Team news: There were returns for Alex Kozakis, Bobby Price, Kalvin Morath-Gibbs, Mickel Miller and Ricky Korboa. Brendan Murphy-McVey was back among the substitutes following injury.
The game started at a frenetic pace as both teams pressed when out of possession and Tommy Bradford was on the receiving end of two early rough challenges.
A lovely one-touch move involving Ricardo Panton, Paris Hamilton-Downes and Ricky Korboa the originator eventually bombing forward on six minutes, but Nick Reeves was booked for cynically hauling our man down.
 |
| Jahmahl King beats Kenny Pogue in the air |
The first real shot in anger came from the visitors on 14 minutes but centre back Craig Cloke's ambitious 40 yarder went way off target.
Korboa then spotted a forward dart by Mickel Miller and threaded a neat through ball for his teammate to latch onto, but goalkeeper Joe Mant read the situation and cleared the ball away on the edge of his box.
Peter Adeniyi won a free kick 25 yards from goal on 19 minutes but Bradford's curled effort just went the wrong side of Mant's left-hand post.
Matt Newman managed to isolate Jahmahl King on a long crossfield ball into our box on 26 minutes but the midfielder had to eventually settle for teeing up Sam Adams on the edge whom guided a first-time shot into the arms of Kozakis.
We almost took the lead on 32 minutes as, after some patient build-up around Town's box, Adeniyi took aim from 20 yards. The ball seemed destined to nestle in the top corner but Mant spectacularly tipped it away at full stretch.
And the next real action came in the form of Town's opener five minutes later - a stray pass by Panton was seized upon by Adams whom drove forwards before unleashing a 20 yard shot that left the wrong-footed Kozakis stranded.
HALF-TIME: 0 - 1
Ronald Sobowale was handed his league debut in place of Korboa at the start of the second-half but we made a nightmare start to proceedings.
A long ball over the top was guided back to Kozakis by Kalvin Morath-Gibbs but Liam King hunted our keeper down and the pair tangled - the referee said our man hauled the striker back by the shirt and produced a red card.
As we had no sub keeper on the bench, Morath-Gibbs donned the gloves but he could do nothing to stop Adams from scoring his, and Town's, second of the game via the penalty spot.
 |
| Morath-Gibbs stepped in between the sticks |
We responded a few minutes later with a Bradford free kick into their box but Adeniyi's header dropped the wrong side of the far post.
Then Bobby Price ventured forward and gathered a weak clearance but his slightly deflected shot was easily gathered by Mant.
Murphy-McVey sealed his comeback from injury by coming on in the 68th minut, while Town's forwards were denied by two offisde flags until they made it third time lucky on 71 minutes.
A fizzed pass to Kenny Pogue saw him burst past Hamilton-Downes but Panton managed to get a foot on his low cross. Liam King kept harrying for possession and he eventually squeezed a shot past our prone defender and make-shift keeper from close range.
We won a corner a few minutes later and Miller headed Murphy-McVey's deep delivery back into the six-yard box but Mant plucked the ball out from in front of Bradford.
The lively Sobowale displayed a neat flick and burst past Josh Burchell on 81 minutes and his cross from the right seemed to be destined to be cleared by a defender whom miscued his kick, but Miller was set to capitalise and the ball keeping going across the area.
And our last real opportunity for a goal came two minutes later as Sobowale and Miller combined to get Bradford in on goal but his left-footed shot just went the wrong side of Mant's near post.
More photos from the game are available here.
Next up: Tooting and Mitcham Utd arrive on Monday 26th December before we visit Walton Casuals on Saturday 31st December.
Carshalton Athletic: Kozakis; Price (Aikhionbare - 90), King, Morath-Gibbs, Hamilton-Downes (c); Panton, Adeniyi, Bradford, Korboa (Sobowale - 46); Miller, Phillips (Murphy-McVey - 68)
Unused subs: Henry, Healy
Booked: Price, Korboa
Sent off: Kozakis
Hythe Town: Mant, Aboagye, Burchell, Johnson, Cloke, Reeves, Cook, Adams (Webster - 86), Pogue (A May - 84), King (Mulrooney-Skinner - 84), Newman
Unused subs: Sawyer, S May
Goals: Adams (37 and 53 p), King (71)
Booked: Newman, Webster
Attendance: 206