Kings Langley come from behind to defeat Real Bedford
By Will Murray
Real Bedford suffered their second league defeat of the season, losing 3-2 against Kings Langley at the Orbital Fasteners Stadium. The result keeps Rob Sinclair’s side in second place, one point behind the league leaders, Berkhamsted.
This was the first meeting between the two sides this season, and the Pirates were looking to maintain their 100% win record away from home. The first 20 minutes were cagey, with the best chances for the home side coming via Bradley Smith’s set pieces from wide areas.
Bedford gradually stamped their authority on the match and were denied a penalty in the 20th minute when Josh Setchell was played in behind by Ben Stevens and went down under a challenge from the Kings Langley defender. The appeals for a penalty were waved away, but Sinclair’s side were beginning to dictate proceedings.
In the 23rd minute, the visitors went ahead when Ty Ward’s right-footed shot from 20 yards was palmed away to Tom Hitchcock, who swept the ball home to make it 1-0. After the opening goal, there was a flurry of bookings, with five given to both teams combined by the end of the half.
The visitors looked like they were heading for half-time in the lead, but in the 37th minute, Juud Farrant’s ball found its way to Smith, who tucked his low strike into the bottom left-hand corner to level the match.
Second Half
Bedford dominated the early stages of the second half but struggled to create any clear-cut chances. The best effort came from Hitchcock, whose flicked header from a corner was smartly saved by Adisorn Connolly at the front post.
Three minutes after the hour mark, a long ball forward was misjudged by Tyler McGregor, leaving an open goal for James Towell to put the home side ahead. The Pirates nearly made the perfect response a few minutes later when they were denied by a triple save from Connolly, which concluded with a driven strike from Stevens that was palmed away for a corner.
A triple substitute from Sinclair shortly followed with Isaac Galliford, Joey Evans and Archie Jones all coming on the pitch. Their task to get the away side back into the game was made even harder in the 73rd minute when Kings Langley’s corner bounced around in the box and eventually fell to Darnell-Joe Luke, who slammed the ball home to extend their lead.
Drew Richardson looked to enforce a comeback in the late stages and halved the deficit with a glancing header in the 93rd minute. Despite a couple of late set pieces, Bedford were unable to find the equaliser, meaning they suffered their first away defeat of the campaign.
The Pirates host Aylesbury United in the league on Saturday 21st December. Tickets for the match are available here.
RBFC: McGregor, Morrell, S.Ward, Soile, Richardson, Watkins, T.Ward (Jones 68’), Nicolson (Galliford 68’), Stevens, Setchell, Hitchcock (Evans 68’).
Unused subs: Longden
Kings Langley 3 - 2 Real Bedford
17th December 2024
Kick-off: 7.45pm
Location: Orbital Fasteners Stadium
