CAFC vs Billericay Town – Match Report
A Femi Akinwande hattrick secured Billericay Town a dramatic 3-2 victory over the Robins in the Isthmian Premier Division at The New Lodge Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Peter Adeniyi made four changes to his side following their narrow 1-0 victory over Potters Bar Town last Friday. Paris Hamilton Downes, making his first start since recovering from injury, replaced Azez Sankoh at full-back. In midfield, Michael Dada came in for the unavailable Mason Saunders-Henry. The front three saw a shake-up, with Bryan Ifeanyi returning to the lineup, and Paris Lock making his first start in a red shirt. Nabeel Ghannam and Josh Shonibare were named among the substitutes.
Despite the hosts enjoying the lion’s share of possession in the opening stages, it was the Robins who were showing more attacking intent. Looking a threat on the break, Kwaku Frimpong’s low-driven sidewinder on the edge of the penalty area
was denied by the Blues defender, before David Smith carried the ball down the touchline and deceived the defender with a couple of stepovers, arrowing the ball across the face of goal to no avail. A few minutes later, Jack Paxman forged the home side’s first chance of the game when he threaded through Frankie Merrifield, but Mackenzie Foley made the save one-on-one; admittedly, it was a tight angle.
After a brief pause to proceedings, the game got back underway, and Carshalton’s intense high press forced the turnover of possession. With the Blues giving away the ball cheaply, Adeniyi’s side probed, and Smith teed up Saraiva to come onto the ball and let fly, the side-footed effort blocked by the head of a blue shirt. That said, the hosts gradually showed more offensive threat, and on the 20-minute mark, Femi Akinwande drifted inside off the right flank and whipped a strike beyond a diving Foley, rattling the side netting. Moments later, Carshalton had a corner up the other end, and it was cleared only as far as Saraiva, who flashed a shot inches wide of the bottom left corner.
Midway through, the Robins were almost punished for their complacency when Luke Read was caught in possession and Elliot Long was sent clear away on Foley’s goal; fortunately, the danger was nullified. Entering the final third of the half, Nathan Paul Lavaly’s burst of pace into the penalty area saw the young full-back caught on the way through, and the referee without any hesitation pointed to the spot. Saraiva stepped up and made no mistake, powering the ball straight down the middle and sending the keeper Sam Donkin the wrong way.
Having been pegged back, the Blues were eager to issue an immediate reply, and Adeniyi’s side were under a lot of pressure. With five minutes until the break, the hosts levelled after Akinwande saw his swivelled shot well saved by Foley, before being alert enough to stab home on the follow-up.
Towards the latter, Lock squandered a couple of chances in quick succession. Smith played him through down the right channel; however, the loanee fired over the bar. Moments later, the No. 11 whipped Paul-Lavaly’s pull back into the arms of Donkin. On the stroke of halftime, we took the lead from the spot again after Frimpong went to ground near the byline. Saraiva took responsibility, lashing the ball straight down the middle and deceiving Donkin for the second time this afternoon.
That said, the jubilation among the travelling support was short-lived with Paris Lock’s high foot being penalised for a Blues penalty, which Akinwande converted. As the players headed in for the break, it had been a highly entertaining affair with nothing to separate the two sides.
The first chance of the second 45 fell the way of Carshalton when Frimpoong combined well with Smith following a quick throw, and the former forced a diving stop out of Donkin down to his bottom left. The Reds continued to probe with Ifeanyi flashing a delivery across the face of goal and Paul-Lavaly battling his way through the centre of the pitch, striking from distance over the bar.
Ten minutes in, the intensity of the match had dropped, and the most notable chance had been a tame strike on turn from our No. 9 that was gathered with ease by Donkin. On the hour mark, Billericay had the ball in the back of the net after a corner; however, it was ruled out for a foul in the build-up. A few minutes later, Alfie Cerulli slipped through Akinwande one-on-one with Foley; thankfully, the Reds shot-stopper stood tall and made the save using his right boot. Paxman then tried his luck with an audacious, sweetly struck shot from range, but it was well-watched by Foley, and the goalkeeper held it.
For the next few minutes, Carshalton survived a succession of crosses into the penalty area with Foley commanding his six-yard box extremely well. Seventy minutes in, and Donkin’s stray pass gifted Frimpong the ball in the attacking third before the midfielder found Smith, whose strike ricocheted into the path of the Blues goalkeeper and subsequently failed to trouble him. Ifeanyi, the Reds main attacking threat at this stage, drove down the left channel, beat the defender for pace,
and angled the resulting effort towards the far corner, yet Donkin parried it around the post. Moments later, the left winger drilled a shot straight down the Billericay No. 1’s throat.
Garry McCain’s substitutions in the final stages hinted at the hosts’ determination to secure a victory, and the news of Dartford trailing 3-0 to Cheshunt seemed to fuel their drive even further. However, Adeniyi’s side continued to pour the pressure on, and Paul-Lavaly’s cross was cleared only as far as Sankoh, who had his low-driven strike blocked before Ifeanyi lashed the follow-up the wrong side of the post. In the dying embers, Akinwande received the ball with his back to goal, worked the ball onto his stronger right, guiding it beyond Foley and into the far corner to complete his second hattrick in consecutive games, heartbreak for Carshalton. Seven minutes of additional time were indicated, and the Robins battled hard in search of a last-gasp leveller, but unfortunately, it was not to be.
The win ended Carshalton’s seven-match winning streak and saw the Reds drop to seventh in the Isthmian Premier following Hashtag United’s 2-1 victory over Chichester City. There will be hopes that Adeniyi’s side can bounce back when we welcome Bognor Regis Town to Colston Avenue next weekend.
Up Next
Date: Saturday, March 1, 2025
Venue: Colston Avenue
Kick-off: 03:00 pm
Admission: £11, £8, £5 (online prices) on the gate is a pound dearer.
Tickets: Buy online tickets here
