Cray battled back from 3-1 down with ten men to grab a vital point in a dramatic second half at Hayes Lane on Wednesday night to continue their recovery under Garry Abbott.

The Wands started the game third from bottom against tenth placed Aveley and after an initial Marlon Patterson effort was saved it was the visitors who created the better chances.

Marcus Elliott forced a save from Nick Taylor and Danny Francis had a shout for a penalty when floored in the box, Junior Ogeji-Uzokwe fired wide and former Wands captain Alex Stavrinou was just off target with a free kick.

The Essex side’s best chance fell to Ogeji-Uzokwe when he latched on to a through ball with Taylor stranded out of his box, but under pressure he could only shoot into the side netting when faced with an open goal.

Cray’s inability to keep possession of the ball was eventually punished on 44 minutes when Ogeji-Uzokwe’s shot was parried by Taylor and Elliott pounced on the loose ball to make it 1-0 to Aveley.

In first half injury time Kerry Kedze had a shot saved, but The Wands had a poor first half and deserved to be behind.

The second half began with a chaotic scramble in the Cray box as Aveley pressed and after the ball was only half cleared a big ball back into the area caught Taylor out as he lost the flight of the ball and palmed it into the path of former Cray player Junior Baker who rolled his effort into an empty net for 2-0 on 47 minutes.

After a quiet spell Cray grabbed a lifeline back into the game on 58 minutes when Ishmael Welsh crossed for Ian Daly to head home at the far post and halve the deficit.

Aveley still had the better of things after the goal Ogeji-Uzokwe hit  the post with a free kick, Francis had an effort saved by Taylor and Teddy Nesbit also hit the bar with a free kick from a tight angle.

To make Cray’s problems worse Abidemi Qudus Bolangi was sent off for a second yellow card after a bad foul on Ogeji-Uzokwe.

Aveley extended their lead on 71 minutes when Paul Preston crossed for Francis to convert at the far post to make it 3-1 and seemingly put the game beyond doubt.

Then out of the blue The Wands rallied for the last fifteen minutes and Rory Hill pulled one back on 80 minutes when he finished off a powerful run into the box with a well placed finish past James Marrable.

Then almost on the next attack Cray made it 3-3 when Hill brought the ball down 25 yards out, turned and crashed an effort home for a stunning equaliser.

The game was wide open from then on with both sides looking to win it, the hard working Shaun Welford went close on two occasions for the home side and had another shot cleared off the line, while Ogeji-Uzokwe had a shot saved by Taylor and Stavrinou saw his free kick sail over.

In the end a draw was probably a fair result, but both sides could have won it late on and Garry Abbott’s team will be regretting defensive slips and missed chances, although at 3-1 down with ten men with only eleven minutes left they would have been happy with a point.

 

Cray: Taylor, Fakinos, Patterson, Humphrey, Williams, Bolangi, Kedze (Phillips 60), Hill, Welford, Daly, Welsh. Subs Not Used: Stone, Behcet, Springett, Bozygit.

Aveley: Marrable, Preston, Nesbitt, Baker, Harrison, Knott, Uzokwe, Holland (Bakare 76), Francis, Stavrinou, Elliott (Weems 49). Subs Not Used: Ola, Sendall, Hurst.

Goals: Cray – Daly 58, Hill 80 and 81mins

Aveley – Elliott 44, Baker 47, Francis 77mins.

Star Man: Junior Ageji-Uzokwe (Aveley)

Att: 101

Ref: Mr D Sotimirin