Dulwich Hamlet 1 Cray Wanderers 1

Dulwich Hamlet 1 Cray Wanderers 1
Ryman Isthmian League Division One South
Saturday 29^th December 2007

It was honours even in this hard-fought top five clash at Champion Hill as visitors Cray Wanderers halted Dulwich’s five match run of league victories courtesy of a late own goal by the ill-starred Marc Cumberbatch.
Cray threatened first when hesitancy in the Hamlet defence went unpunished with Michael Power unable to force the ball home when it dropped to him on the fringes of the six yard box. Though that threat was smothered a half-hearted clearance was redelivered from the left by Lewis Wood but Steve Aris could not connect at the back of the box with a stooping header. On nine minutes Dulwich had the ball in the back of the net as Benson Paka rose unchallenged to meet a free kick and power a close range header past Glen Knight from 6 yards out. However much to the bemusement of the “goal scorer” and the chagrin of supporters, the flag had already gone up against Paka, a harsh decision indeed. Cray too had the ball in the net, though delay twixt flag and “goal” was more pronounced on this occasion as an offside Power looped a header over a nonchalant Ceesay.
The ubiquitous Power had Ceesay more concerned when a snapshot from distance had the young Hamlet custodian flinging himself across goal but though the drive beat the dive, the ball nestled in the side netting. Gargantuan defender Ryan Royston threatened soon after as he met Jamie Wood’s dead ball delivery with a strong header but too high to trouble the Dulwich goal.
One-time Cray man, Junior Baker, making his full debut for the Hamlet wasted a golden opportunity to remind his former players of what they missed as the responsibility for a free kick a yard beyond the brink of the penalty area was clobbered high and harmless over Knight’s crossbar. However the threats from the men in Pink and Blue were mounting. Shawn Beveney mugged Aaron Day on the left; put the hammer down before lashing a low, dangerous ball into the heart of the penalty but with just too much juice on for the lurking Henry Darko. Moments later Hamlet’s second half of the ex-Cray twins, Lumumba Amena, chanced his arm with a hooked volley from 25 yards out, fizzing past the right hand upright with Knight static.
Worrying moments for Dulwich as Sebastian Schoburgh crept towards the touchline, clearly suffering. Lengthy treatment later required but where the flesh might have been weak, the spirit was willing, Hamlet’s Will-O'-The-Wisp perhaps running at 33⅓ rather than 78 but still running. Schoburgh was still straining at the bit on the touchline as reward at last for the Hamlet came on 36 minutes, Carpe diem Darko, the young striker seizing the moment to remind all of his explosive power. Beveney having laid the foundations, stalwartly holding up the ball against muscular Cray pressure, the baton and ball was passed to the diminutive Darko, a young saplings o’ershadowed by ancient oaks but delightfully tricking his way through the Cray defensive lines, he sped to the edge of the penalty area from whence he unleashed a guided missile of a strike, pummelling his drive just inside the left-hand post of Knight, diving across goal but all in vain.
As if to compound their misery, influential defender Mark Willy was injured as he and Beveney diving in for the same ball close to the touch. Whilst Beveney dusted himself off, Cray’s Willy, who had been outstanding in their promotion challenge this term lay flaccid on the turf as both physios came to his aid. However a severe gash to the leg had curtailed the big man’s participation, further off field treatment proved fruitless and as the game moved into a prolonged bout of stoppage time Willy was officially pulled off, a reshuffle in order as left-back Tyrone Sterling came on in the stead of the centre-half. The understudy almost had an instant impact, playing first fiddle on a fluent move down the left wing before supplying Power with the pass from which he drove a low strike in towards goal, deflected by the outstretched boot of skipper Jamie Wood, a glancing blow that might have deceived a less alert ‘keeper but not Ceesay, diving to his left to pluck the bouncing ball out of the ether.
Cautious Cray cast aside that mantle in a second half that threatened goals time after time but curmudgeonly officialdom would starve the Dulwich fans of that feast all that awaited them would be that late, unfortunate equaliser that would deflate Hamlet spirits almost at the death. Gnashing teeth Dulwich tore into their guests from first whistle. Misfortune haunted them though as first Beveney, a shot from 20 yards out deflected beyond the frame of the goal, then Darko twice in quick succession thwarted by first officialdom then by a tackle of supreme bravery. Ryan Royston was blessed by fortune when his hideous attempt to hook a wayward cross field ball to safety instead sent Darko galloping away clear on the goal of Knight, only to be stalled in his tracks as assistant referee Gareth Mays flagged him offside. Soon after Paka slipped an exquisite pass into Darko, hammering forward, but as he pulled the trigger on his strike, Day slid in to block that fierce shot eight yards out. The corner, delivered deep to the back of the six yard box, was met by the brave Baker, flying high, but crashing a header a foot too high before smashing himself into the post. Some sickening sounds from the prone Baker but treatment stilled painful thoughts.
Failure to score is an alien thought for Cray this term but when Lewis Wood misfired from close range after a rightwing cross had been chested down into his path, the shot flashing across the face of Ceesay’s goal, that notion took wings in Amber minds. Darko slipped the leash of the offside trap, chasing down a long ball beyond the last line of defence, stabbing below the body of the diving Knight but watching in agony as the ball slither crept wide of the post.
A Dulwich corner caused a kerfuffle in the Cray box, Baker’s brushed header dropping to Darko but as he attempted to juggle the slippery critter, Knight harvested the ball from his toes. Cray, now with added Jamie Kempster, began to test the Hamlet’s defence on a more regular basis and it took a fine tackle from Cumberbatch to steal the ball from the feet of Lewis Wood as he punched a hole in the Dulwich rearguard. The corner met the head of Day but his effort slithered over the crossbar. Lewis Wood was threatening again moments later as he hit a sizzling volley from close range that perhaps deserved better than to zip a foot too high.
Not that Hamlet were resting for a trio of chances came and went in quick succession as they countered well, Knight ripping the ball from the feet of Beveney after former teammate Steve Aris had been left for dust. The alert Knight denied Darko in similar fashion not long after but he had to eternally grateful to Royston as Schoburgh outpaced the backline to stab the ball through the prostrate custodian, Schoburgh seemingly a certainty to score as the ball squirm out from under Knight, only to be thwarted as Royston flung himself into a game-saving last-ditch tackle. As if to emphasis the import of his heroics, Royston, prolific with the goals in previous incarnations at Maidstone and Thamesmead, let rip with a 35 yard rising drive that cannoned against the crossbar, leaving the woodwork quivering like a débutante at he opening of the season. That bar was still all aquiver when Cray attacked once more this time to deadly effect. The pair of Woods, Lewis and Jamie, teamed up to set the stage, creating the opening for Power to slash a drive hard and low into the heart of the Hamlet area and in his exigency to clear the ball to safety, the luckless Cumberbatch could only divert the ball into his own net.
Still celebrating Cray were almost caught cold as Dulwich sought instant atonement, Darko nodding a cross into the path of Baker but the new boy snatching at his moment of glory to hammer the ball into orbit. Continuing to push forward in search of redemption and three points, Dulwich almost found themselves surrendering the single point they possessed as the Cray Rapid Reaction Force went into overdrive, instigated by a miskicked clearance that set up a leftwing raid ending at the feet of Lewis Wood, unguarded at the back of the box. However Dame Fortune scowl had become a smile and the Cray man rashly shovelled wide his chance to win the game.
Frustration, mixed with disappointment but seasoned with pride, Dulwich’s hearts beat a little stronger this morning as promotion remains firmly within their grasp. Come May a repeat of this match might decide that.

