Friday, August 11, 2006

Bromley FC 2 Dulwich Hamlet 0
Pre-Season Friendly
Wednesday 9th August 2006

Passing up on an orchestra stall amongst the elite for the Bolshoi’s Cinderella at Covent Garden, your humble scribe found himself settling for pretty much the same at the less palatial Hayes Lane. A flowing, balletic performance from the Hamlet, but despite the elegant chorography of the Dulwich corps, pleasing to the eye, there lingered the question of whether there was a point to all the pirouetting as the hosts closed out an ultimately comfortable victory. Oh for a cutting edge to augment to the Hamlet’s dainty play as for large tracts of the game they matched their Kentish rivals, bolstered by the arrival of one time Crystal Palace chairman, Mark Goldberg, and his wallet in the dugout. In the one place that mattered most though they were frustratingly second best, Hamlet’s tyro custodian Chris, son of the legend, Lewington by far the busier of the evening’s goalkeepers.

If Hamlet had played Cinderella to their hosts in recent encounters, there was little evidence of that in the game’s first flourishes as Hamlet went toe to toe with their ambitious opponents. Penetration though was at a premium, with the Lilywhites’ goal unsullied until late in the half. Meanwhile the hosts’ greatest threat came in the form of Alex Tiesse, whose lightning pace might have contributed to an early lead for the hosts. Rangy one time Dulwich midfielder Peter Adeniyi intercepted a stray pass in the middle of the park and showed exceptional vision to release the pocket rocket, only for Dulwich’s defence to apply the heavy touch as he burst into the area, the eventual shot wide of the upright. Tiesse was again denied soon after as Lewington produced a brave save diving at the striker’s feet, the Hamlet coming within a whisker of punishing Bromley on the break as Luke Cornwall powered past his marker only to send a delicate chip floating over keeper Andy Walker and the crossbar.

Thick and fast the chances came for Bromley, all with the slippery Tiesse in their vanguard. Denied by Lewington again, the ball ran kindly for Nic McDonnell who stayed on his feet but the ball was tucked wide of the gaping goal. Tiesse again struck the target from a difficult angle but Lewington proved to be his nemesis, quickly down to make a smart save at the base of his near post. Finally Walker was called into serious action as half-time drew ever closer, a Dulwich free kick finding skipper Jamie Coyle arriving ghostlike at the back of the six yard box, a powerful header battered behind by the keeper at angle of post and bar. In the final throes both sides found the net only to be denied by offside rulings, Jean-Serge Musungu for the Hamlet and Barry Moore the unfortunate ‘scorers’.

That Bromley’s opening goal three minutes into the second half would be laced with the sting of ill fortune would mean not a jot. For all the fancy footwork and precision passing the deadlock would be broken by that all staple of industrial football, the lumbering centre half applying his bulk to a header at a corner. An attempted defensive clearance mishit, slicing the ball across the face of the six yard box, Tutu Henriques in the role of Executioner as, like a felled redwood, he fell forward to connect first and put the ball away from close range.

Invigorated by the goal, Bromley looked to put the game to bed. Tony Boot, demobbed from Chelmsford barracks in the summer might well have added to the lead but wasted brace of excellent chances in swift succession, first shooting wide from a fine Sam Wood delivery then blazing the ball high into the wilds of feral Bromley when well placed. Unfortunately for the Hamlet, he had recovered his sense of direction by the 63rd minute, when Moore whipped in a teasing cross from the right wing. Alone and untended at the back of the box, a leaping Boot hung in the air to meet the incoming cross and despatch a textbook header beyond a powerless Lewington. Matters might well have reached a nadir had the Lilywhites’ not had a Nic McDonnell headed goal from a corner was ruled illegitimate due to the presence of Henriques straying offside.

