Chipstead      1 (Dixon 57')
Guernsey       2 (Loaring [pen] 45'; Fazakerley 53')

Another Will Fazakerley wonderstrike ensured Guernsey picked up a long-awaited second win of the season at Chipstead on Saturday.

In almost a carbon copy of his stunner from inside his own half against East Grinstead Town three years ago, Fazakerley spotted Matt Kerbey off his line and let fly from just inside the centre circle, lobbing the ball over the Chips stopper and in via the post.

That doubled the lead for his side, following Matt Loaring’s penalty at the end of the first half, ensuring Michael Dixon’s deficit-cutting goal just before the hour would not be enough to see the points shared, earning the Green Lions’ first win in six.

With Jacob Fallaize suspended and Tom Vaudin unavailable for the first time this season, Tony Vance opted to drop Tom Dodds back into centre-half alongside captain Jamie Dodd, with veteran Dave Merris coming into midfield for this first start for the club. Sam Murray replaced Ross Allen alongside Fazakerley up front.

Michael Dixon volleyed across goal and over early on, and a swing and a miss at a backpass from Josh Addison nearly resulted in an own goal for Keanu Marsh, but the ball luckily rolled wide of the post.

Thomas Smith made a darting run from midfield and demanded a ball into his path that came in the from of a chip from Dixon, but Smith dragged wide.

Guernsey didn’t have many sights of goal in the first half. Keanu Marsh had the first one in the latter part of the half, striding forward and taking aim from 25 yards, but the ball whistled wide of the right-hand post.

Smith scuffed at a ball into the box, bringing a first save from Addison, albeit a comfortable one, while Michael Dixon struck from outside the area, with the ball curling just away from goal.

Having not created much trouble for the home defence, the Green Lions were handed the opportunity to establish a half-time lead from the spot.

After some scrappy aerial tennis following Marsh’s looped throw into the area, he drifted to the periphery of the action and seized onto the loose ball on the edge of the box. Kofi Anokye-Boadi went for a rather clumsy lunge and sent Marsh to the floor and the referee had no hesitation in pointing to the spot.

Loaring had to wait a while to take the kick due to the lengthy protests from Chipstead, but the number 11 would not be put off, delaying his run and sitting Kerbey down in the other direction as he tucked into the bottom right corner. There was time for little else before the referee brought the first half to a close.

The second half opened rather tentatively until Fazakerley brought it to life on 53 minutes. The number nine had actually broken away from the edge of his own area after GFC had defended a free-kick, striding towards the centre circle before looking up and spotting Kerbey far out of his goal. The Guernsey fans behind the goal could scarcely believe it as the ball found the net, especially for a player to manage it twice in just four seasons.

The breathing space was welcome, but it was quickly snuffed out as Dixon pulled one back as a result of multiple errors in the Guernsey back line.

Marsh initially misjudged the long ball from Perkins, then hesitation him and Dodds, with each opting to leave it for the other, allowed Dixon to seize onto it and take a strike from the edge of the area that Addison will feel he should have kept out, but the shot went through him and the Chips were back in it.

With GFC’s recent record of conceding late goals, especially the previous week’s late collapse at Merstham still fresh in the memory, the nerves were understandably likely to creep in, but the Green Lions kept their opponents at bay this time.

There were a couple of close calls, including one looping header from Perkins at a corner that Addison clawed out from under his crossbar, doing similar to stop an Anokye-Boadi cross dropping in.

Right-back Jonathan GJoshe tried to catch out Addison from the angle as he came onto a ball across the box, but could only find the side netting.

Danny Hale came close to re-establishing the two goal cushion after a neat one-two with substitute Glenn Le Tissier, who had replaced the injured Fazakerley, down the right. Hale dashed into the box and flashed a shot across goal and past the far post.

Marsh was required to block at his near post as Andy Kabuikusomo collected his header and blasted low towards goal. The same player then burst into the Guernsey box but Jamie Dodd’s sliding challenge took enough sting out of the shot for Addison to collect comfortably.

Le Tissier looked to emaulate the man he replaced in the closing stages as he pounced on a Perkins slip, spotted Kerbey off his line and lifted the ball into the air ,but this time the keeper was back quickly enough to pluck the ball out the air.

A couple more deliveries into the Guernsey box were well dealt with, and Vance’s side this time saw the win over the line before a two week break.

Guernsey moved up to 16^th in the table with Saturday’s other results as follows: Binfield 0-2 Walton & Hersham, Chertsey Town 6-1 Ashford Town, Marlow 3-2 Bedfont Sports, Merstham 1-2 Leatherhead, Northwood 2-0 Thatcham Town, Southall 2-0 Hanworth Villa, Sutton Common Rovers 3-0 Tooting & Mitcham United, Uxbridge 1-2 Basingstoke Town, Westfield 3-1 South Park.

Chipstead: 1 Matt Kerbey; 2 Jonathan Gjoshe; 3 Charlie Kennett; 4 Teddy Perkins; 5 Ollie Hamstead; 6 Thomas Smith; 7 Gabriel Odunaike; 8 Kofi Anokye-Boadi; 9 Andy Kabuikusomo; 10 Jonathan Hood (17 Thompson Adeyemi, 20’ (16 Moyowa Tobi Adaje, 75’)); 11 Michael Dixon. Not used: 12 Peter Wedgeworth; 14 Michak Stanic-Stewart; 15 Bobby Moore.

Book: Kennett.

Guernsey: 1 Josh Addison; 2 Keanu Marsh (12 Tyler McKane, 84’); 3 Jamie Dodd (c); 4 Joe Alvarez; 5 Thomas Dodds; 6 Dave Merris; 7 Danny Hale; 8 Liam Mahon; 9 Will Fazakerley (15 Glenn Le Tissier, 61’); 10 Sam Murray; 11 Matt Loaring. Not used: 14 Keene Domaille; 16 Brandon Wallace.

Booked: Marsh.

Attendance: 110.

Highlights will be available soon on GFCTV.