The under 16s travelled south to sunny Storrington this weekend.
With a bare eleven players the team had an uphill task against a competitive Storrington side that they had lost 3-1 to in a pre-season friendly just two weeks ago.
Cranleigh started the game well, playing some very neat passing football and against the run of play goalkeeper Matt Forrester was called upon to make an excellent save with his feet after just 8 minutes.
But the home side took the lead 10 minutes later when a high looping cross-cum-shot got by the better of Forrester as he was beaten at his far post.
With Tom Barker, Callum Price and Charlie Dyer getting the upper hand in a midfield battle that was great to watch from the touch lines, it wasn’t long before Cranleigh equalized after Ben Cole had slotted a delightful ball through to striker Maxim Sheik who finished superbly from 10 yards.
With no subs to call upon Cranleigh re-grouped at half time and started strongly after the break only to find themselves 2-1 down before long after a string finish from Storrington’s substitute striker.
The game hit a bit of a lull towards the end of the half as both teams battled hard and tired. Cranleigh changed tactics with ten minutes to go, pushing Centre back Callum Jones further forward in an attempt to win the midfield battle, and with just one minute on the clock remaining Charlie Dyer took the ball and dribbled through the Storrington defence to equalise with a strong shot across goal from a tight angle.
The goal and subsequent point was thoroughly deserved as the team had worked very hard, demonstrating fantastic spirit and great togetherness throughout the entire match. The travelling Cranleigh supporters gave the team a great reception as they left the pitch, having been entertained with some excellent passing football and a great amount of effort and endeavor.
