Aylesbury United 0-0 Margate - We've turned the corner, admits Trott - EXCLUSIVE

AYLESBURY UNITED 0-0 MARGATE
FA Carlsberg Trophy First Qualifying Round
Sunday 21^st October 2007
Stephen McCartney reports from Amy Lane

Robin Trott was pleased that his Margate side earned a second bite of the cherry, after playing out a bore draw at Amy Lane in Chesham today.

Playing an Aylesbury United side that’s in sixth place in the British Gas Business Division One Midland Division, the Thanet side didn’t have the cutting edge to earn a place in the second qualifying round of the FA Trophy at the first attempt.

Trott welcomed back midfielder Dean Standen from injury, whilst another midfielder, Steve McKimm and unused substitute, Kieron Morris declared themselves fit despite suffering from ‘flu in the past week.

Two Margate players, left-back Justin Skinner and striker Rob Haworth are ex Ducks, whilst striker James Pinnock, has been here before, having spent a loan period at Aylesbury United’s current landlords, Chesham United.

But despite a sunny day in Buckinghamshire, the crowd of 279 had to endure a dull stalemate, with chances far and few between.

Margate, however, utilised the left-foot of Jimmy Jackson, whose sixteen minute cross created the first chance of the game.

Jackson floated in a cross from the left-flank towards the far-post but despite a diving header, Haworth didn’t make a connection.

Jackson twice had shots charged down inside the penalty area as Margate began to dominate proceedings.

Jackson sent Haworth on his way down the right after 25 minutes, but his wicked cross evaded Pinnock, who had ghosted into the six-yard box.

But the attack didn’t stop there, as Jackson retrieved the ball and delivered another cross and Haworth’s looping header was beaten out by Aylesbury United’s goalkeeper Tom Vincent, despite Pinnock’s aerial challenge.

The Ducks first attempt on goal, however, arrived in the 26^th minute. Central midfielder Ben Stevens blazing over with a left-footed shot from 25-yards.

But their best chance came when Margate goalkeeper Scott Chalmers-Stevens plucked Kevin Mealor’s looping left-footed free-kick from 28-yards from underneath his crossbar - a moment of rare excitement.

Jackson was seeing plenty of the ball during the first-half and in the 37^th minute he whipped in a left-footed curling free-kick from just outside the penalty area on the right-hand side.

The ball appeared to skim of Haworth’s head but Vincent was in the right place at the right time to make a comfortable save. All it needed was a better connection from the big 32-year-old target man.

Margate’s best chance of this dour game, however, arrived after 52 minutes.

Standen whipped in a cross from the right and Haworth sent his powerful header just over the crossbar from just eight-yards out.

Striker Nathan Graham, whose scored ten goals for the Ducks, glanced Nathan Liburd’s cross past the near post six minutes later.

The game was crying out for some goal-mouth action, and although the last 20 minutes saw some penalty box action, both teams didn’t deserve to snatch the victory.

Charlie Side, playing on the right-hand side of a four man midfield, got behind the Aylesbury defence in the 70^th minute, but his cross flashed behind Haworth, at the near post, and Jackson, ghosting in at the back.

But Aylesbury United should have broken the deadlock moments later but Graham was thwarted by a fine save from Chalmers-Stevens.

Graham was played in by midfielder Sam Swonnell but his shot was blocked by the legs of the advancing 21-year-old Margate goalkeeper.

Side wasted a couple of chances and at the other end substitute Jamie O’Grady summed up this poor game when his right-footed shot from 35-yards was wayward.

But Aylesbury substitute Phillip Nugent wasted two excellent chances to grab victory inside the final five minutes.

Graham Clipped the ball into the penalty area, which was knocked down by substitute Craig Henney and Nugent skied his right-footed hooked volley over.

And the big dreadlocked Jamaican glanced Mealor’s free-kick past the near post, but both sides will have to play better at Hartsdown Park on Tuesday night.

But a frustrated Trott, speaking EXCLUSIVELY to www.kentishfootball.co.uk, took the positives out of today’s stalemate.

“We played very well, we should have won the game,” he said. “Quite
comfortable, well capable, played very well, totally dominated it.

“We had three or four crosses across the box, maybe the final product wasn’t there at times?

“We’ve done well enough to win the game but we’ll take a draw then and bring them back to ours - but pleased.”

Aylesbury United have relished playing cup replays in Kent.

After holding Blue Square South outfit Bromley to a 1-1 draw on the last Sunday of last month, the Ducks took Mark Goldberg’s side to extra time at Hayes Lane before losing a FA Cup replay 4-2.

“They’re no mugs,” warned Trott. “They’ve got a bit about them (during the) second half.

“They stuck three or four up front and made it difficult for us. They’re at home (today) and they want to win don’t they?”

Trott admitted some of his players were suffering from “tired legs,” but felt his side should have made more of Jackson’s whipped in crosses from the left.

He said: “We looked comfortable at the back, I think the line was very good, picked up the seconds, held the ball up, done very well up front. I thought it was very good.

“Charlie (side) done very well on the wings, Jimmy Jackson, some great balls in, just weren’t enough to win it.

“But that’s the quality, that’s the league we play in, and normally we’d bag a few of them, but just today it wasn’t to be.”

After 12 games in the Ryman Premier League, with a “consistent” record of four wins and four draws, Trott warns his rivals’ that the “best is yet to come!”.

“I think we’ve turned the corner,” Trott, whose side are in 12^th place, said.

“We played well today, second half (against Leyton) Tuesday, I think we picked it up, it’s just getting the stride.

“The boys’ focused now, we’ve got a few boys’ back, which means the world to us but you ask any of the teams in our league, no-one wants to play us.

“We are a good team on our day. It’s just trying to get everything together and making the boys’ positive and not negative so for everyone to fear us.

“We took another stride in the right direction today, and we were very solid.”

“The best still to come? There’s always the best still to come!

“If you’re intelligent and you read the game, you work the game out. You do have your ups and downs.

“You ride that wave all the way, year in, year out. (Success has) got to be earned and we’re trying to earn it.”

Trott said that he’s trying to bring in another central defender, right-back and right-winger to bolster his squad.

But he admitted: “It’s a difficult time trying to get it because you’ve just started the season so players are at teams.

“The only players you can get are ones that aren’t featuring at the moment. Do you really want them?

“So you have to look at the league’s above.”

Two players, on-loan from London club Brentford, Karle Carter-Andrews and Gary Peters, weren’t included in today’s sixteen-man squad.

Trott, keeping tight-lipped, said: “We just couldn’t play them!”

Aylesbury United: Tom Vincent, Nathan Liburd, Kevin Mealor, Nick Leach, Carl Kavanagh, Ben Stevens, Steve Miles (Jamie O‘Grady 62), Sam Swonnell, Roni Joe (Phillip Nugent 66), Nathan Graham, Ben Gallant (Craig Henney 79).
Subs: Justin Gordon, Jack Sillitoe.

Booked: Carl Kavanagh 45

Margate: Scott Chalmers-Stevens, Louis Smith, Justin Skinner, Charlie Side (Paul Axon 85, Nick Moir 90), Daniel Young, Jay Saunders, Steve McKimm, Dean Standen, James Pinnock, Rob Haworth, Jimmy Jackson.
Subs: Mark Watson, Kieron Morris, Matt Bowles.

Attendance: 279
Referee: Mr Ashvin Dengarin (Southgate, London)
Assistants: Mr Grant Gray (Hatfield, Hertfordshire) & Mr Michael Barnes (Stoke Newington, London)