Margate 0-2 Hendon
Ryman League Premier Division
Saturday 10th September 2011
Hartsdown Park
Much like an afternoon spent in the company of Boris Johnson, Hendon’s visit to Margate was far from pretty, but for one reason or another those of a Greener persuasion were left sporting wide smiles on their way home. It was a dry, somewhat blustery day on the East Kent coast and the wind played quite a part in the spectacle, or lack of, that was witnessed by 370 hardy souls.
Once again, this was a victory as much by organisation, graft and discipline as it was by class, but any Greens fan would take that in a heartbeat over another display of flowing passing attacking football but coming away after losing 3-1. Just watching from the sidelines, you’re able to see the shape of the side, you’re able to see how well drilled they are at the moment and that they are working together as a unit. Given the number of new faces drafted in over the summer, that is no mean feat.
Gary McCann named an unchanged starting XI for a world record 4th match in succession, somewhat, I must admit, to my surprise as I suspected Kevin Maclaren might replace Dave Diedhiou in the heart of the midfield. It wasn’t to be, but the big fella was much improved and the younger Maclaren would go on to have quite an impact on proceedings anyway. On the bench Isaiah Rankin returned for the injured Aaron Morgan, James Fisher was named in place of Bradley Ambrose and Byron Bubb was named in place of Danny Dyer, who was getting some ‘pwopa nawty’ game time with Sean Thomas at Northwood. Chris Kinnear made it an easy afternoon for those noting down team changes by naming just one change to his 16, Craig Cloke replacing Wayne Wilson on the bench.
The first period was almost entirely awful, from both sides. Clear openings were at a premium, as were accurate passes and anything much to appreciate, even for the purists amongst us. James Archer’s long throw was flicked on and partially cleared by Dean Hill, before Greg Ngoyi tried his luck with an overhead effort that was straight at Jack Smelt in the Margate goal after about 10 minutes or so, and it was another 10 minutes before the home side got their first effort in on Berkeley Laurencin’s goal, but Matt Bodkin’s shot bounced away off the frame of the goal. That was as close as Margate came to scoring all afternoon as Laurencin enjoyed a fairly comfortable afternoon from then onwards.
The Greens suffered two first half injury blows when first Casey Maclaren was taken off with what was first suspected to be a broken bone in his leg or foot (thankfully X-Rays gave him the all-clear) and then Ryan Wharton pulled up with a muscle strain 5 minutes before the break. Gary McCann swapped Maclaren’s and James Fisher emerged from the bench for his debut replacing Wharton and fitted in like he’d been part of the side for a couple of years.
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| James Fisher made an encouraging debut as a first half substitute |
The 2nd half began much as the first had ended, with the home side huffing and puffing hard against the well organised Green machine and although Kwesi Appiah went close with an effort that brushed the side netting shortly after the break, but otherwise getting no change from the Hendon defence. For their part, although Greg Ngoyi was once again working like a trojan up front, the Greens front line never really looked like scoring either. That was until the game changed controversially with 20 minutes remaining.
Ngoyi chased a ball in behind the Margate back line and got into the penalty area. Jack Smelt came out and dived at the Hendon man’s feet. Ngoyi knocked the ball past the goalkeeper and then went down under the goalkeeper’s challenge. Any contact was minimal to say the least, although after the game Ngoyi maintained it was definitely there. This incident brought to mind an interesting conundrum, is a striker ‘entitled’ to go down when challenged in the box? In recent weeks I’ve heard both Alan Shearer and John Motson say that the striker is entitled to go down in exactly these circumstances, but I’m not sure I agree with that. On the one hand, we’re trying to stamp out ‘simulation’ and on the other actively encouraging players to go down under the slightest bit of pressure. After Ngoyi didn’t go down when having his shirt almost removed from his back against Lewes, it became quickly clear that some with influence felt he should have gone down. He did so on Saturday and got his reward. Now, I’m not saying that Ngoyi necessarily cheated, but I do think that players are sometimes given mixed messages. The number of times now you see a striker hanging his foot out to ensure contact is made in the box now before going down, or strikers on their way down before contact is made is amazing. It’s no wonder that referees get so much ‘wrong’ when players are encouraged to blur the lines so much. As far as I’m concerned, that’s a dodgy penalty in the bank for us this season, there will be no complaints from me come March time if one is given against us that costs us points. One player non plussed by the incident was Jamie Busby who sent Smelt the wrong way from the spot for his 3rd goal of the season.
