On a high after a convincing 5-1 win at North Greenford United, Aylesbury travelled to Royston Town looking for their season’s first back to back wins, but, against a strong Crows team, were unable to make any impression on their hosts and were well beaten 3-0.
Shane Wood and Lea Coulter were the latest additions to the casualty list, but with Zack Reynolds available again he was able to slot in at right back, whilst Greg Williams came into midfield to replace Coulter.
United were under pressure as early as the fourth minute, when former Brighton & Hove Albion star Gary Hart met a right wing cross with a well executed overhead kick, only to be denied by a good stop from Jack Sillitoe.
Good perseverance from Hart to win the ball back then set up his strike partner Kaan Fehmi a minute later who could only produce a tame shot, but it should have been 1-0 on 12 minutes when Jhai Dhillon drilled in a low ball which Jack Bradshaw, venturing up from centre half, fired wide beyond the far post.
The Crows weren’t to be disappointed for long though, and on the quarter hour mark went ahead. Jack Wood went to ground but was unable to get the ball away, and the midfielder Chris Watters rode the challenge before finishing clinically past Sillitoe. 1-0 Royston
Aylesbury were having to work hard to contain their hosts and were rarely able to make inroads into home territory – two first half corners the best their limited attacking play produced.
And so the half wore on the Ducks were left clinging onto the slim margin of disadvantage they had, Watters seeing a shot blocked in the area after being teed up by Stuart Bridges.
In stoppage time it was a fine double save from Sillitoe that kept Aylesbury within touching distance of their hosts, Stuart Bridges’s superbly delivered corner picking out the late run of Bradshaw, Sillitoe diving to save and then getting up quickly to block the rebound effort.
Half-time: Royston 1-0 Aylesbury
Royston would have left for the interval feeling not to have made the most of their first half possession, but just two minutes after the restart had doubled their advantage when a half cleared corner kick was floated back in from the left, and Fehmi was first to the ball heading firmly into the net. 2-0 Royston
United responded well to the setback, and when, ninety seconds later, a Liam Smyth free kick fell to Jesse Waites in the box who turned and hammered a shot wide, they at last had their first meaningful effort at goal.
Stuart Bridges’s set pieces were excellent throughout, and another excellent corner kick from him was headed out as far as Nightingale who crashed a shot over, before Royston, considering the game safe, opted to withdraw the ageing legs of Hart and Watters.
Waites, generally the biggest of a limited Aylesbury threat, rode a challenge and shot wide, but it was the other goal which continued to seem most at danger as Sillitoe did well to claw away a cross from the left from under the crossbar.
A 55th minute a through ball to Fehmi, who scored a hat-trick against the Ducks in a 6-0 Red Insure Cup thrashing in February, allowed the striker to round Sillitoe and curl the ball goalwards, but Reynolds was well stationed on the goal line to block the effort.
It only took a further minute before Royston did find the net again, with another through ball dissecting the Ducks defence and setting substitute Reece Dobson away. He cut inside but saw his shot saved by the legs of Sillitoe, but Stuart Reynolds was following up to crown a fine display with a goal. 3-0 Royston
Tony Joyce responded with a double change, replacing his obviously frustrated skipper Jack Wood and Liam Smyth with Stacey Field and Lewis Osborne, but they couldn’t stem the immediate flow of the game with a left wing cross turned wide at the near post by Dobson.
A Waites long shot only found the side netting, whilst Aylesbury were lucky to escape conceding a fourth when a cross-cum-shot from Fehmi was saved by a combination of Sillitoe and post, from which United countered quickly as Ben Baines managed to feed Joey Acheampong who could only shoot weakly.
The last ten minutes saw the Ducks looking as likely to score as at any earlier point in the game, with Reynolds hitting the side netting and Bill Morgan flicking a long throw wide, whilst Baines shot straight at Paul Bastock in what was just about the veteran keeper’s only true action of the ninety minutes.
A bad day at the office for Aylesbury overall, but the Ducks have an immediate chance to put things right with a Bank Holiday derby with Leighton Town next on the agenda.
