Epsom & Ewell 3–1 Yateley United. Combined Counties Premier League South. Saturday 10th October – Chalky Lane, Chessington. Attendance: 81
Epsom & Ewell secured their first home victory of the season with an impressive 3–1 win over Yateley United at Chalky Lane.
With club captain Brendan sidelined through injury, the armband was handed to Toby Young, who led the line superbly and set the tone with a tireless performance.
The Salts started brightly and were almost ahead inside three minutes when Oba broke clear and delivered an inviting cross, but nobody was able to apply the finishing touch.
The hosts continued to press, with Blessing Hombessa beating two defenders before sending another dangerous ball into the area.
Epsom suffered a setback after 33 minutes when Harry Murphy was forced off through injury. New signing Angel Montes came on for his debut following his arrival from Corinthian-Casuals and quickly settled into the contest with a composed performance.
Despite creating the better chances, the sides went into the interval level at 0–0, with the Salts unfortunate not to be ahead.
The breakthrough finally arrived in the 55th minute when Oba was rewarded for an energetic display by finding the net to give Epsom a deserved lead.
Just four minutes later, the hosts doubled their advantage. Leading scorer Hombessa surged past his defender before confidently finishing to make it 2–0. His celebrations earned him a booking, but the Salts were firmly in control.
Oba’s afternoon ended through injury after 68 minutes, with Jason Vincent replacing him. Luis Oliveira was then forced off four minutes later, with Daniel Conteh introduced.
There was a warm reception in the 78th minute for defender Anthonios Nazareth, who returned after a lengthy spell out with a shoulder injury. He replaced Harry Grant to a round of applause from the home support.
Luke Miller later replaced Charlie Miller as Epsom looked to see out the game.
Yateley pulled a goal back in the second minute of stoppage time with a breakaway finish to make it 2–1 and briefly raise hopes of a comeback.
The Salts responded emphatically.
Deep into added time, Hombessa broke clear and calmly drilled a low finish into the corner for his second goal of the afternoon, sealing a deserved 3–1 victory.
It was an encouraging performance from Epsom & Ewell, who combined attacking threat with resilience to record their first home win of the season and collect all three points.
