Sevenoaks Town v Ashford United. Southern Counties East Football League. 27th of September 2014.

Sevenoaks Town      2       Ashford United 2

 

From Ashford United’s Milton Keynes Correspondent

Ashford’s twelfth fixture in this 2014-15 league campaign was away to Sevenoaks Town. Last season, this would have been considered to be a fairly straightforward three points for Ashford – and, in 20013-14, we duly beat Oaks 4-2 at home and 0-4 away, with today’s opponents eventually finishing 16^th, in a 17-team league – but the current Sevenoaks side is a different animal entirely.

Micky Collins’ side is full of very familiar names – players that have performed for teams higher up the pyramid than the Southern Counties East, e.g. striker Miles Cornwell, centre-half Ben Judge, ex-Ashford Town goal scorer Luke Coleman (seven goals, in two spells, at a rate of one every 196 minutes), and the likes of Danny Hockton on the bench. What’s more, Sevenoaks looked a good side, this afternoon, always ready to split the Ashford defence with quick, incisive through-balls, and they had enough clear chances to have won this game fairly comfortably.

This was my first visit to Greatness Park – and quite possibly the first time that I have been to Sevenoaks. The venue is some ten minutes’ walk from an unmanned railway station that has the rather quaint name of “Bat & Ball”. The ground has quite a picturesque setting, being situated within a park, and development of the ground has been minimal. There are two small stands – one in each half – providing just under 100 seats between them, with a very nice tea bar some 50 yards’ walk away. Crucially, in terms of not being able to achieve a ground grading beyond a certain level, the pitch is overlooked by a high bank on one side, meaning that any number of dog walkers are granted a great view of the match, free of charge.

The Ashford line-up continued to have a slightly make-do-and-mend look about it at the back, as Manager Paul Chambers is still unable to pick from his full squad. However, Luke Cuthbert made a very welcome return to the defence, but did so at left-back, instead of on the right, where we are more used to seeing him. As on Tuesday, in the 0-0 draw at home to Lordswood, it was Liam Walsh who occupied the right-back position, (and I didn’t think he had his best game for Ashford), with the two lighthouses, Pat Kingwell and Jordan Miller, in the centre. Ashford’s midfield quartet, which seemed to approximate a diamond formation, (although I’m no expert on these things), consisted of Lee Winfield pulling the strings from a deep position, Adam Cuthbert furthest forward and Gary Clarke and young Harry Priddle in the centre. For the second successive Saturday, Paul Chambers was able to start with Stuart Zanone and Andy Irvine up front. Joe Mant was in goal – which is just as well, as he would have been my choice as Man of the Match, today, being largely responsible for Sevenoaks not putting four or five goals past the defence.

So the team in second took on the team in fifth, in the SCEFL, this afternoon, and it was the visitors, playing in their now-familiar, Norwich City-like away kit – so think Inter Milan versus Norwich, today – who pressed forward in the early minutes. I was again struck by the sheer physical presence of the two Ashford front men, and Irvine soon showed his classical centre-forward skills, holding the ball up, with his back to goal, and drawing a foul that gave his team a free-kick, just outside the 18-yard box. Adam Cuthbert went for goal, hitting a curling shot over the defensive wall, but ‘keeper Jack Rankin comfortably caught the ball, above his head. In the sixth minute, Irvine’s partner, Stuart Zanone, who showed tremendous tenacity and commitment, throughout the game, created a chance out of nothing, when he robbed a defender of the ball. He turned and went on a direct run, into the penalty area, and went down under a defender’s challenge, but the referee waved away optimistic appeals for a penalty.

The first sign of Ashford’s vulnerability on the flanks, this afternoon, came in the eleventh minute. A well-worked move down the left, (Ashford’s right), which I think was helped by Liam Walsh losing his man, resulted in Kieron McCann running into the visitors’ penalty area, but he blasted his shot over the bar.

Generally, I feel that Ashford shaded the first 20 minutes, certainly in terms of possession and creative intent, although there was little end-product in the final third of the pitch. Gradually, though, the home side began to assert. Using what seemed to be Micky Collins’ preferred tactic of trying to outflank the Ashford defence with a runner on the overlap, Louis Sprossen fed a through-ball to Sevenoaks No.2 George Savage, in the 22^nd minute. Getting to the by-line, the right-back put in an inviting cross, which went all the way through the Ashford six-yard box, with nobody able to get the vital touch. In the 28^th minute, Miles Cornwell was bearing down on the Ashford goal, in the inside-right position. He cut in, transferring the ball onto his left foot, but his shot was straight at Joe Mant.

