Royal Wootton Bassett Town Over 50s came up just short against high flying Chinnor after conceding an 80th minute goal to suffer a frustrating home defeat.

Assisted by a strong wind in their favour Bassett came out of the blocks fast and had a whole host of efforts on the Chinnor goal in the opening period. However. most were from distance and the opposition goalkeeper showed impeccable handling when called upon. For example, Stephenson forced him to get down smartly to his left to field a well struck shot mid-way through the opening half.

In truth despite dominating the ball the home side rarely created clear cut chances in the area. Roger Webb almost got in on 30 minutes but lost control at the vital moment to enable the 'keeper to claim well at his feet. Minutes later Steve Lynch found space in the box to beat the 'keeper but a Chinnor man was on hand to clear from in front of his goal line.

At the other end the Bassett defence were in control and Stephens in goal was a spectator for the most part. He had only made two routine saves until his heart rate was raised just before the break. A Chinnor forward escaped his marker and bore down on goal. The home stopper left his line to try to rush the oncoming forward and was relieved to see his powerful strike clear the crossbar.

With the game goalless at the break Bassett performed their customary half-time multiple substitutions for the second period. With the wind now at their backs Chinnor came into the game more. On 50 minutes Bassett's replacement 'keeper Boyle got behind a 20 yard shot from the edge of the area to save. Chinnor also fired over and wide before the hour mark as Bassett worked hard to stem the tide.

Eddie Stephenson had pushed further forward for the home side but was often isolated as Bassett sat further back. He did manage to escape the Chinnor shackles on 65 minutes to go through on the goalie before squaring to Kevin Currier who was ruled offside as his shot hit the scrambling last line of defence.

Chinnor continued to look the more likely scorers as the game wore on but stout defending and errant finishing kept things deadlocked going into the final fifteen minutes.

Stephenson found space on 76 minutes but his shot cleared the bar. Instead it was Chinnor who struck just before the eighty minute mark. A low cross from their right wing was turned in via a Chinnor Knee?, Shin?, from a yard out. Shortly after, Sean Boyle was well positioned to repel a close range header to retain hope for the Royal Blues.

In the last five minutes Bassett tried manfully to equalize. Ted Keep had a lofted effort over before Jeremy Smith drilled in a low shot that was deflected wide. The resulting corner came to nothing, and another late claim from the excellent Chinnor goalkeeper sealed victory for the relieved visitors.

A frustrating defeat for Royal Wootton Bassett Over 50s should not disguise what was a superb home team performance (including Beckenbauer-like sorties from Smith and Jack), against second place Chinnor. Bassett have two games to go and it would be fitting if at least one more win was achieved to reflect the vast improvement seen compared to early season displays. Time will tell!

Man of the Match: Eddie Stephenson - Towering headers in defence, tenacious and creative in midfield, and dangerous in attack. Almost the complete performance - give him a pair of gloves next time to see if he can top it!

Credit: Ceri Stephens
Last modified on Sunday 9th May 2021 at 20:22