Tunbridge Wells v Ashford United. Southern Counties East Football League. 22nd of March 2014.

Tunbridge Wells  2       Ashford United 3

 

From Ashford United’s Milton Keynes Correspondent

 

 

It is strange to think that, as late in the season as the 22^nd of March, Ashford United went into the first really big test of the 2013-14 league campaign. There are some very useful sides in the Southern Counties East League, but Whyteleafe, Tunbridge Wells and Ashford have emerged as the three best teams in the division – and United have somehow managed to avoid meeting either of the other two, until this afternoon. (That excludes the two-legged meeting between Ashford and Wells in the League Cup, of course, which Ashford won 4-0 at Homelands, and 2-3 at the Culverden Stadium, for a 7-2 aggregate victory).

 

Although these three teams appear to be nailed on to occupy the top three positions at the end of the season, realistically, with Whyteleafe seemingly unstoppable at the top, the two Kent sides are fighting for the runners-up position. At the start of the day, Ashford trailed Tunbridge Wells by one point, with two games in hand – and were seven points behind ‘Leafe, with just the one game in hand.

 

Whatever the result of today’s match, this always promised to be a close game, and a good advert for football at this level – two strong teams, with plenty of players with Ryman League experience in their squad, and a game played in front of a proper crowd. Tunbridge Wells and Ashford are easily the best-supported teams in the League, and it was no surprise that today’s gate reached 359, Wells’ best gate in the SCEFL since October.

 

On the subject of gates, the crowd was greeted, today, by a pair of shiny, red turnstiles, which have apparently just been installed. Another innovation was the wooden infills in the red railing that surrounds the pitch – which will provide additional advertising space. These are all signs that Tunbridge Wells FC is preparing for sustainable progress up the football pyramid.

 

The pitch itself looked to be in excellent condition – a continuous, flat, green sward – but it actually played more bumpy than it looked, as Joe Mant was later to find out, to his cost.

 

Ashford Manager Paul Chambers named a strong starting eleven, but also named himself as one of the five substitutes, which betrayed a certain thinning in the personnel department, which has possibly been brought on by the club having had to play three games in five days, and four in the last eight. Ronnie Dolan was serving a suspension today, having been sent off against Beckenham Town, a fortnight ago. Other notable absentees were Kieran Byrne and Ben Jordan.

 

Preferred in attack today were Gary Mickelborough and Sam Conlon, with a midfield quartet of Gary Clarke (captaining the side, against his former club), Dave Cook, Adam Cuthbert and Tom Scorer. In Ben Jordan’s absence, Jordan Miller partnered Pat Kingwell in central defence, with Liam Whiting at left-back and Luke Cuthbert at right-back. Joe Mant was in goal, as usual. A strong bench included the alternative strike pairing of Jimmy Dryden and Buster Smissen (who have scored 19 goals between them, this season, and probably thousands in their career), plus Sam Fisher and Ian Wallace.

 

The Royal Tunbridge Wells bench also looked strong, including top scorer Jon Pilbeam, who had scored twelve goals in the season so far, and former Ashford Town and Ashford United striker Richard Sinden. (Evidently, Ugly Sister Larkin had told Sinders that he couldn’t go to the ball, and had to settle for being sub). There was also a familiar face in the Wells starting line-up – Joe Fuller, who was joint-top scorer (with ten goals) in Ashford Town’s final, 2009-10 season.

 

Another name that was of considerable interest to the home faithful was Rhys Lawson, who had been signed by Martin Larkin in mid-week. A player who can play on the wing or up front, Lawson soon looked the best player on the park, with most of Wells’ attacks being channelled through him, on the right flank.

 

However, it was from Ashford’s right flank that the first attack in the match was launched, in the first minute, and this resulted in Sam Conlon stooping low with a header, at the near post, but he was unable to squeeze the ball into the net. Two minutes later, the visitors, playing in their first-choice, green & white strip, were awarded a free-kick in the centre of the Tunbridge Wells half. Liam Whiting, after having been successful with a power-shot from a free-kick at Lordswood, on Thursday night, stepped up to try to repeat the trick – but this time his shot deflected off the wall of red shirts, and it was a comfortable take for goalkeeper Steve Lawrence. Within a few seconds, Tunbridge Wells had a free-kick in the Ashford half; this was floated long, to Perry Spackman, beyond the far post, but the big centre-half could not direct his header goalwards. Soon after, Jake Beecroft hit a low shot well wide of the Ashford goal.

 

The first sign that Rhys Lawson was going to give Ashford left-back Liam Whiting a difficult afternoon came in the seventh minute, when he beat his man with a great piece of trickery, and fired in a hard, low cross along the visitors’ 18-yard line. Andy Irvine met the ball with a first-time effort, but his shot went just wide of the angle of post and bar. Given that Liam Whiting had been given the hardest job, in trying to cope with Lawson, he had a pretty good game, battling hard, throughout the 90 minutes.

 

However, the Wells debutant had a hand in his side’s opening goal, forcing Whiting to concede a corner, on the right, in the eleventh minute. The resulting cross was well met by Perry Spackman, whose glancing header looped, seemingly in slow motion, just inside the far post. So, for the third successive match, and the third time in five days, of course, Ashford found themselves behind to an early goal.

 

The response from the visitors was for Dave Cook to play in a much more advanced position, virtually playing as a centre-forward, with Gary Mickelborough moving out to the right. Ashford certainly had plenty of possession in the Tunbridge Wells half, but were unable to bother the Wells ‘keeper.

 

When the home side launched an attack in the 35^th minute, it was rather against the run of play. This ended with a fluffed clearance from the Ashford defence presenting Lee Radford with a chance, inside the penalty area, but his low shot was straight at Joe Mant. Two minutes later, Dave Cook had his one and only sight of goal in the match – and this was not really more than a half-chance. The move might be described as “Route Two”, for those old enough to remember “Quiz Ball”, on the telly, as it began with Pat Kingwell, from a deep position, spreading the ball out wide, to Gary Mickelborough, who immediately sent in a cross to Cook, who was just outside the penalty area. The former Hythe Town captain hit the ball on the volley, but was wide of the mark.

