Oxhey Jets 1 Dulwich Hamlet 5
The FA Cup Sponsored by Eon First Qualifying Round
Saturday 13th September 2008
Dulwich Hamlet’s ball will be jangling in the FA’s famous velvet bag come Monday lunchtime after Oxhey Jets were shot down in balls of flame, made to look like rickety biplanes by the Red Arrows of the Hamlet. Time and again a flashing streak ripped through to tuck home another goal, Laurent Hamici continuing to mine his rich vein of form with a hat trick to take his season tally to seven from eight games. Also getting in the goalscoring was Daryl Plummer who celebrated his return to first team action after his frustrating injury layoff with a delightful double, only the woodwork preventing him going mano-a-mano with Hamici for the matchball.
For the second round in succession Hamlet’s opposition came from the South Midlands Spartan League but the contrast could not have been greater, Broxbourne’s industrial football replaced by South Oxhey’s industrial landscape, power lines almost draping to the pitch along the touchline and behind the goal, the express line into Euston rattling away in a cutting below but amongst the sights and sounds of urban Britain, horses grazing leisurely behind the goal amidst Hertfordshire’s wooded arbours. Upon the field too the true amateurs of the Jets stuck to the ethos of the beautiful game, perhaps to their detriment. Barely an expletive passed their lips beyond a running tiff ‘twixt garrulous goalie Kevin Paul and his melancholy teammate, Kevin “Moaner” Ayres, five centuries of appearances in Oxhey blue behind him. Bad fouls were in abeyance, bar a winch-inducting scything down of Steve May by Lee Grace, graceless indeed.
Though injury woes remain, manager Craig Edwards almost had the luxury of naming an unchanged team from that that had seen of the challenge of the Casuals in midweek. Ryan Bernard returned to replace the injured Cedric Ngakam as he had done at half time in that victory whilst Junior Kaffo made way for Daryl Plummer returning to the starting line for the first time since Merstham. Also making a welcome return from the physio's table, albeit as a substitute was Alex Fiddes. Frustratingly for the Jets the injury gremlins had been at work with 9 goal striker Tim O’Mara ruled out and the mantle of scorer passed to the lightning fast Jamie Arthur, a constant threat with the pace but lacking in the precision that might have punished defensive woolgathering.
The seasons turn, late summer sun toasted the Boundary Stadium, late blossoming Hamlet fruitful in Hertfordshire fields. A blue wall faced them; Dulwich dismantled it brick by brick. Early Hamlet threats beaten away but in the tenth minute, an armour piercing bullet from the boot of Plummer stripped away the first veneer of resistance. Hamici sent tumbling, a Gallic filling for a Hertfordshire sandwich, as a brace of defenders baulked him at the corner of the penalty area. Left hand down a bit Mr Phillips, as the man in black waved aside protests, the ball running to Benson Paka who slipped the ball inside to Plummer, a measured shot from 18 yards leaving Paul a frozen bystander as it rattled in via the far upright.
Still stunned the Jets defenders found themselves grounded as a Scott Simpson cross from the right was met by a neatly flicked header from Hamici, only to skim wide of the far stick.
Arthur raided for the Jets but a heavy mantle lay upon him and he clearly missed his strike partner, getting into position to supply telling crosses only to consistently overhit his deliveries.
On 27 minutes Paul Turner had the ball in the Hamlet net, though a flag raised some time previous had long seen the Dulwich defence ease off. As if to salt the wound, barely 60 seconds had elapsed when Dulwich punished lackadaisical defending, Hamici sprinting away and in attempting to round the diving Paul having his legs taken away from under him. The Jets custodian might have seen red but Mr Phillips was kind, only a yellow for the culprit, but Hamici was less charitable dispatched a well struck spot kick heartily hammered high to the ‘keeper’s left shoulder to double the lead.
