REPORT AND PICTURES BY BRIAN WALLER
The U's finished their home youth season with a narrow victory over the Bees of Barnet.
In a somewhat quiet affair, the match was settled on the half hour mark with a fine run and finish by home striker Perry Sansford.
There was an encouraging start by the home side as Alex O'Leary got in a decent early cross from the left, and when Conor McCloskey did likewise from the right, Jimmy Pirie with a clever flick was unlucky not to beat the keeper.
From a right wing corner on 10 minutes delivered in by Sam Corcoran, Pirie went with the overhead kick, but failed to get a good contact on it.
It was Corcoran again prominent coming in from the left, but his shot flew wide of the far post.
The U's best effort to date came on the half hour mark - a throw in on the right was taken quickly by Russell Malton, he found Sansford, who passed for Corcoran.
The ball ran out to Malton, and it was he who then took the move on further and crossed into the middle. It was Corcoran with the strike, but after he had sidestepped the defender, he drove his effort over the bar.
However the deadlock was then broken minutes later as a quick ball forward by Mitchell Nelson saw Perry Sansford react the quickest as he moved onto the ball, before shooting past the keeper with his left foot.
For the second time in the game the Barnet right back impeded O'Leary, after an earlier chop down. On this occasion it was the lengthy shirt pull, but the referee was just happy with a quick chat.
It was Corcoran with the resultant free kick in, but John Glowacki on the stretch failed to direct his header anywhere near the goal.
Early second half play saw Adam Bailey-Dennis with a header over from a Corcoran corner. This came after Jordan Lartey had replaced Pirie at the interval.
It was starting to become a game of "so nearlys".
Malton, who had been fed through the middle, seemed to be setting himself for the shot as he moved in to the box, but the combination of the keeper, and contact from behind by a defender, saw him stumble and the ball dribbled past the keeper but it was easily cleared.
They were looking for a spot kick again, as Corcoran ran delivered a corner in from the left, the keeper flapped at it, then in trying to make up for his error, he pushed Glowacki to the ground.
Again no home decision came.
It was mainly the home side attacking, and when right full back Mitchell Nelson went on a careering run forward, his run was halted as he was hauled to the ground.
Again the referee was happy with a quiet word to the offender, but from the free kick the hosts went so close, as the effort from Bailey-Dennis hit the underside of the bar, and Malton was unable to scramble the loose ball in.
The home team finished the stronger as a Corcoran pass up to Lartey saw a hint of handball not spotted, but the keeper was out swiftly to block from him and then when O'Leary and Griffiths linked on the left, it was the keeper diving on the cross to smother it.
Team: Andrew Dickey, Mitchell Nelson, John Glowacki, Adam Bailey-Dennis, Ben Griffiths, Russell Malton, Conor McCloskey, Sam Corcoran, Alex O`Leary, Jimmy Pirie and Perry Sansford
Used subs: Jordan Lartey, Jordan Pavett and Shane Stamp and unused subs: Shane Cusack and Louis O'Sullivan