 

Jake Beecroft hit a firm shot straight at Joe Mant, in the 39^th minute, and Adam Cuthbert hit a shot well wide of Lawrence’s goal, in the 41^st minute – but it was not until the final minute of the half that Ashford really looked likely to score. Gary Mickelborough went on a long run down the left, which took him from deep inside his own half, almost to the left corner flag, playing a couple of one-two’s with Sam Conlon, in the process. He eventually pulled the ball back to Adam Cuthbert, whose shot was deflected behind, for a corner, on the left. The resulting cross was met with a firm header by Jordan Miller, which crashed against the crossbar. The ball rebounded back into the melee in the goalmouth, and, in the confusion, the referee must have spotted an infringement, as he pointed to the penalty spot.

 

Joe Fuller obviously was not in agreement with the ref, and he received a yellow card for his protests – but it didn’t stop him from arguing his point, after the referee had put his card back in his pocket. So it was well inside the 48^th minute before Pat Kingwell was able to take the spot kick. He side-footed his effort low, to Lawrence’s left, only to see the ball rebound off the post. He was quick to latch onto the rebound, and turned the ball into the net, and raised his arms in celebration. The referee initially awarded the goal, but was soon in earnest conversation with the lino on the far side. Eventually, the goal was disallowed, on the grounds that Kingwell had made contact with the ball for a second time without it being touched by another player. This caused confusion among the crowd, with some, doubtless, not being familiar with this particular law, and others being unsure as to whether the ‘keeper had touched the ball onto the post. Nevertheless, the official version of the event was that Kingwell had hit his shot against the post, without a touch by Lawrence – in which case the decision to disallow the goal was the correct one.

 

The match restarted with a goal-kick, after which the referee blew his whistle for half time. It must have been a sickening blow to the visitors’ morale, thinking that they had equalised on the stroke of the interval, only to have this snatched away from them, and this after a half in which there was never very much between the two sides.

 

Elsewhere, things were going very much according to script, with Whyteleafe having opened the scoring against Fisher as early as the second minute.

 

Ashford started the second half very much on the front foot, and won a free-kick, wide on the left. Adam Cuthbert curled the ball into the penalty area, and it was headed away as far as Tom Scorer, who struck the ball beautifully, from just outside the penalty area, but his shot was just too high. In the 52^nd minute, Adam’s brother, Luke, sent a long, high, looping cross into the Wells penalty area, and ‘keeper Steve Lawrence judged it well, taking the ball just under the crossbar, inches from his far post. Dave Cook must have been listening to stories told to him by his grandfather, about how Nat Lofthouse used to score goals, as Cook bundled both man and ball into the net. What was acceptable in the 1940s and 1950s is certainly not allowed now, in these days of free-kicks being awarded when players fall over after the slightest contact – and Cookie was probably very fortunate to get away with not being shown a yellow card.

 

So it was in the context of a very bright start to the half from Ashford that disaster struck, in the 55^th minute – and this has to be every goalkeeper’s nightmare. Pat Kingwell was under no pressure when he fed a fairly gentle pass back to Joe Mant. The ball clearly must have bobbled at the instant that Joe attempted a clearance, as he sliced it just a few yards, to the feet of Andy Irvine, who had the very simple task of passing the ball into an empty net, for his seventh goal of the season.

 

This was another body blow to Ashford’s morale, and, if they needed any excuse to implode, at this point, having had such a busy schedule, then this was it. It is hugely to the lads’ credit that they never let this happen. Manager Paul Chambers also deserves a great deal of credit for immediately making the substitution that turned the game, replacing Tom Scorer with Jimmy Dryden.

 

Dryden’s first notable involvement was to set up Gary Mickelborough for Ashford’s equaliser, in the 62^nd minute. Jimmy met a long clearance from Joe Mant with a firm header, which went square and into the path of Mickelborough, in the centre, who side-footed the ball onto the underside of the bar. For the first time this afternoon, the rub of the green went in favour of the visitors, with the ball coming down just over the line, and bouncing up into the roof of the net.

 

This very much sparked Ashford’s revival, and was to be the first of three goals in 16 minutes. With 70 minutes on the clock, Sam Conlon sent in a cross from the left which was actually too deep, but Gary Mickelborough picked the ball up on the right wing. Gary’s attempted cross struck the arm of left-back Lewis Mingle, who was just inside the 18-yard box, and the referee had no hesitation in awarding Ashford a second penalty. Once again, there were prolonged protests from the Tunbridge Wells players, and Jon Pilbeam, who had earlier replaced Lee Radford, in the 67^th minute, was yellow-carded, for dissent. Pat Kingwell stepped up to take the kick, in spite of his earlier miss, and waited in position for what must have seemed to him several minutes, as the referee had a long conversation with his linesman. Eventually, the ref strolled across to Wells’ No.5 Scott Whibley, and showed him a yellow card, as well. It was actually in the 73^rd minute that Kingwell took the penalty, side-footing the ball low to Lawrence’s left, just as he had done at the end of the first half, but, this time, he found the corner of the net, and the match was all square, at 2-2.

 

Both managers made a substitution in the 75^th minute; Andy Irvine limped off, to be replaced by Richard Sinden, for Tunbridge Wells, and Buster Smissen replaced Sam Conlon, for Ashford. Then, what turned out to be the winning goal was scored in the 77^th minute. Jimmy Dryden once again got up well, winning a challenge in the air after Luke Cuthbert had played a long ball forward. This time, the ball was much closer to goalkeeper Lawrence, but Gary Mickelborough managed to bundle the ball past him, at the second attempt.

 

The remainder of the game became rather tetchy and untidy – which was precisely what suited the visitors. The final 15 minutes, or so, were certainly more notable for the referee’s decisions to award or not award free-kicks, and to show or not show a yellow card, than for clear-cut chances. It certainly seemed a very harsh decision to yellow card Jordan Miller for a push on Richard Sinden, in the 79^th minute, for what looked a simple case of Sinders playing for, and winning, a free-kick in the centre circle. In the 88^th minute, Perry Spackman committed a very similar foul on Buster Smissen, but was not punished.

