FINAL SCORE:
Real 30.........5
AFC Maidstone...0


A game of two halves, it would be fair to say. From the first whistle, Real 30 looked to attack. They were being held to long-range efforts as a sturdy defence kept them at bay. Ward made some crucial tackles playing in his new left-back role. Cleisham also made some very good blocks but was caught in possession on a couple of occasions. After failing with their long-range efforts (which either were brilliantly saved by Cope or went woefully wide) they looked to wear the Stones out with their passing. They played it out to the wings but were thwarted by superb defending, most notably from Epps who hassled the opposition when he came on. Ryan looked isolated on his own up front, and had one half-chance. Spencer shot at the keeper from an acute angle. At the other end, Cope was especially busy. He was forced to make save after save and as the game went on his confidence improved. He made a save to his right to deny a rocket of a shot from Real 30 and made some other good stops with his legs. And as if the sight of AFC playing well defensively against the top scorers, the fans were treated to the rare sight of a one-two (after a delightful exchange of passes between Ryan and Epps). Half-time: Real 30...0, AFC...0.
AFC decided to throw men forward in an attempt to win the game (or at least score). With Epps and Ryan playing in the opposition, there were gaps in the defence which Real 30 capitalised on. Their first came from a free-kick conceded by Cleisham. The kick was played short and a Real 30 sub blasted it through Cope's legs. It was at this point that heads went down. The second was inevitable and was blasted with conviction to Cope's right. Ryan was trying his best to beat the league's toughest defence, with all his opportunities coming from balls down the line from Epps. The third came about after salck marking from Pilcher, who stood and watched the opposition striker blast a shot to Copes left. Ward was doing his best to create chances, but the physicallity of the opposition forced him off the ball. Pilcher, Sam and Cleisham all made some good tackles, none more so then Sam who was playing well. Real 30 scored a fourth which was a simple run and a simple shot from a central position. The Stones were resigned to a defeat at his point - you could tell when Ryan was subsituted and Pilcher played up front. He worked hard up front but had even less success then Ryan. Real 30 scored a fifth with five minutes left, a shot from the right coming after confusion in the defence. A thrashing for the Stones, but it was cruel on a side who worked hard throughout.


TEAM: Cope; Ward (Epps 8), Cleisham, Pilcher (S.Charman 7, Spencer 11); R.Charman.

SCORERS:


Manager comments:
"We always knew it would be tough, they are unbeaten and have the best scoring record in the league by far. You wouldn't have been able to tell that we were at opposite ends of the table in the first half. We matched them but failed to create any real chances. We collapsed in the second half, which clearly showed the differences between us in terms of fitness and finishing. If teams are frustated by a tight defence, then they try to score from long-shots. We don't really have any who can score from distance: 2 long-range goals in 1½ seasons speaks for itself. We can learn from this: we need to get more support to Ryan, we need to defend well for 24 minutes and not 20, and we need to try more long-shots. I can't really criticise anyone for the result. It was harsh on us, and especially Cope who was superb. Ryan had to contend with possibly the best defence we've played against, and everyone else played well for most of the game."