Three More Points Banked

Looking back upon our win against Lowestoft a fortnight ago I lyrically waxed about our performance and play off prospects, possibly a little too much. The following Tuesday the Trawlerboys went south and lost to a resurgent Hastings United side whilst we spent last weekend labouring in the 2^nd half once again on Canvey Island. I ought to have learned long ago to stop reading much into results here, there and everywhere because they mean absolutely Bo-Jiggles in the long run.

So in the wake of this weekend’s 3 points against title chasers AFC Hornchurch, Harry Hyperbole is taking a break and will be replaced by Dougie Dourness.

It was a glorious (Ed – steady on, pleasant will suffice) sunny Saturday in North West Wembley as Hendon looked to build on their recent improved home form against Billericay’s closest challengers as things stand for the title AFC Hornchurch. As I think I’ve said before, the Greens boast a good record against the Urchins, something which considering the heavy influence of Messrs McBride and MacFarlane and their record against Hendon with Purfleet / Thurrock, would have been unthinkable a decade ago.

Before kick off on Saturday, Hendon were unbeaten in their previous five meetings with the Urchins, a run that included four wins. The visitors arrived at Vale Farm on the back of a defeat at home to Hastings in midweek that ended a run of four straight wins and clean sheets. Like the Greens, much of the Urchins’ success this season has been built on extremely solid foundations, as you’d expect from a side managed by Jimmy MacFarlane who, for the record, I rate as consistently the best centre half I’ve seen at this level.

In the wake of that reverse MacFarlane rang the changes, James Love replaced Michael Spencer at number 2, Simon Glover was fit to come into the heart of midfield in place of Andy Tomlinson, Tambeson Eyong swapped places with Jonathan Hunt and Lewis Smith returned to the bench. Meanwhile, Gary McCann handed a second debut to on-loan goalkeeper Rikki Banks, who arrived on Friday from Eastbourne Borough, James Parker and Scott Cousins returned in the full back positions after missing the defeat to Hampton in midweek whilst Greg Ngoyi and Elliott Charles led the line up front.

The game began at a frantic pace with the visitors very much on the front foot. I was impressed with them in the early stages. They moved the ball quickly, but with purpose trying to release the pacy men out wide in Eyong and former Thurrock and Sutton man Fola Orinoshole and get good balls into the box for the tall and dangerous Martin Tuohy and Leon McKenzie to attack. Simon Glover sat deep in midfield and passed the ball well, whilst Frankie Curley had license to get into the box and support the two strikers.

Defensively they looked very strong, if not quite as physically imposing as they have in previous years. Elliott Styles and Rickie Hayles are as good a centre half partnership as you’re likely to see this season along with Rob Swaine and Chris Wild this season. It was noticeable in the first 20-25 minutes how much physically stronger they appeared than those in Green shirts, and although not quite hanging on, the back four were under a lot of pressure in those early stages. Going forward, as has often been the case when getting a foothold in a game, there was little in terms of service or support for the front men to enjoy.

Leon McKenzie had the ball in the net early on with a looping header, but the assistant’s flag was already raised signalling offside giving the referee no option but to chalk the goal off. So he did with a great deal of subtlety I thought.

That early effort apart, the Hendon back four, protected by the hard-working Casey Maclaren and Elliott Godfrey did well to keep Banks largely unemployed. At times it was a stretch, but neither Tuohy or McKenzie really had a sniff of goal, much of this was down to the efforts of Parker and Cousins at full back who although on the back foot dealt well with the threat from out wide.

It took 26 minutes for the Greens to have their first effort on goal, Casey Maclaren lashing the ball quite a long way over the top of the bar from distance. Although not troubling Joe Woolley in the Urchins net, it signified the moment where Hendon decided that there were going to be two sides taking part in the game as an attacking force.

Suddenly passes began to find their men, Ngoyi in particular worked the two centre halves harder as the service into him improved and perhaps most importantly, Darren Currie was able to exert some influence on proceedings down the left flank. On a couple of occasions he sold James Love a body swerve or a dummy with a moment of class and gleefully reaped the rewards (Ed – watch those superlatives laddy). He was also responsible for the first effort of note on target in the first period as a free kick was half cleared to him on the right angle of the penalty area. Taking a touch he drilled a low drive through a crowd of bodies that Woolley did very well to not only get down to but also to hold.

