10 man ... No 9 man Kettering slaughtered

Kettering prepare for this a home fixture short of the requisite 11 men needed for a full team. Despite this shortage they took the game to Leamington at times in the first half. However it was Leamington that got the breakthrough 10 minutes into the game. Caught short at the back Kettering were unable to prevent the first goal.
The lead however was short lived with Kettering soon putting the Leamington defence u dear pressure. A quick free hit on the edge of their 'D' saw Tom Ward on in on goal. A net pull back, a bit of luck and a bobbled shot resulted in an equaliser much deserved. Tom celebrated his rare goal like a hero.
Kettering continued to give as good as they got but soon suffered from their numerical disadvantage when Leamington broke out of defence and after only a few passes hit the Kettering 'D'. The resulting goal a blow for a team working hard. Not long after Kettering had another opportunity to equalise but the deflected effort by Simon Chambers flew narrowly over the bar. This was to prove the last attack of real meaning for a Kettering team beginning to find the going harder. Leamington once more found themselves in the Kettering goalmouth and somehow managed to scramble one through the narrowest of gaps between the goalies feet.
1-3 down at half time.
Although Kettering came out in the second half with hopes of fighting for the match these were quickly dashed when their lone forward limped off with damaged hamstrings, leaving them 2 men short. In the first half with 10 men Kettering had only been a little behind Leamington in play, now in the second half with only 9 men they were left chasing shadows. Disputes putting in a lot of work and effort the numerical advantage was too great and Leamington proceeded to punch through the holes with regularity.
The final score of 1-9 was harsh on a hard working Kettering team but not really unexpected.