Teams:

DHFC: Sheikh Ceesay; Sol Patterson-Bohner; Ricky Dobson; Benson Paka; Shayne Mangodza; Marc Cumberbatch; Shawn Beveney; Sebastian Schoburgh (Scott Edgar 90+2); Henry Darko; Lumumba Amena; Junior Baker
Substitutes not used: Billy Chattaway; Jason Hawes; Vitor Tavares; Tim Roberts

CWFC: Glen Knight; Aaron Day; Colin Luckett; Danny Chapman; Mark Willy (Tyrone Sterling 45); Ryan Royston; Steve Aris; Lewis Wood; Jamie Wood; Michael Power; David Hall (Jamie Kempster 66)
Substitutes not used: George Fenwick; Dean Morris; Joby Thorogood

Attendance: 369

Match Officials:
Referee: Mr Ryan Atkin (Sydenham Hill, London)
Assistant Referees: Mr Robert Allum (Addiscombe, Surrey) & Mr Gareth Mays (Epsom, Surrey)

Goalscoring:
1-0 DHFC Henry Darko 36th minute
1-1 CWFC Marc Cumberbatch (OG) 81st minute

Molesey 0 Dulwich Hamlet 3

Molesey 0 Dulwich Hamlet 3
Ryman Isthmian League Division One South
Wednesday 26th December 2007

Good King Craig looked out, on the Feast of Stephen, when the mud lay round about, deep, thick and uneven; brightly shone the Hamlet that day tho’ the ref was cruel….