From that point onwards, I never really felt like the Greens would go back empty handed, and indeed, the 2nd goal 8 minutes later simply confirmed my suspicions. If Smelt was distinctly unlucky with the penalty call, he was wholly at fault for the game sealer. He’s not what you’d call the most commandingly built goalkeeper on the Ryman Circuit, but then neither was Gary McCann. The Greens forced a succession of corners, the last of which was half cleared to the edge of the box. It was returned with interest (4.94% apr) by Kevin Maclaren and the ball sailed beyond Smelt, possibly with the assistance of the blustery conditions, and bounced into the netting just inside the far post. Smelt scrambled back and carried the ball back the right side of the line, but the goal had already been given. The apoplectic goalkeeper then smashed the ball out of the ground, halfway to Dunkirk Some behind the goal bellowed for a 2nd yellow card to be shown, I felt the official dealt with things sensibly – a 2nd caution would have been unbelievably fussy.
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| Jack Smelt something fishy when the referee pointed to the spot |
The Greens killed the game, Margate forced a couple of corners which were both repelled whilst Curtis Robinson sent a shot not far over the angle of post and bar whilst Smelt saved well from Godfrey as Hendon broke in stoppage time. 2 goals was enough though to settle a scrappy affair and the Greens were able to celebrate a 3rd straight away win and another clean sheet on the road as well much to the delight of the small traveling band of supporters. A job well done.
Player Ratings
1. Berkeley Laurencin: A fourth clean sheet of the season and a pretty comfortable afternoon for the goalkeeper. Looked secure and dealt confidently with everything thrown at him. 7/10
2. Ryan Wharton: A truncated appearance for the centre half who was forced off with a muscle pull 5 minutes before the break. Did well before that though dealing competently with Bradbrook and Appiah. 6
3. Scott Cousins: A steady decent performance at left back by the skipper, his dead ball delivery as always this season was excellent and put the Margate back 4 under a lot of scrutiny. 6
4. Michael Peacock: Committed performance defending the 18 yard box with his customary command. Excellent as always in the air where he pretty well dominated Bradbrook. 7
5. James Archer: Probably been even more of a surprise than Ryan Wharton with his consistent performances after playing Sussex County League football last season. Another good effort from the full back who is making the slot his own. 7
6. Dave Diedhiou: Much better performance from the big midfielder after an unusually poor display last weekend at Lewes. Used the ball much better and looked more confident in possession than on Sundayg. 6
7. Jamie Bubsy: Good performance from Buzzer, who seems more than ever to quietly but effectively hum around and keep things ticking over. Gave Smelt no chance from the spot to put him back in pole position for the green slipper at the end of the season. 7
8. Carl McCluskey: Maybe a little quieter this time around, but no less effective in the support striker role. Used his height to good effect and continues to impress with his intelligent passing. 6
9. Greg Ngoyi: Questionable penalty aside, another committed, all action performance from the number 9. Gave the 2 Margate centre halves all sorts of trouble with his running and strength that belies his short-ish stature. Covered about 110 miles again. Excellent. 8
10. Elliot Godfrey: In tandem with Scott Cousins, his dead balls have made the Greens a far more dangerous and effective side from set pieces. Good intelligent performance, completed 90 minutes for the first time. 7
11. Casey Maclaren: Lasted less than 20 minutes before a nasty looking knock curtailed his involvement. Thankfully, no break was received and with any luck he should be back available for selection before too long. 6
Subs
12. Kevin Maclaren: Replaced his brother and sealed the three points with a slightly bizarro 2nd goal, not that he will mind. Did nicely after coming on, looks to be chanelling his aggression positively so far this season. 7
14. Isaiah Rankin: Replaced the exhausted Ngoyi for the last 10 minutes and made a nuisance of himself. A really good option to have on the bench.
