Boreham Wood enjoyed a comprehensive 5-1 win over St Margaretsbury, to progress into the next round of the Herts Senior Cup at Meadow Park.

 There were first competitive Wood goals for Connor Smith, Brad Ash and Sorba Thomas in an entertaining performance.

Tom Champion and Gozie Ugwu also got themselves on the scoresheet, against the hardworking Essex Senior League side.

Luke Garrard put out a strong team for the cup tie, with Fred Burbidge in goal and Bradley Ash joining Ugwu up front. There were also starts for Manny Parry, Smith and Justin Shaibu.

Ash made a bright start to the game and was running at Prince Manu with pace. He pulled it back to Champion, who found Femi Ilesanmi, but his cross was blocked.

The first effort of the game fell to Shaibu, who shifted past his marker and fired from range, but Brad Robinson held the shot.

A second chance fell shortly after, as a cross pinballed around the box, Jamal Fyfield stabbed at it, but his effort was blocked and cleared.

Ilesanmi done well to keep the ball in play down the left and whipped it in for Ash, but the ‘keeper claimed his shot.

The goal finally came shortly before the half hour mark, thanks to a slick move. Ugwu received the ball out wide and delivered a superb cross into the box, which Smith smashed home.

A second followed less than a minute later. It once again came from the left wing and this time it was Ilesanmi who swung the cross in, and Ash was on the end of it, to head past Robinson.

The away side had their first real chance of the game, thanks to a stinging long-range effort from Luke Marshall, that crashed against the post and out.

A slick one-two between forwards Ash and Ugwu released the former down the right, but he could only slide his effort past the post, from a tight angle.

There was a close call for the Wood on the brink of half-time, as St Margaretsbury saw an effort crash off the woodwork and then the post, before going out.

The Wood had their third on the hour mark, thanks to substitute Thomas. The winger darted into the box to meet Ricky Shakes’ timed cross and tucked it into the bottom corner.

However, the away side pulled one back shortly after. There was a mix-up in the Wood defence that handed former BW PASE Academy player Theo Costa the ball and he tucked it past Burbidge from close range.

Thomas had injected further pace and creativity into the side and swung a dangerous ball in from the left, that Ugwu met, but it was headed clear.

Still in search of a goal himself, Ugwu then met another ball in the box and twisted an effort just shy of the post.

The Wood missed an opportunity to further add to their lead in the 82nd minute, when Robinson saved Ugwu’s penalty, following a foul on Keiran Murtagh.

However, the forward finally got the goal his play deserved with just a minute of regular time to go. Thomas added an assist to his goal-scoring performance, swinging a low cross in for Ugwu, who swept it home.

He nearly had a second assist just a minute later, after backheeling the ball to Mark Ricketts on the edge of the area, but his powerful shot was narrowly wide.

A fifth and final goal was added deep into injury time, when Champion got onto the end of Murtagh’s corner and powered a header past Robinson.

The Wood: Burbidge, Woodards, Ilesanmi, Parry, Champion ©, Murtagh, Ash (Thomas 54’), Fyfield, Ugwu, Smith (Ricketts 70’), Shaibu (Shakes 54’)

Subs not used: Huddart, Stephens

St Margaretsbury: Robinson, Webb, Lowen, Fletcher (Hayden), Cordara-Soanes, Marshall, Scully (Costa), Fash, Ferrigno, Cassidy-Sinclair

Subs not used: Palmer, Nightinghe, Laurence

Goals:

The Wood: Smith 28’ Ash 29’, Thomas 61’, Ugwu 89’, Champion 90+’

St Margaretsbury: Costa 68’

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