Lakenheath in rampant mood during four-goal victory at Haverhill Borough
Manager Ben Cowling could not hide his delight after his Lakenheath side secured an emphatic 4-0 victory at Haverhill Borough on Tuesday night, writes Owen Mizon.
Despite the first 20 minutes being relatively cagey, Lakenheath proved clinical when presented with their first-half opportunities.
Three well-taken goals in the space of nine minutes from defenders Alex McIntosh, Finlay Logan and Scott Callaghan put the visitors in command at The New Croft.
Borough had a mammoth task on their hands after the break, but could not break down a resolute rearguard as striker Shaun Avis got in on the act with eight minutes remaining, ensuring the Heath march on with their 100 per cent start.
It came on the back of a 5-1 home demolition job of Wisbech St Mary on Saturday. And despite Cowling’s defenders priding themselves on clean sheets, he was pleased to see the imposing figures pitch in at the opposite end of the pitch.
“I thought we were outstanding in the first half,” he said. “The first-half performance is the best 45 minutes this group has put out throughout pre-season and leading into the season. We thoroughly deserved our three-goal lead.
“It’s hard to maintain that intensity for 90 minutes, so a pleasing thing to get the fourth goal late on.
“To keep the clean sheet in there as well, it’s extremely pleasing.
In the opening half hour, it was the visitors who boasted the better of the opportunities. The menacing Tom Thulborn – who joined Lakenheath from Borough in the summer – made two marauding runs down the left side of the pitch, but was expertly denied both times by the feet of James Young between the sticks.
However, Young could do nothing about the first goal of the game when Lakenheath left-back McIntosh fired in from distance in the 32nd minute.
Fellow full-back Logan increased the advantage just six minutes later, as he astutely converted with aplomb inside the box when left in acres of space.
And with four minutes remaining Callaghan blasted home from a corner.
Despite plenty of endeavour from Borough in the second half, where Josh Lowe and substitute Ryan Kent proved a handful, there was no way to cut through an organised Lakenheath back four.
A fierce Reece Clarke free kick from 30 yards in the 82nd minute cannoned off the crossbar and on to a plate for Avis, who had the simplest of tap-ins to round off a comprehensive win.
Lakenheath switch their focus to the Buildbase FA Vase on Saturday when they host Framlingham Town (3pm), with Cowling saying: “It’s our first ever home game in the FA Vase, there’s a lot on it. We want to progress to keep the run going.”
Lakenheath: Beckwith, Logan, McIntosh, Hawley, Leech, Callaghan, Weaver, Clarke, Avis, Thulborn (Mazey 78’), Phillips (Wozniak 68’).
