Hayes & Yeading finally broke their pre-season losing streak at Burnham on Tuesday evening when second half headers from Richard Pacquette and Julian Owusu saw United earn a 2-0 victory over their Evo-Stik Southern League hosts.

The game as a whole did not have the attacking flair of Saturday’s encounter with Salisbury and at times play was very fragmented but I suppose that’s what you expect as the new manager attempts to find the right combination's in his side.

Two early chances came for the home side, a deep Leigh Mason free-kick saw the ball fall nicely to centre-back Matt Seedal at the far post but a well placed Diak John challenge saw his volley deflect wide of goal. Five minutes later Lewis Cook tried his luck with an angled free-kick but United keeper Billy Lumley was firmly behind the shot.

United twice went close within a minute at the midway point in the half. John sent Jordan Patrick away down the left flank, he cut the ball back to Richard Pacquette who saw his shot on the turn deflected over the crossbar by a defenders leg. Pacquette was soon in the action again, collecting a quick throw in before hitting a shot from the corner of the box that again took a deflection before going wide of the far post.

As the break approached, a forward run by skipper Jamie Hand saw him thread the ball to Pierre Joseph-Dubois who advanced and hit a 20 yard shot that was just wide of Jamie Jackson’s goal.

Final chance of the half fell to the home side when an Adam Dickens centre was allowed across the box to a waiting Jordan Dowdican but his shot was blocked wide by a timely Sam Argent tackle.

As with most pre-season games, bulk changes during the second half take a lot of fluidity out of the play and this game was no exception with the result being determined by two quick United strikes inside ten minutes.

It was the experienced Pacquette who broke the deadlock when he rose unchallenged at the far post to head a Ryan Crockford free-kick firmly past Jackson into the bottom corner of the Burnham net.

United fans only had to wait four minutes for a second as Jerome Federico crossed from the right to Julian Owusu who in similar fashion placed his far post header into the bottom corner.

With changes aplenty following for both sides, chances were at a premium, in fact just one more apiece hit the notebook.

The home side almost reduced the arrears on 72 minutes when a free-kick was glanced goalwards by Seedal, beating substitute keeper Mikhael Jaimez-Ruiz only for Mark Bentley to hook it off the line and when Seedal tried again from the rebound, Jaimez-Ruiz was quickly down to smother.

Six minutes from time United went close when a corner was partially cleared to an on-coming Harry Milton who hit a rasping 25 yard drive that only just cleared James Reading’s crossbar.






Report by Kevin Watts.





Photos by Ray Peploe.