Second half super show against Stamford keeps Bedford Town title bid on course

The race to the title is hotting up, with just six points separating the top six sides.

Halesowen won their game and stay top, with Bedford holding second place, just losing out on goal difference.

Kettering are just one point behind, after drawing with AFC Telford, who are two points adrift.

Saturday’s visitors came to the Eyrie on the back of an unbeaten run of seven matches and clean sheets in the latter three games.

Carl Mensah was back in the starting line up, and 18-year-old Jonathan MacAuley, on loan from Watford was making his debut in goal after Luton Town brought Jameson Horlick’s loan spell to an end.

The game could have gone differently in the first minute when a pass found Jake Duffy on his own in the area.

The striker fluffed his lines and got the ball caught between his feet, and the defence reorganised to avert a potentially disastrous start.

Stamford took the game to Bedford early on, and a corner on four minutes gave MacAuley his first touch of the game, as he punched the kick away.

Another Stamford corner a little while later was defended, played back in, half cleared, then hit over the bar by Lee Shaw.

One attack saw Leon Lobjoit defending with a deft flick that took out two players before he hit it upfield for Ryan Blake, but Thomas Jackson came racing 10 yards out of his area to sweep up.

As the game opened up, Kai Sanchez-Tonge volleyed wide, while an away defender put in a timely interception to deny Eddie Panter.

A shot from Lobjoit then went wide, and another corner to Stamford was dealt with by Lewis Hilliard.

But four minutes after the restart Bedford finally took the lead, when the ball wasn’t cleared properly after a corner and Junior Gyamfi hit a sweet shot from the edge of the area that beat Jackson but not the bar.

In the crowded area, Lobjoit reacted fastest as the ball dropped and directed it into the net.

An expected reply from the visitors never materialised, and it was Bedford dictating play.

Just after the hour, Jackson saved from Lobjoit, but in the 68th minute the keeper could do nothing to prevent Bedford’s second goal as a diagonal cross from Panter into the area was perfectly headed down by Mensah for Jack Davies to slot home from the edge of the six yard area.

MacAuley made his first real save of the game with just 15 minutes left, when guarding his near post from a tight angled effort from Sanchez-Tonge.

With just six minutes remaining, a lovely little through pass from Gyamfi, as he was racing forward, found Lobjoit, and from just outside the area Bedford’s top scorer lifted the ball over the advancing Jackson to bag his brace, and give the Eagles a 3-0 lead.

Substitute Bruno Andrade added a fourth in the 89th minute, setting himself up for a clear sight of goal and curling the ball past Jackson.

Bedford nearly went nap in the fifth minute of added time when a poor clearance from Jackson went straight to Lobjoit, but the keeper redeemed himself by narrowing the angle to force Lobjoit to hit his shot just past the post.

Bedford travel into Suffolk visiting play-off chasing Leiston on Saturday.