Not until the shaggily coiffured Billy Warner came off the bench did the Hamlet start to show the show of attacking prowess needed, Warner letting rip with a cruise missile of a shot, but caused only collateral damage as it zipped the wrong side of the upright. A madcap endgame saw Walker misjudge a bouncing ball, frantically denying Kenny Beaney outside his box, albeit courtesy of the illegal use of his hands. With the seconds ebbing Premiership referee Phil Crossley elected not to inflict an early bath upon the errant keeper, something Hamlet rued as Walker made a comfortable save to keep out the resultant free kick. Perhaps his gestures could have been misconstrued. However Mr Crossley was a little less forgiving as both McDonnell and Kirk Watts were asked to leave the field, albeit without the apparent stigma of a red card, the latter not replaced as Bromley played out the final minutes a man short.
Teams:
BFC: Andy Walker; Mark Corneille, Lee Fieldwick, Donal O'Sullivan, Tutu Henriques; Sam Wood, Peter Adeniyi, Barry Moore, Bobby Bowry, Kirk Watts; Nic McDonnell, Alex Tiessse
Subs: Tony Boot, Adrian Stone, Nathan Simpson, Gary Drewett, Michael Power, Adam Greenway, Sam Wood (GK).

DHFC: Chris Lewington; Nicolas Plumain; Darren Spinks; Jamie Coyle (Captain); Gavin Dayes; Daniel Nwanze; David Moore; Kenny Beaney; Luke Cornwall; Jean-Serge Musungu; Phil Williams
Subs: Carlton Murray-Price; Billy Warner; Wayne Burnett; Ohran Stewart

Officials:
Referee: Mr Phil Crossley
Assistant Referees: Mr T Rawlings & Mr J Lengthorne

Wednesday, August 09, 2006

Burnham FC 2 Dulwich Hamlet 1
Pre-Season Friendly
Tuesday 8th August 2006

An experimental Dulwich XI failed to avenge one of the Hamlet’s darker nights, going down to a narrow defeat at Southern League Burnham but the final scoreline failed to tell the whole story of game that saw the hosts fail to take advantage of the myriad chances that fell their way over the course of 90 high-octane minutes. With a trip to Bromley scheduled for 24 hours later this contest gave manager Wayne Burnett the opportunity to run the rule over a number of fringe players as well as assessing the likes of Billy Warner and Jason Turley, recently returned from holiday healthily tanned. In addition, much travelled shot stopper Chuck Martini came in between the sticks as the tricky question of who would don the gloves for the coming season took a new twist.
The young Hamlet were given a strong indicator of the task ahead of them as the ebullient Burnham showed strength of purpose with some rumbustuous tackles in the opening exchanges, quick into to the challenge as the Hamlet’s attempt to play a passing game with frequently broken up. Not that the Southern Leaguers were averse to the beautiful game themselves but it took some lax defending on the part of the Hamlet to abet the hosts opening goal on the quarter hour. Caught cold after failing to capitalise on a corner, Dulwich were ripped apart by a flowing move up field as Terry Davies latched on to defensive clearance, feeding Leon Yarnie on the edge of the penalty area. Unselfishly he laid the ball out to Rob Saunders haring into space on the left of the box and a drilled low finish into the bottom of the corner left Martini to pick the ball out of his net.
Daniel Jones had a golden opportunity to bring Dulwich level 8 minutes later, chasing a back pass and unsettling keeper Jamie Jackson whose attempted clearance when straight at the Hamlet striker. Unfortunately Jones failed to take advantage and Jackson redeemed himself flinging himself to his left to batter down Jones’ attempt on goal. A smart save from Martini ensured Burnham did extend their lead, but poor finishing continued to dog the Hamlet front men. The impressive Eniola Oluwa’s pace and control tormented Burnham’s right flank with a storming run, culminating in an inch perfect cross on to the head of Jones but his effort was wildly wide of the mark. Add to that a weak shot from Claudio de Almeida that negated a good build-up, Jones again lashing the ball high and wide and Dulwich were left ruing lost chances as the break drew closer. Still it could have been worse had Burnham not missed chances of their own in the closing minutes, Lee Smith’s shot on the turn curling marginally too far over the bar and Jeff Brown stabbing the ball wide of the post after Martini had denied Yarnie. Still time though for Oluwa to embark on a breathtaking run, parting the Blue and White sea as he wove his way into the penalty area. Oh to have capped such a sinuous run with a goal but defender Paul Brett stuck to him like a leach, a last ditch interception deflecting Oluwa’s ultimate cross cum shot and sending it looping over a relieved Jackson’s crossbar.
A trio of substitutions at the break for the Hamlet, but Burnham continued to hold sway and but for better finishing from goalscorer Saunders, Dulwich might have been staring down the barrel of a heavy defeat. Saunders was particularly culpable when released with only Martini standing between him and goal number two, he dithered allowing the Dulwich defence to swarm all over him and snuff out the danger. Not that Burnham would be denied that second goal, one that was well worth waiting for as a lightning raid saw a deep ball forward nodded on into the path of substitute Ben Swift 20 yards out and he let fly with a steaming pile driver that gave Martini no chance on its unerring flight into the far corner of the net.
Dulwich came close to hitting back through a Warner bullet that skimmed the crossbar as flew goalwards but even with the addition of the manager; it looked like being a blank night until the final few moments as Jamie Cheeseman finally made the breakthrough in controversial circumstances. Apoplectic Burnham defenders were powerless, their claims of offside fell on deaf ears as the Dulwich substitute ran on to a threaded pass to stab the ball pass an irate Jackson, who turned his invective in the direction of an unbending assistant referee. His mood had mellowed soon after as the final whistle left his side victorious.