Because they had looked so lively going forward, it was no surprise that Sevenoaks took the lead, just a minute later. Another well-worked move found Paul Springett in possession, on the edge of the “D”. He found blond-haired Louis Sprossen, with a square pass to his right. Sprossen came inside, and beat Joe Mant with a low, well-placed shot which found the corner of the Ashford net.

Oaks had a chance to double their lead, just five minutes before half-time, when Lee Winfield made a rare mistake, giving the ball away some 25 yards from his own goal. This resulted in Damien Ramsay being put clean through on goal, but Joe Mant made the first of a number of excellent saves, blocking Ramsay’s shot with his legs. Stuart Zanone put the ball into the Sevenoaks net, with 44 minutes on the clock, to finish off a good passing movement that also involved Adam Cuthbert and Andy Irvine, but the Lino’s flag had already gone up for offside – and the home team went into the break with a 1-0 lead.

The second half was a fairly pulsating affair, with the ball pinging from one end to the other. The early pressure came from Sevenoaks, but a corner to the home side in the 48^th minute was soon turned into an Ashford break – before a counter-attack from the home side, in the 50^th minute, after an Ashford corner had been cleared, doubled Oaks’ lead. Damien Ramsay did well to hold the ball up, before laying it off to Kieron McCann, as Sevenoaks, yet again, managed to find an extra man on the flank. McCann drilled a hard shot almost straight at Joe Mant, who seemed to have his weight on the “wrong” foot, and could only parry the ball into the net.

At 2-0, it looked ominously like we were going to witness the ending of Ashford’s unbeaten start in the league, but the visitors pulled a goal back, within two minutes. What was doubly pleasing for the Ashford faithful, who had swollen the attendance to 98, the second-highest crowd of the day in the SCEFL, was that the goal was Andy Irvine’s long-awaited first for the club. Again, this was classical centre-forward play. Lee Winfield provided a good cross, from the left, and it appeared to be simplicity itself as Irvine nodded the ball down, into the same corner of the net that Louis Sprossen had found in the first half.

The ex-Tunbridge Wells striker almost doubled his score in the 58^th minute, after a quickly-taken free-kick sent Gary Clarke bursting into the Sevenoaks area. The Ashford captain’s cross found Irvine in the six-yard box, but his attempt to turn the ball in, at point-blank range, was well blocked by goalkeeper Jack Rankin.

The latter incident occurred in the midst of a flurry of substitutions. Kieran Byrne had replaced Harry Priddle, in the 55^th minute, but then Paul Chambers was forced into making a second change, after Jordan Miller had stayed down after making a challenge, in the 65^th minute, (the issue being reported to be a hamstring problem). His replacement was Gary Mickelborough, who joined Irvine and Zanone in what was now effectively a three-man attack.

But the next clear chance was created by the home side, in the 71^st minute. After a period of Ashford pressure, Sevenoaks broke out of defence. Yet again, it was like watching a Rugby League match, as Oaks had a man over, down Ashford’s exposed right flank. This time, it was Kieron McCann who provided the width. He also provided a good cross, that found the feet of Miles Cornwell, in the penalty area – but Joe Mant somehow pulled off another great save.

The end-to-end format continued. In the 72^nd minute, Kieran Byrne chanced his arm, (or at least his leg), with a 30-yard shot that goalkeeper Jack Rankin saved fairly comfortably. A minute later, Judge Ben had to concede a corner, as Gary Mickelborough bore down on the Sevenoaks defence. The resulting cross put the ball “into the mixer”, (to coin a phrase that Paul Chambers used quite frequently, this afternoon), and, after the ball had bounced around in the area a few times, Gary Clarke attempted some sort of overhead kick, but his effort went straight at the ‘keeper.

Ashford’s search for an equaliser was soon interrupted by another rash of substitutions, but these included the all-important one of Assistant Manager Lloyd Blackman coming on for the hard-working Andy Irvine, in the 75^th minute. At the same time, Andy Walker replaced Louis Sprossen, for Sevenoaks, soon followed by Danny Hockton for Miles Cornwell, in the 79^th minute, and Simon Osborn for Luke Coleman, in the 84^th.

