Guernsey          1  (Jackson 71′)
Uxbridge           1 (Osobu 7′)
Tom Jackson’s header earned Guernsey a point against Uxbridge at Footes Lane on Saturday.
Jackson’s header came inside the final 20 minutes after Victor Osobu had given the visitors a seventh-minute lead.
The Green Lions had deserved it for a much imporoved second half performance to demonstrate again they they compete with the top teams in the division.
Guernsey started brightly in how they knocked the ball around, and it was somewhat against the run of play when they fell behind on seven minutes. Prince Ogunmekan switched the ball right for Juwon Akintunde. Anthony Mendy collected the ball down the channel and knocked it across goal, catching the home defence asleep as Victor Osobu was left free to tap it in from close range, leaving Lucas Hanley furious with his back line.
Osobu worked himself another chance with fancy footwork around the quarter-hour mark but Jamie Dodd got across to deflect the close-range shot wide of the near post.
Going behind seemed to have shaken the Green Lions, whose passing had become sloppy, and now the momentum with Uxbridge. Ogunmeken fired just wide as he ran onto Jacob Fallaize’s header out the six-yard box.
It took half an hour for Guernsey’s first chance, as Dodd’s long-throw was only cleared as far as the edge of the box, where Seb Skillen latched onto it but saw his shot deflected wide. He came much close a few minutes later after great work by Keene Domaille, but scooped just over the top.
Things were starting to pick up again for GFC, this time Fallaize meeting Le Tocq’s free-kick with a looping header, but Tyler Tobin plucked it out the sky.
Tony Vance opted to reshuffle his pack at half time, moving Thomas Dodds to right-back as the Green Lions shifted to a back four.
Nevertheless, the hosts had two scares within moments of the restart as DOdds blocked from Osobu, then Akintunde clipped the far post with a shot across goal from inside the area.
Liam Mahon almost picked out the run of Skillen with an inch-perfect low cross from the left but it just evaded the toe of his team mate when a touch would have sent it in.
Allen then timed his run into the area to meet Loaring’s chip but a defensive block kept out his shot from the angle at the near post. Play continued, and Mahon eventually drove just wide from distance.
Hanley then kept his side in the contest, getting down to block as Mendy drove into the area and tried to slot it in.
Fazakerley came on for Skillen just before the hour and almost made an instant impact, flicking Dodd’s long throw towards goal, only for Tobin to stretch out an arm and claw it over.
The ball did drop in Guernsey net via the post a second time, but the referee’s whistle quickly went for a shove on Hanley to prevent him claiming the ball.
The Sarnians’ improvement brought about a deserved goal as the game ticked inside the final 20 minutes. It was a simple corner as Mahon clipped it to the near post and Tom Jackson barely had to move to nod it in.
Uxbridge should have been back in front almost instantly buy Mendy somehow dragged wide when free six yard out.
Fazakerley went for the spectacular from the right touchline as he chased a long ball and spotted Tobin off his line, but the forward put too much on it and it flew over.
Dodd was in the right place to make a goal-saving block on the line as Ryan Haugh volleyed towards goal at an Uxbridge corner, the headed rebound dropped onto the roof of the net.
This was anyone’s game now, and Allen saw a free-kick, similar to that which he scored against Marlow, fly wide of the near post.
Le Tocq and substitute Keanu Marsh made important blocks to deny Alex Witham and Akintunde respectively in the final five minutes as they searched for the goal they desperately needed in their pursuit of a play-off place.
But they couldn’t find what they were looking for and Guernsey could look back on another job well done.
Guernsey dropped a place to 14th in Isthmian South East but could jump two places with a point against Basingstoke Town on Tuesday. Saturday’s full set of results were as follows: Ashford Town 0-4 Bracknell Town (BRACKNELL ARE CHAMPIONS), Basingstoke Town 0-3 Sutton Common Rovers, Chalfont St Peter 0-1 South Park, Chertsey Town 1-2 Hanwell Town, Marlow 1-0 Tooting & Mitcham United, Northwood 1-1 Chipstead, Staines Town 2-4 Bedfont Sports, Westfield 0-1 Thatcham Town.
Guernsey: 1 Lucas Hanley; 2 Ben Le Tocq; 3 Jamie Dodd (c); 4 Tom Jackson; 5 Jacob Fallaize; 6 Thomas Dodds; 7 Seb Skillen (15 Will Fazakerley, 57′); 8 Liam Mahon; 9 Keene Domaille (16 Keanu Marsh, 73′); 10 Ross Allen; 11 Matt Loaring. Not used: 12 Tom Strawbridge; 13 Jordan Kelly; 14 Tyler McKane.
Booked: Fallaize, Allen, Loaring.
Uxbridge: 17 Tyler Tobin; 2 Alex Paine; 3 David Sota; 4 Elliott Pooley; 5 Ryan Haugh; 6 Alan Hedley; 7 Prince Ogunmekan (14 Kensley Maloney, 90′); 8 Lonit Talla; 9 Victor Osubu; 10 Anthony Mendy (12 Alex Witham, 86′); 11 Juwon Akintunde. Not used: 1 Shaka Mughal; 15 Ben Peden; 16 Yufuf Hamed.
Attendance: 623.
Highlights will be available on GFCTV soon.
