MATCH REPORT TUESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2025
HERTS FA SENIOR CENTENARY TROPHY
BELSTONE 4 LETCHWORTH GC EAGLES 2
Despite 2 late goals defensive mistakes cost Eagles the game and ended another cup run.
Belstone started brightly and after 7 minutes a free kick on the right touchline led to a shot from 25 yards distance which was straight at the Eagles keeper George Coomes. After 14 minutes Belstone gained possession half way inside the Eagles half and the ball was played through Eagles defence to find a forward near the edge of the penalty area, whose low shot hit the goal post and bounced clear of goal. Minutes later Eagles conceded a corner which was headed towards goal at the far post, only to be kicked off the goal line by a covering defender.
Eagles rallied and a direct free kick went wide of goal before a shot from the edge of the penalty area cleared the Belstone cross bar. But it was Belstone who got the first goal when on the half hour Coomes had to make a great save at his near post to concede a corner. Poor marking allowed Belstone to head the ball cleanly into the net at the far post
Eagles had their own corner to the far post a few minutes later which led to a scramble in the goal area, but a final close-range shot was saved by the Belstone keeper. Just before half time Eagles had another chance to score when after gaining possession inside the Belstone half the final shot from outside the penalty area cleared the Belstone cross bar.
Belstone nearly got a second goal early in the second half after a cross from the right side led to a break into the penalty area and a low shot past Coomes towards the far corner of the net which was blocked by a covering defender. Eagles responded with a shot over the cross bar from the edge of the penalty area, which resulted from a long throw that was only partially cleared by the Belstone defence. Rod Agyman-Duah then directed at shot from well outside the penalty area straight at the keeper.
Mid way through the second half Belstone went further ahead after a poor back pass from Eagles found an unmarked Belstone forward whose shot from 20 yards out was blocked, but the ball fell to a team mate who powered a shot into the top corner of the net at the near post. 10 minutes later Eagles nearly went further behind with a Belstone forward surging down the left wing, cutting inside and releasing a shot heading for the top corner of the net until Coomes made a great arching save to push the ball clear over the cross bar. The resulting corner towards the near post was miskicked by a defender standing on the post and in the goal mouth scramble that followed the ball was bundled into the Eagles net off an Eagles defender.
Eagles tried to respond. Agyeman-Duah blazed over the cross bar and then a high cross into the penalty area was fumbled by the Belstone keeper. The ball ran loose but the final shot hit a post and went wide of the home goal. At the other end a long distance shot rattled the Eagles cross bar and bounced clear. A minute later Eagles conceded a fourth goal. The ball was played down the centre of the field with Eagles defenders caught upfield and the Belstone player raced down the pitch before dinking the ball past Coomes and into the net.
As the game entered its final minutes Eagles struck back with 2 quick goals. First Agyeman-Duah crossed the ball into the penalty area finding Rory Gillham, who turned and hit the ball into the roof of the net from near the penalty spot. A couple of minutes later Eagles floated a free kick from mid way inside the Belstone half into the penalty area. A defender tried to head the ball clear, but it fell to sub Finn McGonagle who thumped the ball into the roof of the net from inside the penalty area.
