Knaphill continued their impressive start to the season with an emphatic 3-0 victory at home to Sandhurst Town in the Combined Counties Premier Division South.

The final scoreline didn’t tell the full story of the match at Redding Way though, as the visitors created plenty of chances but failed to capitalise. Knaphill, on the other hand, were clinical on the counter-attack, taking advantage of key moments to score through Ross Cheek, Ben Mitchell and Rahman Ajibola.

Knaphill's opener came in the second minute when George Frith held off a Sandhurst player and played the ball to Aidan King, who found Jack Carrod on the left-hand side. Carrod passed centrally to Mitchell, who saw the run of Cheek, and Cheek lobbed the goalkeeper from 25 yards out with a composed finish.

In response, Sandhurst applied immediate pressure and nearly equalised in the fifth minute with a long-range shot that forced Sam Gray into a fingertip save, tipping the ball over the bar.

Sandhurst continued to create opportunities, and looked particularly dangerous in the 24th minute when Shane Qoloni found himself one-on-one with Gray. Still, the Knaphill keeper stayed big and made a crucial save to deny the visitors.

Despite Sandhurst's dominance in possession and chances, Knaphill's defence held firm, and the home side went into half-time with a 1-0 lead.

Adam Maadani was booked for Sandhurst in the 32nd minute, and King and Frith picked up yellow cards for Knaphill before the break.

The second half saw Sandhurst continue to create opportunities. In the 50th minute, a shot across Knaphill's goal from the right-hand side forced Gray into another key save, tipping the ball around the post.

However, it was Knaphill who struck again moments later on the counter. Mitchell, picking up the ball halfway between the halfway line and the edge of the penalty box, weaved past three Sandhurst defenders and unleashed a low shot into the bottom left-hand corner from outside the box to make it 2-0 in the 51st minute.

Despite their strong attacking play, Sandhurst struggled to break down Knaphill's defence and squandered several opportunities to get back into the game.

Qoloni was a constant threat, driving at Knaphill's backline and creating chances, but his efforts and Sandhurst's finishing couldn't find a way past Gray.

Knaphill sealed the result in the 81st minute with a textbook counter-attack. Mitchell picked up the ball on the halfway line, drove forward and beat three Sandhurst defenders before squaring it to Ajibola, who calmly slotted the ball into the right-hand corner to make it 3-0.

Sandhurst were left to rue their wasteful finishing and Gray’s excellent goalkeeping as the Knappers claimed all three points.

Knaphill: Gray, Orisatoki (Bower 60), Glover, Frith (Ajibola 59), Burnham, McLean, Cheek (Frempong-Manso 83), Watts (c), Carrod, King, Mitchell (Safou-Mbouma 92).

Unused substitute: Cooper-Smith.

Sandhurst Town: Scott, Maadani, Phillips, Huhulea, Elliott, Brewer (Allison 66), Qoloni, Sell, Black (c), Fashanu, Carter (Kamuabo 67).

Unused substitutes: Varns, Bath, Brough.

Attendance: 88.

By James Carpenter