Isthmian League One North, Tuesday 30th January
Tuesday night saw me over at Oakside for the first time since hosts Redbridge had been promoted to Step Four and the Isthmian North from the Essex Senior League, and on this occasion they were hosting play off chasing Heybridge Swifts who had travelled down from North Essex to the Eastern side of the capital.
The hosts first season at this level for a few years had been mixed, they had won only four of their seventeen league games, with the other's being five draws and eight defeats, the Motormen had been in many games this season but had fallen on the wrong side more often than not, although despite their lowly 17th place standing in the table, they were thirteen points clear of the drop zone with plenty of games in hand.
They were up against a side who were coming to Oakside having lost their local derby at Witham Town 3-0, this after going on a nine match unbeaten run to get them right in the play off mix, they sat in sixth at kick off and only outside the top five places on goal difference, so they knew if they could get back to winning ways here in Barkingside, they could potentially break into those play off spots.
Now the hosts were yet to win in 2024, they did lead 2-1 at New Salamis at the weekend in stoppage time before the game was abandoned after some rather unsavoury scenes, that result is yet to be confirmed, so for now they were still winless in the new year, could they grab one here and get their 2024 off and running finally?
Well, it could not have began any better for the home side when they struck a very early blow when grabbing a third minute lead when a ball fed into the box from the left hand side saw striker Ayo Odukoya send a first time powerful effort with his right foot sail into the far corner, giving visiting keeper Callum Chafer no chance whatsoever, a superb start for the home side, how would the visitors respond.
They almost replied very quickly when forcing a pretty smart save from hosts keeper Connor Wheatley at his near post, but just before the quarter hour mark Swifts found a leveller when after a powerful effort from inside the box could only be parried up into the air by Wheatley, Ben Sartain was on hand to nod the dropping ball home, and the contest was all square.
Swifts for a time had a good spell and threatened to quickly turn this one around, and only another decent stop from Wheatley prevented the visitors grabbing the lead when they got behind the hosts back line, however it was Wheatley's opposing number who was to keep the score line level towards the end of the first period as Redbridge finished the half strong, Chafer pulled off an amazing point blank save before beating away another decent effort soon after, and sandwiched in between these saves saw the hosts somehow blast over from two yards out, it looked easier to score.
It meant an entertaining end to end first period ended all square, and the tempo didn't really drop to much in the second half either, although the hosts were producing the better openings but saw Chafer once again produce another awesome stop to prevent them from grabbing the lead, however with ten minutes of the ninety to go, The Motormen managed to find what proved to be the winner when James Barlow, on for early goal scorer Odukoya, nodded home a brilliant cross from the right.
Now the visiting players and management were adament Barlow had put the ball into the net with his hand, but the referee was adament he had not done, pointing to his head to suggest he felt the ball had been headed home, and after a consultation with his assistant, the goal stood and the hosts now had a slender lead to hold onto heading into the final moments of this decent contest.
The hosts had to survive some rather hairy moments in the bundle of stoppage time that was added on at the end, but they did manage to survive some late scares to record a very important and hard fought win, taking them up two places to 15th and sixteen points away from that dreaded drop zone, whereas for Swifts it's now back to back defeats as their play off chase stalled, although they are only three points off those places with plenty of games still to play.
Full time Redbridge 2 Heybridge Swifts 1
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