The pace of this second half soon picked up again, though, and, in the 85^th minute, Liam Walsh, near his right touchline, misjudged the bounce of a clearance from Jack Rankin. Sevenoaks were again clean away, down the left flank, and, after a pin-point cross into the centre, Joe Mant kept his side in the game with another good save, denying the home side from point-blank range. A minute later, Ashford were awarded a free-kick, wide on the left, and a very fit-looking Lloyd Blackman rose well to meet the resulting cross, but was disappointed to aim his header straight at Rankin. The ‘keeper made a quick clearance, which immediately resulted in a two-v-two situation. Danny Hockton and Damien Ramsay worked the ball well, between them, but Joe Mant was again equal to the task of being the last line of defence.

Ashford’s equaliser came in the 88^th minute, and, this time, Lloyd Blackman made no mistake with his header. Kieran Byrne had just tried his luck with another shot from 30 yards, and this one bounced just in front of the ‘keeper, and a Sevenoaks defender had to clear the spillage, for a corner, as Stuart Zanone waited to pounce. The resulting corner, from the left, was put away with a glancing header by The Bearded Wonder.

Andy Walker had a shot, from just outside the area, which blazed over the bar, in the 89^th minute, and the visiting defence was happy to clear the ball after a goalmouth scramble in the 92^nd minute, but Ashford held on to the hard-earned point.

It was important for the boys to preserve that unbeaten record in the league, but it has to be said that seven wins and five draws is hardly championship-winning form. The good news, though, is that there must surely be improvement to come from Paul Chambers’ squad, and, with Erith & Belvedere dropping two points, at home to Croydon, this afternoon, we have just five points to make on them, in terms of the number of points dropped. As “points dropped” is very much the way to view things at the top of any table, it should be pointed out that Sevenoaks are very much on a par with Ashford, having also dropped ten. On this performance, I think that they can be penciled in as one of about half a dozen teams who are likely to be “there or thereabouts”, come the end of the season.

I hesitate to quote Paul Chambers, given that he is already in hot water, having been stitched up by a hack in one of the local ‘papers, in midweek, but he did say that he was “over the moon with a point” – which suggests that we should maybe view the result of today’s game as being very much a point gained.

Croydon v Ashford United. Southern Counties East Football League. 20th of September 2014.

Croydon   0       Ashford United 1

From Ashford United’s Milton Keynes Correspondent

So I made my usual belated appearance for the football season, (with umpiring commitments during the cricket season being the main reason for my absence). It is also usual for the season to be well underway by the time I attend my first match. As I set out for the less-posh end of Surrey, this morning, Ashford United had already played nine Southern Counties East League games.

It has been a decent start to the campaign, with the lads currently lying in second place in the league, having managed six wins and three draws, from the nine games. However, Erith & Belvedere, relegated from Ryman Division 1 North last season, appear to be in ominous form, topping the table with 24 points from the 27 possible, and averaging nearly 3½ goals per game. Could we be destined to have another good season, only to end up with nothing, there being one outstanding team standing in our way ?  The harsh reality, at Step 5 of the non-league pyramid, is that there is just the one promotion place up to the next level, so that only one sheep will be able to squeeze through that narrow gate. Last year, Whyteleafe was the one team that was too good for us – (and, commendably, ‘Leafe won the championship by “beating” every other team on aggregate, in league games). Could Erith & Belvedere be our nemesis this time ? 

Over half of the Deres’ 32 league goals have been scored by one man, Alfie May, who has an outrageous record of having scored 17 goals in nine matches, so far. Every team with pretentions to win a championship needs an arch goal scorer of that sort of quality, and Ashford will be mainly pinning their hopes on Stuart Zanone. The 29 year-old is a relatively recent signing, and has made an excellent start, scoring four goals in four games, to date.

Until recently, Ashford fans have found goal scoring heroes to be elusive. In fact, over the past ten years, (2005-6 to 2014-15, inclusive), we have only had four strikers who have scored ten or more goals and have done so at a rate of a goal every two games, or better – and three of these have played under the Ashford United banner.

