Tonbridge 3 Billericay Town 8

Match 121/16/1428 - Wednesday, 12th April 2017 - Ryman League Cup Final

Tonbridge (1) 3 McCollin 4,90 Konchesky 51 (o.g.)
Billericay Town (4) 8 Robinson 10, Bricknell 29,38,45 Cunnington 47,62 Lawrence 55 Krasniqi 80
Attendance: 653

Entrance: £5 Senior
Programme: £1
Mileage: 94/8,297

Match Report

Embarrassed, humiliated and shamed.

A place in a cup final, whether it is the FA Cup or the Tunbridge Wells Charity Cup, is to be cherished, an opportunity to be proud of your club whether you win or lose. All you have to do is turn up and give a good account of yourselves and supporters will forgive you virtually anything. You reached the Final, you tried your best but, unfortunately, it wasn't quite enough. The players of Tonbridge Angels failed to honour the faith of their supporters and only heaped embarrassment on around 300 people that had made the journey to Carshalton.

Nobody could have underestimated the size of the task that faced Tonbridge Angels. The high profile bankrolling of Billericay Town has seen Paul Konchesky, a former England international, drop four steps from League One; Jamie O'Hara making a similar journey and Jake Robinson leaving National South club Hemel Hempstead for an eye-watering £24,000. Each one rumoured to be earning around £3,000 a week. Remember, this is the Ryman Premier League!

That might have been the size of the task, but that is not a reason to raise the white flag.

The nature of the game to unfold was encapsulated in the opening three minutes. Billericay carved open the Tonbridge defence only to see Adam Cunnington fire wastefully over the crossbar and Tonbridge goalkeeper, Jonny Henley, saving low to his right from Billy Bricknell. Then, out of nowhere, Tonbridge took the lead. Luke Blewden, cutting in from the left, fired in a shot that was parried away by Jack Giddens into the path of Andre McCollin to finish from close range.

The joy was not to last. Henly made saves from Cunnington, Bricknell and Matt Johnson before Robinson cut in from the right hand side to angle a shot into the far corner after 10 minutes.

The tide was already one-way but the floodgates were beginning to open. For the next 20 minutes Billericay made too many chances to mention individually suffice to say that Henly was asked to make meaningful saves with the Essex side's strikers wasteful. But the breakthrough came just before the half-hour when Bricknell cut in from the left and fired in a shot that came back off the post to strike the back of the diving Henly and rebound into the goal. Technically, it was an own goal but given to Bricxknell on the night and as he went on to score a first half hat-trick no doubt he will claim it.

At this point, personally, I was offering up prayers of getting to half-time at just 2-1. There is no footballing god. A third goal came in the 38th minute when a cross from Robinson found Bricknell with time and space to drill an unstoppable half-volley past Henley. On the stroke of half-time it was four when Bricknell completed his hat-trick, Robinson once more supplying the pass for the striker to loop a shot with the aid of a deflection in off the post.

Steve McKimm shuffled the pack at half-time with Alex Akrofi on for Nathan Elder and Nicky Wheeler replacing Bradley Fortnum-Tomlinson. There was little left to play for but pride and a respectable scoreline, even this drifted away within a couple of minutes of the restart. A cross from the left was half-heartedly cleared to the feet of Cunnington who gratefully drove the ball back and into the centre of the goal.

For the next 45 minutes, I felt shell-shocked, just staring into the space that was the pitch but not really taking in what was going on. I've a feeling there were more than a few of the Tonbridge players doing much the same.

Billericay showed a charitable side when Akrofi crossed from the right and Konchesky inexplicably headed into his own net. The strange thing about this game was despite the devastating manner of their forward play they had shown a vulnerability at the back, something for them to work on in their cruise to next season's championship.

There was no let-up in the relentlessness of the orange shirts though and three minutes later normal service was resumed when a cross from Robinson was met by Byron Lawrence with a low shot into the bottom corner.

Six became seven when Cunnington found the top right hand corner just past the hour and fears of double figures were not without foundation. Thankfully, Billericay showed mercy and indulged in a display of keep ball and showboating that saw out 20-odd minutes without a goal.

Five minutes remained when Henly made two great saves but got no help from any of his defenders as the ball finally fell at the feet of substitute Kreshnic Krasnniqi to tuck home.

Tonbridge supporters, who had taken the humiliation with humour, had a final cheer when Tom Phipp's shot came back off a post for McCollin to tap in.

There was still time for O'Hara to attempt to inflict the final indignity when he shot from about 250 yards that, thankfully, drifted wide. O'Hara, who couldn't shift a muscle at Gillingham, showed throughout what you get for £3K a week, a figure beyond most of the Ryman Premier's entire squad budget.

