Corinthian-Casuals 1 - 3 Bognor Regis Town
Bostik League Premier Division
Saturday 26th January 2019
Match report: Cameron Smith. Photos: Stuart Tree (full set here)
An opening beauty from Hamilton Antonio was cancelled out by three Bognor Regis goals as Corinthian-Casuals suffered their first defeat of 2019 in an eventful but ultimately frustrating Bostik Premier clash at King George’s.
Three games in the New Year saw two wins and a draw. It had been a fantastic start for James Bracken and his side with an “unbeaten January” being the target. Bognor Regis Town were the visitors and the seaside outfit hovered just outside the elusive play-offs in 7th. A good number flocked from the south coast to Tolworth on a cold and rainy afternoon and with dozens of AFC Wimbledon fans getting their non-league fix before a huge FA Cup clash with Premier League side West Ham, the attendance was high. And so were the stakes.
Majed Osman’s impressive performance versus Enfield Town last week earned him another start in the middle of the park ahead of Mu Maan; Coskun Ekim partnered the no.6. Under pressure from Casuals’ lightning quick attack, Bognor were on the back-foot for the opening 15 minutes. Jordan Clarke had a shot blocked and the traffic on the left flank via Adelakun’s crosses had shaken the away side. Finding a pocket of space, midfield magician Hamilton Antonio struck a pinpoint yet powerful effort towards the keeper’s bottom right-hand corner. Evading the green shirts in-front of him, Antonio’s shot did find the glove of Bognor no.1 Dan Lincoln, but there was not enough contact to avert it wide. Casuals were 1-0 up thanks to an audacious strike!
A first-half of niggly challenges and midfield battles, there was a threat from Bognor as they settled, but notwithstanding consistent Casuals chaos. However, chances went begging as Casuals should’ve turned the screw. First, Warren Mfula found himself through on goal only to have his shot forced wide. Jordan Clarke’s penetrating run into the byline caused chaos and Bognor scrambled clear. To top it off, Gabriel Odunaike should’ve converted a header from almost under the bar that he couldn’t get on top of. Neither side could add anything else to the half: Antonio’s early quality separated the two teams.
Immediately searching for a second goal, Corinthians seemed to start the second half like they started the first. On the prowl. Clarke was bothering the green shirts once again and had a booming shot dip onto the crossbar from 25 yards out in an agonising hands-on-head moment, where a slice of luck was the difference between 1-0 and 2-0. Just before Bognor equalised, a shot that narrowly missed the post had foreshadowed the visitors’ dominance from the 55th minute onwards. Tommy Scutt’s messy goal that beat Casuals captain Bracken was timed perfectly with the descent in the weather. The rain lashed it down and so did Casuals’ performance.
Five minutes later, a tackle in the area caused the referee to point to the spot for Bognor and Jimmy Muitt was the one to brilliantly dispatch the penalty. In the space of five minutes, it was 2-1 to Bognor- comeback completed. Thinking back to earlier, Casuals were ruing the missed chances of Gabriel Odunaike and Warren Mfula. Two one-on-ones with Odunaike in the second-half saw the striker hit a creative but weak flick first-time that found the keeper’s hands, as well as not being able to finish the other chance.
Introduced two minutes prior, Max Oldham had a collision in the 77th minute and didn’t show any sign of movement upon landing. Play was stopped of course, and the Casuals physio attended to the winger. As minutes went by, the supporters around King George’s realised just how serious the injury was and lending his jacket to the concussed Oldham, James Bracken defined what we call ‘The Corinthian Spirit’. Bognor’s physio generously lent a helping hand before an ambulance was called and assistance arrived. After nearly 20 minutes of stoppage, Oldham was able to walk off the pitch to a standing ovation from everyone in the ground.
Play restarted at the 77th minute mark and the Casuals had new found confidence after a distressing situation. Calls to ‘Do it for Max’ were heard from behind the goal and a few set-pieces nearly saw Casuals equalise. Centre-back Jack Strange was in an unfamiliar position when he hit a decent shot over the bar from 20 yards out. But unfortunately for Casuals, Muitt had a simple yet clean finish to make it 3-1 to Bognor in the 90th minute, therefore concluding the bizarre match.
Max Oldham was treated at hospital and accompanied by the awesome Jon Williams- he is set to make a full recovery. We would like to thank Bognor Regis and their great physio for their help and messages; we wish them well for the rest of the season. Casuals’ three or four key opportunities that would have been dispatched on another day resulted in the first loss of the year, but Bracken looks onto two tough away fixtures next. Hornchuch and Folkestone are pencilled in next week- can Corinth get back on track?