 

The best chance for the home side to equalise came in the 89^th minute. Pat Kingwell blocked Joe Fuller’s attempted cross, at the expense of a corner – and Paul Chambers reacted by replacing Gary Mickelborough with Ian Wallace, presumably partly because he thought that Wallace’s height might be an asset in dealing with the forthcoming corner. When the corner, on the right was eventually taken, the ball was crossed deep into the Ashford area, but the defence managed to bundle the ball away, at the far post. Richard Sinden went down in the six-yard box, as a result of this defensive effort, but the referee waved away the penalty appeals.

 

A full eight minutes of injury time were played, mostly due to the time it took to treat Steve Lawrence, after he had gone down under Dave Cook’s earlier challenge, and to the break in play that followed Joe Mant having to be seen to, after he received a knock when jumping to collect the ball, in the 93^rd minute. When the referee finally brought proceedings to a halt, Steve Lawrence was hobbling around his penalty area, and Adam Cuthbert limped off the field to the dressing room, so a keenly-fought game had obviously taken its toll.

 

It was a strange game, in as much as we witnessed five goals and a penalty miss, but both goalkeepers had few saves to make. It was also a game in which Ashford rarely looked in full control, but the visitors were certainly the dominant force in the second half, and so deserved this hard-fought victory. Judging by the raucous celebrations by Paul Chambers and one or two of the Ashford players, at the end of the game, this was a win that meant a great deal to the squad.

 

Elsewhere, Whyteleafe completed a 7-2 victory over Fisher, with the game having been level at 2-2, at one point. With Ashford moving up into second place, as a result of this afternoon’s victory, Whyteleafe now have a lead of seven points, having played a game more than the Nuts & Bolts. The title race continues into next week, with Ashford playing away to Fisher on Monday and away to Corinthian on Wednesday, and Whyteleafe travelling to Greenwich Borough on Tuesday.

 

Beckenham Town v Ashford United. Southern Counties East Football League. 8th of March 2014.

Beckenham Town  4       Ashford United 2

 

From Ashford United’s Milton Keynes Correspondent

 

 

Today I had a day out in Beckenham. In marked contrast to last Saturday’s visit to Gillingham – no offence to Gillingham – Eden Park Avenue, home of Beckenham Town FC, is in the heart of middle-class South East London. No doubt it’s a hotbed of rugby union fans and UKIP supporters.

 

This was my first trip to Beckenham, and one I had been looking forward to, because, unlike some of the outfits in the Southern Counties East League, Beckenham Town is a well-established club, having been a fixture in this league since 1982. One benefit of this fixture for public transport users is that Eden Park Avenue is literally five minutes’ walk from Eden Park mainline rail station, which is, in turn, just 29 minutes’ ride from London Bridge Station. Also, for the first time this season, for me, planning the trip was made simpler by the fact that this was a league match, without the complication of the possibility of extra time and penalties to contend with. One of several extraordinary features of this 2013-14 season has been the proportion of cup games that Ashford have played. The totals, up to first thing this morning, were 15 league games, (with 14 wins and a defeat), and 17 cup games – meaning that there were 17 league games, plus the Kent Senior Trophy Final, still to come.

 

Whatever happens in that cup final – and we’ll be playing either today’s opponents, Beckenham Town, or mid-table Kent Invicta League side Fleet Leisure – the fact that we’ve made it to the final of this competition, in our first season at this level, is, in my opinion, an achievement worthy of commemoration. If we win the Trophy, it will certainly demand the etching of another tattoo !  But there is, (or was, this morning), still everything to play for in the SCEFL, which looks decidedly like it has become a two-horse race, between Ashford United and Whyteleafe. At the start of today’s game, Whyteleafe had a four-point lead, but having played two games more than Ashford. This lead at the top was stretched to four points only two days ago, in a Thursday night game in which ‘Leafe landed a comfortable 4-1 victory, at home to Beckenham. This result rather focused attention on how Ashford would get on, against the same team, today.

 

A few miles to the north, this afternoon, Whyteleafe had a very tough match, away to Phoenix Sports. In a “normal” season, we Ashford fans might regard that as an opportunity for our rivals to drop points, and so give us an advantage – but this is the season in which, incredibly, we are yet to meet any of the other top-five teams in the league, and so the fate of the SCEFL title, and the solitary promotion place, will be decided by how Ashford fare in the crucial matches at the top of the table that are to come, in the remaining few weeks of the season.

 

I am, personally, surprised that Ashford United has a realistic shout of winning the league, in our first season at this level. In common with many United fans, I suspect, I started this season merely hoping that the squad would be able to hold its own at Step 5, and considering that a top-five finish would represent a successful season. In spite of the lads’ encouraging start, I have been cheerfully accepting that Whyteleafe would probably be champions at the end of the season, as they’ve continually looked to be the side to beat. At the beginning of the day, they had dropped five points, compared with Ashford’s three, but their goal difference averages at about three goals per game, and I can’t remember the last time that ‘Leafe failed to win – it must’ve been sometime in the Summer.

 

However, my pessimism – or maybe it’s the humility of the son of a town whose football team rarely has pretensions for winning anything – certainly doesn’t appear to be shared by the Football Club, with The Management having completed the permanent signing of three first team regulars from Hythe Town, in the past couple of weeks. Manager Paul Chambers is certainly going to war with a squad, and a rumoured wage bill, that already has the appearance of being ready for the Ryman League. In other words, there is no doubting The Management’s determination to grab the opportunity for promotion at the first attempt. I am certain that our old rivals from those former Ryman days are just as determined to have Step 4 football being played at Church Road, next season, so it promises to be an exciting end to the season.