On the stroke of half time, the Hornchurch custodian bettered that save after the best Hendon move of the match down the left flank saw Cap’n Cousins swing a beauty of a cross in. Carl McCluskey got up and directed his header towards the top corner of Woolley’s net from about 8 yards out. The goalkeeper reacted brilliantly to get an extremely strong hand at full stretch to the ball and send it behind for a corner. I certainly haven’t seen too many better stops this season by a visiting goalkeeper.

Any Greens fans holding their heads in despair soon experienced the full roller-coaster of emotions as MacLaren picked up the cleared corner down the right hand side, sent a cross over towards Greg at the near post. Someone got a touch and sent the ball off towards the far stick where Elliott Charles was able to climb and after a game of head, nose, shoulders, chest, bundled the ball far enough over the line for the well placed referee to signal goal before it was scooped back to give the home side the half time advantage.

After the break, with Elliott Charles sitting a little deeper on the left flank and what looked to all intents and purposes like a 4-2-3-1 formation similar to the one with which I have achieved so much success with on Football Manager 11 with FC Porto (3 defeats in 57 matches for the record), in order to stem the tidal wave of blue and white shirts that was headed towards our penalty area.

For the most part the early storm was weathered. A couple of long range efforts missed the target by a similar distance, and an impressive run down the right flank by James Love ended with the right back unable to get a decent cross away and Banks was able to smother with ease. Fola Orilonishe then sent an overhead kick towards goal from inside the penalty area which Banks managed to scoop slightly unconventionally around the post for a corner, but these efforts were the exception rather than the rule.

The reason for this, not for the first time, was the excellent performance by the back four and two men shielding them in particular. There was nothing desperate about the way they defended, where possible they passed the ball out from the back in an attempt to relieve the pressure on them rather than just mindlessly hoof the ball onto the head of an opposing centre half for the ball to come straight back at them.

Jimmy MacFarlane introduced the lively Leon Smith with half an hour remaining, popping him on into an inside left position place of Orilonishe and he brought a new dimension to Hornchurch’s attack with his pace and ability to cut inside. He used this to good effect on a couple of occasions, bringing one good low block from Banks, but for the most part, the move probably played into Hendon’s hands as he always looked to cut inside where things were already pretty congested. In theory this could have opened the left flank for Joe Anderson to overlap from left-back, but with James Parker able to pass Smith on when he came inside, he was able to deal effectively with the threat that Anderson provided.

The game was sealed in rather predictable fashion. With Isaiah Rankin on the pitch and the game deep in stoppage time you know there’s every chance of a goal. And so it proved once again as the substitute broke into the visitors half, controlling a long clearance with a delightful first touch. He was away, with two Urchins in pursuit trying to pick his pocket and although they kept pace with the striker, they couldn’t muscle him off the ball without giving away a free kick and their place on the pitch as this was a very definite goalscoring opportunity. Ranks proved as much by powerfully sending the ball over the advancing Joe Woolley (who did well to get a hand to the effort) and into the roof of the net.

As the Greens wheeled away, forward and back in delight, further back towards the halfway line it became obvious that Ryan Wharton and Leon McKenzie were involved in a ‘full and frank’ discussion. The Hendon number four very definitely landed a fairly meaty jab onto the Hornchurch number 10’s chin, but had the wisdom to do it whilst the official’s attention were otherwise engaged 80 odd yards away. I can’t imagine that McKenzie was entirely innocent as Wharton isn’t the kind of bloke to randomly smack a bloke without some kind of mitigating reason. Both benches became involved, one Hornchurch fan in particular showed his displeasure with Wharton extremely vocally and to be fair, I can understand why. The referee, once order had been restored, showed both men a yellow card, presumably because that was the simple thing to do having not witnessed the original incident.

The goal was pretty much the final kick of the game, and another very impressive three points were racked up. The side moved up the table to 5^th, back into the play-offs and with only Cray and Wealdstone in touching distance if they win their games in hand. One suspects that the home fixture with Cray on the 27^th is going to play a massive part in proceedings, a win could be enormous. However, the key isn’t going to be one home match, it’s is likely to be how we get on against those sides with little to play for towards the end of the season and battling against relegation. For the time being, with a free midweek to get people focused for the tricky trip to Concord on Saturday, the fans can look back on another job very well done.