15. James Fisher: Made his debut in place of Ryan Wharton and slotted in very nicely. Clearly not quite fit, and looked as though he was struggling towards the end, but a very encouraging start. 7
Match Rating: 4
Star Man: Greg Ngoyi
Verdict: Another committed performance and 3 points ground out. Looked well drilled, very organised and solid against a Margate side who probably didn’t do themselves justice on the day. An element of fortune about both goals, but to be honest, while it’s on offer, everyone connected with the Greens will lap it up.
Other Results:
AFC Hornchurch 6-0 Tooting & Mitcham (Prediction 2-0)
Martin Tuohy struck 3 times as the Urchins crushed Tooting at Bridge Avenue. Leon Smith, Michael Spencer and Jon Hunt completed the scoring.
Bury Town 0-1 Met Police (Prediction 2-1)
An excellent away win for the Fuzz at Bury who have now gone 3 games without a win. Tony Finn was the hero for Met with the 34th minute winner.
Carshalton Athletic 0-1 Billiericay Town (Prediction 1-1)
Another excellent result as well for Billericay Town and Carshalton who still await their first goal in front of their own fans. Jay May netted his 4th of the season to give the away side the points.
Concord Rangers 2-2 Hastings United (Prediction 3-1)
A crazy 11 minute spell just before half time saw 4 goals shared in a game that does little for either side. Arron Hopkinson and Matt Hall gave Hastings a 2-0 lead before Kyle Asante, on loan from Southend and a Michael Noone penalty on the stroke of half time gave Concord a share of the spoils.
East Thurrock United 1-0 Horsham (Prediction 0-2)
Horsham fell to their 3rd defeat in succession as East Thurrock got their season back on track with a 1-0 win thanks to Neil Richmond’s winner 20 minutes from time. Former Hendon man Sam Collins made his Rocks debut in the game
Harrow Borough 0-4 Cray Wanderers (Prediction 0-2)
Cray ran riot at Earlsmead as Boro crashed to their fourth defeat of the season. I have no idea who scored the goals, sorry.
Kingstonian 0-3 Wealdstone (Prediction 2-2)
It goes from bad to worse for K’s fans as they crashed at home to Wealdstone who themselves came away with their 2nd impressive win in succession. Wes Parker, Richard Jolly and David Hicks were the Goalscorers for the Stones.
Leatherhead 1-2 Lowestoft Town (Prediction 0-3)
A good effort from the Tanners saw them come up just short against Lowestoft who made it four wins on the trot. Lubo Guentchev made it 6 for the season after 25 minutes before Danny Gainsford equalised on the stroke of half time. Guentchev then had his spot kick saved by Chico Ramos in the 2nd half, but the rebound fell to Stuart Ainsley who gratefully slotted home the rebound to settle a nervy affair
Lewes 4-1 Aveley (Prediction 3-0)
Lewes racked up their biggest win of the season in some style by putting Aveley to the sword at the Dripping Pan. Paul Booth and Michael Malcolm’s goals were added to by Christian Nanetti and Nic Ciardini to give the home side a comfortable win. Reece Morgan scored on his debut for Aveley’s consolation.
Wingate & Finchley 0-2 Canvey Island (Prediction 1-0)
Canvey continued their impressive start to the season by becoming the first side to beat Wingate in the Premier Division. Goals from Leon Gordon and Jay Curran sealed a deserved 3 points for the visitors.
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