A brace from Joel Hughes – plus one apiece from Austin Gacheru and Dan Moody – helped Guildford City to three points against in-form local rivals Ash United in front of a crowd of 172 at Spectrum.
City started energetically, squandering several easy chances before falling behind when Karl Dallaway netted for the visitors in the 10th minute. Hughes levelled immediately however, capitalising on a mix up in the Ash defence which saw goalkeeper Agov caught out trying to deal with a back pass. The hosts continued to press, and went ahead shortly before the break when Austin Gacheru slammed home a first-touch volley from the edge of the area.
Fifteen minutes after the break, Dan Moody slotted home a penalty to extend the lead before Hughes made sure of the points in the 66th minute – latching on to the ball despite a foul by an Ash defender (credit to the referee for a well executed advantage call!) and running through to score. In truth, this goal killed off a game which had been thoroughly entertaining for over an hour, and the remainder of the match was less competitive. Gibbs and Gacheru had good chances to score for the hosts, while Ash twice saw the ball come back off the post in the closing stages.
Guildford City:
Antony Hall, Elvis Defreitas (Tom Penson 74) Ben Rayner, Simon Cooper [capt], Tony Chaplin, Will Heavey, Dan Moody, Ben Camara (Paul Spencer 72), Austin Gacheru, Joel Hughes (Lance Banton-Brown 78), Jaydon Gibbs.
Unused substitutes: Martin Debrah, Luke Bradnick
Cautioned: Simon Cooper, Will Heavey
Referee: R. Smith
Attendance: 172
