Fright night for Carshalton as Wings win handsomely
Game 16
Welling United 4 – 0 Carshalton Athletic
Venue: The Anthony Martin community Stadium (Formerly Park View Road)
Goalscorers: Lekan Majoyegbe (22), Sam Smith (26), Demaray Anyadike (74), Nahum Melvin-Lambert (82)
Match Day Experience
Welling were once again at home, and the vibes were certainly high as the Wings faithful are yet to see thinner team lose a home league game this season. With Local clubs mostly playing at home and their being a substantial amount of 3PM kick offs numbers were in the mid 600s but the fans in the ground certainly made their voices heard. Carshalton is a little village town in South London so it wasn’t to far to trek for the travelling fans who also made themselves heard during this game.
🎃Halloween Match Report🎃
It was a cold afternoon at the Cauldron, which is Park View Road, with temperatures dropping in recent weeks, leaving some of the fans with goosebumps before kick-off.
Welling United raced out of the blocks, pressing Carshalton all over the pitch and forcing them to hurry their passes and kick it long. It was reminiscent of Leatherface chasing Sally Hardesty in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
The Wings’ early pressure brought a barrage of set pieces in dangerous positions for the Robins’ defence. Lekan Majoyegbe twice found himself in a dangerous position in the box but couldn’t quite make the contact he desired.
Just like a bunch of trick-or-treaters on Halloween evening, Welling United were knocking heavily on the door of the Robins’ goal, which was living a charmed life. A delicious ball into the box landed on the head of striker Chris Harris, but his header was high and wide.
It is said in some folklore that vampires are scared of crosses, and between the hours of 3 pm and 5 pm, so were the Robins’ defenders. Sam Smith whipped in a flat delivery from the left wing, and Lekan Majoyegbe, who had already had two sighters in this game, made no mistake this time as he nodded home from close range.
Moments later, the Wings doubled their lead when a ball was clipped into the Carshalton box, which the goalkeeper looked to have under control. However, a nightmare ensued as he completely misjudged the ball, allowing Sam Smith to ghost in at the back post. He had all the time in the world to take a touch and finish into the empty net.
There were plenty of tricks and treats on display from the Welling wingers, Anyadike and Shomotun, who were causing all sorts of chaos down the flanks, leaving their opposing full-backs feeling like zombies.
Things were going incredibly well for the Wings, who had total control of the game, but they did face an almighty scare just past the half-hour mark as Welling right-back Zuriel Otseh-Taiwo brought down a Robins attacker who looked to be clean through. Thankfully for the Wings, the referee believed there was cover and that yellow would be the colour of his card. This brought a real rage out of the Carshalton players, coaching staff and fans, as they believed he should have seen red.
As the half drew to a close, Welling were well worthy of their two-goal lead, and Carshalton looked to have been spooked by the way the Wings were controlling the game.
The managers would have had very different team talks at half-time. Wings boss Maxwell would have been buzzing with the way his team played in the first half, whilst Carshalton boss Steven Bates would have been looking for a significant improvement in the second half.
Early in the second half, the Robins started to mount a little bit of pressure on the Welling defence, who had stood strong so far. However, some spellbinding passes from the Carshalton attackers carved the Wings open like a pumpkin, but the final attempt was wayward.
Pressure continued to mount on the Welling defence, but Carshalton couldn’t find a way to break the curse the Wings had put on their goal, as they just couldn’t create a clear-cut chance.
With fifteen minutes to go, the game was all but over as Demaray Anyadike made it three. Some more suffocating Welling pressure came to fruition when Jamie Reynolds cut out a pass on the edge of the Robins’ box and laid the ball into the path of Anyadike. His first effort was blocked, but his second effort had only one final destination: the back of the net.
The scoring wasn’t over, though, as debutant Micah Anthony delivered a wicked low cross along the six-yard box. The Robins’ defenders were as static as scarecrows as Chris Harris had the first attempt at goal, which was smothered by the Carshalton goalkeeper. However, the ball would only fall to Melvin-Lambert, who displayed a killer finish that Freddy Krueger would have been proud of.
The fourth was the final nail in the coffin for the Robins, who had a horror show at the home of the Wings.
Disclaimer
The Halloween and horror movie puns took precedence over an accurate recollection of events, although I did try to stay as true to the game as possible.
Welling United have now won all nine home league games and sit in second place after a quarter of the season has been played.
The Wings are back in action on Tuesday in the London Senior Cup against Cray Valley (PM), before facing a tricky away game at the weekend against St Albans City.
Carshalton Athletic, like Welling, were relegation candidates last season and have started this season much better. However, their recent form has taken a negative turn, with this being their fourth consecutive defeat.
The Robins are back in action at home next weekend against Cheshunt, where they will look to put an end to their losing run.
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