 

Since the addition of Hythe trio of Dave Cook, Pat Kingwell and Ronnie Dolan, Ashford have won both of their games – the quarter-final and semi-final of the Kent Senior Trophy – but the performance from the team wasn’t entirely satisfactory in either game. It’s hard to sniff at two hard-fought victories, against two very good sides, but the manner of victory was “functional”, rather than dominant or scintillating, so, with Beckenham Town, (currently in 11^th place in the league, having finished in the same position in 2012-13), expected to provide less of a test than either Phoenix Sports or Hollands & Blair, I was hoping for a more convincing display, today.

 

The early portents were good, since the pitch looked absolutely immaculate, in the spring sunshine, with not a square inch of mud showing on its smooth, level surface. The Eden Park Avenue playing surface slopes gently, from east to west, but not to the extent of the steep gradient that we witnessed at Hollands & Blair, last week. Would this be a pitch that would enable Ashford to play their free-flowing football ?  It was certainly a pitch that would allow for no excuses.

 

The dominant feature of the ground is the high railway embankment that borders the ground on its southern edge. The game was played to the back drop of the noise of trains pulling into, and out of, Eden Park Station. A paradise for any train spotter with an interest in non-league football. The older of the two stands has some twenty padded seats, arranged in two rows. This stand, which has a wooden base, is situated on the halfway line, so was the natural choice for me. The other has more seats, three rows deep, but is confined to just one half of the pitch. Behind one goal is a long building, which looks to be of wooden construction, and this houses the bar and the dressing rooms.

 

The Ashford line-up showed few changes to the side that had earnt that solid semi-final victory against Blair, last week. Pat Kingwell was again in the centre of the back four, but this time, for the first time, was partnered by Ben Jordan. (Liam Whiting had a bad back, apparently). Luke Cuthbert was at right-back, with the excellent Kieran Byrne at left-back. Dave Cook started the game in a very defensive role, just in front of the back four – which he seems well-equipped to do, but it is still a slightly strange deployment decision, given that he won the Ryman League Golden Boot award last season, with 27 goals from midfield !  In a 4-1-3-2 formation, the midfield trio consisted of captain Gary Clarke in the centre, flanked by Adam Cuthbert and Ronnie Dolan. Jimmy Dryden had a start, up front, and I was delighted that Sam Conlon got the nod as Jimmy’s striking partner, ahead of Gary Mickelborough and Buster Smissen, who were named as substitutes. The bench was completed by Ollie Finch and Sam Fisher, as well as Jon Sparkes, the substitute goalie, and it was good to see Tom Scorer having a kick-about with the substitutes during the half time interval.

 

As expected, with the pitch looking in such pristine condition, the game started at a fast pace, but it was Beckenham who were the first to settle, and the more inclined, of the two teams, to knock the ball around along the ground. The first incident of note came in the seventh minute, when Beckenham had a penalty appeal. A shot was charged down by an Ashford defender, just inside the visitors’ penalty area, resulting in the ball clearly striking a raised arm. The referee’s reason for turning down the appeals was that the defending player was adopting a “natural body posture”, and was unable to get out of the way – but I’ve seen those given, elsewhere.

 

One Ashford player, in this debacle, who barely put a foot wrong was Kieran Byrne. He looked pure class, whenever he was in possession, and was almost wasted at left-back. Having said that, his free-kicks were a little disappointing today, and he wasted a kick in a promising position, in the eighth minute, when he curled the ball straight into the hands of Rilwan Adibaba, the Beckenham ‘keeper. Three minutes later, however, Kieran put Sam Conlon clean through on goal, with a long ball that looked more like a clearance than a pass. Nevertheless, it put Sam through with a one-on-one with the goalie, but he pulled his shot across the face of goal, and wide.

 

As the half wore on, Ashford continued to play too many balls in the air, with the home side happier to make use of their excellent facility, and Becks’ striker Richard Pearce, with the long dreadlocks, had the ball in the Ashford net in the 20^th minute, after collecting a diagonal pass from James Marshall, but he had already been flagged offside.

 

It wasn’t until the half-hour mark that Ashford really settled down to play some passing football, and a swift move from the back resulted in Gary Clarke having a sight of goal, from just outside the penalty area. After Wadmore, for Beckenham, and Dryden, for Ashford, had been off target with weak efforts, Gary actually struck his shot well, but straight at the goalkeeper. Moments later, a spot of head tennis put Ronnie Dolan through on goal. Ronnie showed good strength, as he latched onto the ball, and hit his shot firmly, but this was again too close to Adibaba, who made a good save.

 

The visitors were now starting to create chances, and the 35^th minute saw Kieran Byrne careering through the Beckenham half – but his run was ended with a trip by Frankie Warren, which earned the Becks No.6 a yellow card.

 

So it was against the run of play, during this brief period of Ashford pressure, that the home side took the lead, in the 37^th minute – and this was not to be the last time, this afternoon, that Ashford would look vulnerable when the opposition was breaking out from defence. This break was led by Alex Wilks, a winger who posed a constant threat to the Ashford defence, and who was clearly the Man of the Match. On this occasion, Wilks led a break-out down the right wing, cut inside at great pace, and then created an opening for himself, in front of goal, by playing a neat one-two. To cap an excellent individual goal, he gave Joe Mant no chance, by placing a low shot in the corner of the net.

 

The home side came close to going a man down, in the 40^th minute, when Frankie Warren, having just received a yellow card, committed a stupid foul, from behind, on Adam Cuthbert, who was in the centre circle, facing his own goal and going nowhere. I am sure that the referee would have shown Warren a yellow card, if he had not already been booked.

 

Dave Cook did adopt a more forward position, for the remainder of the first half, as Ashford strived for an equaliser – but when the visitors did equalise, in the 44^th minute, the goal came from a corner. There was nothing particularly elaborate, or scientific, about this goal – just a good cross from Adam Cuthbert, from the left, and a firm header from Jimmy Dryden, which the goalkeeper appeared to save, but Sam Conlon poked the ball over the line, to make sure. It was Dryden who received the congratulations on the field, and he has been credited with the goal, so, evidently, the goalie was unable to prevent Jimmy’s header from going over the line.