Top of the shop is Mo Takaloo, who is head and shoulders above the rest, with 32 goals, at a rate of one every 84 minutes. Next comes Jimmy Dryden, who played for Ashford United in two spells, in the 2011-12 and 2013-14 seasons – Jimmy’s twelve goals came at a rate of one every 133 minutes. George Fenwick is third in the list. George was a very under-rated player, (and son of the (then) Manager, Terry), who scored 18 goals, at a rate of one every 177 minutes, in what was a fairly dreadful Ashford Town side, in the 2006-7 season. The only other striker to have scored at least a goal every other game, during this ten-year period, has been Buster Smissen, who, happily, is still on Ashford United’s books. Buster, so far, has 13 goals, at 178 minutes per goal. I’ll be surprised and disappointed if Stuart Zanone doesn’t join this select bunch.

For any Ashford fan looking for a reason to be cheerful, the next three players in that list of goal scorers are Gary Mickelborough (23 goals, at a goal every 216 minutes), Walid Matata (16, at one every 220 minutes) and left-back extraordinaire Kieran Byrne (27, at one every 221 minutes) – so three of the seven most successful goal scorers that we have had in the past ten years are in the current squad.

The football season is a long haul, and needs to be approached a bit like driving in heavy traffic – you need to concentrate on the car in front. And the car in the headlights this afternoon was Croydon, (although “The Trams” shouldn’t really be referred to in terms of being a car !).

Croydon FC is not to be confused with Croydon Athletic FC, our old friends from Ryman League days, who had a brief flirtation with star dust, with an extravagant owner and an electric scoreboard – before the whole thing crashed and burned. The reincarnation of The Rams is AFC Croydon Athletic, currently sitting in fourth place in the Combined Counties League Division 1.

No, today’s opponents were Croydon, who play at the Croydon Sports Arena, and who were transferred to the SCEFL, from the Combined Counties League, for the start of this season. Those of us who have been on the journey for some time, of course, will remember Croydon as also being former Ryman League colleagues. I well remember my previous visit to the Croydon Sports Arena, which was during the 2004-05 season. It was notable for a wonderful, curling free-kick from Byron Glasgow, (formerly of Reading), which gave Ashford Town their only goal, in a 2-1 defeat. That was at the start of the Terry Fenwick era, just after we had raided Southall, of the Combined Counties League, of some eleven players (!). Blowing the dust off the match report I did on that game, I stated that our “new Manager” was a certain Frank Gill – remember him ? – and described Terry Fenwick as being “the coach”, although he watched that particular game from the stand, (through his fingers, probably).

Byron Glasgow was probably the best of a poor bunch of players, in those days. He is also one of four Ashford players, that I can think of, to be named after a city; (the other three are named at the end of this report).

As it turned out, that 2004-5 season wasn’t brilliant for either club, with Ashford Town finishing 20^th of 22 and Croydon finishing bottom, after which the two clubs went their separate ways.

One practical difference to ten years ago was that, instead of driving to Croydon by car, I made the journey today by public transport – a train down from Milton Keynes Central, changing at Clapham Junction, and then completing the journey by tram from East Croydon station to the Croydon Sports Arena itself. That’s a two-hour trip, from ticket barrier to turnstiles. Maybe every non-league football ground should have its own tram stop ?  That’s something for the ground graders to think about.

The thing about Croydon Sports Arena is that it has a football pitch that is surrounded by an eight-lane athletics track, (just like Walton & Hersham and Lewisham Borough – although Corby Town and Bayern Munich have moved away from the idea). Some fans hate these grounds, with a vengeance, but I don’t mind them. I feel they add to the rich variety of the venues that we find at our level of the game. They also generally tend to have good facilities, and a decent stand, providing a rare opportunity to watch a game from an elevated position. That’s certainly the case at Croydon, as it has quite a posh stand, with some 400 blue and yellow seats, arranged in no fewer than eleven rows. The front row is about six feet from the ground, and the top seats provide a good view of the trams that pass by the eastern side of the ground, (but the perimeter fence obscures the adjoining South Norwood Country Park, that lies beyond). Apart from the main stand, there is plenty of terracing, grassy banks and other covered standing areas, and so it is not surprising that the stadium has an overall capacity of 8,000. Today’s attendance of 73 rather rattled around the arena, on a day when none of the attendances at today’s SCEFL matches managed to break three figures.

