Chingford Res fell to their first league defeat of the season blowing the title race wide open and showed that just fielding 11 players is not going to be enough to win the league. With 8 players missing it was going to be an up hill battle from the start.
So the cup run continues………
This week Chingford Athletic Reserves played at Wanstead Flats against St Francis in the quarter final of the Spartak Cup. Chingford struggled with players with Okan letting the team down at late notice. The team subsequently started with the bare eleven with one of their keepers up top with Collins.
Chingford started badly and were very slow out of the blocks. There was initially a lack of effort across the field and it took a goal to shake the team up. The goal came shortly before the midway point in the first half as St Francis broke the stalemate. Chingford sparked into action as the defence began to play football from the back and Kierans began pressing forward inspiring a number of Chingford attacks. Eventually Chingford forced a free kick around the left side of the St Francis box. Costis swung a high ball into the box that wrong footed the kicker who parried the ball into his own net. The goal was what Chingford needed and the team quickly came out of their shell. The half ended 1-1.The second half started well for Chingford as they began to dominant the second half. Chingford repeatedly hammered the St Francis goal as Kierans continued to press forward into the St Francis box. Eventually a number of Chingford passes in and around the St Francis box led to Ulasan slotting the ball past the keeper and into the back of the net.
All Chingford had to do was defend their goal and keep their shape for less than ten minutes. Kierans and Sandy did there job and held the centre. Credit must go to both players who dictated the game for Chingford. Once again Sandy defended well and through great positioning and bags of enthusiasm he allowed Kierans to attack. Kierans stood up to the challenge and lead the Chingford offensive from the midfield. The combination of the two was what got Chingford back into the game and sustained the victory.Chingford now progress to the next round against Clockwork as their aspirations of being League and Cup winners continue.Both midfielders deserve the title of Man of the Match this week but the title goes to Kierans for his efforts going forward and his enthusiasm and work rate on and off the ball.
Once again it was felt Chingford drop points against a Clockwork team who just didnt stop battling. It was Chingford who started the brighter of the 2 teams, on what was not a perfect surface but far better than last week game. Both Clockworks wingback were rather poor and it was Ahmed who took full advantage within the opening 20 minutes darting in from the wing rounding the keeper for an easy tap in to an open net. Chingford continued the pressure and found excellent play from both Chingford wingers, and well worked set peices helped them to gain a 3 goal cushion with 2 quick goals from Pearce, again both coming from work by the wingers. Just before the break Clockwork found themselves a life line and took the half time break knowing the game wasn't over at 3-1.
The second half saw some sloppy defending from both teams and it was Clockwork who broke 1st in the 2nd half bringing the teams even closer. Soon after Kierans restored the 2 goal cushion when a mistake from the out coming keeper led the ball right to his feet and he lobbed the ball over the keeper from 35 yards. Everything seemed to be over when Chingford were awarded a penality from some excellent work from Kierans stepping around 3 Clockwork defenders ala Ronaldo. The cool calm Collins stepped up to take what would have been his 3rd, 4th (i loose track!) penality of the season. But you could just tell it wasn't going to be our day when Collins struck it straight at the keeper. From there the tides turned and with Hurry having to be replaced due to injury Chingford had to reshuffle the pack. Clockwork still not out of the game attacked with everything they had and managed to grab 2 goals within the space of 2 minutes and they were back in it. Chingford continued to pressure in the last 5 minutes but just couldn't find a way through. It can't help but be felt that it was 2 points dropped rather than 1 pointed gained today. Difficult today to name a man of the match as everyone had a good 1st half but lacked in the second, both wingers, Kierans & Arhmed worked well, but this week it goes to Mark who once again showed Costis there is competition for his right back spot.
Special mention goes out to Lawrence who managed to take a bicycle kick to the head from Tom in the last minute and still lived to tell the tale....guess the 5 stitches are no consolidation prize either. Sorry Son!
