What a great day at Fords Grove where we faced another tough cup game against our old rivals Winchmore Hill who are a division above us in the league.
As last week we started slowly and this time it cost us after missing a very good chance we soon found ourselves two goals down but the team settled down to the faster pace and probably had the best of the rest of the first half. We started strongly in the second half and within 15 minutes were level and for the rest of the game including extra time the game was end to end with no clear chances. On to the dreaded penalty shoot out we kept our nerve scored all our penalties Jack made one save and they missed twice leaving us winning 3-1.The game was a tough physical encounter well controlled and allowed to flow by Lee Addison and his veteran linesmen John Faithfull and Tony Hemings The wild celebrations at the end of the game showed how much this win meant to our team which augers well for the tough games to come. In the rest of the games the reserves lost in the cup to Bank of England 4-2 aet who are two divisions above us,the fours had 1-0 win over Old Garchonians reserves,the fives lost their top of the table match against Old Owens 4-0,the sixes lost 3-1 and the sevens beat the Hill 4-1 We had a good turnout of Norsemen on Saturday in a crowd of around 200 they made themselves heard hopefully we will seem them again next Saturday when we have another tough cup game home against Old Hamptonians who are top of the Premier division of the AFC KO 1.30
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Well it had to come to an end our 100% record. On Saturday we entertained last years finalists Old Meadonians who lay second in the AFC premier division so we knew that we were playing superior opposition to that faced before this season. The match was one of the best seen at Hydeside for a very long time a hard physical match but played in the right spirit and ended with us losing 4-3 aet.
A great effort by our lads who could easily have won but for a couple of slips in defence and some missed chances. In the rest of the games the reserves continued their good runs with a 7-1 win over HSB the fours lost 2-3 to Poly,the sixes lost 2-1 to Civil Service and the sevens came back to form with a 7-1 win against AP We had a good turn out on the line Sat well done to the 5th Xs for turning out in strength. This week we are away in the cup to Winchmore Hill KO 1.30 your support will be appreciated After our 2 week break we returned to action with a bang 4 wins and a draw is a great start to the second half of our season.
The first team made the short trip to EBOGS who were our closest rivals in the league table. On a very bumpy pitch both teams played some good competitive football and the score was 0-0 at half time. The second half started badly when we conceded an early goal but we seemed the fitter side and after a lot of pressure scored two goals in the last 15 minutes. A great win for the team who kept their heads under pressure and showed great team spirit in a game excellently refereed by Mr Jacobs. With their 100% record still intact after 11 games we must be hot favourites for promotion. The reserves are also unbeaten in the league and scored a good win 3-1 away to Weirside. The fours had an excellent win 3-2 in the cup away to Old Suttonians. The fives fought out a tough point 2-2 against Old Parks and are still top of their league. The sevens without their leader injured trampolining beat Old Lyonians 3-2 As I mentioned before the next three Saturdays the first team have three tough cup fixtures we are home on the 12th and 26th and away to the Hill on the 19th. Support will be welcome at all games and in particular at Winchmore on the 19th. All games ko at 1.30 On to this week the first team made the long trip to Dorking for an AFA Senior Cup game they are in the Premier division of the AFC League and would have expected to beat us for details of the match I direct you to the match reports under the News section of this site. The reserves with basically a new team from last season were at home to top of the league Poly and considering the conditions a very good game was witnessed which ended with a 3-2 victory there are several players in this side who could play in the first team.
We have still a lot of games to play with some long trips but the team seems to have good club spirit and if maintained we must have a good chance of promotion. The threes and fours had no games the fives after their good run lost to WH 3-1 and the sixes had a good win at 8-2 at AP. The sevens game was called off at the last minute due to the referee failing to show up. Half term report 1st still unbeaten with a 100% record playing brilliantly but a long way to go. Reserves showing promise and supporting the first team when required. We have weaknesses in the third and fourth teams but the 5/6/7th all doing well especially the fives. DATES FOR YOUR DIARY AFTER OUR TWO WEEK BREAK The first team have three successive tough cup games in January. On the 12th we play Old Meadonians last years runners up at home, the 19th we are away to Winchmore who are a division above us and on the 26th we play at home to old Hamptonians who are currently head of the AFC League. We need all the support we can gather for these games particularly against the Hill who are always well supported. Try and come along and you will see a good game and you never know you may get a pint from the President Absent at the races Saturday so know very little except the results another win for firsts 1-0 win reserves won 4-1 thirds fours and sevens all lost and fives won
Extract from Norsemen news January 1938 ‘’ On Christmas morning a side groped its way through the fog to Enfield to play against Southgate Wanderers, although conditions were so bad that traffic was held up it is very gratifying to be able to record that all the eleven who had been selected to play arrived at the game" Different times The first two teams did not play Saturday a little drop of rain and clubs call off games too easily which leaves problems later in the season.How about us suggesting to league that if a team does not have a playable pitch then before the game is called off the away team should be offered the game to be played at their ground.
