Cards edge final warm-up match

St Albans City 0 Woking 1
Pre-season friendly
1st August 2015

Woking played their fifth and final pre-season friendly away to Vanarama National South side St Albans City.

Playing conditions were good, the sky being overcast and the temperature nigh-on perfect for a game of football on the first day of August.

With a number of triallists on view again, Woking kicked up the slope in the first half. It was an even opening fifteen minutes with both sides struggling to find any cohesion. Woking were the first to threaten with a pass out of defence to Tobisho Silva, who had impressed on his first outing for the club at home to Leyton Orient the previous Tuesday night. His square pass was put over the bar by Keiran Murtagh from the edge of the penalty area.

It was Silva again who then worked his way into the box but he lost control of the ball before he could inflict any real damage on the home goal.

The best chance of the half, however, fell to the Saints. The ball was worked through midfield and eventually found Sam Corcoran totally in the clear, but he screwed his shot wide of the left-hand post.

Woking continued to have most of the ball but failed to carve out any clear chances as the half finished goalless.

Half-time: St Albans City 0 Woking 0

Giuseppe Sole replaced Silva at the break and with John Goddard playing a more central midfield role, it seemed to give the side a better balance.

Seven minutes into the half, the Cards took the lead with what turned out to be the only goal of the game. Triallist Bruno Andrade was brought down as he cut into the box and the ever reliable Scott Rendell stepped up for the spot kick. With the now familiar late stutter in his run-up, Woking's ace marksman calmly slotted home down the middle of the goal as the home 'keeper dived to his right.

Just past the hour mark, the home side made a multitude of substitutions, to keep the training match theme alive. Woking also made three changes and proceed to enjoy their best spell of the match, the pick of the action being when Goddard's shot dropped onto the bar with the 'keeper beaten.

Apart from the odd occasion, the Woking defence was rarely threatened as the visitors continued to look comfortable as they went in search of a second goal.
A good build-up from midfield and an incisive cross from Jake Caprice found Rendell but he was just offside.

Another cross from the marauding Caprice then found Sole in space but his flick-on was denied by a good save from Tom Coulton as the visitors continued to enjoy most of the possession in the dying embers of the match.

A good workout for Garry Hill and his players then, as they make final preparations for the long trip north next weekend for the opening league fixture at relegated Tranmere Rovers.

One piece of excellent news for Cards' fans yesterday was the confirmation that central defender Brian Saah had finally signed for the club.

Woking: Jake Cole (Nick Hamann 70) Jake Caprice, Dave Martin, Brian Saah, Ismail Yakubu, Keiran Murtagh, Godfrey Poku, (Mark Ricketts 70) John Goddard, Bruno Andrade (Charles Banya 70), Scott Rendell, Tobisho Silva (Giuseppe Sole 45)