The seemingly unstoppable express train that is Dulwich continued their inexorable stampeded up the Division One South table as a fifth straight league victory propelled them into the play-off positions for the first time this term. Against a Molesey side, buoyed by a rare victory before the interruption of Christmas Day, bedecked with the masks of industry as if to camouflage fragile spirits, Dulwich started slowly as if weighed down by an excessively rich plum pudding but once into their stride they were rarely troubled by a side for the albatross of relegation seems to be slowly dragging them below the waves into the Davy Jones locker of Combined Counties oblivion.
One change for the Hamlet since they began the long pre-Christmas hiatus following the come-from-behind triumph at Horsham YMCA as Steve May switched from defensive duties, forming one half of Dulwich’s wing pinchers with Sebastian Schoburgh. His place at right back went over to the less silky if less sympathetic Sol Patterson-Bohner. For the Moles, victory at Croydon Athletic the previous Saturday had let a few faint rays of hope into an otherwise bleak season but injury had robbed them of debutant hero that afternoon, Steve Omonua, and his goalscoring colleague, Bobby Hooper. Still the spectre of the former player curse hovered with the Moles picking a strikeforce boasting not one but two former prolific Hamlet hitmen in the respective shapes of Matt Fowler and Luke Edghill.
A sluggish start on glutinous ground for Dulwich and much palpitations as with almost the first Molesey raid, Hamlet custodian Sheikh Ceesay plucked a right-wing cross casually out of the air only to charged to the floor on the way down. “Fair shoulder charge”, might have been the cry in days of yore, that nostalgia surely clouding the eyes of the Man in Black as he allowed play to continue, the ball squirming loose and almost tucked home in the mêlée that ensued, Marc Cumberbatch scrambling the ball wide as Edghill attempted to shuffle the ball into the back of the net. A taste as sour as leftover turkey as Ceesay was treated but Mr Pinto Nunes was unmoved; Blind Justice indeed!
A steady slew of free kicks towards the struggling hosts seemed to unnerve the Hamlet but once they got into gear, it would only be a matter of time before their laid into the Moles goal, cautiously guarded by the curiously tonsured Jon Ashwood. Such is the torment for Moseley this season that the phrase “clean sheet” might as well be carved in Ancient Greek, so long since it has been used by those that frequent the Herds. Sometime a little skill, most times more than a modicum of commitment, but a defence that exposes itself like a Streatham Common strumpet.
The twin terrors of May and Schoburgh were beginning to wheedle their way down the wings of the Moles, desperate measures called for in home efforts to stem the tide but with the referee favouring defensive tactics more given to the Dark Side, Molesey held firm by hook or by crook. However the dyke could only be plugged for so long and, with 19 minutes elapsed, the waters at last broke through. Hamlet forced a corner with yet another attack down the flanks, only the last-ditch tackle of Phil Caughter sparing his ‘keeper a shot from the boot of Schoburgh. The tricky young winger himself slung the corner into the heart of the penalty area. As Moles were cast aside Hamlet skipper Shawn Beveney came crashing through to meet the ball with an uncompromising, albeit ungainly, header and with Ashwood glued to the spot as the ball flashed by him into the bottom corner of the net, goal number one had arrived for the Hamlet.
Schizoid Moles, suddenly ragged and in disarray, found themselves cut at again and again by galvanised Dulwich, at last fully awoken from their post-festive reveries. Having conceded a first, the Moles were within inches of surrendering their goal once more as Schoburgh went into overdrive down the right, bulleting a low drive across the face of goal, past a moribund Ashwood but zipping across the toes of both Meshach Nugent and Lumumba Amena as they chased down the delivery like coursers with the scent of the hare in their nostrils.
