AFC Totton
HAMPSHIRE COMBINATION UNDER-23 CHALLENGE CUP | FIRST ROUND
Monday 21 October 2024 | Winklebury Football Complex, Basingstoke | Att: ~50
NORTH WALTHAM U23s 0
AFC TOTTON U23s 13
Remus Nixon 12mins (pen), 75mins;
Connor Bent 23mins, 25mins, 29mins, 39mins, 55mins;
Owen Pelham 36mins; Hugo Rawlings 70mins, 78mins, 79mins;
Runo Agberhiere 74mins, 86mins
A STUNNING DISPLAY OF ATTACKING FOOTBALL saw Harry Brookwell’s AFC Totton U23s put North Waltham to the sword in their Hampshire Combination Under-23s Challenge Cup tie at the Winklebury Football Complex in Basingstoke on Monday evening, with two young Stags helping themselves to hat-tricks.
AFC TOTTON U23s: 1. Max EVANS; 12. Will KEITA; 3. Cruz WRAGG; 4. Mason REDWOOD; 5. Logan LAIRD; 6. Leo TAYLOR; 7. Hugo RAWLINGS; 8. Zach EARLEY; 9. Connor BENT; 10. Owen PELHAM; 11. Remus NIXON. Substitutes: 2. Run AGBERHIERE; 14. Ebenezer ASARE-EKOTO; 20. Jack McGIVNEY. Substitutions: Rolling.
Playing on the 3G surface that also serves as Basingstoke Town’s home pitch, the two sides spent the first 10 minutes of the cup-tie sizing each other up, with Totton having most of the possession but by no means bossing proceedings. Pelham forced a corner on the left, from which a short set-piece routine found Nixon on the edge of the box, but his shot was bravely charged down by a North Waltham defender.
Laird spread the play to the left for Nixon, who tried to tee-up Pelham for a shot from the 18-yard line, but the U23s captain skewed his effort a long way wide. Then, Earley won the ball in midfield and picked out Nixon on the flank, who went past his marker and drove a well-struck shot towards the near-post corner where the ‘keeper saved.
The scoring began in the 12th minute, after Pelham was tripped in the North Waltham penalty area. The referee pointed to the spot and Remus NIXON squeezed his spot-kick under the goalkeeper’s dive to put the Young Bucks ahead.
A couple of corners in quick succession tested the home defence — the first headed out despite the lofty presence of Keita and Logan in the box; the second played short for Earley to send a dipping cross into the six-yard box to draw a punched clearance from the by-now overworked North Waltham goalkeeper.
Totton’s second goal came on 23 minutes. Evans came out of his area to kick clear as North Waltham attempted to raid from the inside-left channel. His clearance carried all the way to Nixon in an advanced position on the opposite flank. He advanced to the left side of the box and sent in a low cross that flicked off a defender and fell to Connor BENT, who took two touches to control and then fired under the ‘keeper.
Another looped cross from Earley on the right, after a short corner, had the goalkeeper flapping at the ball in a packed penalty area. Bent received it but he couldn’t get it under control quickly enough to extend AFC Totton’s lead.
But he didn’t have to wait long for another chance, as Nixon — causing the North Waltham right-back all manner of problems with his touch, pace and physical strength — again got to the left edge of the box and fired in another low cross. Rawlings was arriving at the far post but Connor BENT got there first to convert from close range.
Four minutes later, came goal number four. Neat passing on the right between Pelham and Redwood allowed the latter to attack the byline and feed the ball into the middle; that man Connor BENT completed his hat-trick with a firm side foot from six yards.
Totton’s energetic pressing of the North Waltham defence forced their opponents to abandon their preferred passing game and send the ball direct towards their No.9, who was well-marshalled by Will Keita and Logan Laird in the heart of Totton’s defence.
Leo Taylor clipped a forward pass from half-way into the inside-right channel. The defender misjudged the flight of the ball, allowing Bent to escape from his shoulder and into the box. A simple square pass invited a firm finish and Owen PELHAM duly obliged with a controlled blast into the top-left corner to make it five-nil.
Nixon was denied another goal when his effort from the edge of the box struck one of his teammates on the heel. But, the rangy forward was instrumental in Totton’s sixth goal, six minutes before the break. Continuing his torment of the home full-back, Nixon received on the left flank once more and delivered another low cross of quality into the box. Despite the number of bodies surrounding him, Connor BENT had the time, space and composure to control and score with a rasping finish under the ‘keeper.
