Henley Athletic 2 - 1 Achilles 17/12/16
A battling performance earned Henley a deserved 2-1 victory over a very strong Achilles FC to see us go second at Christmas. In murky conditions it was Achilles who started the stronger, attacking from the off and hitting the outside of the post after 3 minutes following a goalmouth scramble. The Henley defence held up well though and we found our way into the game, patience was rewarded when we took the lead after thirty minutes. A desperate goal mouth scramble from a Liam Bevis corner saw Chris Williams force the ball over the line to make it 1-0.
It should’ve been 2-0 when Clark Bruce found Chris Williams 12 yards out, but unaware of the time he had, he fired over to leave only a single goal advantage at the break.
Early in the second half it was 2-0 when a period of intense Henley pressure saw Liam Bevis drive in a low, hard cross which was turned into the net for an O.G with Chris Williams in close attendance. Achilles came back into it mid half with the goal of the game as Liam Hillyard took possession on halfway and burst through challenge after challenge to fire home across Kev Holland to make it 2-1.
This saw a period of Achilles pressure but the home defence held firm and saw the game out, with Henley probably having the better chances towards the end. A terrific game and a great advert for SIL football.
Report by Henley scribe