Plummer was a gnat’s wing away from adding a third after 35 minutes when his scooped shot from the edge of the penalty area left Paul standing as it lopped past his right hand, the custodian looking back expecting to see the ball once more nestling in the net but relieved to see it cannon back off the face of the upright.
In command at the break the Dulwich express thundered up a gear as the second half got underway, Oxhey’s hopes of a post-interval revival dealt a killer blow within three minutes of the restart. The home defence was left in limbo as Gary Noel ran on to a pass down the left, drawing the ‘keeper from his goal before magnanimously squaring for Hamici. The silent assassin struck once more as his marker was skipped past and with Paul in No Man’s Land; it was a simple task for the Hamlet hitman to drill the ball into the empty net.
It might have been throwing a drowning man a straw but 6 minutes later, an error from Jamie Lunan helped the Jets to register on the scoreboard. The Hamlet number one came fro a corner, lost the ball in flight and amidst a flurry of boots and bodies Arthur poked the ball home. For a moment blue hearts pumped a little faster as they looked to reduce the arrears further. Substitute Lee Armitt, a hat trick hero in midweek for the reserves, justified his promotion as he replaced Adam Lowton and proceeded to make a series of incisive runs at the Hamlet defence who found themselves working a little harder as the buzzing youngster kept up a continuous assault. Only a magnificent covering tackle from Billy Chattaway denied him a shot on goal after one headlong charge in from the wing into the penalty area.
However the lifebelt soon slipped from the Jets as the waters of the Hamlet finally engulfed them. The industrious Noel was unlucky not to make it four after he battled against the odds to fire a shot in on goal, somehow hooked off the line by a determined Ian Bywater, finding an extra spurt to clear the ball after Paul had been beaten. The respite was brief and three minutes later the sluggish Jets defence was caught napping as Plummer hit the gas to accelerate away down the right, luring Paul into committing himself before nipping round and slipping the ball into the net.
Substitute Peter Martin almost had an instant impact after replacing May, waltzing away from tackle after tackle with impish glee before an audacious attempt to chip Paul from 25 yards glided just over the crossbar. But, right at the death, the rout was completed and so was Hamici’s hat trick. Noel waited in the middle but the goal was Hamici’s only quarry. His body language spoke it. Shoulders back, a soupçon of Gallic arrogance, quicksilver in his boots and fire in his eyes, the tricky striker collected a pinpoint pass from Junior Kaffo. Dancing and darting as defenders fell before him, Hamici toyed with Paul as a cat might torment a mouse, drawing the Jets custodian before hammering the ball into the net to seal overwhelming victory.
Teams:
OJFC: Kevin Paul, Ian Bywater, Lee Grace, Marc Ayres, Chris Harding, Wayne Gladdy, Chris Ingham, Paul Turner (Karl Bull 74, Nathan Roberts, Adam Lowton (Lee Armitt 65), Jamie Arthur
Substitutes not used: Carl Wigg, Michael Wyatt, David Maynard, Colin Jenkins, Owen Deamer
DHFC: Jamie Lunan, Steve May (Peter Martin 85), Billy Chattaway, Benson Paka, Ryan Bernard (Capt), Marc Cumberbatch, Daryl Plummer, Charlie Howard (Alex Fiddes 77), Laurent Hamici, Gary Noel, Scott Simpson (Junior Kaffo 77)
Substitutes not used: Tyran James, Sheikh Ceesay
Goalscoring:
1-0 DHFC Daryl Plummer 10th minute
2-0 DHFC Laurent Hamici (penalty) 29th minute
3-0 DHFC Laurent Hamici 48th minute
3-1 OJFC Jamie Arthur 54th minute
4-1 DHFC Daryl Plummer 70th minute
5-1 DHFC Laurent Hamici 90th minute
Officials:
Referee: Mr C Phillips (Carshalton)
Assistant Referees: Mr E Walker (Colliers Wood) & Mr W Ingram (New Malden)
Attendance: 148
