Romford 2 v 1 Witham Town
Ryman League North
Report by Gary Redwin
Boro back to winning ways thanks to a Taylor double
Late stand in Chris Taylor grabbed his first brace for the club as Romford got back to winning ways in a deserved victory against Witham Town.
Romford manager Paul Martin gave debuts to Charlie Parrish and Abdeen Abdul while Taylor was a last minute replacement for Nick Reynolds who pulled up injured in the warm up, and it was the hosts who got off to a bright start with Chinedu McKenzie having a goalbound effort blocked early on. In the seventh minute new boy Abdul beat his marker down the left wing and his cross to Taylor looped up to McKenzie who acrobatically scissor kicked the ball against the inside of the post before it hit the keeper and was cleared off the line. Three minutes later Taylor had a shot deflected wide while at the other end Witham’s first chance went wide of the near post.
With twenty-six minutes on the clock Romford won a free kick on the edge of the box but Akwasi Marfo’s on target effort was well saved while Jonathan Adeabyo’s low drive from thirty yards went a whisker wide a few minutes later. In the thirty-seventh minute and completely against the run of play Witham won a very doubtful penalty when Tim Monsheju burst into the box and run into defender Parrish who was harshly adjudged to have fouled the forward despite only standing his ground. Justice was served as Callum Chafer brilliantly flung himself to his left and tipped the ball over the bar from Monsheju’s spot kick. The save gave Romford a lift and they grabbed the first goal of the game when Marfo run down the left and crossed low to the far post to Charlie Grimme-Yexley and his cross come shot fell to Taylor to fire home his second goal of the season in the forty-second minute.
Witham came out for the second half and started to take the game to Romford with former Boro player Lewis Payne having a long range effort well saved before Payne did grab the equaliser. A long ball to the edge of the Romford box looked to have been cleared when Chafer came out and punched the ball some distance downfield but it fell straight to Payne who hit his first time volley towards goal and although Chafer got a hand to it, the ball had enough height and power to fall into the net in the fifty-sixth minute. Romford should have been back ahead six minute later when Ryan Mallett brought the ball out from the back and chipped it over the Witham defence for McKenzie to chase, and with the keeper off his line he chose the right option and lifted it over him but the effort sailed just over the bar.
McKenzie had another chance tipped around the near post and from the resulting corner flicked a header inches wide of the far post but Romford nearly gifted Witham a goal in the seventy-fifth minute when a short back pass lead to a chance, but Chafer did well to save low down. With seven minutes left Ryan Boswell who was playing a club record equaling sixth-sixth competitive game in a row on his twenty-first birthday won the ball in midfield and passed to Abdul on the edge of the box and after beating two men with great skill he crossed low for Taylor to slide the ball into the goal low underneath the visitor’s keeper. Romford should have wrapped the game up in injury time when McKenzie broke free and with the keeper out of his goal unselfishly passed to Abdul to tap home, but the winger took a touch instead and tried to pass the ball back to McKenzie for an open goal. However the linesman correctly raised his flag as by now the striker was in an offside position. Fortunately for the Boro it did not prove costly as the whistle went soon after giving Romford a valuable win and moving them eleven points clear of the relegation zone.
Romford: Callum Chafer, Ryan Boswell, Akwasi Marfo, Charlie Parrish, Ryan Mallett, Jonathan Adebayo, Kai Bichard, Charlie Grimme-Yexley, Chinedu McKenzie, Chris Taylor, Abdeen Abdul.
Scorer – Chris Taylor (42′, 83′)
Witham Town: Reece Paine, Alex Anderson, Tyler Hayes, John Watson, Damien Green, James Regis, Nathan Koranteng, Lewis Payne (Chinedu Osadebe 85), Tim Monsheju, Max Bradford (Ryan Charles 55), Thomas Robinson (Ryan Imbert 77).
Scorer – Lewis Payne (56′)
