There was a chaotic end to Chipstead's latest game in the Cherry Red Records Combined Counties League Premier Division South on Saturday afternoon, as they conceded a late penalty & had to settle for a point in a 1-1 draw v. Abbey Rangers
Chips had weathered early Abbey pressure, & began to create chances of their own - Melford Simpson flicked a long ball on to Andrew Mensah, whose shot beat the keeper, but was cleared off the line by a retreating defender - then Simpson lifted a ball over the defence, but the Abbey centre-half ran back to prevent it reaching the net
Captain Peter Wedgeworth took a short corner to Samuel Williams, but his shot was punched away by the keeper - Mensah then shot from distance, but the ball ended up on the roof of the net, before Cameron Lewis-Brown had a shot charged down, after good work by Joe Hall & Ben Jordan, yet it remained 0-0 at the break
Chipstead took the lead four minutes after the restart, as a fine cross from the left was headed home by Simpson
Abbey nearly scored an equaliser, but a goalbound effort hit the post & rebounded into keeper Klevis Muca's hands
Wedgeworth's free-kick was headed against the outside of a post, as Chips looked to kill off the game, but Abbey levelled with a penalty, as Muca was adjudged to have tripped a forward, as the onrushng player tried to take the ball round him - the aftermath saw Tijani Eshilokun & their no. 8 receive red cards, but Muca couldn't stop their sub no. 18 from tying up the score, as the game entered added time
There was still time for the referee to send sub Reanu Grossett off for a straight red card, but Chipstead managed to defend a late Abbey free-kick, & hold on to a point, which keeps the team in 17th position in the table four points above the relegation zone with two matches left