|
Watkins (52), Wright (77)
|
Ramsay (90), Atkin (94), Leach (96)
|
|
This may just be one of those games where you will in years to come look back and say that ‘I was there, but I still don’t believe it happened’, and the match itself contribute to the folklore of the club. Boro travelled to The Camrose hoping to continue their unbeaten opening of the 2007/2008 season. Nathan Crabb failed a fitness test and loanee Scott Chamberlain partnered Matt Smart in midfield. Matt Crabb regained his left-wing position and Andy Ballard retained his starting right-back berth.
The 1st 25 minutes proved to be a dull affair with both sides using the long early ball option and an over fussy referee punctuating the play for what appeared to be minor infringements; The Sports particularly suffering from the approach. As the number of fouls decreased they were replaced by misplaced passes, neither side able to create a creditable chance.
Neither side made changes at half-time but on 48 minutes Scott Ramsay headed an excellent Smart left wing delivery against the far Basingstoke post with Jonty Ventner rooted to the spot. Moments later The Dragons were ahead. Poor defensive marking at the far post allowed a right-wing corner to reach Rob Watkins; his header finding the net off the post.
Boro were displaying more energy in the 2nd half and Chamberlain’s long range free-kick flew past the post on 57 minutes. On 70 minutes Boro replaced Chamberlain and Ballard with Paul Armstrong and Danny Leach; and the side adopted a 3-4-3 formation that put the home side onto the back-foot. 7 minutes later however Basingstoke extended their lead when a loose pass allowed the home side to break. The ball was delivered in to Ben Wright and the No. 10 smashed his effort past Lee Hook for a 2-0 lead.
Matt Crabb drew a save out of Venter on 79 minutes but it looked very much like Boro were to lose a fixture that was eminently winnable despite the long list of injuries the squad is currently experiencing. Then on 90 minutes began one of the most amazing finishes to a game that anyone at the ground must ever have witnessed. Atkin flicked on for Ramsay to finish cooly under the advancing Venter for what appeared to be a consolation goal. As the match moved into injury time Basingstoke began to pay for the lack of urgency returning balls to the field of play and overly prolonged substitutions. On 94 minutes a quickly taken free-kick was fed through to Atkin who cooly chipped his shot over the advancing keeper as Basinsgstoke disputed the award and struggled to organise. The referee allowed the early kick and The Sports were level at 2-2. As the match restarted most in the ground, still stunned by the turn of events, surely expected the final moments to be played out with honours even. Basingstoke again appeared to be the architects of their own downfall as the referee stopped the game and handed Sean Hankin, the home captain, a straight red card for a verbal comment. The free-kick allowed Boro to deliver the ball into the home half to press for a winner, and as the ball was eventually crossed from the right through a crowded box Leach was on hand to sweep the ball home from 6 yards to crown an amazing final 6 minutes.
The emotions on display at The Camrose at the final whistle demonstrate the timeless appeal of the game. Both sets of fans were asking ‘How ?’. ‘How did we lose’ and ‘How did we win ?’ Only those in the respective changing rooms could answer those questions but the spirit and ‘never say die’ attitude of Eastbourne Borough was richly rewarded in this fixture.
Match Details - Webmaster.
|
