United were beaten at home 2-0 by Boreham Wood in Saturday afternoon’s game.
The Iron came into the game having made three changes from Monday’s game against FC Halifax Town. Liam Feeney and Marcus Carver returned to the side and also Rob Apter made his first start after joining on loan from Blackpool.
Scunthorpe were the ones to get the game underway and the first chance fell to the visitors. A few minutes into the game a cross was whipped into the Iron area by Dion Kelly-Evans; the cross looked dangerous but Marcus Dewhurst positioned himself well and claimed the ball with ease.
Wood continued to get opportunities early on and they almost took the lead within the first ten minutes. A powerful, low cross was directed towards the six-yard-box and almost found a Boreham Wood player at the back post. Jai Rowe was aware to the situation and stretched to meet the ball before his opponent and he cleared the danger.
Tyrone Marsh had an opportunity seconds after when he found himself in acres of space at around six-yards-out from Dewhurst’s goal. He met a good cross into the penalty area but he couldn’t keep his header down and his effort flew over the crossbar much to Dewhurst’s relief.
The Iron’s first opportunity of the game came from a good run down the left-hand flank by Apter. He found himself with space and time on the left-side of the pitch. He drove at the Wood defence and managed to beat one defender and get himself into the penalty area. He took the shot on with his left-foot. However, he was closed down quickly by a Boreham Wood defender and this made the angle for the shot tight. Apter struck his shot low and hard and it looked to be heading for the bottom-right-hand corner but Nathan Ashmore was quickly down to his left to make a smart save and keep the scores level.
After a flowing team move, Marcus Carver teed up Colin Daniel for a shot on the edge of the away side’s area. Daniel had space in front of him so he had the option to drive into the area or take on the shot from distance. He opted for the latter and he chose to go for power instead of precision. It was the wrong option and his effort blazed over the bar and missed the target by some distance.
The visitors almost created a goalscoring opportunity in the 27th minute of the game. A long ball over the top of the Iron defence nearly found its way to Josh Rees who was just inside the penalty area. Dewhurst came rushing off his line to deal with the danger. It was a 50/50 between the two players and if Dewhurst had lost out it was almost certainly a goal for the visitors. In the process, Dewhurst was flung into the air by Rees but the referee waved the game on.
Marsh was the player who was presented with the most chances in the first half of the game. He worked a bit of space down the right-hand-flank and he managed to quickly get his shot away from a very tight angle. His shot was on target and Dewhurst was forced into an acrobatic save. He got a strong left-hand to the shot to direct the ball around the post and out for a corner.
In the 40th minute, Rowe took on a shot from around 35-yards-out and he forced Ashmore into a save. His shot from range looked to be heading wide but Ashmore was unsure and he got a touch on the ball to make sure and the ball rolled out for a corner. The Iron couldn’t capitalise on the resultant corner and Boreham Wood cleared their lines.
Towards the end of the half, Apter once again ran at the heart of the Wood defence and managed to get another shot off in the penalty area. His shot travelled through the legs of one of the defenders which made it difficult for Ashmore. His shot almost found the bottom corner but Ashmore was quickly down to turn the ball away from any danger. This chance concluded the half.
The visitors were the ones to get the second half underway. Immediately, they played a long ball forward to try and catch the Iron out but Feeney was the one to win the arial duel and also a foul. The idea was good from the away side but the execution was poor.
In the 50th minute, United should have gone ahead in the game. A cross into the area was missed by Ashmore and Feeney met the ball at the back post. Feeney took a touch and then took on a quick shot with his left-foot. It flew over the crossbar though and went out for a goal kick.
Wood found themselves with the biggest opportunity of the game so far in the 54th minute. A neat exchange on the right-hand flank set Lee Ndlovu free. He found himself in a one-on-one situation with Dewhurst. However, he took too long on the ball and this allowed Andrew Boyce to come across and make a last-ditch sliding tackle and clear the danger.
Minutes later, Boreham Wood found the first goal of the game. A powerful header by Marsh was dealt with by a spectacular save from the Iron keeper, Dewhurst. However, the ball fell right into the path of Ndlovu who latched onto the loose ball and slotted the ball into the bottom corner from six-yards-out. This put the visitors in the driving seat.
The momentum was with Boreham Wood and they used this to go and grab a second goal. Marsh drove down the right-hand flank and he made his way into the penalty area. The ball was bundled into Dewhurst’s net. This gave the away side some breathing room.
United almost halved the deficit after a shot from the edge of the area by substitute Elliott Whitehouse nearly beat goalkeeper Ashmore. He took the shot on and it was powerful and precise. The ball looked to be travelling into the bottom corner but once again the Boreham Wood keeper was down to make another strong save.
Wood nearly got a third goal later on when substitute Daniel Elliott took on a shot from the edge of the area. Dewhurst dealt with the first shot well but he parried the ball into the path of an onrushing Boreham Wood player. Dewhurst reacted superbly and he flung himself at the feet of the striker and somehow managed to turn the ball behind for a corner. An excellent double save from the young Iron keeper kept them in the hunt.
Daniel was the next United player to have a shot at the target. Cameron Wilson chested the ball down to Daniel on the edge of the area and he took the shot on first time and on the half volley. He decided to hit the ball low and hard to try and catch Ashmore out but the keeper was once again very aware and he dived to his right and claimed the ball easily.
Substitute Alfie Beestin tested his look in the 88th minute when he took on a shot from 20-yards-out. He had the time and space to unleash a shot but his shot flew over the bar. That concluded the game.
IRON: Dewhurst, Boyce, Feeney (Wilson, 82), Nuttall, Carver (Beestin, 69), Rowe, Taft, Butterfield, Daniel, Apter, Fletcher (Whitehouse, 62).
IRON SUBS NOT USED: Foster, Gallimore.
BOREHAM WOOD: Ashmore, Kelly-Evans, Ilesanmi, Evans, Rees, Ndlovu, Marsh (Elliott, 72), Fyfield (Stephens, 82), Lewis, Payne, Brunt (Ricketts, 77).
BOREHAM WOOD SUBS NOT USED: Newton, Williams.
ATTENDANCE: 2,193.