Eric Hand Challenge Cup Final

Reed Rangers added the league’s senior cup competition to the Herts Senior Cup for this season after a 4-0 win over Second Division Ardent, but the game was far closer than scoreline suggests with all of the goals coming in the final 20 minutes.

Ardent, who had already knocked out two Premier Division sides to reach the final, were not content to sit back and defend and went after their opponents, hitting them on the counter-attack swiftly in an open first half.

Craig Clark had the first effort on goal for Ardent after just five minutes with a lob which went just cleared the target, and Kiefer Shuttleworth hit a shot on the angle narrowly over.

Reed had a George Nicholas header tipped superbly over the bar by George Rawlings in the Ardent goal.

The reminder of the half saw Ardent giving as good as they were getting from the higher ranked side.

Reed turned up the pressure at the start of the second period, with Dominic David seeing an effort come back off the post with Rawlings beaten just a minute after the restart.

Reed had far more of the ball in the second period and, at times, the Ardent goal led a charmed life, and they were thankful on a number of occasions to Andrew Humbles and Jamie Kavanagh for getting in vital blocks.

With just 20 minutes left, Reed finally broke Ardent’s brave resistance when Nick Kerley slotted home after Chris Colman, who had only been on the field three minutes, set him up with the chance.

The game finally swung in Reed’s favour with seven minutes to go after Charlie Salvage had a chance to equalise but he just couldn’t control a bouncing ball.

Straight from the goal kick, Reed broke clear and awful mix-up on the edge of the box allowed another substitute, Bradley Sweeney, to tap the ball into an empty net.

That goal broke Ardent and, with three minutes left, Kerley scored his second of the game and his team’s third, as he controlled a cross from the left and stepped inside his defender and curled the ball into the top left hand corner.

A minute into added on-time Sweeney set up John Smith for an easy finish to make it four.

Premier Division

Oakview did what was required as they thumped Rifle Volunteer 15-3 to keep the title racing going for another week.

Lewis Putman scored five, supported by hat-tricks from Tom Kennedy and Adam Lowton, with Warren Gladdy, Simeon Armstrong, Owen Deamer and an own goal rounding off the scoring. Gary Ellington, with a double, and one from Hugh Trayte replied for Rifle.

St Josephs' time in the top flight came to an end with a 2-1 defeat to Chorleywood Club.

All Joes required was a point from the game to move above Old Danes Athletic on goal difference, but they came up short.

Scott Boner gave Chorleywood the lead after 18 minutes but, just before the break, St Josephs scored a goal through Roy Byron which would have been enough to save them. But their fate was sealed 20 minutes from time when Prince Nimoh scored with a thunderous shot.

Earlier last week, St Josephs had beaten the same opposition 3-2 to keep their hopes of staying in the top flight alive.

They held a 3-0 lead at the break thanks to goals from Robbie Tocher's double and one from Byron.

Chorleywood hit back after the break thanks to goals 10 minutes into the half from Jack Reid and then Andrew Rockett in the final minute.

Also, Reed Rangers were awarded their game against West Herts, who were unable to raise a team.

The three points leaves them five points behind leaders Oakview with a game in hand.

Division One

Runners-up Tudor Athletic finished the season with a 6-3 win over relegated Croxley.

Carl Pettitt gave Croxley an early lead before Mark Varcoe scored twice to give Athletic the upper hand.

Croxley then had a chance to equalise but missed a penalty, only for them to score soon after with Pettitt netting his second of the game.

Just before the break Grant Avis and Steve Harper scored two quick goals.

In the second half Gary Coyle added two more goals, before Pettitt completed his hat-trick.

Cassiobury Rangers put seven unanswered goals past AFC Bedmond to secure their highest placed finish in the table, fourth.

The game was goalless until just before the break when Sam Mortimer opened the scoring with a shot from 25 yards out.

The floodgates opened after the break when a Jack Henley cross was taken down by Mehmet Maden, who beat his man with his control and finished on the half volley.

After a couple of chances spurned, including Joe Ainsworth hitting the crossbar from a header, another effort was saved by the Bedmond keeper but fell into the path of Jack Henley for a tap in.

Ainsworth then turned goal scorer after his surging run met a cross from Rob Ladmore, which was then well struck into the net, kissing the cross bar on the way in.

Aidan Lesslie added his name to the score sheet when a poor clearance from a defender fell into his path, and he carried the ball into the box and slotted in.

