Ware 4 Great Wakering Rovers 2
23 March 2011
A BRACE from Ryan Wade helped Ware exorcise their demons as the frustrations they’d built up over the last few weeks were offloaded on Great Wakering Rovers.
The striker, having been reinstated into the starting line-up, gave Ware a half-time lead with a well-taken free kick, before his second half header started a frantic 11-minute spell which saw the hosts fire at will and pulverise their visitors.
It was Ware’s first victory in over two months.
With injuries limiting manager Tony Faulkner’s options once again, there was a first start for Daryl Mitchell in midfield, but it was his brother Matt who claimed most of the post-match plaudits for a superb display as a makeshift central defender.
He had been forced to fill in at centre-half alongside Chris Sargent with Lee Protheroe unavailable and Matt Turpin and Fred Dooling laid up in the treatment room with respective foot and ankle injuries.
Great Wakering had the better of the first period, with Ware stopper Obey Murefu called upon to make a good save from a visiting attacker mid-way through the half.
At the other end, a cross from Luke Marshall found Sam Ruff, but the latter skied his header.
First blood went to Ware on 42 minutes when, after Ruff had been fouled just to the left of the 18-yard box, Wade stepped up to bend a free kick around the wall and into the bottom corner of the visitors’ net.
Five minutes into the second half, Joe Clemo won a throw on the right and quickly dispatched the ball to the advancing Sam Berry.
The Ware skipper, deputising for his injured brother Jimmie, was dispossessed at the side of the box, but Luke Marshall won the ball back and floated in a cross from the right, with Wade rising high to plant a bullet of a header past Wakering keeper Louis Godwin-Green.
Eight minutes later it was 3-0. Ruff was again brought down outside the area and Daryl Mitchell’s left-footed in-swinging free kick was swept home by his brother Matt.
And the hosts well and truly banished the memory of their recent barren run when Ruff’s shot was parried by Godwin-Green into the path of Marshall, who rammed home number four in the 61st minute.
To their credit, Wakering didn’t let their heads drop and Jack Carlisle was unlucky to see his header from six yards out loop just over the bar.
A defensive mix-up saw the visitors pull one back with 10 minutes left as recent signing from Romford, Toran Senghore, capitalised on Murefu’s decision to stay on his goal-line and slotted home.
Then on 88 minutes, when it looked like Joe Gardner was all over Ware left-back Rob Kemble, referee Mark Tweed adjudged the Wakering attacker to have fouled Kemble and awarded the visitors a penalty.
Senghore stepped up to score from the spot, but there was no way back for the visitors against a confident Ware side.
Ware: Obey Murefu, Joe Clemo, Rob Kemble, Matt Mitchell, Chris Sargent, Daryl Mitchell (sub: Herve Malimabue, 84), Luke Marshall, Sam Berry, Ryan Wade, Sam Ruff, Dan Roles (sub: Emiel Aiken, 74). Subs not used: Jack Friend, Aaron Ormand (GK).
