SOUTHERN LEAGUE

THE linesman's flag denied James Constable a fairytale return to Chippenham on Tuesday night.

The former Hardenhuish hitman headed past goalkeeper Chris Snoddy after 69 minutes, only to see his effort ruled out for offside.

That was the closest Constable came to scoring, but goals from his Walsall team-mates Tony Bedeau and Ishmel Demontagnac gave the Saddlers a comfortable 2-0 victory.

This mid-season friendly was arranged as part of the transfer deal that took Constable to the Bescott Stadium last November.

The result itself was immaterial however, and the night belonged to "Beano," who was made captain for the evening by manager Richard Money.

The former Bluebird emerged from the tunnel to a gracious round of applause from the fans who once worshiped him and a guard of honour from the Chippenham players.

Constable was kept reasonably quiet for most of the night, though he did create a goal for the lively Demontagnac with a weighted lob.

Despite not scoring, Constable said he was thrilled to return to the ground where he made his name as a Southern League striker.

He said: "It's nice to come back and see some old faces. I was hoping to come back and score but I guess it wasn't to be.

"I never thought for a second I was offside when I headed the ball in, but the linesman stuck his flag up."

Constable said it felt strange to walk into the away dressing room before the match. But after 12 months as a professional he said he wouldn't swap his new job for anything.

He said: "It was a little weird to play against the Chippenham boys and not with them.

"I had a great time here and the supporters were fantastic to me. They cheered me for every goal I scored.

"But now I'm doing something I always wanted to do. Every day is like a trial match in training because we're all competing for a new contract.

"It's tough but I really enjoy the challenge. It was nice to get 90 minutes tonight because it puts me in the shop window for the game on Saturday."

Constable revealed his team-mates had come up with a new nick-name for him, though they won't be winning any prizes for originality.

"Beano" has become "Chippy" for obvious reasons and has impressed everyone at Walsall in his first year as a professional.

Saddlers boss Richard Money said: "James is progressing nicely at Walsall and he's in our plans.

"He found it hard to break into the team at first because we have a few experienced strikers on our books, but he's made some telling contributions in the games he has started."

Chippenham manager Darren Perrin said Constable was "a credit to his family".

He said: "I really enjoyed working with James in the short time we had together.

"He was great for me and the rest of the lads were delighted to see him back here tonight.

"Everyone at Chippenham wishes him all the best for the future."