A brief relapse from the Hamlet allowed Moles the rare gift of dominance, in territory at least. Yoda-like, their manager Steve Webb barked his orders from beneath the bench as Moles went close not once, not twice but thrice in quick succession. A deep leftwing cross looped high and harmless from the head of Fowler as he outclimbed Patterson-Bohner at the back of the box. The Dulwich Old Boys linked up in the area as Edghill and Fowler combined to set up Andy Davidson but an insipid drive from the edge of the penalty box failed to trouble the wounded Ceesay. Edghill to Fowler once as a powerful run down the left saw a tempting cross into the area, but with Shayne Mangodza on door duty there was no admittance for Fowler’s wayward header. Patterson-Bohner’s venture deep into enemy territory might have borne fruit but Ashwood was alert to the danger of the shot at his near post. However it was Molesey who would fling away a glaring opportunity of their own as the half grew old, Edghill too fast for a tardy offside trap but his opportunism, topped with the perfect pullback, unrewarded as Grant Keywood, perhaps unused to such openings in so barren a season lashed the ball high over the crossbar. Stung by these audacious attacks from the league supposed whipping boys, Dulwich hit back almost instantly, a crude challenge curtailing a threatening charge into the area from Schoburgh and earning a caution for Doug Ford, one almost doubly punished as Mangodza got his head to Schoburgh’s delivery, flicking the ball a fraction wide of the back stick.
Having teased the Moles with dreams of resurgence in those latter stages of the opening half, the curtain rose on Act Two with Dulwich swooping down again and again upon hapless hosts as if Wagnerian Valkyrie. Eight minutes of torment for tortured home souls came to a head as a second goal arrived for the Hamlet, a cushion if one was truly needed. Schoburgh, the Sorcerer’s Apprentice, wove his magic, threading runs, interspersed with bursts and balletics, twists and turns, skipping across the centre of the park, piercing the fragile flesh of Molesey’s right flank before hammering a ball across the face of goal from an acute angle. Amidst the flailing feet, the twisted agonised bodies of valiant defenders, there was Nugent sliding in to drill the ball over the line.
A chill wind rattling the doors of the Herds, Dulwich in full flow and bringing a save of quality out of Ashwood as Benson Paka, sparking the Hamlet engine room as always, spotted a chink in defence to presage a fearsome drive from distance. Paka again tested the two-tone custodian as he latched on to Nugent’s flicked header from a long throw, cracking a drive that bounced into the embrace Ashwood’s arms at the near post.
More worries for Dulwich as Ceesay sank to the floor in need of treatment to sustain his participation, though goalkicking duties passed to Mangodza. Sides less impoverished of ability and fortune might have exploited the situation to their advantage but even when Fowler and anodyne Rob Wilkinson made way for Matt Jordan and Jamie Findlay, cast aside in early season Edwards’ purges of Champion Hill, the Moles could make little inroads into a solid wall of a Pink and Blue ahead of their crocked custodian bar a shot from Glen Harris that flashed across the face of goal after he had cut inside Ricky Dobson.
Frustration at their impotence, boiled over in full-scale aggression as the fragile humour of Edghill dissipated as he tangled with Patterson-Bohner over an uncontentious throw-in before the Molesey dug-out. A minor spat threatened to become something uglier as combatants spilled from the benches but calm was soon restored. The cantankerous Edghill made way for the Moles’ last card, Paul Cross but it would be Dulwich and Nugent who would have the final say, the centre-forward signing off before suspension with his third goal in as many games, his strength proving too much for the Mole marking him though Ashwood might have been left a trifle red-faced as a precise drive from 25 yards out low into the far, bottom corner of his net had him scrambling across goal in vain.
Brave Ceesay finally succumbed to his injury, helped from the field to proud applause from supporter and teammate alike. Understudy Tim Roberts stepped into the breach. Almost instantly put to the test as Molesey swung in a corner to the back post. Flicking the ball out only as far as Paul Cross but when the substitute hammered the ball back in Paka spared any blushes, blocking a fearsome drive on the line.