This week Chingford’s reserves returned from a long break to play Esprit at Clayhall Park on a very muddy, wet and cold pitch. The pitch was probably not playable with the ball failing to roll on parts of the pitch but the game went ahead.Chingford started badly and struggled to cope with the poor conditions. Both centre backs were regularly caught out by the ball holding up around the edge of the box and this lead to two Esprit gaols. Chingford battled throughout the first half but were unable to claw a goal back. The half ended 2-0.
When the second half started it was clear that changes had to be made in order for the team to progress into the next round. Costis and Goodbun gave way for Clarke and Ahmed as the team went to three at the back. The benefits were clear as Chingford began to dominate in the middle as Clarke won everything in the air. As Chingford pressured Esprit into there own half Collins was able to score two quick goals in succession. Chingford’s defence remained firm while the midfield worked hard and this lead to Chingford dominating the second half. The pressure eventually lead to Ahmed crossing the ball from the left into a packed box and the ball landing on the foot of Pearce who tucked the ball around the keeper and into the back of the net.
Chingford’s players continued to battle on but it was clear that the game and the team’s recovery had taken its toll on some of the players. This was evident when Esprit counter attacked and scored their third goal, forcing a 3-3 draw at full time. Both teams muddled through the extra time in difficult conditions and this ended 3-3.For the second time this season Chingford lined up for penalties and six players showed the courage and put themselves forward. Once again Chingford kept their cool as Ulasan denied Esprit and allowed Chingford’s kickers to take the lead and progress to the next round.
Every man played well and special mention goes to Mark for an outstanding performance and Tolga for a fine performance during the penalties. However man of the match must go to Tony Collins for getting the goals when they counted and for another excellent penalty to inspire the kickers who followed.
Chingford Athletic reserves were the only Chingford Athletic team playing this weekend and unfortunately they didn’t perform well. This week the team travelled to Barking to play Euro Dagenham in the Essex Junior Trophy.
CAFC started badly and seemed both slow and uninterested across the entire pitch. In comparison the opposition chased every ball and closed down every touch and pass. Eventually the pressure and lack of enthusiasm caught up with CAFC and Dagenham got an early lead. Dagenham continued the game as they had started and refused to let CAFC breath. They pressured every touch, forcing mistakes everywhere. This led to five Dagenham goals and one goal to Chingford because of a goalkeeper blunder.
I doubt any player will say that they put one hundred percent effort into the game and I think this really showed in the team’s performance. CAFC never got started and their strong and resilient character never showed.
Hopefully the game was just a blip in a very good start to their first season. I’m sure Chingford will put the game behind them and look forward to Saturdays game and a successful season.
This weeks man of the match – you can't be serious!
It seems unbelievable that we have already reached the half waypoint of our first season. The team has already shown their ability in the league and cup and the halfway clash against Glendale was another test of the team’s resilience.
CAFC started badly and were slow from the kick-off as they struggled to absorb the pressure. Chingford knew what to expect from Glendale but still managed to concede from a Glendale long throw. The throw came from the right and struck the head of Jamie who flicked the ball on and across the line allowing Glendale to pass the ball into the back of the net. CAFC learnt from their lack of concentration and defended every throw that Glendale had, extremely well. Glendale dominated the first half on the sticky and muddy pitch until half time and the half ended 1-0.
The second half started very differently to the first as Chingford came out at a colossal speed. The team began to spread the play and started to stretch the Glendale defence. This allowed the ball to switch across from left to right, allowing Costis to push on into space and smash the ball across the box for Pearce to slot home. Chingford maintained the pressure and kept Glendale in their own half for the rest of the game. It was inevitable that Chingford would score a second as they hammered the Glendale defence. The goal came from a Chingford corner that the team devised and practiced on the training ground. The tactic worked perfectly and allowed JJ to head the ball into the bottom corner. A few minutes from the end and Glendale pressured the Chingford goal. The ball went up into the air and the team could only watch as it dropped onto the head of JJ. The ball bounced off of his head and landed on his arm. The referee then intervened and made yet another bad decision as he gave Glendale a penalty for handball. Mignot produced a good effort but was unable to keep the penalty out.The game ended 2-2 leaving the team still undefeated.
