Solihull Moors 3 – 0 Wealdstone
Solihull Moors3 - 0
WealdstoneWealdstone slumped to a 3-0 defeat at the SportNation.bet Stadium against Solihull Moors on Tuesday evening.
A 30-yard goal from Ryan Barnett and second half goals from Reiss McNally and Joe Sbarra secured a comprehensive victory for the hosts.
New signing Nikola Tavares was put straight into Stuart Maynard’s starting eleven, with Ryan Gondoh also making his full debut out on the right wing.
And the hosts almost lead within a minute when Riley-Jay Harbottle’s headed clearance found Sbarra on the edge of the box but he poked his effort wide.
Wealdstone had a brilliant chance to open the scoring five minutes in when Jacob Mendy’s ball saw Dennon Lewis beat the offside trap but Ryan Boot made a crucial stop to push the ball into the side netting.
Chances then followed for Harbottle, Gondoh and Stones skipper Jerome Okimo as the Stones imposed an attacking presence in the first 25 minutes.
However against the run of play the hosts took the lead. Harry Isted raced out to meet a long ball but only headed it as far as Barnett who slotted into an empty net from 30 yards out.
Despite being a goal down the Stones were very much still in the game, but the half time team talk was thrown immediately out the window when McNally poked in a corner at the near post just two minutes into the second half.
The Stones did go close on 54 minutes when Ashley Charles’ corner kick hit the front post and bounced out.
But the game was put to bed just five minutes later when Sbarra was left with the freedom of the Midlands on the edge of the area to choose his spot into Isted’s top right-hand corner.
Cameron Archer and Solihull substitute Kyle Hudlin came close to making it a fourth soon after but were both denied by Isted.
The Stones kept plucking away and almost reduced the deficit when sub Danny Green saw his close range effort well stopped by Boot’s boot.
A breakthrough wasn’t found despite a late spell of pressure and the Stones will be looking to bounce back in a London derby away to Bromley on Good Friday.
POST-MATCH REACTION Stuart Maynard: “We started sloppy the first five minutes and they came out the traps fast at home and downhill which does make a difference. From then on in I thought we controlled the ball and the game really well, we created the best chances, Dennon Lewis was in one-on-one, we had a couple of corners headed wide, and then we concede from an individual error, which knocks the stuffing out of you really. “Then we come out second half and concede one straight away from a set piece, which since we’ve come in we’ve be excellent at, I think we’ve only conceded from one other set piece which is frustrating because we’re in the game and then it becomes an uphill battle.
“It is frustrating because we thought we could have a real go at them, we’re shooting downhill, then you let in a goal out of nothing and your plan goes out the window. We said at half time this is the difference in levels, you make half an error and the ball’s in the back of your net and we’ve been punished.”
WEALDSTONE: Isted, Tavares (Bowry 62), Harbottle, Cawley, Okimo (c), Charles, Smith, Phillips (Green 60), Gondoh (Parish 60), Mendy, Lewis.
Subs not used: Askew, Fasanmade. SOLIHULL MOORS: Boot, Usher-Shipway, McNally, Williams, Cranston, Storer (c), Maycock, Barnett (Coxe 78), Archer (Donawa 66), Sbarra, Rooney (Hudlin 57). Subs not used: Ward, Piggott.
Report by Chris Woods
Jon Taffel match pics HERE
Match highlights HERE