Lewis White penalty hands Carshalton Athletic a narrow 1-0 win over in-form Kingstonian

Carshalton Athletic earned a valuable three points in the Isthmian League play-off race with just a singular goal in a game of few opportunities. 

The Isthmian League play-off picture is one that is constantly chopping and changing, so when these two sides met on Monday evening, there will have been many other teams watching on intently. 

Off the back of an impressive victory over the league leaders, Carshalton were looking to continue their assault on the league’s top five. Kingstonian were entering this game with a 100% winning record in 2022, winning three games in seven days and this game was their fourth outing in just nine days. 

In the opening exchanges, both teams pressed high and were looking to force an error, this was a rather surprising tactic from an unchanged Kingstonian side who had played just over 48 hours prior. The first chance of the game fell Carshalton as Tommy Bradford twisted and turned before skimming his effort off the side netting. 

Chances were very much coming at a premium in the first half as the game developed into a scrappy affair. When the half-chances did occur, they tended to fall on the side of the hosting Robins. 

As the second half commenced, it was again Carshalton who were having the better chances. The first of which came when an in-swinging free-kick fell kindly to centre-half Luke Read, who saw his vicious effort bravely blocked by Jerry Puemo. 

The pressure continued to reign in as the best chance of the game fell to the hosts with a Harry Ottoway flick finding Danny Bassett through on goal. The Carshalton number 17 looked to slot his effort home, only to be denied by the outstretched leg of Serine Sunnett. 

A well worked set piece then found Lewis White in acres of space in the area as the Kingstonian goalkeeper was called into action once again to deny the former Millwall youngster at his near post. 

The visitors were having plenty of the ball but lacked that killer instinct in the final third and were unable to manufacture many chances of note. It was perhaps surprising from a team that had scored 11 goals in their previous three games and they would be made to pay for this.

Midway through the second period, the referee pointed to the spot and awarded a penalty to Carshalton after a shot was blasted in and struck the arm of Puemo. There were many protests from Kingstonian players, claiming that the ball was hit with such venom and from so close that Puemo was unable to prevent the contact with his arm. 

These complaints fell on deaf ears as the referee adamantly pointed to the spot. In a game of very few clearcut chances, this was a massive opportunity for Carshalton to grab the lead and hold on for a vital three points. White stepped up and stroked the ball calmly into the bottom left corner sending Sunnett the wrong way in the process. 

It goes without saying that there were some tired bodies out there for Kingstonian, and as the 500+ fans in attendance soon learned, some seemingly tired minds as well.

Ollie Cook was under some pressure from White and made a simple five-yard pass back to his goalkeeper. Rather bizarrely, the Kingstonian shot-stopper picked up the ball before firing it out towards his teammate. The referee duly blew for an indirect free-kick with bermused faces around the War Memorial Sports Ground. 

The subsequent set-piece was fired wide from the hosts and this preceded some unsavoury scenes. Sunnett bravely charged out of his area to head the ball away from Danny Bassett with the Carshalton forward flattening him in the process. Some Kingstonian players, namely Cook, took exception to this and chaos ensued. 

The dying minutes of the game were fierce and heated but this suited Carshalton who held onto their slim lead and left the Kingstonian players frustrated. 

This victory was a vital one for the Robins as they now move to within five points of the play-offs. On the other hand, the loss for Kingstonian means they remain in fifth, missing their chance to move up to second in the table.

Carshalton will next be back in action on Saturday away at Bowers & Pitsea, looking to edge ever closer to the play-offs. Meanwhile, Kingstonian will look to rest and recover before they host Wingate & Finchley. 

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