The Ashford United team sheet suggested that the squad is still rather depleted, as a result of injuries, work commitments and holidays in the sun. With Luke Cuthbert, Pat Kingwell and Liam Whiting all missing, the back four had a rather make-shift look about it. Jordan Miller was, once again, drafted in from Faversham, with whom he is dual-registered, to do his excellent impersonation of Pat Kingwell. Recent hat-trick hero Tom Scorer was again asked to fill in at right-back and 18 year-old Callum Wraight played out on the left. It must be said that all four had an excellent game, in front of Joe Mant, both individually and as a unit. The midfield had a more familiar look to it, consisting of captain Gary Clarke, Adam Cuthbert, Lee Winfield and Kieran Byrne – but the best news was that Paul Chambers was able to start with his two recent marquee signings, Andy Irvine and Stuart Zanone, up front, for the first time this season.

Assistant Manager Lloyd Blackman was named as one of the substitutes, which was a further suggestion of availability issues, along with Harry Priddle, Joe Fisher, Ollie Finch and Keelan Mooney.

By common consent, this was an Ashford victory of the “win ugly” category, on a surface that was very bumpy, with dry, bare patches that could be seen from high up, at the back of the stand. There wasn’t much creativity from a solid Ashford midfield, today, with most of the visitors’ attacks originating from a long kick-out from Joe Mant. Nevertheless, a good team performance enabled the visitors to hang on, fairly comfortably, to the early lead gained through yet another Stuart Zanone goal.

It was actually the home side that made the first opening, in the first minute of the game. A nicely-worked move down the right gave Badar Mohammed a clear sight of goal, but his low shot, from just outside the penalty area, was straight at Joe Mant. Ashford’s goal, which came in the sixth minute, was also the result of a good, swift build-up. Lee Winfield spread the ball wide, to Adam Cuthbert, on the right. Adam sent in a first-time cross, behind the Croydon defence, and Stuart Zanone was there to side-foot the ball into the net, from close range.

At this stage, everything seemed to be set fair for the visitors. Andy Irvine is a seriously large unit, and he was conspicuously the biggest and strongest presence in the Croydon half of the field. Irvs’ best chance of the afternoon came in the ninth minute, after Kieran Byrne had won the ball with a clean tackle, inside Croydon’s half. The through ball that Byrne guided into the penalty area took a substantial bobble which actually helped the ex-Tunbridge Wells striker, as it rather sat up for him, but he hit his shot straight at goalkeeper Francis Ameyaw. Stuart Zanone is also a big, strong lad, so there was every prospect that, between them, the strike partnership would be able to give the home defence a torrid afternoon. Added to that, there were early signs that the likes of Lee Winfield, Gary Clarke, Tom Scorer and others had the skill and the composure to dominate possession – if they were so inclined.

As things panned out, however, there was never much between the two sides. Croydon tried to play a passing game, throughout, and had enough good possession inside Ashford’s half to keep their supporters interested for the entire 90 minutes. The visitors never fully justified the odds of 8-15 that were available at William Hill’s betting shop in Bank Street, in Ashford, but deserved the three points due to a commanding display by the defence. For all Croydon’s efforts, they never caused Joe Mant any real anxiety. I will pick out Jordan Miller, first of all. He was an immense presence in the air, strongly repelling any high balls thrown into the Ashford box. (The term “thrown” is appropriate, here, as The Trams had a long-throw specialist in captain Steven Cox – twice he launched a howitzer into the visitors’ goalmouth, in the first half, and twice the danger was cleared by the head of Miller).

The Miller-Walsh partnership worked very well, as Liam Walsh was often on hand to use his pace to snuff out any danger on the ground. Apart from one, most uncharacteristic, complete Horlicks he made in the first half, Liam had a really good game. Both full-backs also deserve a mention. Young Callum Wraight was solid enough at left-back, and Tom Scorer continues to amaze with his skill and versatility. Several times, he showed great awareness to see a danger and come across with a saving tackle, and, on more than one occasion, he had the strength and balance to turn and play his way out of a tight spot.