Player Ratings

1. Rikki Banks: Returned on Friday for his second loan spell at Hendon and performed very well. Highly rated by Lewes, Gary’s pulled off a masterstroke getting him in again. Looks more dominant and commanding than six years ago and picked up a well deserved blank sheet. 7/10

2. James Parker: Up against an experienced winger in Fola Orilonishe and then a different threat in Lewis Smith, Parks had one of his most impressive games of the season. Coming into form at a crucial point in the season. 8

3. Scott Cousins: Once again dealt well with a pacy opponent, keeping the service from his side of the pitch to two good centre forwards at a minimum. Linked up well with Darren Currie, and later Michael Lewis. 7

4. Ryan Wharton: Went dangerously close to blotting his copybook with a moment of madness just ahead of the final whistle, but up until that point had been as impressively solid and strong as ever this season. 7

5. James Fisher: Superb performance at centre half bringing an air of calm authority to proceedings defensively. Organises things well and compliments Ryan Wharton very nicely. Better in the air than you expect him to be given his relatively short stature. 8

6. Casey Maclaren: Another excellent midfield performance by the elder Maclaren. Kept his head after a first half booking, broke up Hornchurch’s rhythm and momentum well and supplied the cross for the first goal. 8

7. Carl McCluskey: Moments of brilliance paired with moments of infuriation. Unlucky not to score just before the first goal when his header was brilliantly saved, but had a tendency to overplay after beating a couple of men when simple passes were on. 7

8. Elliott Godfrey:  Worked his nuts off alongside Casey Maclaren in a more defensive role, particularly 2^nd half than perhaps he is used to but did the hard work very diligently. 8

9. Greg Ngoyi: As tireless as ever up front he didn’t get a sniff of goal and was well marshalled by Elliott Styles and Rickie Hayles. Replaced midway through the 2^nd half. 6

10. Darren Currie: Once Hendon had got a foothold in the game, he came into his own and dictated things in the last quarter of an hour of the first half with some moments of quality. A great influence on the side. 8

11. Elliott Charles: Got the first goal and led the line with his usual strength and pace. Worked hard, managed to stay onside for most of the game before being replaced late on for Rankin. 7

Substitutes

12. Jamie Busby: Late change for Darren Currie to help shore up the midfield

13. Isaiah Rankin: Once again a goalscoring cameo to seal the three points. Genuinely classy goal from start to finish 8

17. Michael Lewis: Gave us a better shape on the left flank midway through the 2^nd half and allowed Elliott Charles to play as the target man. Worked hard and used the ball with intelligence 7

Match Rating: 6/10

Star Man: James Fisher

Verdict: Another excellent three points against another decent side once again underlining the side’s play-off credentials. It’s quite a few years since games against the top four sides in the division will have yielded four wins out of eight matches, the key in the run in is going to be the matches against sides lower in the division. All very much still to play for.

Note: A big thanks to Rob Monger of AFC Hornchurch for his fine work with the video camera and making the goals available on youtube.

Four Good Points, Aveley Approaching and RIP Steve Cheesewright

After the defeat against Leatherhead a few weeks ago I said that the next five matches, all against title and play off challengers could end up making or breaking our season. At that point, having lost at home to the Tanners, Met Police and only drawn with Horsham, anyone offering me a return from those five matches of 7 points would have received a warm hug and maybe even a little peck on the cheek. By and large, the performances since the first whistle against Canvey Island have shown a vast improvement on what we witnessed prior to that. It is perhaps telling that in these last five matches, Gary Mac has by and large been able to field a pretty settled XI. The injury situation seems to have settled down a little and the additions of Mauro Vilhete, Frank Sinclair and Darren Currie does seem to have had a slightly galvanising effect on things.

As a result, we see ourselves going into December sat in 5^th position having played 18 league matches already. Barring a winter of epic proportions, fixture congestion ought not to be an issue this term. We have two cup competitions to come and ought to be able to fully concentrate of making progress in each of them so quiet optimism has been renewed, particularly when you consider Aveley, Tooting & Mitcham and East Thurrock United make up our next run of league fixtures. I am hesitant to start setting targets and making predictions because as we’ve already seen this season, the league table means absolutely nothing on the pitch.

