Mildenhall Town see unbeaten Thurlow Nunn League Premier Division run at home ended by neighbouring Lakenheath
Lakenheath became the first team to win at Mildenhall Town in the Thurlow Nunn League Premier Division this season during today’s Boxing Day derby.
Ahead of kick off, table-topping Mildenhall had won nine and drawn the other one of their 10 outings at The Riverside Stadium so far this term.
But while the home side controlled large parts of the encounter – despite being reduced to 10 men midway through the first half – visiting Lakenheath ran out 1-0 winners courtesy of Jamie R Smith’s neat finish before the interval.
Mildenhall’s biggest threat during the first half came from corners, with Alfie Connor’s left-flank deliveries causing problems. In the 17th minute Adam Capel’s downward header was scooped away by Ross Bilham in the visitors’ goal and four minutes later Jarid Robson’s glancing effort cannoned against the woodwork.
However, Mildenhall’s early momentum was halted by the 22nd-minute dismissal of Capel, who clipped Jamie R Smith as he looked to skip past the centre-back. Mildenhall’s argument was that the ball had run straight through to their goalkeeper Josh Pope, but referee Sam Jones had little hesitation in brandishing the red card.
It took Lakenheath seven minutes to make their numerical advantage count courtesy of a swift counter-attack involving Luke Young. His pass set Jamie R Smith clear and with Pope advancing off his line to narrow the angle, the young forward calmly slotted in his eighth goal of the campaign.
Lakenheath’s number nine also had the ball in the net just before the half-time whistle when he turned the ball in from close range, only for his celebrations to be cut short by an offside flag.
It was a depleted Mildenhall that controlled large parts of the encounter after the restart, with recent addition Jake Chambers-Shaw coming off the bench to dictate proceedings. It was his cross in the 67th minute that Robson looked to sweep in before Luke Bailey made a last-ditch block to thwart the danger.
Sixty seconds later Ben Nolan and Tanner Call linked smartly on the edge of the box to carve out an opening for Mildenhall forward Olly Hughes, but the former Bury Town man dragged his shot wide of the left upright.
As Mildenhall committed more and more players forward in search of an equaliser, gaps started to appear at the other end. Jamie A Smith saw his curling effort kept out by Pope while Ross Bailey lashed his effort well over the top.
An injury to Charlie Root, which saw the Lakenheath midfielder leave the pitch on a stretcher, resulted in there being a large amount of stoppage time at the end of the contest and it was during those additional eight minutes that Chambers-Shaw flashed a left-footed shot just wide of Bilham’s post – and with it went Mildenhall’s hopes of salvaging something from the encounter.
Lakenheath, who have moved up to seventh in the table after halting a sequence of back-to-back defeats in the league, have now won the last three meetings between the sides. They will be back in action on Saturday at home versus Fakenham Town (3pm).
Mildenhall, who have seen their lead at the top cut to six points, will next play on January 6 at home against Thetford Town.
Mildenhall: Pope, Nolan, Capel, Weavers, Coakley, Steed, Connor, Anderson, Robson, Hughes, Call
Lakenheath: Bilham, Manels, Saffery, L Bailey, Stevenson, Collins, R Bailey, Root, Young, J A Smith, J R Smith
Suffolk News Man of the Match – Jake Chambers-Shaw (Mildenhall): A mention should go to Lakenheath’s two centre-backs Karl Saffery and Luke Bailey, who dealt with pretty much everything thrown at them. But while Chambers-Shaw only came on in the 55th minute, he had a big impact on the match. The playmaker is still working his way back to full fitness but his quality shone through. Made numerous passes to get his side on the front foot.
