishing left something to be desired. They seemed to be specialists at putting headers over the bar.

Boston hit the post early on in the first half, but dodgy work by the keeper contributed to the opener. A great ball into the box was met by a diving header by Matt Stenson. The keeper saved it but it bounced backwards and rolled into the net This silenced the vociferous away contingent.

On 71 minutes a Dunbar corner was converted by Junior English with a volley that left the keeper with no chance.

Callum Gittings got sent off by the rather ineffectual referee. Gittings got a second yellow for an off the ball incident.

Don't overdo the pessimism

Coming away from today's 2-1 victory over Bromsgrove Sporting at the New Windmill Ground today, I heard a fan say 'I didn't like that. I think we're going down. I wouldn't base too much on a pre-season friendly.

We certainly look rusty in the first thirty minutes, often second to the ball while their No.9 looked dangerous. Bromsgrove managed to hit the upright. Then, as the half hour approached, one of their players put a bullet header into the net to open the scoring for Leamington.

With Breeden out of his goal in a vain attempt to challenge their No.11, there was an off the line clearance by Gudger, but then Bromsgrove put the ball into the open goal to make it 1-1.

Just before the break there was a great cross into the box from James Bowen and it was Matt Stenson who rose highest and headed into the corner from 6 yards. He looks very useful.

Much of the interest in the second half came from the lightning and torrential rain with the floodlights coming on. It was all rather scrappy and neither side looked like scoring.

I don't have the attendance, probably less than two hundred (actually 256),but the dog was there.

Breedstar!

Tony Breeden was the hero of the hour when he took a penalty this evening to put Leamington 1-0 up against Chorley. He then wisely did not take the second penalty in time added on, leaving it to Callum Gittings to make it 2-0.

Leamington are not mathematically safe, but they are 15th and it would take a very odd combination of results in the remaining games to see them relegated even if they don't pick up a point from their two remaining fixtures.

It was a feisty encounter with a blizzard of yellow cards and eventually Chorley charm merchant Josh O'Keefe got sent off for a second yellow in the dying minutes of the game.

In the first half Dodd had a one on one chance, but blasted the ball over. Chorley also wasted a good chance by blasting the ball over.

In the second half Chorley put the ball just over from a corner. In the closing minutes they had two free kicks in dangerous positions. The first came off the wall and the second was blasted over.

There wasn't much quality, but a lot of heart and commitment. I agree that we were unlikely to score from open play and the second penalty was a bit soft, but I'll take it.

What can one say about that?

I was asked after the game what I could write about it, and the answer is not very much. The good news is that Tamworth and Telford both lost, although Gainsborough won.

It wasn't a high quality performance. We had difficulty keeping possession. Any shots were mostly straight at the keeper with the best effort by substitute Liam Canavan on 80 minutes.

Curzon Ashton did show some pace on the break and Leamington had to clear off the line in the first half. There were lots of niggly fouls by the visitors, but referee Amy Fearn only issued two yellow cards.

Puzzled that Revan only got on in time added on. What was the point of that?

A vital three points

My first live football for over two months and good to see Leamington secure a much needed three points with a 1-0 victory over FC United of Manchester. It was a tight game, as was to be expected, but we are now six points off the drop zone.

Edwards hit the bar early on with a looping shot. Breeden made a good save to stop the visitors going ahead. Charm merchant Daniel Racchi received a yellow card for a foul. In play following a free kick, Jamie Hood scored a vital goal just before the break. (For me and others he was man of the match). Dunbar sent the ball in and it came off Hood's knee. There was still time for the referee to give Jack Edwards his birthday card and it was yellow.

Dodd replaced Obening in the second half and then Magunda replaced Clarke. Breeden made a vital one handed save. The visitors kept up the pressure through corners, but Brakes were resolute. Racchi finally got a second yellow card and his marching orders.

Attendance 1,005 plus one away dog.

Could we be playing Hartlepool next season?

Hartlepool United are in real trouble. If we stay in the National League North, they could be joining us. It reminds me that our board are right to run the Brakes prudently: Hartlepool on the brink

Well done Brakes!

I wish I could have been at the 1-0 victory over Blyth Spartans in front of a crowd of 524, but I have only just got out of hospital. Leamington have recorded back-to-back victories for the first time this season and are now 15th in the table.

Tony Breeden is the hero for saving a penalty, but all credit to Udoh for his goal.

It seems to have been a real nail biter in the closing fifteen minutes.

Former Leamington player Alex Rodman scored the opener for Shrewsbury against Charlton today.

Three important points

Leamington secured three important points with a 3-0 win over Gainsborough Trinity at the Phillips 66 Community Stadium tonight, moving up to 16th in the National League North.

The first goal for Brakes came in four minutes, scored by Daniel Udoh in a crowded area in play following a corner. Their right back, Ioan Evans, was injured in the exchanges and had to be substituted which unbalanced their side.

Leamington had most of the play in the first half, but Gainsborough could be dangerous going forward and missed some chances to level the score. Their danger man was undoubtedly No.7 Craig King who kept penetrating the Brakes defence. I believe he played for Salford last season.

Brakes defence often looked shaky, but all credit to Jamie Hood for his good defensive work throughout the game.

At one point the keeper was out of position and it was difficult to see how we failed to score, just an inability to control the ball.

Immediately after the break, Brakes scored again. After good work on the left by Leamington involving Felix, Gainsborough put the ball in their own net.

Breeden had to react well when a Gainsborough effort came off the crossbar.

Gainsborough increasingly resorted to fouling and the referee began to show his yellow card. However, he put up with Gainsborough's No.6, Simon 'Mr Gobby' Russell telling him how to run the game. I wouldn't have put up with it if I was a referee and it would have been a simple matter to show him a yellow card.

The third goal for Brakes came after an error by the keeper allowed Udoh to bounce the ball off his leg and into the net.

Attendance 372. I didn't see any dogs.