 

There was still just time, in the first half, for Ashford to manufacture a further half-chance, as Jimmy Dryden met a Luke Cuthbert cross, from the right wing, with a glancing header at the near post, but the angle was very tight, and the Ashford No.9 was never going to sneak the ball in – so the half ended with the teams all square, at 1-1.

 

Whyteleafe, meanwhile, had gone in at half time at Phoenix Sports a goal up.

 

Becks Manager Jason Huntley introduced Joe Jackson, for the start of the second half, and the No.16 was shown a yellow card within three minutes of his appearance, when he was guilty of a late tackle on Gary Clarke, in the centre circle.

 

However, the home side took the lead, soon after, in the 50^th minute, and this was once again the result of a break away after a period of Ashford pressure. Damon Ramsamy bore down on the Ashford area, and executed a neat one-two, the return pass putting him through on goal, in the Ashford area. A deft touch took him past Joe Mant, and he stroked the ball firmly into the net, for a second brilliant goal for Beckenham.

 

Paul Chambers’ response was to replace Sam Conlon with Gary Mickelborough, in the 53^rd minute, and Ashford’s first chance in the second half came three minutes later. After some good work down the left, Kieran Byrne flipped the ball over the head of a defender, into the path of Dave Cook – but Cook was pulled down on the corner of the penalty area, by Adam Wadmore, causing the referee to immediately pull out his yellow card. Adam Cuthbert belted the free-kick straight into the defensive wall.

 

The colour of the card produced in the 58^th minute was red, and it was shown to Ronnie Dolan, in just his second game of his second spell at Ashford. Ronnie was on a run through the Beckenham half, and the ball was getting away from him, as it was cleared by a red-shirted defender. Dolan caught his man late, and his momentum meant that contact was made with some force, so it was no surprise that the referee decided on a straight red card.

 

So not much was going to plan for Ashford, at this stage, and things got worse when Beckenham extended their lead, in the 65^th minute. For a third time in the afternoon, the visitors were badly caught on the break, with the taller defenders having been sent into the opposition’s half, at a free-kick. Very quickly, Becks had a three-against-two advantage, as they streamed into the Ashford half – and this became three-against-one when Ben Jordan, (I think it was), stumbled and fell. On occasions, teams make a mess of these situations, but the home side made all the right decisions, passing the ball to the left of the last Ashford defender, putting Jake Britnell through on goal. Joe Mant made an attempt at a tackle at Britnell’s feet, but the No.8 rounded the goalkeeper and tapped the ball home from about two feet.

 

Ashford looked worryingly vulnerable, at the back, against what was a young and pacey side, and Beckenham’s winning margin could easily have been more convincing. The score in terms of red cards was, however, evened up in the 65^th minute, when Adam Wadmore was shown a straight red card, to go with his earlier yellow one. This was as a result of an incident at a Beckenham corner. I didn’t see the incident, but the referee immediately produced the red card from his pocket, before the kick was taken, and Kieran Byrne was down on his knees, clutching his face – so I think we are all capable of filling in the gaps !

 

Buster Smissen, on eleven goals for the season, at a rate of one every 145 minutes, was introduced, by Paul Chambers, in the 69^th minute, in place of Adam Cuthbert. Two minutes later, he managed to get on the end of a long ball forward, and just had the goalkeeper to beat. However, the angle was fairly acute, and Buster’s shot was well saved by Adibaba. The rebound looped back to Smissen, but he was unable to square the ball to a colleague in the centre. In the 75^th minute, Buster had a very similar chance, in a similar position, but Adibaba again foiled the goal-scoring attempt, making a good, low save.

 

Alex Wilks, who didn’t play in Beckenham’s 4-1 defeat at Whyteleafe, on Thursday, continued to terrorise the Ashford defence, running at them at every opportunity. In the 78^th minute, Dave Cook appeared to have no answer, but to barge his man over, and received a yellow card for the offence. The free-kick, in a central position, about halfway inside the Ashford half, was fairly blasted into the three-man, yellow and green Ashford wall, by James Marshall – but Ashford’s iron man, Gary Clarke, barely blinked as he took the hit.

 

Sam Fisher replaced Dave Cook, in the 81^st minute, and, almost immediately, the Ashford defence was embarrassed for pace. This time, it was Luke Cuthbert, in the right-back position, who was found out, as substitute Travis Gregory, who had replaced Richard Pearce, in the 74^th minute, was able to run around him, and reach the by-line. From there, Gregory pulled the ball back to James Marshall, whose firmly-struck, first-time shot would have thudded into the roof of the Ashford net, if Joe Mant had not made a brilliant, finger-tip save. This was the only glimpse we had of Ashford’s goalkeeping hero of the previous two Saturdays – not that Joe could have been blamed for any of the Beckenham goals.

 

Ashford actually played their best football of the game in the final ten minutes or so, as the play became stretched. In the 84^th minute, a good move ended with Buster Smissen attempting to send in a cross, from the left – but his attempt was blocked, for a corner. This was taken by Kieran Byrne, whose cross was well met by Gary Mickelborough, in the centre of the penalty area; Jimmy Dryden attempted to divert Mickelborough’s firm header into the net, but was unable to keep the ball down.

 

The visitors continued to try to salvage something from the game, with a three-pronged attack of Dryden, Mickelborough and Smissen, and GazMik had an attempt at goal in the 88^th minute, cutting in from the left. His well-hit shot, from the edge of the penalty area, brought another good save from Adibaba, and Jimmy Dryden turned the rebound into the net, but had already been flagged offside.

 

Beckenham’s fourth goal came in the 91^st minute, and perfectly illustrated Ashford’s vulnerability to the home side’s pace. James Britnell picked the ball up on the halfway line, and a change of gear enabled him to ease past Sam Fisher. His pace took him past another Ashford player in the middle of the visitors’ half, and then right through the centre of the defence, and into the penalty area. Britnell’s firm shot appeared to be well saved by Joe Mant, but the ball looped over the ‘keeper and then spun into the net, for Britnell’s second goal.

 

A further minute into injury time, and Luke Cuthbert was again exposed, in the right-back position, with Damon Ramsamy beating him, all ends up. Luke reacted by tripping his man, and the referee didn’t think it was too late to show him a yellow card.

