Tonbridge (2) 3 Udoji 18, Elder 37, Nelson 52
Needham Market (0) 4 Sands 49, Ingram 63, Dobson 77, Nunn 85
Attendance: 555
Entrance: £6 Senior
Programme: £2.50
Mileage: 38/6,950
Tonbridge and Needham Market, sitting third and fourth in the table, separated only by goal difference, had all the makings of a close encounter, but at half-time the difference between the sides could easily have been third and 14th, such was the home side's superiority. But an injury to Anthony Di Bernardo was about to change the game completely.
The visitors started reasonably well and it took a well-positioned Jack Parter to clear from the line as a glancing header from a corner was goal bound. But it was Tonbridge that opened the scoring after 18 minutes when a well-worked training ground routine from a corner saw Tom Phipp cross to the near post where the head of Ugo Udoji steered the ball home.
Tonbridge took control of the game with Luke Allen supplying a cross for Alex Akrofi to direct his shot at the goalkeeper and then driving over a shot. Hearts did go into mouths when Mitchell Nelson trod on the ball and nearly let in John Sands but recovered to clear to safety.
After 37 minutes, Tonbridge went 2-0 up when an inch perfect cross from Allen found the head of Nathan Elder for the striker's 50th goal for the club.
Just before the break, Di Bernardo went down injured and with his first kick of the ball following treatment it was clear that he would not be able to continue and was replaced by goalkeeping coach Stewart Copeland during the break.
Within three minutes of the restart Needham Market had reduced the deficit when a cross from the right found the head of Sands, who glancing header found the bottom corner.
The home side re-established their two goal advantage just three minutes later when Nelson headed in Nick Wheeler's corner, the goal being awarded after the linesman's flag indicated that the ball had crossed the line despite the efforts of a Needham defender on the line.
The game was to turn back towards the Suffolk side in the 55th minute when a hopeless misjudgement by Copeland led to Udoji committing a professional foul on the edge of the box and seeing red for his misdemeanour.
Down to 10 men, with no confidence in the goalkeeper behind them, Tonbridge descended into disarray. Defenders cleared long and desperately with ball retention further upfield becoming non-existent. It was only a matter of time before the Suffolk side would gain parity and this they did after 77 minutes when Luke Ingram surged inside from the right to finish with a shot into the bottom right hand corner with Copeland flat footed.
Any hopes that Tonbridge would salvage something from the game appeared to end when, five minutes from time, a cross from the right slipped from the grasp of Copeland to the waiting feet of Reece Dobson who gratefully fired into the unguarded net.
And yet Tonbridge might just have rescued a point in time added with two chances that fell, firstly to Luke Blewden who missed narrowly wide right and in the final act of the afternoon a Dan Thompson shot that was deflected away from the line by a defender.
Conceivably, these two sides could meet again in the play-off semi-finals. Tonbridge have won twice this season at Needham and now the Marketmen have taken the points away from Longmead, who's to say home advantage between these clubs is an advantage?
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