Tonbridge's management were understandably damning of their players and it remains to be seen what sort of reaction will evolve from this embarrassing episode.

Team photo: Dave Couldridge

Phoenix Sports Res 2 Glebe 3

Match 120/16/1427 - Tuesday, 11th April 2017 - SCEFL 1

Phoenix Sports Reserves (1) 2 Cue 38 Malik 67 (pen)
Glebe (2) 3 Golding 3,10 King 83
Attendance: 50

Entrance: £3 Senior
Programme: With Entrance
Mileage: 95/8,203

Welcome to the world of the bracketed tick. I probably started groundhopping without really knowing it at about 10 years of age when a friend's Dad would take me to now extinct grounds like Ashford's Essella Park or Canterbury's Kingmead following Tonbridge. Groundhopping, it would seem, has now evolved into a pastime with a set of rules including the bracketed tick when visiting the tenants in a groundshare.

This, at least, was a bracketed tick with a difference as the groundsharer's are the landlords reserve side, Phoenix Sports Reserves who, with a minor piece of controversy, were given permission to compete in SCEFL 1.

A win for the evening's visitors, Glebe, would ensure their promotion to the SCEFL Premier League whilst still needing a point to clinch the championship.

Everything looked plain sailing for the Chislehurst-based club when Ryan Golding scored twice in the opening 10 minutes. His first, after two minutes, came when he converted a cross from the right with a shot that went in off the right hand post.

Golding doubled his tally when he headed home from a long throw leaving fears that Phoenix could be routed.

But credit to the home side as they recovered and were well worth their goal when Cue converted a cross from the right.

Into the second half, a good game ensued with both sides having chances. Glebe's central defender put a header against the left hand post before Phoenix found an equaliser after 66 minutes when Glebe's goalkeeper needlessly brought down the centre forward on the edge of the box for Ouani Malik to convert the penalty to level the score.

Aaron Jeffrey managed to scoop the ball over from two yards as Glebe sought the winner to confirm their promotion and this eventually came with nine minutes remaining when a free kick from the edge of the box was fired in by George King.

Glebe's goalkeeper redeemed himself with a good save low to his left to preserve their three points and to allow the celebrations to begin.

Tonbridge Angels U18 1 Maidstone United U18 1

Match 119/16/1426 - Monday, 8th April 2017 - Ryman Youth League

Tonbridge Angels U18 (0) 1 Adonis-Taylor 57
Maidstone United U18 (1) 1 Warden 15
Attendance: 88

Entrance: £1 Senior
Team Sheet: Free
Mileage: 38/8,108

Tonbridge U18s had to settle for a draw from a match in which they deserved better with the result leaving Merstham needing to win just one of their remaining two games with Maidstone their visitors on Thursday.

Tonbridge dominated the game throughout but chances were very much at a premium.

Two early chances fell to Sid Sollis. The first came from a Jack Bray long throw that found the head of Sollis who was only able to direct it at the Maidstone goalkeeper, Nathan Akhlaq. A minute later, following a Tommy Chapman cross, the talismanic striker fired over.

It was against the run of play when the Stones took a 15th minute lead. A corner from the right was misjudged by Lewis Mitchell which handed the influential Sid Warden an easy header to open the scoring.

Gaining confidence from their goal, Dale Ashman forced Mitchell into a decent save low to his left before Sollis struck a shot from the left hand angle of six yard box against the far post.

On the half-hour, a fine cross from Chapman was met with a header from Jack Fenton that was touched onto the crossbar by Akhlaq.

The hosts began the second half where they left off with Bray having a shot blocked and Fenton dragging the rebound wide.

Tonbridge deserved a bit of luck and this they got after 57 minutes when Callum Adonis-Taylor overhit a cross from the right that completely deceived the Maidstone ‘keeper and sailed into the net.

The game became one-way traffic as the Angels searched for a winner. A marginal offside decision denied Sollis a goal that would have been a masterful piece of finishing where it not for the linesman’s flag.

Ultimately, for all their possession and further chances that fell to Sollis and Fenton and a last gasp effort from Adonis-Taylor that was cleared from the line by Warden, it was not to be for Tonbridge, leaving the way clear for Merstham’s title party.

Tonbridge still have their Ryman Under-18 League Cup against Whitehawk at Whyteleafe next Thursday to look forward to and they can be justifiably proud that they have been part of an intriguing three-way race for the title.

