The Aspect Arena was the setting for my latest footie fix and it was between two sides who had both been promoted from the Ryman Premier Divison in the summer. Concord had obviously come up via the playoff's and Whitehawk came up as Champions. Both teams were 18th and 19th going into this game so it was expected to be a tough battle with not much between the sides. The first half was fast paced and a tough physical battle but neither keeper had anything to do in the way of saves. The best two chances, one for each side came in the last ten minutes of the half. First Concord's Sam Collins hit a rocket of a shot just over Dillon Phillips crossbar from just outside the box and then just before half time Concord keeper Jamie Butler saw a snapshot from inside the box deflect just wide of his right hand post for a corner. The second half started in dramatic fashion. Concord's Sam Higgins got in on goal only to hit his effort wide of the post. Then the Whitehawk centre back Hakeem Adelakun said something to the referee who immediately reached for his red card and sent him off. This meant the away side had to play most of the second half with ten men and initally Concord pressed the away side back but then Whitehawk started to get forward themselves and for a while it was just like the first half, even with not much in the way of chances. Mid way through the half Concord's Butler had to turn over a snap shot from outside the box, this was the first save any keeper had to make, in a warning to the home side not to take the ten men too lightly. Concord finally started to push their opponents back in the last ten minutes of the half and but for a splended one handed save from Whithawk stopper Phillips it would have been 1-0 to the hosts. It seemed the game would then drift to a 0-0 draw but bang on 90 minutes the away side crossed the ball over and substitute Sam Gargan acrobatically volleyed past Butler to give Whitehawk a 1-0 lead and apparent victory. It was scarcely deserved but nonetheless Concord had four minutes of stoppage time to grab a goal. They spent most of those four minutes pumping the ball into the Whitehawk box desperately praying for a break and in the 94th minute after another pinball-esque scramble in the box the ball broke to Sam Higgins who duly smashed the ball past Phillips on the half volley to make it 1-1. This was virtually the final kick of a match that in all honesty had a draw written all over it. Concord, although releaved to grab a point in the end, would still be disappointed they couldn't put the ten men away. As for Whitehawk, despite conceding so late on, I'm sure they would have been happy to come away with a point.
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