I can’t give a man of the match this week as not one player particularly stood out from the rest. Once again the team worked well as a unit and thought well, to get a good, yet frustrating result.
It seems like a week doesn’t pass at the moment without some form of pre-match excitement with the Reserves. This week it was the thought of Ulasan who missed the kick off against East Londoners due to bad traffic. Fortunately the CLUBS number one goalkeeper, right back, centre back and manager was at hand to fill the sticks. The only problem was a lack of equipment. A quick look in the bushes behind the goal revealed an old and wet pair of keeper gloves. The game started slowly as Chingford struggled to get the ball on the floor and spread the play. The pitch was sticky and bogey but Chingford still made efforts to prove their football ability. Eventually Pearce broke the stalemate with another fine finish from a difficult angle. Both the forwards and Mignot should have scored at least two each in the first half but struggled to put the ball past the keeper. The half ended one nil to Chingford. In the second half Chingford never really got going. They were slow, sluggish and uninterested. This led to a half dominated by the opposition and Chingford being lucky not to concede. With this said Chingford still managed to break on the counter. The ball ended up at the feet of skilful Collins who was able to loose his defender and make enough space to pass the ball into the bottom corner. (See video below) Chingford never deserved to loose but were fortunate to win. It was only the Chingford defence that kept the team in the game as they remained solid and disciplined throughout.Chingford win two nil. Not their best performance but they still grafted a win. Man of the match goes to both Jamie and JJ who defended well and organised the team from the back.
The Chingford Athletic manger had a hard task this week when picking his squad as all seventeen of his players were available. Unfortunately good players had to be left out! The team start against the inferior Manor Park at a slow pace. They struggled to find their feet until they received an early penalty from a handball. The cool and calm Collins stepped up and once again slotted the ball away. Though Chingford clearly weren’t at their best a Ulasan throw went through to Pearce and onto Collins who completed the play with a marvellous finish that gave him his second and allowed him to match Pearce on the goal scorers leader board. The half ended two nil. The manager was reluctantly forced to give a negative half time chat, that with hindsight the players deserved. When you have seventeen players to choose from, you want to see that every player on the field wants to be there and works their socks off to stay on the field. Unfortunately this didn’t seem to be the case and I think this showed in the first half performance.The team started the second half with far greater quality and should of scored at least five. With Ahmed having the majority of the chances it was only time before one went in. The youngster deserved his goal but should of scored more.
It’s unlike me to stand up for the opposition but the Manor Park boys received a torrid of abuse from their manager throughout the game, that eventually lead to the referees intervention. This annoyed the manager who became extremely sarcastic and eventually lead to the referee sending him away from the pitch.
Manor Park never seemed like they were going to score and once in front Chingford were always going to win. Chingford win 3-0. Man of the match goes to JJ. He has become a player that the team couldn’t do without and has a lot to do with the recent clean sheets and current strength at the back.