Teams:
MFC: Jon Ashwood; Jon Boswell; Phil Caughter (Capt); Doug Ford; Andy Davidson; Glen Harris; Ben Beswick; Rob Wilkinson (Jamie Findlay 73); Matt Fowler (Matt Jordan 73); Luke Edghill (Paul Cross 87); Grant Keywood
Substitutes not used: Peter Ruggles; Freddie Myers

DHFC: Sheikh Ceesay (Tim Roberts 90); Sol Patterson-Bohner; Ricky Dobson; Benson Paka; Shayne Mangodza; Marc Cumberbatch; Shawn Beveney (Capt) (Junior Baker 87); Sebastian Schoburgh (Henry Darko 90+3); Meshach Nugent; Steve May; Lumumba Amena
Substitute not used: Stanley Muguo

Attendance: 80

Officials:
Referee: Mr L Pinto-Nunes (West Ealing)
Assistant Referees: Mr J Ryan & Mr A Williams

Goalscoring:
1-0 DHFC Shawn Beveney 18th minute
2-0 DHFC Meshach Nugent 53rd minute
3-0 DHFC Meshach Nugent 89th minute

Horsham YMCA 1 Dulwich Hamlet 2

Horsham YMCA 1 Dulwich Hamlet 2
Ryman Isthmian League Division One South
Saturday 15th December 2007

