Bishop’s Stortford 1-4 Banbury United Match Report

Bishop’s Stortford 1-4 Banbury United Match Report 8/11/25

Pitching In Southern League Premier Central Division

Hamish Arnold

Connor Ferguson scored all four goals as Banbury United inflicted a third consecutive home defeat for Bishop’s Stortford on Saturday. The Puritans won 1-4 at Woodside Park for their second away win of the season in the Pitching In Southern League Premier Central Division, seeing the Blues drop to 14th in the table, seven points from the Play-Offs and eight points from the relegation zone.

Inside 10 minutes, the visitors took the lead when Stortford failed to clear from a right wing corner, the ball was crossed back into the middle, and Ferguson fired in low into the bottom corner through a crowd with Adam Hayton unsighted. The visitors doubled up just three minutes later when Aaron McCreadie dribbled into the box from the left wing, Hayton stuck out a leg to parry his low effort but the ball looped up for Ferguson to head into the empty net. Cole Dasilva’s deep free kick from the right wing was headed clear, only to Jack Smith on the edge of the box, he dribbled towards goal but was tackled, Dasilva crossed back in and Charlie Johnson headed narrowly wide at the far post. Nahum Melvin-Lambert thought he had bundled home an equaliser from close range after a scramble in the box from Cole Dasilva’s right wing corner, but neither referee nor assistant could see clearly whether the ball had crossed the line, or whether Banbury captain Yaw Nantwi-Ofosu used his arm to stop the ball crossing the line. Peter Abimbola’s low cross from the left went all the way across the six yard box, the cross came in from the right and Ferguson headed in from close range for his hat-trick. George Ball’s low shot from the left side of teh box was saved by Heyton and Jake Thompson cleared the loose ball.

HT 0-3

Declan Phillips won a tackle high up the pitch, and passed to Dasilva, he picked out Saleem Akanbi with a lofted pass, but a defender intercepted, his clearance only went as far as Fabio Virciglio whose 20 yard volley skewed wide of the right hand post. Dasilva’s free kick on the left went high and looked harmless, but late dip on the ball saw Jack Harding scrambling as the ball dropped into the net from an improbable position. Chris Wreh picked up the ball from a through ball in the right side of the box, his near post flick beat Hayton but came of the top off the crossbar from a tight angle, before Akanbi’s low shot was blocked into the path of Melvin-Lambert, but the defender recovered and cleared for a throw. Substitute Lule Stokoe picked up the ball on the left side of the box in space from a cutback, his shot was deflected into Wreh’s path, but Hayton made himself big and saved the close range shot. A free kick in the Blues half caused more protests as Dasilva and Mark Haines felt that the Puritans player was too close when the free kick was taken, while Wreh ran through on goal. He then squared to Ferguson for a tap-in into the empty net, before Dasilva saw a late volley effort saved by Harding.

FT 1-4

TEAMS

Bishop’s Stortford XI

1 Adam HAYTON

3 Leon DAVIES (Assist 63’)

4 Cole DASILVA (Goal 63’) (Yellow card 90+6’)

5 Jake THOMPSON (c)

6 Mark HAINES

8 Declan PHILLIPS (St Louis 67’)

9 Nahum MELVIN-LAMBERT

12 Fabio VIRCIGLIO

14 Jack SMITH

19 Saleem AKANBI

22 Charlie JOHNSON (Yellow card 43’)

Subs

2 Tommy LETHBRIDGE

11 Marley ST LOUIS

15 Rehan FIELD

16 Eyituoyo AKINBULUMO

17 Harry FORDE

Banbury United XI

1 Jack HARDING

2 Keegan BLOOM (Stokoe 73’)

4 Aaron McCREADIE

5 Yaw NANTWI-OFOSU (c)

6 Nico JONES

7 Connor FERGUSON (Goal 8’, 11’, 37’, 84’) (Yellow card 83’)

8 Peter ABIMBOLA

9 Chris WREH (Ayoola Lawson 87’)

10 Alex PROSSER (Giles 90+1’)

11 George BALL (Anker 79’)

20 Alex WORLEY (Yellow card 90+8’)

Subs

25 Oskar WAHLEN

12 Harley GILES

14 Luke STOKOE

15 Jonathan AYOOLA LAWSON

16 Joel ANKER

Attendance 415