ATHENIAN LEAGUE.
Kingstonians and Hampstead Draw in Last Match of Season.

Kingstonians closed their first season with an Athenian League match on the Richmond-road ground on Saturday, Hampstead being the visitors, and the result was a draw of two goals each.

For the Kingstonians it was not a satisfactory wind-up to the season. They ought to have won by a handsome margin. For quite three-fourths of the time the visitors were on the defensive, yet it was not until somewhat late in the game that Kingstonians for the second time made the scores level and thus avoided defeat.

In midfield the home forwards generally were excellent, and they worked well together in effective short passing, but again and again there was a fatal weakness - usually hesitation - in front of goal. Only early in the game were Hampstead for any length of time on the offensive, and apart from several shots during this stage - one being a particularly good effort by Blackburn - Winyard had very little to do. From the offensive by Hampstead and later a sequence of quick exchanges, the game veered round to one of continued attacking by Kingstonians, with frequent and then gradually lessening breakaways by Hampstead.

In one of the few periods when the home defence was hard pressed, Crick, who was taking, and taking well, Vivyen-Davies' place at back, stopped a shot with his hands, and the penalty kick was well converted by Mallett This was the only goal scored during the first half, throughout the remainder of which the home team bad by far the better of matters.

Several likely-looking shots were sent in by the forwards only to be saved by the goalkeeper, or met by the backs before they reached him. Harry went very near to scoring on several occasions; once, with an overhead kick putting the ball just over the bar. Stentiford, who received from a nice pass by Claridge, had hard luck with a fast drive, in beating down which E. J. Dunstone sustained an injury that kept him from the field for some minutes. A sequence of corners fell to Kingstonians just before the interval, and these threatened danger to the Hampstead goal. In clearing from one corner, Schofield, the Hampstead goalkeeper, received damage to his left shoulder which necessitated his retirement from the game. E. J. Dunstone took his place and shaped very well.

Handicapped by the loss of one man, Hampstead were placed even more on the defensive in the second half than they were in the first. Their forwards were well held by the home half-backs - Yates in particular tackling well - and they only threatened danger when, with the home backs well up the field, there were occasional breakaways, chiefly by the wingmen. Kingstonians shot all round the goal, and a number of efforts were diverted for corners. Eventually a smart goal was obtained by Stentiford who, receiving well forward, beat two opponents and shot past the goalkeeper, that player having come out to meet him.

Hampstead again took the lead in consequence of good individual work by Mallett, who this time beat Crick and centred well for Burrage to head in. Kingstonians pressed strongly and continuously during the remainder of the game. Winyard sauntered to the vicinity of the centre circle, and Rollo occasionally put himself amongst the forwards, so one-sided was the play.

Nevertheless despite many narrow escapes, it was not until quite late in the game that Hampstead goal again fell. This came about as the result of a free kick for a breach of the rules at the expense of Wright, when he was getting through. Wright took the kick and placed the ball in the goal-mouth, and in a scramble indulged in by a bunch of players the ball went into the net. Stentiford, from Claridge's pass, again netted the ball shortly afterwards, but he was ruled offside, and time came with the score:

KINGSTONIANS.............................. 2
HAMPSTEAD................................... 2

The teams were :-
Kingstonians: W. F. Winyard; B. J. Rollo and H. E. Crick; W. Millis, A. J. Yates and W. J. Wright; A. J. Henson, G. R. Stentiford, A. E. Harry, B. Claridge and W. Wood.
Hampstead: F. Schofield; S. Dunstone and E. J. Dunstone; J. H. Parker, S. A. Carver and W. Francis; A. E. Mullett, W. C. Starling, G. F. Blackburn, F. L. Burrage and J. P. Croad.

Report from Surrey Comet dated 5 May 1920- see report in original format.

Additional report from Surrey Advertiser dated 5 May 1920.


The second goal has been credited to Wright, although it appears someone got a final touch according to the Surrey Comet report. The Surrey Advertiser just gives it to Wright. In the end of season scoring totals printed in the Surrey Comet, Wright appears to have one less goal and Crick one more, so it is possible Crick was credited with the goal but without further proof the goal cannot be credited to Crick as this discrepancy could relate to a completely different game.