Our week began with a solid performance at Cray Wanderers whose season up until now had largely matched ours. A great start followed by a slightly rougher patch and then some signs again of life. Remarkably, Cray were able to name 3 players in their starting XI with hat-tricks to their names this season already, and a fourth on the bench. They promised a stern test of Hendon’s back four and to their credit, they responded excellently. Indeed, the Greens had the better of proceedings after the break and could have taken home the three points had Andy Walker, replacement for Dave King in goal for Cray this season, produced an outstanding save from Vilhete, who himself had struck the inside of the post minutes earlier in pursuit of his first goal in a Hendon shirt. He won’t come any closer than that. In the end, a point apiece was a fair reflection of an absorbing encounter and the clean sheet was a big boost.

52:45 hours later and it was back off East of St. Pauls to Upminster to take on the in-form Urchins of Bridge Avenue. Unbeaten in their previous 9 matches in all competitions and with their front two of Martin Tuohy and Lewis Smith having scored 19 league goals between them (Hendon’s entire total for the season stood before the game at 22) everything pointed to a home banker. Admittedly, and perhaps inexplicably considering the fact that two of the architects of Thurrock’s dominance over everything Hendon in Jimmy MacFarlane and Colin McBride are heavily involved at AFC Hornchurch, our record against the Urchins is good, unbeaten in our previous four meetings.

It wasn’t backs to the wall stuff by any stretch of the imagination, but a performance full of defensive discipline and threat on the counter attack. The only goal of the game came at the end of the first quarter when Elliott Godfrey’s low drive from 20 yards skidded past Joe Woolley in the Hornchurch goal. Try as they might, the home side were unable to break down the visitor’s defence and Berkley Laurencin was able to enjoy his 7^th blank sheet of the season in his 14^th match. Sinclair in particular drew many of the plaudits amongst the 3.14159265 away fans trying in vain to make themselves heard above the 500 home fans thronging amassed in the crowd of 187 as Hendon completed what was probably their best result since the victory at Carshalton. When the report on the Urchins website grudgingly concedes that Hendon deserved the three points, you know you’ve done well. (Thanks to AFC Hornchurch for the video below)

Tomorrow we welcome struggling Aveley to Vale Farm. The corresponding fixture last season saw the Millers pick up their first points against Hendon at the fourth attempt with an impressive and committed showing winning 2-1. It was one of the least impressive performance by the Greens that I witnessed last season, and the hope is that tomorrow is very different. Having received the annual reprieve from relegation regularly handed out to the side finishing 19^th in the division, Carl Griffiths was looking forward to a season away from the relegation zone. Unfortunately for the former Leyton Orient man, things didn’t work out and the end of October saw the end of his tenure. Replacing him is former West Ham, Billericay and Thurrock man Lee Hodges and his first game in charge saw his charges pick up a 2-1 win over fellow strugglers Horsham. He has been quick to bring in his own players with Danny Smith, Joe Keith, Jamie Richards and Rikki Burbridge all making their debuts against the Hornets. However, a surprise 2-1 defeat in the Essex Senior Cup to Witham Town will have provided a quick reminder as to the size of the job on hand. However, the Millers currently sit in 18^th place, 3 points ahead of 19^th placed Concord Rangers but having played more games than the three sides immediately below them in the table. They will be scrapping for everything tomorrow and we will need to make sure we match them for commitment first and foremost if we are going to come away with anything. 3 more points would do us very nicely.

In sadder news, it was announced that regular Hendon fan Steve Cheesewright passed away earlier in the week following a 2 year battle with cancer. I didn’t know Steve well, but he was a familiar face on the terraces at Claremont Road in particular. Clearly his illness restricted his attendance over the last couple of years but he was still able to come when he was able to, even to the match at Luton only a few short weeks ago. Aged just 30, the following excerpt that was posted on Facebook pays tribute to him better than I ever could.

"Steve passed away peacefully yesterday after his 2 year battle with cancer, his family were with him when he died and he was comfortable. Steve was a very much loved son, grandson, friend, brother and daddy and will be missed by so many."

My thoughts are with his family at this very difficult and sad time, I know his huge smiling face will be much missed on the terraces behind the goals by all who came into contact with him in the common pursuit of Green glory. RIP Steve.

3 points in his memory tomorrow would be a fitting tribute.