K’s Win When Push Comes To Shove
Most of the time, the experience of watching football is almost entirely divorced from the reality in front of your eyes. The goalscorer always plays brilliantly. The guy on your side of the pitch runs the show while those on the far side need to get involved a bit more. Your team could play for three more games without scoring... and then score minutes later.
Kingstonian's 1-0 win over Leiston is a prime example of this. For the majority of the second half, Leiston had the majority of possession and set up, if not a camp, at least a picnic basket in Ks' half. As the minutes ticked down, the visitor's late equaliser seemed inevitable to those red-and-white-hooped-fans at the other end....
The first half was different. Right from the off, the hosts dominated their high-flying Suffolk guests. Lee O'Leary spread the ball around nicely. Harold Odematey covered every blade of grass. Goode and Wells ran tirelessly up and down the flanks. Pico beat a man and hit the post after five minutes. Everything was going to plan.
In fact, such was Ks' grandstanding that they even allowed Sam 'why does it always fall to him' Page to score the decisive goal, heading in from point blank range. This telling moment was aided by some officiating largesse, as Page's two-handed shove on his marker went either ignored or unpunished, making it almost impossible to miss, but if one man could have....
The dominance didn't last 90 minutes. Lee O'Leary was given less time and space. Harold covered that same grass making umpteen desperate tackles. Goode and Wells were pinned back. As Ks got deeper, Pico was left isolated. This was not the plan...
The afternoon's football has sporadically been interrupted by kickboxing, as both sides were guilty of some 'tasty' challenges. Finally, just before injury time, an overly egregious one was punished as Leiston's substitute Zehnn Young took flight into O'Leary's shins and was dismissed. But football being football, the late sucker punch was surely on it's way...
It never came.
It was never coming.
Despite the pressure, the possession and the pessimism Leiston never looked like scoring. Tolfrey didn't make a save. Ks were comfortable winners and football maintained its position as the world's leading mind-altering substance.
Match report by Jamie Cutteridge.
