Ashford returned home from Northwood on Saturday frustrated and ultimately defeated by their hosts and, while the Woods’ second half performance was noteworthy, the manner in which they achieved the win will be a source of angst for Paul Burgess and his team.

At the interval, Northwood made tactical changes which included the introduction of veteran former AFC Wimbledon forward Rob Ursell and whatever home manager Gary Meakin said during the break had the desired effect.  Northwood equalised four minutes into the second half when a low cross from Jonathan Constant was tucked away by Oliver Hawkins.  That was part of a twenty-minute spell where Northwood were dominant and Hawkins almost added a second goal in a one-on-one with Paul McCarthy, who made the save at the second attempt.

Ashford were creating opportunities on the counter-attack and Mark Bitmead went close twice, while Brown fizzed a 30 yard strike just over the bar.  Skipper Russell Canderton also had an effort cleared off the line as his team had a good spell of their own.

However, eight minutes from time, Northwood snatched the points in a manner that will have hurt players, management and supporters alike.  A corner caused problems for the visiting defence, who presented Craig White with an opportunity to bundle home.  Although Ashford enjoyed some pressure in the closing minutes, Northwood didn't really look like losing the lead and they have strengthened their play-off push with this win.

After the match, Captain Russell Canderton (pictured) spoke to the Official Website.  You can either download the interview or play the file using the streaming player, below.