Chingford Reserves continued their great run of form with a convincing 3-0 win against an experienced Espirit side. The afternoon started in a different fashion to usual with injured captain Manicom managing the side in Costis's absence. The game started very scrappy with no real opening with both defences playing ping pong with each other. After 20 or so minutes Mani's babes started playing the football that has earned them top spot after 5 league games. A lot of the good play started from the back with all defenders bringing the ball out and hitting balls to both reserve debutant Lawrence and Mike on the wings which is how Athletics 1st goal came, after a few passes inter changing between JJ and Screech, JJ played a short pass to Mark who hit a pass down the line to Lawrence who turned his man and hit a peach of a cross in to the danger area which the Espirit defender kindly slotted home. Athletic then raised their game and played some very nice one touch football with Lee and Cook using the two front men as their outlets with the second goal looking more and more likely Bun hit a long pass in to Pearce's feet who slotted it sideways to strike partner Tony who used an excellent piece of skill to dummy the defender and create time to hold the ball up before sending a exquisite through ball on to Lawrence who had managed to time his run to perfection to thump home from 10 yards. just as the whistle was touching the referees lips Athletic had their only real scare of the game when JJ slotted the ball back to captain of the day Tolga who kicked the ball on to the onrushing Espirit forward, luckily Tolga Usain Bolt Ulsan managed to outpace the big striker and clear the ball of the line. Going in to the second half Lawrence become an injury worry with his troublesome groin playing him up, after 5 minutes in to the second half he called over to the bench and Sandy was on hand to replace the debutant. Espirit raised their game and began to attack but Athletic was working well as a defensive unit and restricted the away side to long efforts which Tolga was saving comfortably. Athletic continued to work hard and took advantage of the quality that they had on the bench with H and Ahmed coming on for Mike and Cook. With 5 minutes left Chingford began to attack and looked like they had found their 3rd when Screech used a nice piece of skill to dummy two of Espirits forwards play a ball to Lee who threaded the ball wide to wing back Mark who crossed a low pass on to the on-rushing Screech who had continued his run from centre back to blaze over from 5 yards. You could tell from his team mates expressions they had wished it was their usual right sided centre back in that position!! Chingford did finally find their third goal of the day when top goal scorer Pearce smacked a 40 yard screamer in to the top corner to finish the game off in style.
This week has been very hard to pick the man of the match as all 14 players played their part in a important win. Having had to make hard managerial decisions all day I decided to ask the man in black who gave the award to JJ. Well done to all I honestly couldn't pick one.
I've decided to add a new award to the reserve teams match thread and that is donkey of the day. There was two people up for this prestigious award this week. H for turning up late and losing his place in the starting 11 for his late showing. But the winner of the award this week has to go to Ahmed not only did he lose his starting place because of lateness the referee substituted him as linesmen after he turned in what the referee described the worst linesman performance he'd ever seen.
Chingford Athletic reserves begun the first phase of their cup run with a very disciplined and well grafted performance on a slippery fast pitch. Chingford started at a slower pace to previous games against the bigger and older Frenford team, but their work eventually paid off. Chingford made themselves a number of chances in the first half, with Ahmed being kept out by the Frenford keeper and Cook probably the closest with a long-range shot that was the wrong side of the post. Frenford matched Chingford throughout the first half but were also unsuccessful in front of goal as Mignot showed his form and Costis saved one off the line. The half ended 0-0. Chingford started the second half with the injured Jamie making way for Goodbun who went to right back. Chingford continued their disciplined performance until Frenford broke the stalemate. Frenford shot from the outside of the box with an attempt that should have been easy for the in form keeper. Unfortunately for him no one could have expected the ball to jump as it did and fly over his head and into the back of the net. Though deflated, Chingford gathered their thoughts and continued to develop their short game that they had established at the end of the first half. With discipline, composure and determination Chingford were able to claw one back via Tom who received a great through ball from Lee. After a few substitutions Chingford’s ability to play football on the floor started to show as the ball was spread from one side of the pitch to the other and through most of the team. The ball ended up at the feet of Jim on the right wing who sent a perfect cross into the box and onto the head of super-sub Tolga, who nodded the ball into the bottom corner. All Chingford were left to do was to remain tight and defend well. They did and finished the game 2-1.
Special praise must go to Lee and Cook who recognised that the long game wasn’t working and quickly dictated the game with simple, short football that eventually lead to the victory.
Man of the match: 14 players deserve the prize but it goes to Lee for his influence over the team’s positive change in football.
