Bookham may have thought they were playing their Combined Counties League match with Chertsey Town at Alwyns Lane but it looked like they took a wrong turning somewhere and arrived at Elm Street, of the nightmare kind, before finding a route to perhaps a more benign, say, Ramsay Street.

As a side bottom of the table without a league win in nine starts, the visitors were never going to have high expectations, but they were hit hard by a whirlwind Chertsey Town in the opening stages which then dropped eventually to a gentle breeze.

Chertsey fielded 18 year old Dexter Burt who, up to that time, was understudy for regular goalkeeper Craig Bradshaw who had is swansong at the previous weekend.

Burt did well with what was required of him but he was not fully tested against the Bookham attack that hardly posed a threat all evening.

He could not have stopped the goal, however, which was fired in at close range past him after the interval.

Striker Matt Baxter featured in the line up after a spell on the bench and worked hard, to be rewarded with a first half goal.

Mark McGibbon, at full back, was forced from the field after only a score of minutes had elapsed and was replaced by Tom Hayden resulting in the deep defending segment of the team having an average age of only 19 years.

A more mature midfield gave good protection even though it was better employed in feeding a rampant attack. Despite Chertsey’s overwhelming superiority, the home side only won with a two goal margin and so were not able to claw back to the top of the table which was the realistic ambition at the start.

The inability to finish of a succession of gold plated chances was the only disappointment, coupled with the manner of how Bookham’s only goal was conceded.

Chertsey attacked with verve right from the start with such ferocity and penetration that it was a bit of a surprise that the first goal took a full dozen minutes to arrive.

It was executed in identical fashion to one seen just three days earlier with Tom O’Regan delivering a high free kick and Jack Frances piling in to the head cleanly home.

Goal number two had more than a hint of offside about it when Ollie Treacher, well upfield, won possession and slipped it through for Baxter to craft it round the exposed Dan Cole in the Bookham goal to create a two goal lead on 23 minutes.

Cole was one of five brand new signings in the Bookham starting line up and they all must have wondered what they had let themselves in for with their signature on the dotted line.

It was still one way traffic as the interval loomed, so much so that the visiting side reached the peak of their endeavours by winning a lone corner kick.

Chertsey punished them for this two minutes later, and three before the break, when Dean Papali won possession in the midfield and fed the ball through to Marcus Moody.

O’Regan connected with his cross from the right with a first time low sweeping strike for goal number three.

Town resumed the second half still well on top with the ball being despatched towards the Bookham goalmouth at frequent intervals.

The goal led a charmed life as the rapid fire shots rained in, but none made their mark, much to everyone’s amazement.

Everyone was amazed again at events at the other end of the park when a goal was snatched back as a result of some disappointing defending.

The ball was crossed in and posed as a free agent to whoever wished to control it. The Chertsey defence had its chance but weakness, c

oupled with two markers colliding with each other resulted in Russell Hartt taking up the invitation to smash home the unadopted ball on 53 minutes.

The goal did not deter Chertsey’s play at first and they still attacked strongly, but without an end product.

Inevitably, the momentum fell away and the last quarter of the game somehow lamely lapsed into an anticlimax. Bookham lost defender Jordan Oldershaw, one of their debut defenders, after two yellow cards were flashed for successive crude tackles but the difference in manpower was hardly noticed.

Town seemed to eventually lose their way whilst Bookham regained their route map.

They held their own comfortably but never looked like doing any more than maintaining the respectable score line that hardly did justice to the balance of play.

FIXTURES:

Saturday 25th September – Chelmsford City (Away) FA Cup

Wednesday 29th September – Guildford City (Away) League

Saturday 2nd October – Wembley (Home) League