Billericay Town report
match report by James Maw
It won't go down in history as Kingstonian's most famous Isthmian Premier League win over Billericay, but the hard-fought 2-1 victory in our previous match at Imperial Fields continued a run of home wins that risked making this ground 'a fortress'.
This match was never likely to match the drama of August 2017's 1-0 win at the AGP Arena, on a day when it felt all of non-league was watching and Lewis Taylor's late goal gave Craig Edwards' side a shock win against his big-spending former club.
But with the Essex club having played every season between that one and this in the National League South, K's were still underdogs.
Previous home successes against Brightlingsea Regent and Folkestone Invicta meant Lee O'Leary's team went into this game with a bit more confidence, and that showed in how they started the game - one which they won thanks to two goals in the first period.
With Nodirbek Bobomurodov cutting in dangerously from the right, Kenny Beaney pulling the strings in the middle of the park, and Tyrese Owen always a threat from both set pieces and open play, Ricay found K's difficult to live with.
Kingstonian made a breakthrough on 19 minutes, when Kieron Cadogan pounced on a slip by Billericay's Marvel Ekpiteta, bursting into the penalty area, dropping a shoulder and clamly squring the ball to Lee Lewis to fire home via a deflection off a visiting defender.
That goal seemed to awaken the visitors, who were soon level when Bradley Stevenson put the finishing touch on an impressively well-worked team move on 26 minutes, with K's keeper Sam Jackson having been forced into two saves in the previous two minutes.
Just as it looked as though the balance of power had swung away from K's, they were back ahead. An excellent cross from the right by Bobomurodov was tapped home by Cadogan - his second goal in as many home games.
After a frantic first half, the second was a far more cagey affair. Jackson was certainly the busier of the two keepers, but there was no real sustained spell of Billericay pressure - not that K's often threatened to extend their lead at the other end either.
The fact nobody on the pitch or in the stands noticed or cared that Billericay played on after Kingstonian kicked the ball into touch to allow Corey Parchment to receive treatment late in the second half perhaps speaks for exactly how sedate the final stages of the match really were...
Kingstonian: Sam Jackson, Tobi Ogundega, Corey Parchment, Jack Strange, Michael Abnett, Tyrese Owen, Dwight Pascal, Kenny Beaney, Kieron Cadogan, Nodirbek Bobomurodov, Lee Lewis.
Subs: Iker Noguera Leon, Amine Sassi (for Lee Lewis, 88m), Sean Bonnett-Johnson (for Corey Parchment, 76m), Thomas Gogo, Rob Tolfrey.
Billericay Town: Harry Seaden, George Wind, Toby Stevenson, Montel Agyemang, Marvel Ekpiteta, Michael Chambers, Bradley Stevenson, Eze Ebuzoeme, John Ufuah, Anthony Jeffrey, Matthew Price.
Subs: Chris Dickson (for Matthew Price, 80m), Alfie Cerulli (for John Ufuah, 68m), Ellis Sullivan, imran Uche (for Eze Ebuzoeme, 62m), Henry Burnett.
Goal scorers: Lee Lewis (19m, 1-0), Bradley Stevenson (26m, 1-1), Kieron Cadogan (37m, 2-1)
Attendance: 245