 

There were 93 minutes on the clock when Ashford scored their second goal. A long ball over the top appeared to catch Buster Smissen well off-side – but he checked his run, and Jimmy Dryden, coming from a deeper position, ran onto the ball, down the left flank. With a clear sight of goal, Jimmy struck his shot well, but the ‘keeper made another good save. The ball spiralled up in the air, in much the same way as it had done for Beckenham’s fourth goal, and Buster Smissen was well placed to follow up, and smash the ball into the net.

 

Six minutes of time were added to the original 90, and this was long enough for one more moment of controversy. I didn’t see the Ashford player involved, but my view was that he legitimately went in for a 50-50 tackle with Alex Wilks, and Wilks came out of it the worse, lying injured, on the ground, for several minutes. After the game, two people who were closer to the incident than me, but otherwise independent of each other, said that this incident was worse than any of the previous fouls in the game that had resulted in yellow and red cards – but the referee saw no reason to take any action.

 

But the salient issue from the game is that this was a very sobering experience for the Ashford team and management. The worse news was that, as a quick trawl through the afternoon’s tweets revealed, Whyteleafe had taken all three points from their game at Phoenix Sports, coming away with a 1-3 victory, after Phoenix had equalised. This means that it’s probably fair to say that this was the afternoon when the race for the inaugural SCEFL title, and promotion (back) to the Ryman League, took a decisive turn in the direction of Whyteleafe. This evening, ‘Leafe are seven points ahead of Ashford, having played two games more.

 

In theory, that means that we just have one point to make up, and, in that context, an optimist would view the two league games we still have to play against Whyteleafe as being an opportunity. In practice, however, Whyteleafe look unstoppable, and anyone witnessing Ashford’s last three games will find it hard to believe that they can improve enough to take points from the league leaders. It’s true to say that Beckenham looked anything but a side lying in 11^th place in the league, but it’s basically the same side that lost 4-1 to Whyteleafe, less than 48 hours earlier. The addition of the three lads from Hythe appears, at this early stage, to have taken the team backwards, rather than forwards. I’ve no idea of why this might be, and there is no doubt that the recent acquisitions have added quality and depth to the squad – it’s just a reluctant observation of team performance.

 

The other sub-text to this deserved victory for Beckenham is, of course, that they are very likely to be our opponents in the Final of the Kent Senior Trophy. With an improved performance, I think there is no reason why Ashford should not reverse the form, come the middle of April – but today’s game has given Paul Chambers and John Ovard plenty to think about, between then and now.

Hollands & Blair v Ashford United. Kent Senior Trophy Semi Final. 1st of March 2014.

Hollands & Blair    0       Ashford United 1

 

From Ashford United’s Milton Keynes Correspondent

 

 

This was a big day. It certainly was for young Ben and Cameron, two loyal Ashford supporters who were mascots for the day, to celebrate Ben’s 10^th birthday – but it was also the occasion of the semi-final of the Spire Alexandra Hospital Kent Senior Trophy. Hollands & Blair versus Ashford United – the visitors’ first cup semi-final – with the winner to meet either Fleet Leisure, of the Kent Invicta League, or Beckenham Town, in the final. This was also a tie that attracted plenty of interest from neutral fans of Kent football, with the leaders of the Kent Invicta League taking on the leaders of the Southern Counties East Football League.

 

At a more micro level, this was also Installment Two of the Kent Invicta League Old Boys’ Reunion, after Ashford’s quarter-final victory against Phoenix Sports, in this competition, last week. Both Blair and Phoenix were consistently better than us during our two seasons in the Invicta League, so these two ties could be used as a useful yardstick of the progress that Ashford had made since being promoted to the SCEFL. There was also every prospect of Hollands & Blair providing a stern test for Ashford. There was never a question of Blair taking up the mantle of extreme underdogs in this contest, given that they won the Trophy in 2012, and would undoubtedly hold their own in the SCEFL, if it were not for the glass ceiling created for them by the ground grading rules. They had also managed to get past two SCEFL teams, in Greenwich Borough and Corinthian, on their way to this semi-final. With a league record, so far this season, of 15 wins from 17 games, today’s match-up with Ashford was always going to be Hollands and Blair’s opportunity to validate themselves, and pit themselves against higher-league opposition.

 

For anyone unfamiliar with our hosts today, Hollands & Blair is a team based in Gillingham. So it was a change of route for me; instead of taking the Northern Line to London Bridge, it was a short walk to St Pancras Station, and then the fast, direct train through Ebbsfleet and Gravesend, and onto Gillingham. The railway station is in the centre of the town, and so I had a 25 minute walk through grim streets, past Priestfield Road, (the one with the big football ground at the end of it), and then on to Star Meadow Sports Ground, which is on the A2. I was paying attention, but I was unable to tell which was the posh area of Gillingham.

 

Star Meadow is notable for a pitch that has a pronounced slope, down to the main road, which is quite remarkable, even by non-league standards. The surface looked in good condition, considering the amount of rain that everywhere has had, in recent weeks and months, but it was to become rather bumpy as it cut up. Having said that, it was a bonus that the game took place at all, with plenty of matches postponed, this afternoon – including the other Kent Senior Trophy semi-final, which was due to have been played just across the Medway, at Fleet Leisure’s ground, in Strood.

 

Development of Star Meadow has so far been confined to two sides of the oblong, with a very nice bar with picnic benches outside, and a children’s play area, behind one goal, and a dressing room complex and training area along one side. In front of the training area was a small set of seats – undoubtedly a sign of the football club’s efforts to secure a deserved promotion to the SCEFL for next season. Unfortunately, this seating was not yet available for spectators, much to the chagrin of one or two of Ashford’s more senior followers. Well, who needs a seat, when you have a perfectly serviceable walking stick ?