Henley then got his second with some nice footwork on the left hand side of the penalty box, beating the defender to poke home, squeezing it in at the keeper's near post.

Matt Ladmore got Cassiobury's seventh and final goal of the game after a Ainsworth cross from the right wing was taken down calmly and slotted past the keeper.

FC Unicorn had clinched the First Division title last week with a 3-1 victory over Bushey Sports, who were relegated with the result as well.

It was a nervy start for Jamie Calvin’s team, who suffered the early setback of going behind; Matt Burton firing home following a hard and low cross.

Callum O’Connor proved to be the inspiration for Unicorn with a goal and an assist. He plucked Jamie Dixon’s through ball out of the air with a touch to set himself up for a looping volley from 25 yards out which went into the top corner.

Then, five minutes before the break, he tirelessly chased down a nothing ball and forced the keeper to touch it out for a corner. He then quickly whipped the resulting set piece into the empty box for Danny Warwick to run in and fire home into the roof of the net.

Early in the second half, Unicorn where thankful to keeper Jack Bridges who saved a Bushey penalty, tipping it around the post following a handball.

That seemed to knock the fight out of Bushey and O’Connor then sealed the title 10 minutes later when he picked up the ball out wide, came inside and ran at his defender before firing the ball low and hard into the corner.

The other game of the evening saw North Watford save themselves from the drop and relegate Croxley with a 5-1 victory.

Carlos Alberto scored a hat-trick and there were singles from Shoaib Ali and Aamer Khan, with Samba replying for Croxley.

Division Three

AFC Leavesden were confirmed as champions after their game with Chess United was awarded.

Oxhey Athletic won the local derby with Oxhey Rangers 11-1, thus sealing runners-up spot ahead of Woodlands United by three points.

Jordan Aston-Woods scored a hat-trick as did Liam Coles, with Luke Foot and Jacob O'Hanlon netting braces and Jack Browes also scored. Michael Gilman replied for Rangers.

ACS Milan beat bottom placed NW 4-1 to seal fourth place in the table. Spencer Coccomazzi led the way with a hat-trick and there was one from Ives Luhasu.

Division Four

Third placed SOCA ended the season with a 5-2 win over RBL Croxley, who finish second bottom.

Conor Chapman scored a hat-trick and Garrett Griffiths and Pearse White were also on target, with Chris Massey and Ollie Donohoe replying.

Ken Simmons Memorial Cup Final

Tudor Athletic completed a cup double after a 3-0 extra-time win over FC Woodside.

The triumph follows their earlier victory in the Intermediate Cup as well as finishing runners-up in the First Division, making it a successful season for the club.

Fellow First Division side FC Woodside worked hard throughout the 120 minutes but were unable to find a way through a well-organised Tudor defence, led by captain Callum O’Connor and, in the end, they ran out of legs in extra-time.

The first half was a very nervy affair, mainly fought in midfield, and it took until the half-hour mark for the first serious attempt on goal when Woodside managed to hack the ball clear off the line following an almighty goalmouth scramble, despite appeals that the ball had crossed the line.

Terry Chamberlain then fired a half-volley just off target, with Woodside responding with a Sam Parker shot which curled narrowly wide.

The game opened up more in the second half with Parker again going close for Woodside and Sam Clark seeing his effort well saved by Simon Ross in the Woodside goal.

The introduction of Steve Harper for Tudor early in the second period certainly gave them some added flair and they started to push Woodside back, who seemed to be tiring as the game entered added time.

Indeed, they were grateful to their own substitute Ben Southam, who twice made vital blocks and then, with what was the final action of the 90 minutes, James Fisher, whose hard work gained him the man of the match award, pulled the ball back across the face of the goal only for Gary Coyle and Gary Warn to see their shots blocked by some last-ditch defending.

Tudor increased the pressure at the start of extra-time but were denied by two excellent saves by Ross, first keeping out James Hocking’s header then flipping over Harper’s rifled shot.

The game was still level until the first minute of the second period of extra-time when Tudor finally broke the deadlock.

Coyle saw his shot deflected into the far corner of the goal by Kieran Cahill, giving Ross, who looked to have the effort covered, no chance.

Six minutes later Coyle then put the game beyond Woodside with a looping header from inside the area.

A minute later the victory was completed when Warn raced through the defence from the left and slotted the ball low diagonally into the goal.