Stanway Pegasus 3-0 Hoddesdon Town

League Challenge Cup 2nd Round, Played at Coggeshall Town FC

There was a distinct nip in the air at Coggeshall Town FC this evening, as Stanway Pegasus took on Hoddesdon Town in the League Challenge Cup 2nd Round. A light drizzle accompanied the unseasonably cold weather, with many supporters, myself included, reaching for the big coat for the first time this season. Hoddesdon Town came into the match with a new tactical shape, hoping to experiment and progress to face Harlow Town in the next round. However, what unfolded was a dramatic evening that left Hoddesdon reeling.

Kick-off: A Cagey Opening

The game began cautiously, with both sides feeling each other out in the early stages. The first notable moment came at the 12th minute when Ben Clarke's speculative long-range effort sailed well wide of the target. Moments later, Bailey Eden delivered a tempting cross into the box, but there was no one on hand to capitalize.

At the 17th minute, Clarke, who had already been caught offside three times, found himself just inside the box with the ball bouncing invitingly in front of him. Unfortunately, his composure deserted him at the crucial moment, and his effort flew high over the bar.

Stanway’s Lightning Strikes

While Hoddesdon dominated possession in the opening 20 minutes, it was Stanway Pegasus who posed the greater threat on the break. A warning came in the 20th minute when Stanway's Brosnan Jarrett wriggled past Jonah Evans out wide, and unleashed a stinging effort that was well saved by Liam Nugent, who palmed it to safety.

Hoddesdon had their best chance of the half in the 23rd minute. Jonah’s stabbed effort was blocked, and the ball fell to Clarke, whose close-range shot was dramatically diverted over the bar by a last-ditch challenge.

From the resulting corner, Stanway launched a swift counter-attack. Jarrett slipped in Aaron Birch, who advanced one-on-one with Nugent. Liam made a smart block, but Birch pounced on the loose ball and rifled it into the empty net. 1-0 to Stanway Pegasus and not the start we had hoped for.

Just five minutes later, a long cross-field ball found Brosnan Jarrett again in acres of space wide on the right. He jinked inside, beat another defender, and fired a low shot across Nugent into the net to double the lead. Stanway were in the ascendancy, and the quick fire double left Hoddesdon shell-shocked.

It got worse for the visitors a minute later. In the 29th minute, a catastrophic lapse in concentration saw Hoddesdon's defense parted like the Red Sea, allowing Aaron Birch to slot home with ease for his second goal of the night. Three goals in six minutes had utterly stunned the visitors, as well as the travelling support, and a long night was getting even longer.

On 35 minutes, Blue Gallagher was felled by an awful challenge from Stanway's Jordan Obanleowo and he was rightly booked by the referee. Blue dusted himself off to take the free kick and swing a ball into the box, but, it evaded everybody and bounced away to the safety of a goal kick.

A First Half to Forget for Hoddesdon

Stanway could have added a fourth just before the break. A downward header at the back post was cleared off the line by Naz, but the danger wasn’t over. The ball was drilled back in from a tight angle, and Nugent saved brilliantly with his legs. Moments later, Nugent spread himself to deny another clear opportunity. It was a miraculous string of saves from the Hoddesdon keeper, who was keeping his side in the contest almost single-handedly.

Half-Time Reflection: Damage Limitation Needed

The first half ended with Hoddesdon 3-0 down, and it could have been more. Six minutes of suicide had undone all their earlier hard work. Simon Riddle’s experiment with three at the back had failed, and the second half would now be an exercise in damage control. Scoring four goals in 45 minutes, whilst keeping the ball out of their own net, was going to be an uphill task

Second Half: A Tightened Defence

Just six minutes into the second half, Riddle made three substitutions, bringing on Arnis Lala, George Hamill and Dillon Lee, in place of Bailey Eden, Ben Clarke and Jonah Evans, to try to change things up and spark some sort of revival. However, their task became even tougher when Sam Cross went off injured in the 53rd minute, with Jimmy Agnew taking his place. Moments later, Hoddesdon thought they had pulled one back when Blue Gallagher bundled the ball into the net, but the referee ruled it out for a foul on the keeper. The man in black ruled that the goalkeeper had two hands firmly on the ball before our midfielder prodded home, but Blue was incredulous at the decision with his head in his hands and asking the referee what exactly he had done wrong. Had this goal stood, the second half may have been an interesting affair, but in the end, the early spark was quickly extinguished by the ref.

There were glimpses of improvement from Hoddesdon. In the 56th minute, Jimmy Agnew made a superb lunging tackle in the box to clear danger, a challenge he had to get absolutely spot on in terms of timing, to avoid giving away a penalty, and he passed with flying colours. Reece Barnett headed just over from a corner in the 65th minute, but chances were few and far between. Meanwhile, Nugent continued his heroics at the other end, making save after save to keep the scoreline respectable.

Harry Savage was then booked for the hosts and Stanway were showing a bit of needle in their challenges, which belied their three goal cushion. Shortly after, Blue Galagher was presented with the ball just outside the box and drilled a low effort towards goal but it was well gathered by Stanway goalkeeper and captain, Sam Felgate.

On 69 minutes, Naz Krutko was replaced by Sid Barker. This was followed by Jack Gibbs moving up front and was almost on the scoresheet immediately, sent through clear on goal but a tight offside decision went against him, much to the dismay of everyone. Reece Barnett was then guilty of a late tackle which earned him a caution. Up the other end, Liam Nugent made yet another smart save, spreading himself, to avoid a fourth.

The final moments of the match were punctuated by the official, booking as he did Jack Riddle for a late tackle, and Stanway's Aaron Birch, hero in the first half, zero in the second after he was sent to the sin bin to calm down for the remainder of the game, for petulance. The last piece of action saw Jimmy Agnew head an effort over the bar, in a story of what could have been for the Lilywhites.

Full Time 3-0: A Second Half Stalemate

Despite a spirited response in the second half, and not conceding more, the game finished 3-0 to Stanway Pegasus. Hoddesdon’s early defensive errors in the first half had proven costly, and they were ultimately dumped out of the League Challenge Cup at the first hurdle.

Liam Nugent was rightly named Man of the Match for his series of fine saves that kept the scoreline from becoming even more lopsided.

Hoddesdon now needs to regroup and learn from this experience. Just three wins in ten games in all competitions, whilst conceding seventeen, will not be the start that the lads will have hoped for. However, the chance to make amends always comes around quickly in non league football. Their next task will be to put things right in the league. A first home game in eleven for the Lilywhites, against Hutton FC on Saturday, will bring the feel good factor, but tonight, it was Stanway Pegasus who emerged as the deserved victors, and they now advance to face Harlow Town in the third round.