A SERIES of self-inflicted errors left Hampton & Richmond Borough still searching for their first win of the season after being downed 3-0 at home by Wealdstone last night.
Joel Ledgister (pictured) was sent off for two handballs, conceding the penalty from which Sean Cronin opened then scoring, before Tommy Brewer scored an own goal against his former side, and a defensive blunder by Alan Bray let in Peter Dean for Wealdstone's third.
For all that, it was Hampton who made the early running, Ledgister shooting wide and Charlie Moone heading straight at Jonathan North, while Moone and Tom Hickey both had shots deflected wide.
Then came the moment Ledgister would come to regret later, deliberately trying to bat the ball into the net Maradona-style to earn his first booking
Suddenly the Stones were on top, as Jerome Okimo and Wes Parker both slid in on a loose ball in the Hampton area which went wide, before an Elliott Godfrey header against his former side was saved, and Jey Siva was just wide with a 20 yard pearler.
At the other end, Moone's weak shot was easily saved after James Simmonds' pass opened up the Stones' defence, but then came Ledgister's second moment of madness.
The striker handled a shot from a Wealdstone corner, leading to his second yellow and a Stones penalty which Cronin converted, although the referee ignored protests that Ledgister had not yet left the pitch. According to the laws of the game, the penalty should have been re-taken, but to be fair, the only protests came from the crowd.
The 11 men scented blood, with Pett testing Rodney Chiweshe from the edge of the area before Bray blocked in the area from Scott McGleish, who then forced a superb save from Chiweshe following Jack Hutchinson's pass.
Hampton were still a threat though, and North had to be alert to tip over a deflected looping shot from Hickey, while at the other end, Pett fired just over after cutting in from the left.
Midway through the second half it was 2-0 when a deep corner cannoned in off the unfortunate Brewer at the far post.
Hampton should have halved the deficit when a brilliant overhead kick from Moone was matched by an equally impressive save from North, and instead it was the visitors who scored next to kill th game off.
With time running out, a long ball forward had Bray, under pressure from McGleish, in two minds as Chiweshe came to gather, the Hampton defender opting to take the ball away from his keeper before being robbed by sub Peter Dean near the sideline, who had a clear run on goal but still finished neatly.
