A pivotal moment in the early phase of the Met Police v Basingstoke Southern Premier game last Saturday. In real time a clear trip by the defender however on reviewing the photo there is clear shirt pulling.
The linesman was on the opposite side so maybe did not see this. The referee might have been unsighted too.
The point is how difficult it is to referee a game .
As always Met Police are a decent team to watch, unless you happen to be their defensive coach. This game was not really a 4-4 game but more like 8-8. One of those games where every attack could have been a goal. I still cannot fathom why Met Police do not get larger crowds as their style of football and quality is some of the best around in non-league currently. Good to see a couple of things. A core support of noisy Basingstoke fans ( but is the drum really needed?) and a good referee. Andy Bennett took no nonsense from the players, at one stage telling a Basingstoke player to stop talking to him in that manner, and broadly got all the major decisions right. A penalty decision went Basingstoke’s way however when looking at the photos the Met Police defender, who clearly tripped the striker, was having his shirt massively pulled. In fact in almost every photograph there is some physical contact
This was a good game to photograph. There was energy from the start and plenty of interesting tackles. Even the last kick of the game came off the Met Police crossbar.
Luke Williams the Met Police Fc keeper
Just a suspicion of a foul
Somehow a goal
Basingstoke fans
The Met Police defender trips the Basingstoke striker, but when did the shirt pulling start?
Not many sides in the history of football in any division anywhere worldwide have achieved what Carshalton have done since December 2017. From 33 points they have gained 31 and are unbeaten on this phenomenal run that saw them get promoted to the Bostik Premier league. Not that Carshalton made it easy on themselves. The scoreline will show a 4-3 victory in front of a seasons best crowd of just under 600.
Before the game whatever happened in games elsewhere all Carshalton had to do was to win the game. A simple equation. Starting the game however was the first obstacle as the referee was delayed on a flight back from Albania, that gave Carshalton the advantage of knowing their opponents results essentially at half time. In reality Whyteleafe gave them a tough game and were physical, maybe overly so , opponents that never actually lost the game until the 95th minute. On a hot afternoon physical fitness was going to be important and Carshalton certainly had the superiority on Whyteleafe on that.
Charlie Pattison caused problems all game on the right wing with his running and crossing
The Whyteleafe goal led a charmed life at times
The game however took a circuitous route with Whyteleafe taking the lead and Carshalton missing a penalty, then after making it 1-1, allowed Whyteleafe to score twice in minutes, making it 1-3 before staging a comeback to win the game 4-3 with the last meaningful kick of the game.
Tommy Bradford wins the game in the 95th minute
There are plenty of other detailed reports but from my perspective Carshalton played great football with measured passing, sometimes of a far higher standard. Finishing was superb, and with a little more luck could have won this game 7-3.
The end product was promotion and to the 600 crowd thats all that mattered.
An entertaining game played mostly in chilly bright sunshine which did not always make photography easy. Carshalton were the better side but the result was in doubt until the end.
A lot impressed me about this match. The referee let the game flow and tried not to become the focus but for some inexplicable reason did not award a penalty. The Thamesmead keeper brought down the Carshalton striker when the ball was heading away from danger. From my vantage point only yards away it was a clear penalty, and the linesman on this side had the same view albeit a few more yards away.
No Penalty
Then for a similar strange reason the referee did award a very soft penalty later in the first half. Crowds are increasing at Colston avenue for very good reasons. The football is good, played in the right manner and a good clubhouse means that folks can watch with their beer ( from inside or outside).
Carshalton were always the more threatening side however Thamesmead equalised early in the second half fortuitously before Carshalton scored the winning goal midway through the second half.
The star of the game was Christie Pattison recently signed from Phoenix Sports and before that Welling United and Brentford. On the evidence of this game he will go far and Brentford may have released him too early. He constantly troubled the Thamesmead defence.
On a cold day that is sunny you can see long shadows as the sun sets. Watching Molesey V Ramsgate today in a scrappy though enjoyable 1-1 draw a few photos that show that ghosts can and do watch Bostik league football. My favourite is the Ramsgate player with a ghostly hand on his shorts.
If I were a clever writer I would arrive at some witty headline that encompasses dogs and Barkingfc. 
Non league day has become a regular date in the calendar when International football means no top level games and crowds are higher.
Although a Brentford fan I manage to catch 10-15 non league games a season and am no stranger to positive reasons to watch non league. Let me summarise the key reasons why far more spectators should visit Chipstead:
There is nothing wrong with watching higher class league football, but why not take in the occasional non league game too? And if you fancy finding a tree stump behind the main stand. Especially if your dog needs a day out.
In short a sunny start followed by rain, lightning , thunder , dark clouds and a lot more in between .
Some proper football photographs later but these give you a flavour.
chris1957
Arcticterntalk.org 