Brentwood Town concluded their pre-season campaign with a 3-1 victory against Ramsgate, ensuring they remained unbeaten during their pre season campaign.
The Blues traveled to the Kent coast for their final pre-season assignment against a strong opponent in Ramsgate. The Rams made it to the Second Round of the FA Cup last season, as well as the Isthmian League South East Division Play Offs.
Keith Rowland was forced into a last minute change prior to kick off when skipper Matt Cripps pulled up in the warm up. Connor Witherspoon deputised for him as captain for the afternoon.
Ramsgate started the game well, with a positive opening 10 minutes. However the Blues began to grow into the game quickly. Danny Ogunleye’s shot from distance took a deflection before hitting the bar. Shortly after, the Blues took the lead through Marlon Agyakwa. The forward capitalised on an error by Ramsgate trying to play out from the back and was able to finish coolly to give the Blues the lead.
However, it wasn’t long before our hosts were back on level terms. Ramsgate attacked quickly down the left and despite Brentwood goalkeeper Melvin Minter getting a hand on the ball, he was unable to stop the deflected close range shot from the Rams attacker.
Both sides continued to ask questions of each other, but neither could find a breakthrough. Ramsgate came close with a free kick on the edge of the box, which was curled inches wide. Aarons Royal managed to get on the end of a Shad Ngandu cross, but his header was gathered by the Ramsgate keeper. The final act of the first half saw Blues’ forward George Sykes beat the Ramsgate defender in the air to get through on goal. He tried rounding the ‘keeper but was unable to finish. The score remained level at half time.
Keith Rowland made two changes during the interval, with Sykes and Nzengo replaced by McKenzie and Freeman. Marlon Agyakwa was withdrawn ten minutes into the second half and replaced by Sam Jeremiah, who made an impact almost instantly. His effort from distance forced the Ramsgate ‘keeper into a good save.
The Blues’ final change of the afternoon came on the hour mark, with Jesse Olukolu replacing Danny Ogunleye. Just a minute later, Brentwood were awarded a penalty. The Ramsgate defender was deemed to have handballed a cross into the box. Shad Ngandu stepped up to coolly slot the ball home to restore his side’s lead.
The Blues extended their lead in the 70th minute, thanks to Mekhi McKenzie. The striker took the ball down nicely under pressure and managed to place the ball into the bottom corner from 12 yards out.
Ramsgate continued to press during the final stages, with Melvin Minter forced into a few saves towards the end of the game. However, the Blues remained resolute and secured a 3-1 victory on the Kent coast, bringing their pre season campaign to a conclusion.
Report and image by Adam Farmer.
