New Look Aylesbury Team Wear Down Jets
Aylesbury 3 Jets 0
Spartan South Midlands Premier
18th August 2009
Jets travelled for the first time this season to newly named Aylesbury (formally Aylesbury Vale) and saw first hand why the massive cash injection should have this club very close to meeting the first stage of their two tier promotion aim at the end of this season. With such players as former Sheffield Wednesday and Luton Town player Dean Brennan, Watford reserves skipper Sam Swonnell and a host of former Leighton ,Aylesbury Utd and Oxford City players, anybody that can finish above them must surely be in a promotion spot.
Jets were without leading goal scorer Ian Bywater, striker Spencer Bellotti, and midfielders Nathan Roberts and Colin Jenkins in the reshuffled squad that allowed for a debut for new signing Tom Inch from Harefield.
Jets can be very pleased with their first half performance turning around at 0-0 and should have just about edged in front at the break with the clearest opportunity being a triple chance just minutes from half time when first Paul Turner and then Paul Haynes (twice) had shots saved by former Hemel Hempstead keeper Steve Smith.
Jets played a tight game and it was a distant overhead kick in the 10th minute by Brennan that was to be Aylebury’s first effort, Chris Harding. Jamie Parsons and the recalled Marc Ayres were grip tight across the back and man of the match Lee Grace was always a busy threat at both ends to Aylesbury.
Jets had a period of the game where three quick chances, one from a corner, offered good opportunities to O’Mara, Haynes and Grace, but at the moment Jets cannot buy a goal and this was to continue tonight.
The second half belonged to Aylesbury. Their half-time team talk was reflected in their game play as the team came out of the blocks at pace and at Oxhey. Jets were still holding Aylesbury well and looked increasingly confident that they could hold them out.
Disaster struck, however, in the 56th minute when young ‘keeper Joe Marsh stood rooted as a 40-yard shot from Kyle Kilmartin (56 min) went seemingly wide of his goal, but the ball landed sweetly into the top corner, and the pain was evident on all the Jets players and the faces said it all.
Just a minute later another soft goal, by Craig Henney (57 min), when his scuffed shot went in, killed the game. Jets pushed forward and the out-of-sorts Jets striker Tim O’Mara sprang the offside trap to score, but the celebrations were cut short with a late, late flag from the assistant.
Gladdy, Inch and Deamer were all thrown into the battle as Jets refused to lie down, but Aylesbury were in full control and it was to be in vain. Finally the normally accurate skipper Jamie Parsons passed a sideways ball straight to Striker Craig Henney (67 min) with all his Jets team mates pushed forward, and the quality striker went clear and confidently slotted past Marsh to wrap up the score.
For Aylesbury, it was ten goals for nil in just two games, having beaten Langford by 7-0 on Saturday. A stark early warning for everybody with promotion desires. For Jets, it was the same message as the previous matches in this period of bad results, keep playing well, keep your heads and surely our luck must change soon, BUT the lessons are clear to see, you have to put your chances away to win matches, and at the moment Jets are unable do that.
Jets man of the match was Lee Grace for his work in both defence and attack.
