Report
History shows that Hitchin had done well against county neighbours in the FA Cup, with two victories in the late sixties and there was an emphatic win for the Canaries on the last meeting, an FA Trophy encounter in 2017. The Isthmian Premier Division side have come a long way since and they thoroughly deserved their win at Top Field today against a curiously mute Hitchin side that had restored some confidence on Monday with their late win against Barwell.
The Ambers played in all blue today, and they won this game in a red hot patch of five minutes at the start of the second half, adding a third ten minutes of time just for good measure. They might well have had more. There can be no excuses, since the Ambers were no gamblers but played to a tight game plan, and were superior in the air, dominant in midfield and opportunistic in attack.
There were early signs of this in this much anticipated game that home supporters saw as winnable – and I do not think they expected the Canaries to be defeated by such a clear margin. But the score-line did not flatter the visitors, whose probing patience in the first half did not suggest such a dramatic start to the second period.
This was another of those games when Hitchin were plainly not allowed to settle or get into their stride as the home side, with challenges for ‘fifty-fifty’ balls mostly won by the Ambers, whose well organised defence meant that Hitchin’s early forays yielded little, with a Luke Brown effort going harmlessly wide and main man Callum Stead dispossessed and often isolated and often marked out of proceedings.
Not that many minutes had passed when a pattern began to emerge, with Cheshunt enjoying more of the possession and passing the ball with greater confidence, often after dispossessing an opponent in midfield. It may have seemed to be a relatively quiet start and definitely not a spectacle, but I had a feeling that Hitchin were quietly absorbed and soon man of the match Zak Newton was already causing problems on the right. Taylor Miles was another influential player whose decent free kick was deflected off Henry Snee for a corner. I do not know if it is just me but Cheshunt seemed to have more corners than Hampton Court maze, and the usual mayhem followed, with Horlock punching, catching and looking already a bit grumpy over the lack of Hitchin progress.
Now this aspect of Hitchin defending was quite good, but the pressure was there and clearing their lines with inaccurate passes, long ball forward to the isolated Stead was but poor relief. The best early chance came from another Cheshunt corner, which brought a glancing header from Amadou Kassarate was only just wide and ought to have served as a warning. Alex Brown, with a crucial intervention prevented another goal effort. Luke Brown was caught off-side in one break out and Thomas Gardiner’s coolness in defence was indicative. Cheshunt employed the long throw, utilising Newton’s stylistic manner and would not mind betting that this tactic will be or has been worth a good few goals for the Ambers this season. One of these Horlock punched away and he had to recover instantly to gather Newton’s crafty header. Isaac Newton may have written ‘The Compleat Angler,’ but this Zak Walton was fishing for goals and he had two in his keep net today – in what we might say was a complete performance. Ken Charles and Taylor Mills were also pestering the Hitchin defence.
Snee and Lawrie Marsh were battling in their fashion, and Josh Coldicott-Stevens did his best to limit Cheshunt’s mastery of midfield. But it was really, a subtle pressure because there were no startling shots, particularly for Hitchin who have the far from envious record of not registering a shot on target in either half. The Ambers lost Mo Camara to injury and he was replaced by a very useful player called Aaron Blair, who made himself a thorough nuisance and had a natty hair-do that warranted a second inquisitive glance.
Hitchin began to make some inroads, but they were inconclusive with Dan Akubuine providing fair crosses that always seemed to be anticipated – with Snee and Stead labouring to connect. A Marsh effort, typically persistent won a corner that was defended with indignant ease. Newton keot up his effort and one more of his crosses was cleared but yet another corner was conceded. One more brought the ball neatly to the feet of Blair, who on this occasion was like his political namesake inasmuch as it was promising but the delivery was questionable and way off target.
One really good move from Hitchin, involving Stead, Luke Brown and Snee was snuffed out by the Cheshunt goalie who was made to feel that he had not been neglected. Charles had a blocked shot at the other end and Snee headed wide, so taken by surprise that the ball may well have just ricocheted off his head and went wide. Ciaren Jones defended at the expense of another corner and a fine cross from Newton needed Horlock’s fine intervention.
When the whistle went for the interval I had the private thought that the Canaries had been a little fortunate still to be on level terms, and it had been indeed tight and far from the spellbinding cup tie we had hoped for (with Hitchin scoring a dramatic winner on 90 +7). No, to be honest here – although it had been tight Cheshunt had proved the better side with the edge on creativity, possession and they gave the idea that they had plated more like the home team.
