Dulwich Hamlet 1 Eastbourne Town 0

Dulwich Hamlet 1 Eastbourne Town 0
Isthmian League Division One South
Tuesday 4th December 2007

…look, love, what envious streaks do lace the severing clouds in yonder east: night's candles are burnt out, and jocund day stands tiptoe on the misty mountain tops. Those misty mountain tops those that Dulwich must climb to seize the fable chalice of promotion, that russet dawn perhaps harbinger of promotions dreams taking solid shape riding on the back of a brace of victories, narrow in conclusion, yawning like a chasm in execution. Victory over a struggling, yet tenacious, Eastbourne Town, a marked improvement in the quality of opposition from tanned Leatherhead the Saturday before but seemingly ground into the rut of defeat which may yet condemn them to a swift return to whence they came, the Sussex County League. That tonight did not end in an ignominious crushing was due much in part to an virtuoso display from Gregg Nessling between the sticks, his custodial masterclass sometimes inspired by Saint Jude.
With Meshach Nugent back from his brief suspension, Dulwich’s attack bore the hallmarks of a battering ram with the Nugent proving the first wave of attack in the vanguard with Shawn Beveney and Stanley Muguo upon the second, their broadsword thrusts completed by the lightning rapier parries of the quicksilver duo of Sebastian Schoburgh and Henry Darko. But Eastbourne had made the journey up from the south coast in firm frame of mind, keen to dispel their poor run of form which had seen win just twice in the league all season and shut out the oppositions’ goalscorers in all but two of those games. Indeed the first of the chances fell the way of the Bourne, though it was far from clear cut, with Mark Goodwin latching on to a hurried, miscued clearance from Sheikh Ceesay but lashing the ball wide from a goodly distance.
Dulwich had been effective without being incisive but slowly and slowly they began to make inroads into the Eastbourne heartlands. On the quarter hour mark a rip-roaring strike from a rampant Nugent on the charge down the left, though the acute angle was not to his favour, seemed bound to whizz in under the belly of the bar until Nessling stretched as if by the rack to turn the ball over.
Pedantic refereeing saw young Henry Darko the first into the book as he refused to give up on a wildly overhit pass, challenging ‘keeper Nessling for the ball close to the touchline, only to be penalised by the fastidious whistler Mr Crouch. Too often for Hamlet the passes found only an opponents’ boot allowing Eastbourne the chance to build their own attacks, neat, slick football as smooth as a sonata but lacking crescendo. A rare chance came not from the stylish but from the straightforward, a booming throw-in flicked on at the front of the six yard box. The goal loomed ahead of Liam Baitup, eight yards out, but he spared Ceesay a save as he slashed and missed at the bouncing ball.
As the half wore on, Dulwich upped the tempo but symphony in approach turned to cacophony of error in front to goal. Shawn Beveney danced his way to the edge of the penalty area but when the chance screamed shot his ears were deaf. Trying to wriggle his way through a yellow morass ahead of him, the ball squirmed from his possession. Breaking on the right, the quicksilver Sebastian Schoburgh whipped over a deep to the back of the box, met up the head of Meshach Nugent but hurtling wide of Nessling’s right-hand upright. The combatants swapped chances, an Eastbourne breakaway was spearheaded by Baitup, the ‘Bourne forward powered upfield but unable to shake off the close attentions of Ricky Dobson, Hamlet’s left back doing enough to shadow him wide and force him to fire off a blank that went well wide. A moment later Dulwich had forced a corner but the delivery was too much and though Shayne Mangodza stretched like Armstrong to get his head to the ball it was never going to be anything but a goalkick.
A half-time rallying call and Hamlet efforts were redoubled for a second half that belonged in the main to the hosts. The last strains of the restart whistle had barely faded from hearing when pass lamped across the area was pulled back by Beveney into the path of a stampeding Stanley Muguo, a fierce strike matched by Nessling’s smart diving low to his left to paddle the ball past his post. The resultant corner found its way to Beveney but his effort missed the mark. Baitup chanced his arm with a looping lobbed effort to rouse Ceesay from his reveries, the young custodian coolly plucking the ball from the air as yellow vultures hovered.
Blood and thunder, highball at the gallop, ball in the box pronto – Dulwich began to show their belligerent face. Nugent chased down a pass back, Muguo chipped in the loose ball, Darko spinning in the air to try and connect with a bicycle kick but to no avail. No rest for Nessling as he denied Dulwich once more with a save that belonged to genius, a follow block that belonged to fortune as he kept out Beveney’s crashing close range drive with his face. Befuddled and bemused, Nessling was spared further heroism when Muguo returned the ball into the danger area, aiming for Nugent’s head though the cross eluded the striker by a gnat’s wing.
For the breaking of the deadlock, Dulwich were once more indebted to their inspirational skipper, Beveney gathering the ball some 40 yards from goal, sidling past defender after defender with that sailor’s swagger before he hit the boost button. As he arrived at the brink of the box, he drew back his bow and unleashed a flaming arrow that found its quarry with unerring accuracy, the back of the despairingly diving Nessling’s net inside the upright.
A deep long throw from Luke Denton had Hamlet’s hearts in mouths as Ceesay failed to connect properly with his punch but protection from Dulwich’s defence spared any blushes. Venturing forwards, down the right Sol Patterson-Bohner whipped a dangerous cross low into the six yard box, Adam Davidson a saviour as he lashed the ball away from the toes of Schoburgh. Will o' the Wisp Schoburgh provided service from his wing twin; Bill Chattaway recently arrived from the bench to replace Darko. Nessling though had regained his senses and magnificently tipped the ball away from the Hamlet man’s head. Thick and fast came the chances. Beveney a quick pirouette in the box but, no, a shot at the keeper.
Chattaway spurned an inviting opportunity shortly after, a flayed shot rising over the crossbar from 10 yards out. The nemesis Nessling continued to deny the Hamlet pulling off save after save with monotonous regularity an excellent double save in the 71st minute, thwarted first Nugent then Billy Chattaway in quick succession. In the final throes the turbulent Nessling went full stretch to tip behind a cross-shot from Meshach Nugent and, just before the final whistle, Billy Chattaway fluffed a shot in front of an open goal but it mattered not a jot as the Hamlet promotion pantechnicon found itself back on track once more.
Teams:
DHFC: Sheikh Ceesay; Sol Patterson-Bohner; Ricky Dobson; Benson Paka (Lumumba Amena 90+1); Shayne Mangodza; Steve May; Shawn Beveney (Capt.); Sebastian Schoburgh; Meshach Nugent; Stanley Muguo; Henry Darko (Billy Chattaway 65)
Substitutes not used: Gbenga Sonuga; Scott Edgar; Tim Roberts (GK)

ETFC: Gregg Nessling; Adam Davidson; Chris Dicker; Luke Denton; Alex McKay; Peter Featherstone; Danny Simmonds (Capt); Andy Ducille; Liam Baitup (Peter Cooper 79); Mark Goodwin; Andy Wilkinson (Graham Holman 70)
Substitutes not used: Brad Manton; Nick Pearmine; Steve Dallaway

Attendance: 239

Officials:
Referee: Mr Ian Crouch (New Eltham)
Assistant Referees: Mr Dele Sotimirin (Loughborough Junction) & Mr Phil Stevens (Streatham)

Goalscoring:
1-0 Shawn Beveney 59th minute