Would certainly help us as we usually have pitches available. After last weeks good result the Thirds continued their improved form with their first win of the season 2-1 against St James this bodes well for the future.The fours lost 5-1 to Broomfield you never know what quality side they are going to field.The fifths kept there place at the head of the table with a 5-1 win against Old Parks and the sixes had a very good 3-2 win over Broomfield.Old age maybe getting to the sevens who lost 3-4 to AP Our best week of the season so far 6 wins 1 draw and one defeat, will do every week.
I think that our players are enjoying their football this season and the good spirit in the club is reflected in some good and long evenings in the bar. The first team were facing the third of their four successive away games this time just down the road in Enfield in the cup against Albanians who had beaten us preseason. We came away with a 3-1 win after extra time, this week Dorking away would suggest a nice journey by train would be advantageous. The reserves after last week’s disaster met EBOG who are in a higher division than us in the cup and after being 1-0 down at half time ran out 4-2 winners a good win. The Thirds probably had the best result of the day starting the match with no points after 6 matches they drew away to the Hill 2-2 hopefully this will get their season going. The fours had a home cup game against Wood Green and won 3-1. The fives continued their good form with an away win against EBOGS. The sixes had a tough match against Old Lyonians third team and did well to hold them to a 4-2 defeat. The sevens played AP at home and were disappointed to be held to a 2-2 draw Let’s hope for another good week it makes it much more enjoyable when you are winning! Sorry about no Patter last week.
Not our best week rescued by a couple of outstanding results. The first made the long trip to Carshalton and came away with a 6-1 victory giving us 27 points from our first 9 league games an excellent start and a great base for our objective to get back in the first division. This week we have a cup game away to Albanian who play in Finchley they have a good record and beat Owens from the SAL first division in a previous round. The reserves lost 2-1 to the Hill it was a great game of football spoilt by the actions of one of our new players who badly let himself down and was the cause of our defeat. We must be more vigilant in who we accept as players. The Thirds and fours and sixes all met with heavy defeats we have a weakness in this area which it is difficult to resolve. Beating the trend were our fifth team who had a great win in the cup against Old Parks fourths this team with good leadership are getting good results for all their good works. The first team returned to Hydeside to defend their 100% record against AP who are a strong cub these days running 9 sides every week.
We had a number of injuries and were therefore not so fluent as last week and losing Chris Morgan after 5 minutes did not help matters. However the replacements did well with an early goal giving us the lead which we held until half time. We then increased our lead with a good header only for AP to score two goals to bring the scores level with ten minutes to go. Our fighting spirit was very evident and we clinched the win with a goal in the last 5 minutes. The reserves returned to action with a good 5-0 victory over Old Blues they are showing good promise but a game every week would help. The Thirds lost 3-6 to Old Actonians I think that they are in to higher league for the players we have. The fours lost 6-1 to EBOG Thirds but the fives returned to the top of their league with a good away win against Old Garchonians 3-2. The sixes lost 3-0 to AP Yet another lovely day for football the firsts made the journey to Beckenham to play on probably the best pitch in the league against HSBC who used to be Midland Bank.
The pitch is just as good as we all remember it and we gave a sparkling exhibition which much impressed the watching officials from the AFA and the SAL. We should have won by more this may cost us when we play better teams. The Thirds continued their poor start losing 4-1 to Poly and the fifths met with their first defeat 5-2 to Winchmore Hill. The sixes beat the Vamps 3-2 and the sevens were held to a 3-3 by the Vamps It’s that time of year again with subs due and with the facilities we offer our subs are quite low. So if you are not prepared to pay up then perhaps you should be playing your football at a much inferior ground or Enfield Playing Fields or even Firs Farm! |
AuthorNigel Chamberlain. Archives
June 2020
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