Report: Fantastic Four as Berks Beats Bucks

Maidenhead United produced a dominant away performance at Chesham United, scoring four times to secure a convincing 4-0 victory and take all three points back to York Road. 

 

However, it wasn't all plain sailing, as the Magpies were given an early scare inside the opening five minutes when a sloppy misplaced backpass allowed Chesham’s number nine, Hisham Kasimu, to race through on goal, but his effort curled narrowly past Jordi van Stappershoef’s post. 

 

Maidenhead quickly shrugged off the early let-off and almost opened the scoring themselves when Josh Umerah fired an effort just over the bar from close range after Josh Coley fizzed a dangerous cross into the box from the left. 

 

The visitors thought they had taken the lead shortly afterwards when Finley Welch found the back of the net, but the celebrations were cut short as the forward was flagged offside following a brilliant piece of link-up play between Umerah and Coley. 

 

The Magpies did not have to wait much longer, however, as Umerah opened the scoring. 

 

Jayden Mitchell-Lawson used his pace and quick feet to create space down the right before feeding the lively Welch, whose low-driven cross found Umerah perfectly placed inside the box. The striker made no mistake, calmly slotting the ball home to give Maidenhead the lead. 

 

Umerah came close to doubling his tally just minutes later following another superb piece of play from Mitchell-Lawson, while the Magpies continued to dominate possession and threaten the Chesham defence. 

 

Coley and Welch were causing constant problems all afternoon down the flanks, while a superb reaction save from Chesham goalkeeper Ben Goode denied Umerah his second after Maidenhead created another dangerous opportunity from a quickly taken corner. 

 

 

Immediately after the restart, Maidenhead were almost punished for another defensive error, as Joel Odeniran’s backpass was too short for van Stappershoef, almost identical to the mistake from the opening few minutes of the game. Thankfully, the goalkeeper reacted quickly to smother the danger and turn the ball behind for a corner. 

 

Chesham came close from the resulting set piece as a superb delivery to the back post found Kyle Oliyide in acres of space, but he could not convert his header from close range. 

 

At the other end, Mitchell-Lawson continued to provide an attacking threat, driving into the centre of the box from the right in acres of space before seeing his effort on his weaker foot from the edge of the box comfortably collected. 

 

Just past the hour mark, Maidenhead doubled their advantage through the talisman, Josh Umerah. Another excellent sequence between Welch and Coley down the left saw the latter drive a low cross across the six-yard box, where Umerah was waiting to slide home his second of 

the afternoon. 

 

The Magpies continued to pile on the pressure on the Chesham defence, with more goals in mind, as they knew the confidence of the Chesham players was dropping, while they were only gaining more belief. 

 

The Magpies put the result to bed on the 73rd minute as Mitchell-Lawson got himself on the scoresheet. 

 

Coley produced another excellent piece of play, delivering a sweeping cross-field ball from just beyond the halfway line to find Mitchell-Lawson, who controlled inside the right side of the box before calmly slotting the ball home. 

 

Maidenhead continued to threaten on the counter and added a fourth a minute before additional time through Daniel Nkrumah, who made an instant impact off the bench. 

 

The forward was played through one-on-one after beating the entire Chesham backline for pace, before calmly rounding the goalkeeper and slotting the ball home from a tight angle. The Magpies saw out the remaining minutes comfortably, with four minutes of additional time unable to change the scoreline. 

 

A clinical and disciplined away performance saw Maidenhead claim all three points, with the visitors combining excellent counter-attacking quality with a strong defensive display. The Magpies will be heading into the home match against Tonbridge Angels in high spirits once they return from a two-week break. 

 

 

Chesham United: Goode, Lafleur, Young, Oliyide (Weiss 74'), Rasulo (Eze 61'), Kasimu, Bennetts (Babos 74'), Andrews, Adebiyi, Roberts (Fasanmade 61'), Adewunmi. 

 

Maidenhead United: van Stappershoef, Cochrane, N’Guessan, Coley (Nkrumah 74'), Mitchell-Lawson (Achuba 77'), Robinson, Umerah, Welch (Johnson 74'), Mantle, Clerima (Abbott 90'), Odeniran. 

 

Attendance: 1,054