Chingford Res. managed to keep thier unbeaten record in tact and should have taken maxium points that saw many chances fall agonisingly short of the mark. The game started at a hurried pace with neither sides creating much until a whipped cross from Mignot on the right left pearce to header home if it wasn't for an outstanding save from the Clockwork keeper. It was finally Chingford who broke the deadlock after 25 minutes with again a well worked move down the flank creating an opening for Pearce to (once again) chip the keeper. Within 2 minutes Chingford were caught on the break, and all be it a fine save from Mignot was still not enough to stop Clockworks player rushing in and slipping home the rebound. It was Chingford who went into the break with the lead after a lucky strike from Reeves. Reeves seemed to lean back close his eyes and take a stab at the ball which some how managed to find its way into the top corner, out of reach from the stretched Clockwork keeper, from all of 25 yards. After the half time break the game was lead along much the same path with both teams making both keepers work well. Clockwork once again followed up after Mignot had saved to score another goal the mirrored the 1st. It was from a set piece that Chingford then hit back and took advantage, with a long ball played in, the referee spotted a Chingford player being tugged back, and Collins was on hand to slot away his 2nd penality of the season. Again Chingford came so close to finishing the game with JJ's knock seeming to forever run across the line of the goal before being cleared and Chingford were made to pay for this when the Clockwork winger cut in on the counter and struck top corner from the edge of the box. Clockwork were reduced to 10 men with 10 minutes to go and Chingford pelted the Clockwork goal from then on in but were just unable to snatch a win at the death.
Man of the Match : J Mignot
Chingford Athletic Reserves returned from a one-week break, but you would never have noticed. They started the game against Ryan A at a thundering pace dominating the game from the start. The whole team started well with the defence disciplined and tight and the midfield and forwards competing and winning everything.
Chingford finally broke the stalemate with a Tony lob that never seemed like it was going to drop. CAFC then had a throw down the right side that lead to a flick on and a show of amazing agility by Tom who smashed in a bicycle kick. The third goal started with a Tolga goal kick that ran all the way through to the oppositions box with Ahmed in pursuit. The young left-winger pressured the right back forcing a handball and a CAFC penalty. There were a number of volunteers but the kick was given to the cool, calm and collected Tony who slotted it away. The half time came with Ryan scoring a couple of goals in an attempt to recover the game.
At half time Mark replaced H at right back and CAFC again started well. Tony received a through ball and beat the keeper in a one on one to score his hat trick. When Tony complained of illness it was the chance for Costis to join the game. He started at right midfield allowing young Ahmed to join Tom at the top. After a short while Bun came off for Cookie and Costis went to left back to replace him. While Ryan scored and continued to chase the lead they never seemed to threaten a CAFC win. The ball ended up in the Ryan box at the feet of Tom who shot and forced the Ryan keeper to make a save. Fortunately for Tom, Costis had made an amazing run from left back to support his forward and was able to have the skill and composure to strike the ball on the volley and plant it into the top left corner. After years of goal starvation Costis was very pleased with his goal and this seemed to upset the Ryan goalkeeper. Ryan came back and scored again as the ball ran past Jamie who was having a quick nap. He awoke when the ball struck the back of the net like the sound of an alarm clock in the morning. The bear with a saw head then started shouting at the players around him with the emotion we expect from our captain. Before the final whistle Tom received another through ball and beat the keeper in a one on one with a very composed finish.
Special mention must go to the midfield and specifically the boys in the middle who seemed to find their shape and show how much potential the paring have. CAFC win 6-4. Good going forward but arrogant at the back. Bring on the next challenger!
Man of the match: Sandy Choque
Chingford Athletic Res kept up thier 100% league record to the season with a dominating victory of the Reserves of St Francis. The opening 10 minutes of the encounter was a very scrappy affair with neither sides able to get into the flow of the game and the game mainly being played in the middle of the park. It was only after 20 minutes that the game became stretched and the Chingford wingers came into play and began getting runs on the full back of St Francis. It was only after 30 minutes that Chingford broke the deadlock when a through ball from Collins fed Pearce to drill home. This was how the game stayed until half time. Once again it was a dominating performance from Chingford in the 2nd half with their fitness proving the difference. Balls in from M.Mignot gave Pearce his 2nd, followed closely by Pearce repaying the favour to Collins with a through ball for Collins to take it past the en rushing keeper and drill home from an tight angle. New signing Okan also got his 1st for the club, hopefully a sign of things to come, after taking his goal well. It was finally left to Ulasan to finish the game off, drilling a shot from the edge of the area and following in on the fumbling keeper he somehow managed to bundle the ball over the line. A much improved performance for a gradually gelling team.