Teams:
BFC: Jamie Jackson; Lloyd Dennison; Paul Brett; Brian Connor; Manny (?); Lee Smith; Jeff Brown; Robert Saunders; Leon Yarnie; Terry Davies; Daryl Jones
Subs: Ben Swift; Marek Kwiatkowski; Mark Hokan; Ryan Bird; Andy Lunn

DHFC:
1 Chuck Martini
2 Jason Turley 5 Lewis Tozer 15 Justin Hemmings 3 Billy Warner
12 Raymond Morath-Gibbs 9 Matt Dean 8 Fasineh Koroma 11 Eniola Oluwa
10 Daniel Jones 7 Claudio de Almeida

Subs used: 6 Stanley Muguo; 14 Victor Tavares; 17 Jamie Cheeseman; 4 Abiola Adigun; Wayne Burnett

Officials:
Referee: Mr Ashley Hines
Assistant Referees: Mr Ernie Moore & Mr Alex Vickery




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Sunday, August 06, 2006

Slade Green 2 Dulwich Hamlet 1
Saturday 5th August 2006
Pre-Season Friendly

“Wham bam thank you mam”, exclaimed the Slade as they launched a king-sized spanner in the works of Dulwich’s pre-season preparations courtesy of a stubborn, gritty performance, a large dollop of serendipity and aided and abetted by the Hamlet’s inability to find the net as often as they carved open the chances. Had Hamlet added to Luke Cornwall’s 14th minute goal, this would have been all over before the break but the finishing lacked composure and although the home keeper was kept busy, making some acrobatic saves Dulwich knew in their heart of hearts that more clinical finishing will be needed once the phoney war is over.
Where Kent and London intersect, amid the railway shunting yards and industrial estates, there sits The Small Glen, home of Slade Green though on a pitch burnt umber by the unrelenting sun the only verdant touch was provided by the shirts of the hosts. Ambitious too are Slade, amongst their ranks a cocktail of experience honed in the upper echelons of Kentish Football and drawn together under the management of Adam Heaslewood, who played a key role in Cray Wanderers meteoric rise from the Kent League.
For their part Hamlet were once again able to call on the services of striker Luke Cornwall, an injury preventing his participation since victory at Beckenham. In a 4-4-2 formation the wise head of Cornwall was paired with the youthful enthusiasm of prodigy Carlton Murray-Price, whilst at the back Lewis Tozer and Jamie Coyle started as the centre back pairings for the first time. Still missing was keeper Carl Emberson, young Chris Lewington continuing to deputise.
Perhaps it was the searing sun, perhaps the bone dry pitch but this game took a while getting into its stride. The Hamlet clearly held the upper hand but few and far where the openings until a marvellously worked goal broke the impasse just before the quarter hour mark. A deft through pass into the left channel, the diminutive figure of Chris Hurst in pursuit. A pinpoint deep cross from the angle of the penalty area and dispute plaintiff calls for offside, Cornwall rose majestically at the back post to bullet a header home despite the best efforts of a diving keeper to batter the ball out.
A welcome respite from the heat for the players soon after in bizarre circumstances as a singular pitch invasion took place, not the usual small dog as every purveyor of cheap video compilations, packaged for the Christmas market and to keep Danny Baker employed, knows but one of the human variety as a young child decided his daddy in the Slade Green attack needed some advice on how to breach the Hamlet rearguard. Time for some swift liquid reflection for the combatants as the intruder was enticed back to the sidelines with a soft drink. Refreshed the Hamlet attacked anew and thought they had doubled the lead when Cornwall found the net once again with a head, his delight turning to frustration as a late flag signalled him offside.