 

To add to the game’s edge, the Hollands & Blair line, this season, is being led by former Ashford Town striker Rob Denness. I remember Rob, (Denness the Menace), as a teenager, when he played at Homelands during the 2007-8 season. He always looked exceptionally strong for his age, but appeared to fail to make the grade, scoring just five goals, at a rate that was not quite as good as one in every four games. Rob was obviously going to be up for this one, and has been going well, this season, with 20 goals in all competitions. (His strike partner, James McDonald, is just one ahead of him, with 21). Another familiar face in the home side’s line-up was that of Nick Smith, who played for Ashford Town in that club’s final season, (2009-10), scoring a couple of goals. Smith started the game on the bench, today.

 

The Ashford side contained the three new signings from Ryman League side Hythe Town – Dave Cook, Pat Kingwell and Ronnie Dolan, the latter having arrived during the week. These signings must be seen as a major sign of intent from The Management at United, as all three are serious players. Ronnie returns to us after having also appeared for Ashford Town during that 2009-10 season, before being snapped up by Hythe Town, and then by Hastings United. Ronnie played on the left of a midfield quartet which also included captain Gary Clarke, Dave Cook and Adam Cuthbert. I was pleased to see that Pat Kingwell was deployed in central defence, this afternoon, after not being over-impressed with seeing him plodding around up front last Saturday. He looked to be much more in his natural habitat, alongside Liam Whiting, Luke Cuthbert and Kieran Byrne, and was a commanding presence in Ashford’s back four. Paul Chambers employed a genuine 4-4-2 formation, which had Buster Smissen and Sam Conlon as twin strikers. There was also a very strong bench for Chambo to call upon, which included Jimmy Dryden, Gary Mickelborough, Ollie Finch and Sam Fisher, as well as substitute goalie Jon Sparkes.

 

Unquestionably the hero of Ashford’s quarter-final victory, goalkeeper Joe Mant was guilty of dropping a clanger as early as the eighth minute, when his throw-out went straight to a man in a red shirt. The ball was spread wide, and Dave Cook had to come across to head the resulting cross clear, from inside his own six-yard box. Young Joe was again less than convincing when he came out to punch away the cross from the corner, and the ball only went as far as a clearly motivated Rob Denness, on the edge of the penalty area. The Menace cut inside, transferring the ball onto his left foot, but he tamely pulled his shot well wide of the post.

 

In spite of this early scare, Ashford, for the second time in as many weeks, managed to take an early lead. After Blair’s Tom Michelson collected an early yellow card, for a foul on the left touchline, Adam Cuthbert took the free-kick, sending a long, looping cross into the home side’s goal mouth. There was an almighty scramble in front of James Smith’s goal, and the ball was somehow bundled over the line, with Gary Clarke getting the credit for having the final touch.

 

Within a couple of minutes, Ashford were on the attack again, in the shape of Ronnie Dolan. The returning Dolan began his run from just inside the Hollands & Blair half, and continued all the way to the by-line, whereupon he sent in a good cross – but Sam Conlon was unable to make enough contact to put the ball into the net. Then, in the 14^th minute, Dave Cook, who again seemed to play in a very deep role, sent the ball into the far corner. I think it was Sam Conlon who chased down the pass, and sent in a cross that found Buster Smissen, in the penalty area. Smissen, who has scored eleven goals, so far, this season, struck his shot cleanly, but straight at goalkeeper James Smith, who was able to push the ball away for a corner. This resulted in a well-rehearsed Ashford set-piece, with Kieran Byrne pulling the ball back to Liam Whiting, who was advancing from the half-way line. This immediately evoked memories of the absolute screamer that Liam scored, into the same goal, with Ashford kicking down the slope, in last season’s league fixture here. This was not an easy move to execute, as the surface was already a little uneven, but Liam kept his eye on the ball, and struck it cleanly – but wide of the post.

 

It was at this time, with Ashford stroking the ball around, that there was a brief glimpse of a scenario where a Ryman-ready SCEFL side might outclass the Kent Invicta outfit – but this never actually panned out, and, for the remainder of the match, there was never very much between the two teams, with Joe Mant being the busier of the two ‘keepers. That said, this was a much better performance from Ashford than last week, when they certainly would not have overcome Phoenix Sports if it had not been for the heroics of Joe Mant. Although the SCEFL leaders never fully took control of the game, they held Blair at bay fairly comfortably. The defence looked solid, with Pat Kingwell clearing just about every airborne threat with his head, and, when the ball got through the defensive cover, the home side found that young Joe was once again in fantastic form.

 

Nevertheless, the Blair faithful can point to a number of incidents that might have fallen in their favour, including a loud shout for a penalty in the 17^th minute. After a Pat Kingwell tackle on Rob Denness had resulted in a corner, Mant made two attempts to punch away the cross which then came in from the right. Neither effort achieved the necessary distance, and a shot from just inside the penalty box slammed into an Ashford defender – but with such pace that the award of a penalty would have been very harsh.

 

This afternoon’s referee – no names, no pack drill – certainly did not lack the courage of his convictions, and was quite prepared to make a big decision, backing his own judgement, in the process. Ashford captain Gary Clarke found this out, to his cost, in the 24^th minute, when he took a tumble, under a challenge, in a very innocuous position near the touchline, just inside the Blair half. This appeared to be a straightforward case of Gary using his experience to win a free-kick, but the referee thought he had taken a dive, and so immediately showed Clarke a yellow card. Seconds later, there was another important decision for the official to make, when Rob Denness went down in the Ashford penalty area, after a challenge from Pat Kingwell. In fairness to the referee, he was right on the spot, and my impression is that this was probably the correct decision. Of course, nobody but The Menace was going to take the penalty – but he was up against a ‘keeper who must, by now, almost expect to save penalties. Denness struck his shot firmly, low, to Joe’s right – but nobody who had been at the Phoenix game last Saturday will have been surprised to see the ‘keeper get down to make a fairly comfortable save.

 

Still the action, with a fair bit of controversy, continued, with Ashford immediately launching a counter-attack which seemed to end with Sam Conlon being brought down by home goalie James Smith. It seemed to be a straightforward decision for the referee to award a penalty to the visitors – but he instead booked Conlon for diving !  He consulted his lino, but his decision remained unaltered.

