Chertsey Town 3 Bookham 1
Chertsey Town shaved off a little of leaders North Greenford United cushion at the top of the Combined Counties League table with a comfortable, if not sparkling, win over next to bottom side Bookham.
The headline feature was John Pomroy’s latest hat-trick - his third of the season - and, although the trio of goals came from two penalties and a free-kick, it could provide for the boost needed for him to get back into regular scoring.
Injuries to Ollie Treacher and Jack Francis sidelined the two defenders and prompted some switching, with Marcus Moody being moved to the backline.
Further defensive considerations were sacrificed, with all the emphasis placed on attack in an effort to get the forward line back into free-scoring mood.
As a result, plenty of chances were created but no goals came from free play.
Chertsey almost completely blotted out Bookham and looked good when, after only three minutes, a header from Steve Tyson was tipped onto the cross bar by Chris Peck in goal.
The same player then shot wide soon after, followed by another header that was kicked aside by a pressured defender.
The early burst counted for nothing, though, for a free-kick awarded to Bookham some 35 yards out was curled into the Chertsey goalmouth with the clock showing 13 minutes.
Town’s defenders played musical statues, but without the music, when the ball arrived.
Mark Jarman then called the tune by easily putting the ball away for a shock lead with what proved Bookham’s only serious attack on the Chertsey goal.
Town plugged away at redressing the balance and no fewer than 16 chances were created in just the first half.
Pomroy’s tangled feet in front of goal resulted in him missing one of the better opportunities.
A Tyson jab at the ball that was turned away at point blank range was another.
Pomroy again came close when he turned on a long Steve Goddard throw, only to see his shot clip off the charmed cross bar, a third of the way through the one sided encounter.
Goddard and Dean Papali then somehow missed a Tom O’Regan cross with the goal at their mercy, followed by a 25-yard shot from Sam Belcher through a group of players that brought out the best in Peck.
And so it went on, with Chertsey just not being able to find the net, that is until the 40th minute, when further possession in the Bookham penalty area ended up with Pomroy shielding the ball but being dragged down to the ground by his marker.
A penalty was awarded and Town at last secured their equaliser, with Pomroy comfortably slotting the ball, low past Peck.
Chertsey were not finished yet and took the lead two minutes later with their next attack.
The ball was handled by a Bookham defender, centrally, some 25 yards out.
A well-formed wall was built but was of no use as Pomroy hooked the ball high over the top, curling it into the net well wide of the keeper.
A scintillating move seven minutes after the break involving four Chertsey men ripped open Bookham and a poorly timed tackle on Belcher as he clipped the ball inside drew another penalty kick, which was steered from the spot by Pomroy for Town to take a two-goal lead for the first time in eight league outings.
Despite their dominance, Chertsey never really looked finetuned and failed to make the difference between the two sides really count.
Tyson cut through the visitor’s heart on a run with the ball but was stopped delivering the final stroke.
The game became almost too comfortable for Town with the danger of complacency creeping in.
Belcher gave an example and lost possession a couple of times in midfield but was not punished.
A couple of long-range speculative efforts each from Pomroy and midfielder Andy Crossley, who replaced defender Dominic Worthington as the game wore on, failed to raise heartrates either as the game’s direction subsided with the result assured well before the final whistle.
Chertsey still have a mountain to climb as far as winning the championship is concerned but are hanging in, despite their long odds shortening slightly after the weekend’s set of results.
FIXTURES:
Tuesday, April 13 – Sandhurst Town (Away) League
Saturday, April 17 – Chessington & Hook United (Away) League
Tuesday, April 20 – Ash United (Away) League
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