Merton defeated Croygas comprehensively with an impressive performance in Raynes Park.  Croygas finished 3rd in the division below Merton last season, behind the promoted Carshalton Athletic and Staines Lammas.  The hosts opened strongly and Louis Barron-Pell soon broke clean through but shot straight at the keeper.  Jack Malin then shot narrowly wide, before Jamie Streat finally opened the scoring on 8 minutes with a fine shot from inside the area. This sparked Croygas into action and they had several near misses as the Merton central defence was thrown into disarray by long balls launched into the path of pacy forwards.  In contrast Adam Marie and Spud Bradley looked solid on the flanks.  Jamie Streat and Daniel Johnson shined in midfield, but failed to make a penetrating pass as Croygas defended deep and in large numbers.  Five minutes before the break Craig Stanley managed to burst through on the left and shot narrowly wide.  However, Croygas continued to look the more likely to score, and did so 3 minutes later when a long ball split the Merton defence for a forward to race clear and equalise.  Merton went back in front immediately, when Daniel Johnson put in Jamie Streat who finished cleverly.  Even then there was still time for Jack Malin to hook the ball clear after a Croygas corner resulted in a goalmouth scramble.

Croygas motivated by their good first-half performance reverted to 4-3-3 in search of goals, but this created more space in the middle of the park that was soon exploited by Daniel Johnson and Jamie Streat.  Five minutes into the restart Daniel Johnson put Craig Stanley away on a blistering run that culminated in Merton's third goal.  Three minutes later the game was put beyond Croygas's reach when Craig Stanley netted from just outside the box after a great pass from Daniel Johnson.  Croygas now appeared to fold as Jack Malin battled through the last defender on the left, but elected to shoot straight at the keeper rather than slip it inside to the unmarked Craig Stanley.  This was reciprocated moments later when Craig Stanley decided to take on the entire Croygas defence before losing possession.  The fifth and final Merton goal arrived on 44 minutes when Eddie Lyne fired home from just inside the box following a slick passing move involving Daniel Johnson and Craig Stanley.  Croygas still caused problems on the counterattack, and Billy Kelly, Jonathan Kehoe and Lewis West each managed to deny the opposition with last-ditch tackles. The last ten minutes saw Merton dominate, and Jamie Streat went close with a low shot after a mazy run through the Croygas penalty area.  Apart from that Merton never really looked like adding to their score because most of their attacks ended when players decided to try and dribble their way through the disorganised Croygas defence.

Reporter's man of the match: Daniel Johnson

Team: Warren McCourt; Adam Marie, Lewis West, Jonathan Kehoe, Spud Bradley; Eddie Lyne, Jamie Streat, Daniel Johnson(c), Jack Malin; Craig Stanley, Louis Barron-Pell. Sub: Billy Kelly, George King