Read James Bracken’s post-match thoughts here.
Bostik League Premier Division
Saturday 26th January 2019
Match report: Cameron Smith. Photos: Stuart Tree (full set here)
An opening beauty from Hamilton Antonio was cancelled out by three Bognor Regis goals as Corinthian-Casuals suffered their first defeat of 2019 in an eventful but ultimately frustrating Bostik Premier clash at King George’s.
Three games in the New Year saw two wins and a draw. It had been a fantastic start for James Bracken and his side with an “unbeaten January” being the target. Bognor Regis Town were the visitors and the seaside outfit hovered just outside the elusive play-offs in 7th. A good number flocked from the south coast to Tolworth on a cold and rainy afternoon and with dozens of AFC Wimbledon fans getting their non-league fix before a huge FA Cup clash with Premier League side West Ham, the attendance was high. And so were the stakes.
Majed Osman’s impressive performance versus Enfield Town last week earned him another start in the middle of the park ahead of Mu Maan; Coskun Ekim partnered the no.6. Under pressure from Casuals’ lightning quick attack, Bognor were on the back-foot for the opening 15 minutes. Jordan Clarke had a shot blocked and the traffic on the left flank via Adelakun’s crosses had shaken the away side. Finding a pocket of space, midfield magician Hamilton Antonio struck a pinpoint yet powerful effort towards the keeper’s bottom right-hand corner. Evading the green shirts in-front of him, Antonio’s shot did find the glove of Bognor no.1 Dan Lincoln, but there was not enough contact to avert it wide. Casuals were 1-0 up thanks to an audacious strike!
A first-half of niggly challenges and midfield battles, there was a threat from Bognor as they settled, but notwithstanding consistent Casuals chaos. However, chances went begging as Casuals should’ve turned the screw. First, Warren Mfula found himself through on goal only to have his shot forced wide. Jordan Clarke’s penetrating run into the byline caused chaos and Bognor scrambled clear. To top it off, Gabriel Odunaike should’ve converted a header from almost under the bar that he couldn’t get on top of. Neither side could add anything else to the half: Antonio’s early quality separated the two teams.
Immediately searching for a second goal, Corinthians seemed to start the second half like they started the first. On the prowl. Clarke was bothering the green shirts once again and had a booming shot dip onto the crossbar from 25 yards out in an agonising hands-on-head moment, where a slice of luck was the difference between 1-0 and 2-0. Just before Bognor equalised, a shot that narrowly missed the post had foreshadowed the visitors’ dominance from the 55th minute onwards. Tommy Scutt’s messy goal that beat Casuals captain Bracken was timed perfectly with the descent in the weather. The rain lashed it down and so did Casuals’ performance.
Five minutes later, a tackle in the area caused the referee to point to the spot for Bognor and Jimmy Muitt was the one to brilliantly dispatch the penalty. In the space of five minutes, it was 2-1 to Bognor- comeback completed. Thinking back to earlier, Casuals were ruing the missed chances of Gabriel Odunaike and Warren Mfula. Two one-on-ones with Odunaike in the second-half saw the striker hit a creative but weak flick first-time that found the keeper’s hands, as well as not being able to finish the other chance.
Introduced two minutes prior, Max Oldham had a collision in the 77th minute and didn’t show any sign of movement upon landing. Play was stopped of course, and the Casuals physio attended to the winger. As minutes went by, the supporters around King George’s realised just how serious the injury was and lending his jacket to the concussed Oldham, James Bracken defined what we call ‘The Corinthian Spirit’. Bognor’s physio generously lent a helping hand before an ambulance was called and assistance arrived. After nearly 20 minutes of stoppage, Oldham was able to walk off the pitch to a standing ovation from everyone in the ground.
Play restarted at the 77th minute mark and the Casuals had new found confidence after a distressing situation. Calls to ‘Do it for Max’ were heard from behind the goal and a few set-pieces nearly saw Casuals equalise. Centre-back Jack Strange was in an unfamiliar position when he hit a decent shot over the bar from 20 yards out. But unfortunately for Casuals, Muitt had a simple yet clean finish to make it 3-1 to Bognor in the 90th minute, therefore concluding the bizarre match.
Max Oldham was treated at hospital and accompanied by the awesome Jon Williams- he is set to make a full recovery. We would like to thank Bognor Regis and their great physio for their help and messages; we wish them well for the rest of the season. Casuals’ three or four key opportunities that would have been dispatched on another day resulted in the first loss of the year, but Bracken looks onto two tough away fixtures next. Hornchuch and Folkestone are pencilled in next week- can Corinth get back on track?
Read James Bracken’s post-match thoughts here.
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