 

The play continued to be fairly even, for the remainder of the half, with Dave Cook putting Adam Cuthbert through in the inside-right channel, in the 30^th minute, only for Adam to slice his shot high and wide. Five minutes later, Blair defender Bryan Greenfield seemed surprised that the other linesman had spotted him handling the ball, whilst trying to control it, under no pressure – after which Kieran Byrne made a hash of the free-kick. At the other end, in the 37^th minute, the home side’s Michelson put James McDonald through, in the inside-right position; the angle seemed to dictate that McDonald would cross the ball, but he instead hit a firm shot at goal, which brought another brilliant save out of Joe Mant.

 

With about a minute to go before half time, Blair left-back Greenfield got himself needlessly booked for a late tackle on Sam Conlon – it’s true that Sam was too quick for him, but the former Hythe Town striker was going away from goal, and there was no immediate danger. Again, however, Kieran Byrne disappointed with the free-kick, hitting the ball straight to the ‘keeper. There was still time for a Hollands & Blair counter-attack, down the right flank, and Dave Cook had to be alert and come across with a covering tackle.

 

The second half began with a very scrappy few minutes, for both sides, with very little being created. The only attempt at goal, at either end, was a very optimistic long shot from Bryan Greenfield which sailed well over the bar. Greenfield was, however, involved in a much more constructive move, on the hour mark, when he combined well with Rob Denness, down the Blair left flank. Greenfield sent in a good cross, which was met by the head of Tom Michelson, but Joe Mant was able to make a comfortable catch, just beneath his crossbar. A minute later, Ashford’s Adam Cuthbert, returning from a three-game suspension, made a chance for himself through sheer persistence in the tackle, in midfield. He struck a firm shot which wasn’t too far wide of the angle between post and bar. Soon after this, a high, hopeful punt upfield from Liam Whiting descended vertically upon Buster Smissen and his marker, just inside the Blair area. The Ashford No.9 did well to turn his man, to create an excellent opportunity for himself, but he rather hurried his shot, and scuffed the ball wide.

 

There was a substitution for each side, in the 65^th minute, with Ollie Finch replacing Adam Cuthbert, for Ashford, and Blair Manager Paul Piggott replacing centre-forward James McDonald with Ashford old boy Nick Smith – but it was full-back Bryan Greenfield who came close to equalising, for the home side, just three minutes later. This opportunity came from a free-kick, awarded just outside the “D”, after Ronnie Dolan had, needlessly, it seemed, pushed over Louis Vallencia. Greenfield could not have struck the ball more sweetly, or with more accuracy, as it described an arc towards the top corner of the net – but Joe Mant came flying across his goal, and flipped the ball away with his left hand. I think the modern term for a save like that is a “worldy”. Whatever it’s called, it denied Greenfield a goal that his strike had really deserved. It should have been a goal, and the Blair No.3’s slumped shoulders told the true story of the quality of the save.

 

But the Joe Mant Show was not yet over. Whilst the save from the free-kick was probably the moment of the match, drawing sustained applause from the majority of the crowd of 166, the save that Joe made just three minutes later, from Louis Vallencia, was, in its way, almost as good. The Blair No.11 cut in from the left, moving the ball onto his right foot, and let fly with a low shot that was heading just inside the far post. I am sure that the ‘keeper was unsighted by a couple of players just inside his penalty area, as he was late to react, but still managed to make the save, diving low to his left.

 

Jimmy Dryden made an appearance, from the bench, in the 73^rd minute, replacing the hard-working Buster Smissen, and Liam Stone replaced Billy Johnson, for Hollands & Blair, just seconds later, as the home side finished the match doing the majority of the pressing – but with the ever-present threat, now, of Ashford hitting them on the break, to seal the match and a place in the Kent Senior Trophy Final. The visitors came close to doing just that in the 78^th minute, when Ronnie Dolan found Jimmy Dryden, free, on the left. The angle was acute, but Dryden usually seems to be a natural striker of the ball, and his firm shot brought a good save from James Smith.

 

The two managers made their final substitution, soon after, with Paul Piggott replacing Rob Denness with Asa Doe, in the 80^th minute, and Paul Chambers sending on Gary Mickelborough for Sam Conlon, in the 84^th minute – and Jimmy Dryden had another shot at goal, in the 86^th minute, but, this time, he was off balance, and his effort was always going well over the bar.

 

With about a minute still to play, there were ironic cheers from the large contingent of Ashford fans, as substitute Asa Doe appeared to have been brought down, on the right flank – but, in an incident that mirrored Sam Conlon’s booking earlier in the afternoon, Doe was booked by the ref for diving. A minute later, the home side’s frustration was compounded when the lino flagged against a Blair player for a foul throw, his explanation being that one foot had been raised from the ground. (I thought that was only in snooker).

 

Two minutes into added time, Jimmy Dryden had another chance to seal victory. In another break away move, Gary Mickelborough fed the ball forward to Ronnie Dolan, who, in turn, found Dryden in space, in the penalty area, but Jimmy’s well-hit shot was again well saved by James Smith.

 

So a hard-fought 1-0 victory it was, as Ashford United’s first semi-final led to the new club’s first final. That final will be played on Sunday, the 13^th of April, at Tonbridge Angels’ Longmead Stadium.

 

It wasn’t a scintillating victory for Ashford, and the winning goal didn’t hit the back of the net with a thump, but Paul Chambers and his squad nevertheless deserve a great deal of credit for overcoming a very good side, on a difficult pitch, and for reaching the final of this competition in spite of having a difficult draw in just about every round. It might be argued that, in the absence of Whyteleafe and Tunbridge Wells, Erith Town, Phoenix Sports and Hollands & Blair were the best opponents that Ashford could have drawn, and they somehow beat all three on the way to the final.

 

Elsewhere, Whyteleafe’s 0-7 victory at Lordswood rather put Ashford’s task in the league into perspective. It is anybody’s guess as to who will come out on top when the two teams eventually meet, home and away, this season – but getting to the final of the Trophy is a notable and tangible success that can be chalked up for our rapidly developing club.