Stags stay top after excellent away day

Southern League South

Basingstoke Town 2

AFC Totton 3

LEAGUE leaders AFC Totton won the battle of the early season pace-setters, pipping second-placed Basingstoke with a brilliant 3-2 victory. However, in truth, the Stags should have won by more after missing a string of chances.

The hosts started the better, and Totton’s George Colson had to clear a Bradley Wilson effort off the line in just the fifth minute, following a bit of pinball in the visitors’ box.

Totton took a 27th-minute lead with their most penetrative move of the match, as Sam Griffin’s low cross to the far post was swept in by Craig Feeney.

The Stags doubled their lead on 41 minutes after Ethan Taylor played a lovely ball down the left for Griffin, who got in behind the Dragons defence; his cross was half-cleared to Freddie Read, who thundered the ball into the roof of the net from 18 yards.

Totton created numerous chances after the break and Ethan Taylor set up Feeney, who fired over before Hisham Kasimu shot wide after cutting in from the right. Griffin and the impressive Taylor worked the Basingstoke Keeper Julian Schwatzer, Brett Williams missed a golden chance and Taylor struck the post after a great dummy by Williams.

Instead of being out of sight, the Stags were then pegged back by a deflected cross and it was suddenly game on when in truth it should’ve been game over.

Totton reacted well as, a moment later, Griffin worked his way along the left-hand byline, beat a defender and rifled a shot into the far side of the net from an near-impossible angle. It was a brilliant goal which had the Totton contingent in the stand out of their seats in delight.

In the dying moments, Masterson’s free-kick for Totton was parried to safety before the hosts grabbed another in the fourth minute of injury time through Ben Cook. Fortunately for Totton, the referee’s whistle went immediately after the restart.