Christie hits 50 as AFC seal a century of points

Victory for AFC Dunstable at Welwyn Garden City on Monday brought up a century of points to round off a season to remember.

Even though it was both team’s finale, the home side wanted to secure fourth place and the visitors were desperate to break the 100 point mark.

AFC manager Steve Heath decided to ring the changes for the game as regulars Courtney Massay, Bill Morgan, Jermaine Hall and Josh Humbert were rested after a tough season.

It was also a rare sight to see head coach Matt Langston don the gloves, with Ricky Perks unavailable.

The only talking point in the first 25 minutes was the injury to the referee who had to be replaced.

Then all of a sudden the game broke into life on the half hour.

It looked like Langston had dropped a clanger when he failed to collect a shot on his goal and the ball fell to the hungry Welwyn forwards, but he redeemed himself by making two great saves.

Within a minute BJ Christie nearly gave AFC the leadbut his header went straight into the arms of the Citizens keeper Joe Croft.

As half time approached, Christie was finally rewarded with his persistence, on hand to slot the ball home after Charlie Gorman’s header was saved. It was a landmark for Christie as that goal was his 50th of the season.

The second period saw AFC settle into a comfortable position as their defence kept the dangerous Welwyn forwards quiet, while at the other end Croft denied Frater and Roy Byron with two smart saves.

Another decent AFC move saw sub Jermaine Hall come close before Nathan Frater danced through their defence, but could not get his shot away.

All emphasis now turned to try and get skipper Moses Olaleye’s first goal of the season.

He was encouraged to shoot at every opportunity and with 90 minutes on the clock, he came mighty close, as when he did his Mo shuffle, his strike hit the upright.

A pleased Heath was impressed with his team’s commitment as he said: “This could have been a let down but the players showed why they are champions. Their attitude was first class and to secure 102 points shows they fully deserve the accolade.”

AFC: Langston, Darby, N Carney, Griffiths, Cashman, Jones, Gorman, Olaleye, Christie, Byron, Frater. Subs used: Hall, Morgan, Massay. Subs not used: Humbert, Silvestri.