In the 15^th minute, this defence came under attack from centre-back Adam Allen, who had picked the ball up deep inside his own half. Careering through the centre of the Ashford midfield, he made it all the way to the edge of the 18-yard box, before his shot was blocked. Two corners followed in quick succession, during a period of good Croydon pressure, but both came to nothing – as did a number of other corners for the home side. In the 21^st minute, Ashford had a corner, after Stuart Zanone had run onto a long kick-out by Joe Mant, and had sent in a good cross aimed at Andy Irvine, only to see the ball hooked behind by one of the home defence. The kick, taken by Lee Winfield, on the left, was met by Gary Clarke, at the near post, but he could do no more than head the ball wide.

Liam Walsh’s aberration occurred in the 26^th minute. Running back towards his own goal line, the “percentage call” was clearly to boot the ball into touch, for a throw-in. Instead, Liam turned and passed the ball to a Croydon forward, in the Ashford penalty area (!), but the danger was soon snuffed out with a saving tackle.

The home side’s next clear chance came in the 36^th minute, after Badar Mohammed had beaten the off-side trap. With only Joe Mant to beat, he could have taken the ball into the penalty area, but instead fired a low shot straight at the Ashford ‘keeper, from about 20 yards out.

Croydon appeared to grow in confidence, as the half wore on, and, although the visitors looked comfortable enough going into the half-time interval with a one-goal lead, it has to be said that Joe Mant had had more work to do than Francis Ameyaw, in the Croydon goal.

As the Croydon Sports Arena’s impressive floodlights powered up, at about 4pm – it was a fairly overcast afternoon, and quite a bit chillier than the weather forecasters had suggested – Ashford made a bright start to the second half. Kieran Byrne beat his man, on the half-way line, and his run took him all the way to the corner of the penalty area. He unleashed a shot that always looked to be fairly optimistic, but it was hit with great power, and Ameyaw looked a little uncomfortable, as he blocked the ball with his fists, at the expense of a corner. Lee Winfield curled the corner in with his right foot, and Stuart Zanone headed wide.

In the 54^th and 55^th minutes, Paul Chambers was forced to into making two substitutions which probably didn’t help Ashford’s rhythm going forward. The first of the changes saw Andy Irvine replaced by Joe Fisher, who partnered Stuart Zanone up front, in a like-for-like swap. Joe worked hard, and showed good close control, but is approximately half Irvine’s size, so the attack lacked the physical presence it had in the first half. A minute later, Callum Wraight obviously hurt himself in a tackle, raising an arm as soon as he had gone down. He was replaced by Harry Priddle, who slotted into the midfield, with Kieran Byrne dropping back into the left-back position.

Ashford had a period of possession and pressure around about the hour mark, but rarely looked like scoring, so that the remainder of the game was mostly about staying solid and keeping at arm’s length a home side that never gave up trying. Having said that, it did appear that Stuart Zanone had doubled the lead when he put the ball into the Croydon net in the 75^th minute. This occurred seconds after Fray James had picked up a loose ball just outside the Ashford area, and seen his low, diagonal shot comfortably saved by Joe Mant. Zanone ran onto a long, high clearance from Kieran Byrne, and, appearing to be the only outfield player in the Croydon half, easily rounded Ameyaw and tapped the ball home – but did so with the use of an arm, which seemed to be totally unnecessary.

In a game that was “clean” throughout, enabling the referee mostly to keep his cards in his pocket, Croydon’s Karl Douglin was shown a yellow one for his late tackle on Gary Clarke, in the 78^th minute. There were those among us who thought  we might see another card, when Ollie Finch replaced Joe Fisher, in the 87^th minute, as Ollie had fully three minutes in which to get himself booked. Instead, it was Jordan Miller who received Ashford’s only yellow card of the afternoon, when he “took one for the team” – I hate that expression – when halting the progress of Douglin as he broke through midfield, with a minute of normal time remaining.

So plenty of talk among the faithful, after the game, of “sometimes having to win ugly”, and I am sure that Paul Chambers and Lloyd Blackman will have been delighted with the team’s resolve in being able to hold out for the three points. I also well remember that, on my previous visit to Croydon Sports Arena, ten years ago, three points would have seemed like gold dust, so I’m not about to get sniffy about the manner of victory. Every win is important, and Ashford United’s return now stands at seven wins and three draws, from ten games.

(P.S. The four Ashford players named after a city are Byron Glasgow, Denver Birmingham (who only counts as one), Steve Coventry and Bill Dodge).