Number two might have arrived courtesy of stunning diving header, albeit a defensive one, as home defender flung himself full length in his attempt to cut out a wicked low cross from Nicolas Plumain whizzing down the left wing. Ohran Stewart was left frustrated after a low strike from distance skidded along the dusty surface but lacked the power to trouble the keeper as he got down with time to spare. Best chance of all fell to Hurst as the break ticked ever closer, the winger sneaking in behind the defence but his attempt to chip the keeper was thwarted as a spectacular looking, if over theatrical leap saw the ball tipped over the crossbar.
There was little sign of the impending doom as Dulwich began the second half in confident mood but despite controlling the game there seemed a nagging doubt that a second goal would be hard to come by. Even when the chance did arise, a free kick following a foul on Plumain that almost sparked a full scale bundle, the home keeper was once again at his best to pull off a stunning save from Coyle’s blazing drive round the wall.
The hour mark brought the obligatory mass substitutions as the Hamlet made half-a-dozen changes, among them the welcome return of Daniel Nwanze, whose goals early in the pre-season campaign had contributed to victory at Beckenham. One might have said that the reshuffle contributed to the Hamlet’s concession of the equaliser not long afterwards, though the manner of the mildly freakish lofted effort as Hamlet’s defence stalled at a corner owed as much to Dame Fortune as to the intent of its deliverer, the ball looping high over Lewington as he stretched in vain to prevent the ball dropping behind him into the net.
The lead might well have been restored with mere minutes as Dulwich put together a sweet move ending with a wickedly whipped ball in across the face of goal, Cornwall flinging himself full length to bullet a header home. But once again the assistant referee’s flag proved his nemesis, offside the unpopular verdict.
That decision would become even more painful when lax marking at a corner allowed Slade Green to poach the ultimate winner, the much-travelled Andy Silk, once of Bromley, rising as if spring heeled to bullet a textbook header home with Hamlet markers looking on aghast. Straight from the restart Hamlet hit back with a flowing passage of play that Stewart and Cornwall exchange passes on the edge of the area but ended with the ball clipped over the bar with only the keeper standing between Hamlet and an equaliser. Plumain too had the chance to bring things level as time became increasingly precious, overlapping into the box to latch on to Wayne Burnett’s pass but from six yards out he was thwarted by the figure of keeper smothering the ball at his feet.

DHFC:
Chris Lewington

Nicolas Plumain Jamie Coyle Lewis Tozer Tony Houghton

Chris Hurst Cedric Meeko Ohran Stewart David Moore

Carlton Murray-Price Luke Cornwall

Subs used: Billy Warner; Gavin Dayes; Matt Dean; Kenny Beaney; Wayne Burnett; Daniel Nwanze



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