From gutless to gritty: Marlow bounce back with welcome home win over Northwood

Marlow 2, Northwood 0

After five straight losses in the Southern League Central Division, Marlow returned to winning ways on Saturday after getting the better of Northwood at Oak Tree Road.

It’s been a largely underwhelming campaign so far for the Blues, whose form has dropped off again of late after a spell of more positive results.

Manager Mark Bartley called their second half display in Tuesday’s 4-0 defeat to Flackwell Heath ‘gutless’, but he’d have been much more satisfied by their 2-0 win over Northwood on Saturday.

He’ll have demanded a response from his players and that’s what they gave him with captain Chris Ovenden typifying their desire to get back to winning ways.

The Blues led in the 16th minute through Seb D’Aversa’s strike and doubled their advantage not long after the restart through Jack Empson. Northwood failed to carry much of an attacking threat and the hosts saw the game through for a confidence-building clean sheet.

The result moves them 10 points above the league’s relegation places ahead of Saturday’s trip to Rayners Lane. It was also their first league win since December 16 when Stotfold were defeated 4-1 at home.

The trip to Rayners Lane won’t be easy though, with their hosts coming into the clash off the back of an unexpected 2-2 draw at Flackwell Heath.

Having won their last three matches, Chris Ayres’ side were heavy favourites heading into Saturday’s home game with the league’s second bottom side.

Ayres had spoken in the week about his hopes for the Heathens staging a late challenge for the play-off spots, but this 2-2 draw is a setback to those hopes, however, you dress it up.

A spot of complacency may have crept into their play as they fell 2-0 down in the first half to goals in the 23rd and 44th minutes. However, they did give themselves a lifeline just before the break when Matty Ayres managed to bundle the ball home from a corner kick. They then grabbed an equaliser through Lewis Patrick with a few minutes left on the clock but ultimately fell short of their goal of winning the game.

With only 16 matches left to play, Flackwell sit 12th in the table, 11 points adrift of fifth placed Hertford Town. If they are to make up that ground in the closing weeks of the season, they’ll need to win matches like this on a much more regular basis.

Ayres will hope and expect to see some sort of response when they visit Northwood this Saturday.