Match Report: Charity Begins at Home

Uxbridge 3-1 Hanwell Town

Uxbridge saw off fellow Southern League Premier South side Hanwell Town to move into the final of the Middlesex Charity Cup on Tuesday evening - which will be their third appearance in five finals. Danny Edwards put out a strong line up, with the only changes from Saturday's draw with Evesham being Harry Rush, Frank Keita and Josh Boorn coming into the starting eleven in place of Toby Nnadozie, Jeremiah Okine-Peters and Liam Prior Tack, who all dropped to the bench - where there was also a welcome return of Kai Hobbs from injury.

The match began with the home side asserting their authority early on. In the 7th minute, a flowing move saw the in-form George Moore feed a good ball into Jo Lawal on the edge of the box, who played a delicate reverse pass into the path of the charging Josh Boorn. While the move deserved a goal, the final shot was fired straight at the keeper. Just minutes later, Boorn was at it again, finding space with some clever footwork only to see his curling effort gathered comfortably. Cole Brown joined the attack in the 23rd minute with a lovely solo break, but his final effort lacked the composure of his build-up play, sailing harmlessly over the bar. The deadlock was finally broken in the 36th minute through a mix of persistence and defensive hesitation. A deep ball from a free kick caused immediate confusion in the Hanwell backline. Sensing the opportunity, Moore charged down a rushed clearance from defender Josh Bature, as always Moore showed great composure to round the goalkeeper Sam Beasant, and slotted the ball home to make it 1-0. The Geordies of UB6 attempted to respond immediately via a long throw-in that caused a scramble in the box, but Luke Cook was unable to get a connection in the box, and the danger was eventually cleared for a corner, and Uxbridge saw out the half to lead at the break.

HT 1-0

The second half started with a flurry of activity. Lawal did brilliantly in the 46th minute to reach the byline and pull the ball back for Moore, whose low, goal-bound drive was fingertipped around the post. It was Uxbridge on top and they saw plenty of possession, but their final delivery lacked the quality to truly test the Hanwell back line, who dealt with most things comfortably . Troy Perez-Duah had two good sights of goal as the hour mark approached, but neither effort unduly troubled Beasant. Hanwell rarely threatened, although Joseph Waight did get a fine turn and shot away from the edge of the box, which dipped, but ultimately didn’t test Marco Underwood in the Reds goal. In the 70th minute, the possession finally saw some reward. Moore stood over a free kick at the corner of the box and unleashed a fierce, low drilled delivery. With a rash of players in the box the pace of the kick caused plenty of panic, and it was Boorn who got the final touch to send the ball into the net and double the lead for Uxbridge. The final ten minutes saw plenty of action, firstly in the 81st minute when Eli Oladunjoye was shown a straight red card for a late challenge on Brown. Despite being a man down, the visitors found a lifeline in the 85th minute. After Underwood made a strong parry from a corner, Sean Fraser was the sharpest man in the box, smashing home the loose ball to make it 2-1 and set up a grandstand finish. However, any hopes of a Hanwell comeback were extinguished when Dwayne Duncan received a second yellow card for a foul on substitute Okine-Peters, leaving the visitors to finish with nine men. Deep into stoppage time, the script was completed in style. Okine Peters broke free once more and squared the ball to Moore on the edge of the area. With the poise of a man in peak form, he curled a beautiful finish into the corner to wrap up the match and send Uxbridge into the final where they will face holders Broadfields United.

FT 3-1

Uxbridge: Underwood, Brown (Hobbs), Martin (Bocarro), Fearn, Jones, Rush, Lawal, Perez-Duah (Nnadozie), Keita (Okine-Peters), Boorn (Tack), Moore