A Tyrone Marsh penalty and a 99th-minute settler for matchday captain, Junior Gyamfi earned Bedford Town a battling 2-0 victory at Worksop Town on Saturday, their first win in eight games in all competitions.
In the context of the National League North table, an away three points are valuable ones for Lee Bircham’s side who rise out of the relegation zone after just their second league victory of the season.
The pre-match chatter was dominated by the news that had broken on Friday night, as Bedford Town captain, Ryan Blake had departed the Eagles to join his old side, Berkhamsted only to be replaced by another fan favourite in Leon Lobjoit.
Read: Captain Ryan Blake leaves Bedford Town to join Berkhamsted, but Lobjoit returns
It had also been a fortnight since the Eagles’ last competitive game, a disappointing 3-0 home defeat against Spennymoor Town, but they more than made it right on Saturday as they battled against the elements to bring three points back to The Eyrie from Nottinghamshire.
The side had competed in a friendly match at Chesham United last Saturday (27 September), blowing a 3-0 lead of their own to draw 3-3, but they made no mistake in holding on to their lead when league action resumed to pick up three more important points.
The returning Lobjoit began on the bench, but it was his replacement as goalscorer-in-chief who kicked things off for the Eagles from the penalty spot.
Josh Phillips was the man fouled by a Worksop defender, and Marsh made no mistake from the spot for his ninth league goal of the season.
Chances for the home side fell predominantly to Joe Leesley and Kai Williams, but both were kept out by another new name in Nathan Ashmore in the Bedford Town goal, while a second penalty appeal against Phillips at the other end was waved away.
Gyamfi seals the deal
Further chances for Martin Woods and Aaron Martin were also kept out by Ashmore, who more than earned a clean sheet on his competitive debut, and there was almost a miraculous debut goal for the keeper, as a goal kick caught hold of the wind and nearly flummoxed Tommy Taylor in the home goal.
It was not to be, but it mattered not as Ashmore returned to familiar territory in keeping shots out, doing well to turn a Leesley free kick round the post before blocking a further Martin effort.
Worksop naturally pushed evermore for the equaliser, and in piling men forward deep into stoppage time, they left gaping holes in their defence, allowing Bedford Town to score a second nine minutes into injury time.
The settler almost fell to Lobjoit; a dreadful goal kick from Taylor falling to the feet of the returning striker, but the home defence were on hand to scramble back, before Gyamfi settled the tie.
Gaining the ball thirty yards out, the midfielder strode forward and fired past Taylor via the post to seal the three points and a much-needed 2-0 win for Bedford Town.
The victory lifts Bedford Town up to 20th on nine points, but in these still early stages of the season, the bottom half remains congested with another 36 league games to go.
What may also frustrate Bircham is another fortnight’s wait; their next scheduled league match against Buxton on Saturday (11 October) has been postponed as their opponents have made the fourth qualifying round of the FA Cup.
They also have an excellent chance of making the golden first round, but the Eagles’ attention will now turn to sixth-placed, Radcliffe on 18 October, although they do open their Bedfordshire Senior Cup account at Barton Rovers on Tuesday (7 October).
