Stoppage Time Anguish Denies Church First Win

Church were back at Lye Meadow playing their first home league game since early March, and were within a minute of a first league win since New Year’s Day when Redditch were beaten 3-2 at the Valley.

Alvechurch : Brown, Hill, Sauane. Birch, Hull, Willets, Bellis Botfield (Daley 66), Wakeling (McFarlane 90), Cook (Lloyd 71), Monteiro
Subs not used: Hamilton, Maher

Royston Town: Welch, Scott-Morriss, Brighton, Mentis (Rotimi 67), Murray, Parr, Castiglione. Bridges, Edwards. Watkins (Newton 66), Galliford (Adams 66)
Subs not used: Williams

It was a bright start for Church, and just two minutes in a Birch free kick forced Brighton to concede a corner by heading behind his own goal. Six minutes in and a three man passing move threads the ball across the face of the Royston box and Birch gets a sight of goal, curling a shot from 25 yards just wide of the post.
Royston threatened when Castiglione swings in a cross from wide left, and Galliford volleys over from 15 yards.

The lively Wakeling produced a moment of magic on 19 minutes when he wormed through four challenges in a burst through the midfield area, and tracking into the box he forced an interception from Scott-Morriss he drilled the ball past the foot of the post of his own goal to bring the run to an end.

Edwards squandered a good chance for the visitors just before the half hour mark when he screwed a header wide from a good position after a free kick had only been half cleared. Brown was forced to save though, really for the first time, on 39 minutes when a cross from Watkins was met with a glancing header by Castiglione at the near post, and Brown beat the ball away well with a reflex stop.

But it was the visitors who finished the first half most strongly, with first Galliford bundling through two tackles in the box before flashing an effort across the face of the goal, and then Brown was forced into action, saving full stretch from Watkins as he shot from the edge of the box.

Half Time: Alvechurch 0 Royston Town 0

The second half was only seconds old when the deadlock was broken however.
Royston keeper Welch completely messes up an attempted clearance, and Wakeling swoops to gather the loose ball and sweep it into the empty net from an acute angle for the opening goal.

Church were looking comfortable with their lead, and went toe to toe with Royston in a very even spell in the second half. Until that is the visitors found an equaliser, substitute Adams bundling the ball in from close range on 73 minutes.

Unbowed, Church went straight back down the other end, and within three minutes had regained their lead. A Church free kick was only half cleared from the Royston box, and Wakeling drove the ball back in across the area, and sa it met by the onrushing Hull who drilled the ball in from eight yards for a smartly taken goal.

The game became more open as it moved into its latter stages and Royston had upped the tempo to take the game to the hosts, looking for a second equaliser of the afternoon. An 84th minute free kick whipped into the box forced an intercepting clearance from Sauane who had to deflect the danger by deflecting the ball over his own bar, and a series of corners with only minutes remaining saw Church finally scrambling the ball clear to protect their lead late on.

There seemed to be little danger deep into stoppage time with Royston winning a throw in deep in their own half. But it is dispatched down the flank, and Edwards gets control of the ball, sights goal, and lashes the ball across Brown into the far corner to silence Lye Meadow with virtually the last kick of the game.