Green Lions play the fade game and 'Rams' romp it

Two wins in a week and a run of eight games undefeated, is probably the best we can hope for in this time of transition for the island’s flagship club.

Nevertheless, it is hard to stomach as poor a second half display as we saw here, conceding four and wasting a decent first 45.

Holidays and injuries meant Tony Vance again shuffled his pack with Simon Geall returning to captain the side and slot in next to Alex Le Prevost in central defence, while Ryan-Zico Black made only his second start in seven months and Charlton Gauvain was back in the attack.

Dom Heaume, who had played 40min, for St Martin’s the previous evening, was on the bench where Thomas Dodds, finally fit again after two months out, was supposed to warm but suddenly found himself promoted to start when Keanu Marsh was injured in the warm-up.

With the Under 21 Muratti just a week away it was a timely return for the midfielder, even if he spent much of this game at right back.

One selection negative was the absence of Ben Coulter who took physio advice on his knee to sit this one out and overall it was something of a hotch potch starting XI that had Gauvain and Pereira leading the line.

Bringing calm and class to the whole proceedings, though, was Le Prevost, playing perhaps the best football of his career.

Throughout the first half Alex Hansen of Island football started so much of the patient buildup play GFC were allowed to work and, if it was not Le Prevost prompting it was Black, who might easily have been cautioned after just 12 minutes for a poor, late challenge.

On 16min. Ramsgate were denied twice in a couple of seconds both by a superb Tobin challenge and then Stanton’s near-post save.

At the other end Matt Loaring had the home side’s first clear chance, although he needed to pick his spot from fully 50m as the ball fell to him from the Ramsgate keeper’s mis-hit prod while slipping, but a minute later Tobin backheeled a low ball into the net and the Green Lions were ahead.

It was both cheeky and clever and his second goal in successive games.

Ramsgate responded with Alfie Paxman striking a post from 25 yards and a defender depositing Tobin almost onto the running track with a hefty challenge that brought a booking.

Dave Rihoy fizzed a 25 yarder a yard too high and Seb Skillen billowed the sidenetting to momentarily get the Garenne Stand excited, while back at the Les Ozouets end Paxman warmed Stanton’s hands with another firm drive.

Into the second half and when Black lost possession close to goal Oliver Gray smashed a 30 yarder which Stanton parried away smartly.

Ramsgate then managed to somehow hook a shot over the bar from a couple of yards out and smack, bang in front of their seven-strong ‘Red Army’ who a minute later were going bonkers as Paxman finished simply on Jadama’s square pass.

Suddenly the home side were all at sea and on 60min. Paxman got his second from a similar route as the opener, this coming seconds after Aaron Millbank had fired just over.

Stanton kept GFC in the game with a stunning save from Millbank and Vance had to do something in an attempt to stem the flow.

The answer, he hoped, was to introduce Heaume and Liam Mahon with Black and Dodds departing, but they were barely on the pitch when the home side failed to clear a free-kick and Gray poked home from five yards.

It was going from bad to worse and all that was needed to compound the deterioration was an own goal which duly arrived five minutes from the end, courtesy of an unlucky Simon Geall who headed past Stanton.

There might have been a fifth for Ramsgate but Millbank did not make the cleanest of contacts and his weak volley was save by Stanton.

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