Earley came close with a 30-yard effort which flew narrowly over the crossbar. Then, the midfielder with the silken touch played a delightful pass to Nixon on the left. He centred to Bent, who knocked the ball down to Pelham on the edge of the box. The captain tried to curl his shot into the top-right corner but the North Waltham ‘keeper was equal to it.
When Bent was released to chase a pass into the inside-right channel, a stretching defender took a chance, steering the ball past his ‘keeper and only just wide of an own goal.
HALF-TIME: NORTH WALTHAM 0-6 AFC TOTTON U23s
A rare North Waltham foray into Totton’s half ended with a shot from the edge of the area flying over Max Evans’s crossbar. Will Keita followed suit with an effort that soared high and wide of the target and almost out of the Winklebury Football Complex. Then, a foul by Taylor gave the home side a free-kick to the left of the D, about 25 yards out, which was curled just shy of the top-left corner of Totton’s goal.
Goal No.7 came from a sweeping attacking move down the left. Nixon and Bent both raced away from their markers; when Nixon got to the byline, he picked out Connor BENT on the corner of the six-yard box to strike his fifth.
Laird volleyed over after a left-wing corner was headed up rather than out by a defender. Then, perserverence and strong running by Runo Agberhiere — an AFC Totton U23 debutant and the younger brother of Tega — won a free-kick to the right of the D. Nixon struck it left-footed; as the defensive wall jumped, the ball crept under them and clipped the foot of the right-hand upright with the ‘keeper beaten.
Runo spurned a chance from close to the penalty spot after Totton’s press caused havoc in the Waltham defence. Earley intercepted the goalkeeper’s clearance and prodded the ball to the debutant, who fired a fraction past the left-hand post.
Nixon’s cross-shot from the left was taken by the ‘keeper at the second attempt, with his initial parry having wrong-footed the incoming Bent and Rawlings. Then, after a long period of keep-ball from Totton, with Max Evans providing plenty of advice from his goalmouth, Pelham was fouled just outside the box, resulting in a free-kick on the left. The ball was whipped into a well-populated penalty area, prompting the ‘keeper to punch clear. But, the ball struck a light blue shirt and fell to Remus Nixon; his shot was blocked but Hugo RAWLINGS was on-hand to blast home Totton’s eighth.
Nixon almost got in again from Evans’s long clearance to inside-left, but was beaten to it by the North Waltham ‘keeper who caught the ball but landed awkwardly. His reward, after receiving treatment, was to pick the ball out of his net for the ninth time. Pelham made a surging run that took him from central midfield to the right-wing byline, then blasted a low cross into the six-yard box. A deflection off a defender fell for Runo AGBERHIERE to mark his AFC Totton U23s debut with a goal, shooting into the exposed left corner.
Double figures were achieved just a minute later, when Taylor’s cross from the right took a nick off a defender and Nixon intercepted at the edge of the box, 8 yards to the left of the D. With the ball under control, Remus NIXON muscled between two defenders and struck a shot that deflected off another white shirt to wrong-foot the ‘keeper, resulting in a well-deserved second goal of the night for Totton’s No.11.
Goal No.11 came three minutes later. More possession football brought the ball to the feet of Mason Redwood, whose forward pass found Nixon and he lifted it over a defender to enable Hugo RAWLINGS to ghost in behind and double his tally for the evening with a composed finish.
And the teenager completed his hat-trick just a minute later, as Totton again raided in numbers down the left and a square pass presented Hugo RAWLINGS with a chance to make it 12-0 from left of the penalty spot, and he made no mistake with a confident, firm finish.
A foul on Rawlings just outside the box gave Totton another free-kick within shooting range, but Pelham’s effort flew over the bar and struck the stand behind the goal.
With North Waltham down to 10-men following the sin-bin expulsion of one of their players for the last 10 minutes of the game, Runo AGBERHIERE wrapped up the goalscoring by applying the finishing touch after the excessively creative Nixon received from a right-wing throw-in and juggled the ball along the byline to provide his umpteenth assist of the night.
The hitherto under-employed Evans was finally tested in the last minute, when North Waltham’s No.16 cut infield from the left and hit a curling shot towards the top-right corner; it was well-struck but lacked the elevation it really needed, and Max Evans made a flying catch to maintain his clean sheet.
Watch HARRY BROOKWELL'S Post-Match Interview
By Ben Rochey-Adams