Dulwich overcame the niggling but industrious strugglers of Horsham YMCA to record a fourth straight league victory that sent them into their early Christmas break 6th in the table. However matters had not looked so bright at the start as a curious, to say the least, penalty award allowed Matt Simpson the generous opportunity to give his side, languishing low in the league, the lead. There seemed little in the challenge on James Grant from the edge of the penalty area but referee Wes Linden, drew quizzical looks as the shrill blast of a whistle pierced the chilly air. Perplexed visages some became contorted with rage, angry invective emanating from bench and terrace as he pointed to the spot. Not one to spurn such an early Christmas gift Simpson produced a textbook piece of spotsmanship to leave Sheikh Ceesay clay-footed as the ball was neatly slotted past him, ending a run of penalty saves from the young Hamlet custodian.
Hamlet came within a whisker of grabbing a equaliser just five minutes later when Marc Cumberbatch was a gnat’s breath away from nodding home as he proved strongest in reaching a deep corner to the back of the six yard box, brushing aside his marker but crashing a powerful header against the crossbar. A powerful drive through the heart of midfield moments later looked destined to reap reward for a single-minded Benson Paka, who on the undulating turf of Gorings Mead, he scooped a final shot high over crossbar and netting.
It took some time for Dulwich to come to terms with the perceived injustice of penalty, too often tangling with one another in a hotchpotch of a half. Hard-working Horsham were strong in the tackle when industry was needed, shrill of voice when the helping hand of officialdom was needed to provide succour for a breached defence. No such assistance from the men in black on 22 minutes as Shawn Beveney, returning from his trials with Hereford et al, bested the offside trap. With only ‘keeper Ken Westoby the last obstacle to goal an equaliser seemed on the cards but the ball became cloyed beneath the big Guyanese’s feet allowing YMCA skipper Tom White vital seconds to make up ground and provide a timely tackle, stretching from beyond as Beveney struck the ball which looped widely wide of a scrambling ‘keeper’s outstretched hand but bobbled wide of the upright.
The threat from the Hamlet remained as a powerful run from Meshach Nugent saw the striker barge his way into the penalty only to be manhandled as he pulled the trigger, the drive lacking the power to propel little more than a weak shot towards goal that Westoby comfortably gathered. Any thoughts that Mr Linden might have seen sometime illegal in the defensive smothering of Nugent’s run were swiftly put to bed as the official waved away all protests.
As the half dragged on Dulwich found themselves ever more frustrated, pressing on but leaving themselves vulnerable to searing drives out of defence from the YMCA as the young men of Horsham countered swiftly, down flank, both left and right, through the middle and over the top. However with Dulwich’s defence tight, if subdued as each tackle meant a weather eye cast towards the men in black, YMCA found themselves unable to add to their fortunate lead.
With Hamlet continuing their quest for parity as the break drew nearer, a wicked low cross from Sebastian Schoburgh zipped across the face of the six yard box, twisting like gyroscope, its pace and torsion deceiving Lumumba Amena as he charged in on the cross. A booming deep throw into the six yard box flicked on by Nugent somehow wheedled its way to Beveney, battling his way to the six yard box but its bounce off the rugged sod meant the Hamlet skipper could only stretch a foot out and dab the ball into the hands of the waiting Westoby.
A top up of four star petrol in the Hamlet tanks at the break, not the local break but the stirring words of the Dulwich management and the Pink and Blue boys came out at full throttle as twilight cast its shadows over Gorings Mead. A succession of corners forced, a trio in the first ninety seconds, the second of which might have brought a spot kick for the Hamlet had Mr Linden’s eyes not missed the hands of a defender that battered out Stanley Muguo’s initial header. One might have erred on the side of rationality for the referee had he not then awarded Dulwich a corner as Muguo bulleted the rebound a yard wide of the upright with nary a Horsham hand, legitimate or otherwise, within range. Cruising up field YMCA almost caught the Hamlet cold but a speculative effort from Dean Carden, letting loose from distance, provided no worries for Ceesay. Another corner for Hamlet and perhaps a fatal error by the YMCA as manager John Suter elected to pull off striker Tom Lyons, replacing him with Richard Greenfield. A cliché as old as the hills, they say you should never make a substitution before a corner and for the YMCA it rang deathly true as a low corner lashed towards the penalty spot where Shayne Mangodza met the ball with a venous strike that ripped through a barrage of white shirts manning the goalline.
That goal instilled new hope in the Hamlet and the wounded YMCA found themselves ripped at by a Dulwich side keen to kill off their maimed prey. Big Beveney at the spearhead of a rampaging Dulwich break, be-bopped his way into the penalty area but beneath his feet the disobedient ball would not run for him and a timely tackle on the penalty spot saw the ball hacked to safety. Moments later Schoburgh pressed the boost, tore a hole in defence, his shot blocked but running to Steve May following in his slipstream, a last ditch tackle turning the ball behind for Dulwich’s umpteenth corner of the half.
A substitution would once more be the precursor for a goal – this time a Hamlet replacement as Amena made way for Billy Chattaway. Once more forcing a corner, Dulwich piled forward, hungry for the go-ahead goal and when a deep delivery dropped for Beveney, lurking at the back of the area, the Hamlet skipper controlled the ball, dipped inside his marker and let rip with a thunderous drive that ripped past a powerless Westoby on its unerring trajectory into the top corner of the net.
Though not drained of spirit, gallant YMCA seemed drained of energy as Hamlet tore at them repeatedly in search of further goals. Silky skills from Muguo took into the area, past defender after defender, only to be denied on the angle of the six yard box as the feet of Westoby turned behind his close range effort. Westoby would again keep Horsham hopes alive as he spooned behind an angled Chattaway drive in the game’s latter stages; those hopes further boosted as Dulwich were reduced to ten men in stoppage time as Mr Linden’s mission to exasperate reached its zenith with the dismissal of Nugent. A petulant kick on the Dulwich forward by Carden behind play seemingly invisible to officialdom, Mr Linden’s attention only drawn as Nugent reacted impetuously, raising his hands to his aggressor. A theatrical flourish of the red card to end Hamlet’s afternoon on a sour note, the dismissal robbing Dulwich of a key striker over the New Year campaign. However a late rally from the YMCA against their diminished guests came to naught.

Teams:
YMCA: Ken Westoby; Dean Carden; Alex Keaney; Joe Keehan; Tom White (Capt.); Matt Simpson; Matt Russell; Andy Ottley; Greg Palmer; Tom Lyons (Richard Greenfield 51); James Grant
Substitutes not used: Martyn Flack; Seb Kazemi; Glen Woodburn

DHFC: Sheikh Ceesay; Steve May; Ricky Dobson; Benson Paka; Shayne Mangodza; Marc Cumberbatch; Shawn Beveney; Sebastian Schoburgh (Sol Patterson-Bohner 90); Meshach Nugent; Stanley Muguo; Lumumba Amena (Billy Chattaway 65)
Substitutes not used: Scott Edgar; Junior Baker; Tim Roberts

Attendance: 124

Officials:
Referee: Mr Wes Linden
Assistant Referees: Mr Dave Moran & Mr Alan Morley

Goalscoring:
1-0 YMCA Matt Simpson 5th minute (Penalty)
1-1 DHFC Shayne Mangodza 52nd minute
2-1 DHFC Shawn Beveney 68th minute