Monday 17th February
ISTHMIAN NORTH DIVISION
BRENTWOOD TOWN 4 – 3 TILBURY
Brentwood gave probably their best performance of the season and recorded their second successive “home” win in this fixture staged at Aveley FC on Monday night.
Brentwood included new signing Michael Clark in their defence and from the kick-off they looked like they were going to give their play-off-placed opponents a good game.
Marcus Milner put Blues ahead in the 14th minute, finishing off a fine move down the right started by Conor Mead and involving Wilberforce Ocran and Alan Fleming.
However, the lead was short-lived, Ola Ogunwamide scoring a fine individual goal running at the Blues defence before hitting a low shot that went in off the inside off the post.
Dockers goalkeeper Joseph Osaghae saved from Ocran, who got on the end of a Mead free kick, in the 26th minute, and Osaghae saved again from Andy Freeman before half time.
Blues lost Ocran just before half time with an injury that turned out to be a broken arm following a collision with Osaghae.
Marcus Elliott replaced Ocran and he restored Brentwood’s lead in the 51st minute with a neat finish into the corner of the goal.
Fleming then went close to increasing the lead, heading wide from a Mead cross in the 54th minute and then seeing his 67th minute shot saved by Osaghae before hitting his follow-up effort against an upright.
Blues then really asserted themselves with two goal in six minutes. Adam Topley’s fiercely struck free kick in the 70th minute took a deflection giving Osaghae no chance. It was the third successive match that midfielder Topley had scored for Brentwood.
Andy Freeman then found the bottom corner with a shot from just outside the area to make it 4-1 in the 75th minute.
It looked comfortable but Samuel Keefe pulled a goal back for Tilbury in the 83rd minute and David Knight’s sharp finish in the 90th minute made it an anxious five minutes of stoppage time but Blues deserved the three points that moved them one place up the Isthmian North table.
Brentwood Town: Brown, Mead, Bacon, Topley, Edwards, Clark, Freeman, Dickinson (Pianim 89), Fleming, Ocran (Elliott 45), Milner.
