HORNCHURCH 4 POTTERS BAR 0
Elliot Styles came back after a one match suspension, and Ross Wall and Lee Hodges in the starting line up. Lee Brown has returned to Queen’s Park Rangers at the end of his loan spell. The weather was a pleasant one degree, and the pitch a pale shade of white as the frost sparkled invitingly on the surface. And for the second match in a row, the visitors played in all yellow. On the terraces, Sir Gary was back after his brief spell of glory hunting at Leicester, and Matt wore one of the new Urchins woollen hats.

Urchins kicked towards the windmill end in the first half, and had a marked territorial advantage which they could not turn into goals. Billy Coyne played a good pass along the right wing to Simon Parker, who touched the ball sideways to Ross Wall, and thence on to Dean Green, whose shot was deflected for a corner. Lee Hodges floated the ball across and Elliot Styles headed just over the bar.

A promising start, and the momentum was maintained when Parker sent Green away on the right, and Dean’s shot was turned around the post by keeper Ricketts, who then dealt capably with Hodges corner as the ball swung in towards the goal. Coyne, to Green, to Parker, who exchanged passes with Ross Wall, and Simon ran on to try one of his trademark chip shots, but this one went wide of the post. Potters Bar had a chance when a mix up at the back allowed ex-Canvey player Ryan Edgar to nip through, but Dale Brightly recovered quickly to save at his feet. Potters Bar then won a free kick, which Francis took, and he played the ball short to Edgar, whose first time shot was blocked by John Purdie. But for the most part it was Urchins who were piling on the pressure, and Dean Green set off on a long solo run which ended with a fine cross, which just eluded Ross Wall and went out for a goal kick.

A Tomlinson free kick found Styles unmarked and Elliot’s shot went narrowly wide, and then Parker took a clearance from McFarlane and played a good ball through to Paul Shave, whose Parker-style chip shot hit the bar, and in the ensuing goalmouth scramble Simpson got the ball away for a corner. Hodges put the ball across and Paul Shave’s header was well saved by Ricketts.

The main question at half time was what would happen if the match was abandoned through frost at ninety minutes, given that there was no provision for a replay?

As it happened the temperature was one degree centigrade at the start but when the teams came out for the second half it was one degree Celsius so there was no chance of the match not finishing. Urchins started strongly, when Hodges took a free kick on the right and Ricketts failed to hold the ball. Paul Shave moved in quickly and his shot was kicked off the line. But Potters Bar were coming under increasing pressure and Urchins took the lead when DEAN GREEN ran on to a neat pass and fired the ball home. A minute later and it could have been two when Paul Shave sped through, but his shot was saved by Ricketts. And a minute later it really was two, when Parker found Wall, and Ross sent Hodges away on the left and his cross found ROSS WALL whose shot crashed into the net.

A Hodges corner was well held by Ricketts, and Simon Parker went close with a chip shot which beat Ricketts and dropped on to the roof of the net. Potters Bar nearly pulled a goal back when Adejokun flicked the ball inches wide of the post after a well place cross from the left. Back to the other end and Jim McFarlane headed wide from Tomlinson’s free kick. But Potters Bar again went close, when Adejokun neatly crossed to Edgar, who turned and shot, with Dale Brightly diving across goal to touch the ball around the post, and then firmly punching the ball away as it came over from the resulting corner.

A Tomlinson long ball to Simon Parker saw Simon feed the ball inside to Dean Green, whose shot was well saved by Ricketts, but Urchins went three up when DEAN GREEN hit the ball home from the edge of the area. Donny Barnard and Mitchell Stuart-Evans came on, and Mitchell was soon in action, sending Green away on the right. The fourth goal followed when Tomlinson found Green, who slipped the ball through to ROSS WALL who then calmly ran around Ricketts to slot the ball home.

And what would have happened if the match was abandoned at ninety minutes with the score level, given that there was no provision for a replay? The answer was academic, but the match would have to be replayed at Hornchurch, as there was no provision for it to be played as a replay, only as a first match.