Jones’s late brace to stuns Chilsley in nine-goal thriller

AFC Henley put in their best second-half performance of the season to come back from 4-1 down after 65 minutes to win 5-4 last Sunday.

A slow start to the game saw Henley under pressure. After
10 minutes, Chilsley took the lead after a through ball was neatly flicked over the advancing Henley keeper to make it 1-0.

Five minutes later, Chilsley were awarded a penalty following a handball but goalkeeper Alan Draper saved diving full length to his right to parry with Dave Elwood clearing the loose ball. Two minutes later, another break down the right saw a curling shot towards the far post which Draper did well to parry to safety.

It was 2-0 after 25 minutes when a break down the left saw the ball squared to allow the oncoming forward to tap into an unguarded net.

Henley started to impose themselves more in midfield with Alex Brain pulling the strings. Henley were awarded a penalty of their own when Costa Onisor was brought down. However, Onisor’s spot kick was saved.

The second half was a different story with Henley dominating possession but AFC Chilsley were still dangerous on the break, especially forward Gareth Bertram who Chilsley sought to get the ball to at every opportunity. One such break saw Bertram one on one against keeper Draper and his square ball was dispatched to make it 3-0.

Henley’s pressure finally paid off when Dave Elwood scored from close range. Henley continued to dominate but against the run of play, went 4-1 down after 65 minutes when Chilsley intercepted a clearance and Bertram curled in from 25 yards.

The deficit was reduced to 4-2 when Henley were awarded a second penalty and Onisor made no mistake with 10 minutes to go. Chilsley were tiring and a good run from Onisor saw a dipping 25 yard shot beat the Chilsley keeper to make it 4-3. The pressure continued and striker Richard Jones scored from close range to make it 4-4 with two minutes to go.

Henley won the game two minutes into injury time when the Chilsley goalkeeper fumbled a cross, allowing Jones to blast home the winner.

This result leaves Henley Over 50s second in the league and well placed for promotion. Henley are currently the form team in the league scoring 21 goals in their last three games.