The very friendly Cheshunt officials were very diplomatic but I could see that they were the more satisfied. Not a bustling cup tie as yet, but patient and probing. Whatever the Cheshunt manager put in Newton’s orange jiuce obviously did the trick because it was his antics that proved the destruction of the lukewarm Hitchin team. Before I had filled and lit my second-half pipe, there was a seemingly routine attack on the left and Newton, not the angler, but the wangler who nipped in and opened the scoring. Not being content with thos he cast his line again three minutes later, receiving a pass which he controlled beautifully, and ignoring the two defenders who were politely inviting one another to challenge, he seemed to haver unlimited time to pick hos spot, which he did with great aplomb and that illustrious strike well and truly scuppered the Canaries who, even when they did put together some moves, found them to be mediocre and easily defended. This sort of thing was not in my script. Where was the penetrating through ball for Stead who left his marker and bulged the net with a beauty of a strike? The Cheshunt scouts had done their homework on our Callum, who needed more support and service than he received.
Collectively, Hitchin were comprehensively outplayed today; they did not lack the effort but the desire we saw against Barwell was lacking. But it must be pointed out that Cheshunt were blessed with anticipatory play and looked the likelier to score another goal. They were able to subdue Hitchin, whose frustration towards the end I am obliged to say, bordered on the unsporting. There is no point when you are three down to instigate petty disputes and a meaningless bravado. This was one occasion to take it on the chin, shake hands and move on.
Newton’s fiftieth minute goal, whilst it did not make Hitchin’s plight totally impossible, what we saw was a response that had good intentions but was mediocre and off-balance. Rio Dasilva came on or the Canaries and he is a battler by nature but soon found himself challenged, despite his pace. Two successive corners for Hitchin were hit more with hope than expectation, and at the other end Blair hit a shot wildly over the bar. A Cheshunt free-kick just outside the area was struck by I think Chevron McLean , which gained a corner and Horlock rose to gather imperiously, but as our stand in skipper, I bet he was seething at what seemed like his team’s capitulation. Charles knocked one over the bar, when he had more time to place his effort more effectively.
A Dasilva free-kick met with a similar fate and it typified Hitchin’s off-colour performance today. They failed to exploit the few chances that came their way.
Stead stroking the ball into the empty net after being given off-side was a kind of frustrated comment on the team’s failure to bang a couple in legitimately.
One that did enter the net legitimately was a notable individual effort by Len Charles who evaded any effective challenge to his run in possession. It was a good finish and it was all up with Hitchin who, as I said displayed a degree of petulance in the closing minutes that is best avoided under any circumstances.
Charles scored in the eightieth minute and the closing ten minutes were painful as was the generous time added on by the excellent referee, who perhaps thought it might allow Hitchin a compensatory goal to give the home supporters a little to cheer about. Alas, we did not see that and it just remains to say that here was a game which comes under the ‘lucky to get the nought’ category. Hitchin are a lot, lot better than they implied today, and it is time to improve it as we ‘concentrate on the league.’
Cheshunt officials were magnanimous in victory and I for one did not begrudge their manager the twirling of his moustaches in the bar as he blew the froth off his pint. They were a friendly bunch and I hope they bear the Hertfordshire banner well in the next round.
As for Hitchin, well, we return to Rushden and Diamonds, and here is not the time or place to mention the score there last season. Let us just say that we have a score to settle. If this was a blip, it was an expensive blip, given the prize money and I am in accord with those who had the opinion that if we did have to lose, it would have been something had we put up a better show.
I will finish on a lyric from Ray Davies of The Kinks, from his song ‘Scattered’:
We get bruised,
We get battered,
But we’ll pick up the pieces that scattered
and with emotional glue,
We’ll stick together body and mind.
See you at Rushden.
HITCHIN TOWN
Charlie Horlock, Daniel Akubuine, cautioned, Alex Brown, Ryan Smith, Darion Furlong, cautioned, Ciaren Jones, Lawrie Marsh, (Malaki Black), Josh Coldocott-Stevens, Callum Stead, Luke Brown, cautioned, (Steve Cawley), Henry Snee, (Rio Dasilva).
Substitutes not used – Lewis Barker, Delsin Akom and Urijah Gordon-Douglas.
CHESHUNT
George Marsh, Theo Osinfolarin, Chevron McLean, Mo Camara, (Aaron Blair), Adam Crowther, Thomas Gardiner, Zak Newton, MAN OF THE MATCH, TWO GOALS, 47 AND 50 MINUTES, cautioned, Joe Re, Ken Charles, GOAL, 80 MINUTES, Taylor Miles, (Zubayr Bodie), Amadou Kassarate.
Substitutes not used: Adeyemi Ayodele, Charlie Taylor, Norirek Bobomurodov, Leonard Armstrong, Olarinde Williams.
REFEREE: Mr Jonathan Bolland, assisted by Mr Daniel Statham and Mr Harry Price
ATTENDANCE: 497
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