There was little to separate Cray Valley PM and Welling United in a fast paced competitive pre-season friendly.

Kevin Watson’s Millers team shaded the first half whilst Welling had the edge in the second period. Overall a draw was probably a fair result.

Ade Yusuff headed wide before Cray went ahead in the eighth minute when Denzel Gayle finished off a good move with a crisp finish.

It might have been two shortly afterwards when Yusuff got clear but saw his shot come back off the inside of the post. It fell in the path of Hassan Ibrahim and he looked certain to score but a defender got back to make a great block.

Whilst the Millers were wondering how they hadn’t increased their lead, Welling broke away with a sweeping move that ended with a good finish by a trialist striker.

After that, the well drilled Cray team enjoyed more possession and territorial advantage but struggled to create clear cut chances and the last opportunity of the half fell to Luke Rooney but Matt Blendell got down well to push it away.

Almost immediately after the break a Welling cross came back off the bar before Rooney twice fired over.

Another Welling trialist fired a shot into the side netting before Brad Quinton made six changes including two substitutes wearing number seventeen shirts.

Ibrahim hit a first time shot over for Cray before the Wings had a chance when another unnamed player burst through but could not get enough bend on his shot to curl it inside the far post.

The same player than snatched a shot wide before Blendell saved at the near post from Wings academy player Bradley Ryan.

Having used all their substitutes, Welling were forced to reintroduce Montel Agyemang when a player went down injured.

One last half chance went to the hosts when Ryan Flack threaded a through ball for Yusuff to chase but Dan Wilks was out quickly to smother.

Cray Valley PM: Blendell, Warren, Morath-Gibbs, Walker (Smith 66), Hickey (Hill 66), Tumkaya (Sains 66), Gayle (Flack 56), Farmer, Yusuff, Ibrahim (De Niro Pinta 79), King-Elliot (Rueben-Aaron 88).

Images courtesy of Dave Budden