Gillingham 1 Millwall 1

Match 118/16/1425 - Saturday, 8th April 2017 - League One

Gillingham (0) 1 Quigley 67
Millwall (0) 1 Morison 72
Attendance: 7,221

Entrance: Season Ticket
Programme: £3
Mileage: 58/8,070

Match Report

Gillingham’s chances of avoiding the drop to League Two look ever more desperate with every game that gets added to a sequence, now standing at five games without a win. At least this home draw against play-off chasing neighbours Millwall was a spirited effort, something that was lacking in their last couple of Priestfield appearances.

Millwall’s support packed out the Brian Moore Stand which at least pended itself to a much improved atmosphere at both ends of the ground as Gillingham’s vocal support found their voices.

Ultimately, it was a lack of quality from both sides that determined that the points were shared, a scenario that did little for either side’s differing ambitions. There was plenty of effort, some rough and tumble that is expected of a derby but neither side had a single player that would take the game by the scruff of the neck and prove the difference.

Millwall stretched Tomas Holy to a couple of saves that were comfortable but looked good for the camera, whilst at the other end, the home side despite having the better of the possession failed to ask anything of Tom King.

After much of the same for the first 20 minutes of the second half, Gillingham took the lead. King disputed that he had carried the ball over the line to concede a corner but from the resultant place kick the ball found its way to the far post from where Joe Quigley hooked home to delight the Rainham End.

Millwall should really have equalised within two minutes when Lee Gregory rounded Holy but then got his own feet in a tangle and scuffed his shot wide.

However the lead was only to last five minutes when a shot from Jed Wallace brought a good save from Holy but was only pushed into the path of Steve Morison who from the right hand angle of the six yard box into the far corner of the net.

A Morison header that went tamely wide was as close as it got to finding a winner.

I’m guessing that a win and a draw from their final two home games against Bristol Rovers and Fleetwood Town might just about be enough. The quality in the squad isn’t going to change overnight, hopefully the spirit shown will prove enough to see them over the line.

K Sports 0 Glebe 2

Match 117/16/1424 - Tuesday, 4th April 2017 - SCEFL 1

K Sports (0) 0
Glebe (0) 2 Jeffery 51, Golding 54
Attendance: 112

Entrance: £2.50 Senior
Programme: £1.50
Mileage: 40/8,012

Match Report

At Rusthall a couple of weeks back and in the first half of this match at K Sports, I failed to see what has taken Glebe to the cusp of promotion, as champions, to the SCEFL Premier. In the second half, I finally got it.

On their own admittance, at Jockey Farm, Glebe's overriding intention was not to lose the game and, perhaps, there was a similar mindset here at Cobdown, but once Aaron Jeffery had fired them into an early second half lead, quickly followed by Ryan Golding's sure-fire finish, there was to be only one winner as Glebe marched on to the summit of the table.

The first half was a real stalemate with neither side creating much in the way of genuine chances and nothing much in terms of eye-catching football.

K Sports' central defender Liam Dawson brought a good save out of Adam Molloy with a header following a cross from the right after eight minutes and Caine Smith blasted over the crossbar two minutes later as the home side started on the front foot.

Glebe created a couple of half-chances with Joe Cullip saving at the feet of Andre Tobon whilst Ryan Golding hit a long shot that sailed high into the night sky.

Six minutes into the second half, Glebe opened the scoring following a cross from the left by George King which was headed against the crossbar at the far post by Jamal Alexander with the rebound being tucked away by Aaron Jeffery.

Within a couple of minutes, Glebe virtually wrapped up the game when a cross from Alexander was only partially cleared to the feet of Golding, who showed he had not lost any of his predatory instinct with a firm shot that gave Cullip no chance.

To K Sports credit they kept going forward and Gabriel Luckhurst forced Molloy into a low save, diving to his left. But the game ended as a contest when K Sports' young defender, Jack Salisbury, collected a second yellow card to sentence him to forlornly watch the remainder of the game from behind the perimeter fencing.

Nearly everything, I understand the changing rooms need to be closer to the pitch, is in place for the Ditton-based club to have a real tilt at promotion next season. I have watched football played on three Ryman Premier 3G pitches in recent weeks at Worthing, Harlow and Hendon and, in my opinion, this pitch is vastly superior to all of them.

Tonbridge Angels U18 4 Kingstonian U18 2

Match 116/16/1423 - Monday, 3rd April 2017 - Ryman Youth

Tonbridge Angels U18 (1) 4 Sollis 41 Ghali 50,79 Fenton 57
Kingstonian U18 (0) 2 Curtis 54,87
Attendance: 48

Entrance: £1 Senior
Team Sheet: Free
Mileage: 38/7,972

For a second consecutive game, Tonbridge Under-18s had to play for 45 minutes without a regular goalkeeper after Lewis Mitchell sustained an injury in the 36th minute. He soldiered on until the break but didn’t appear for the second half with Louis Pateman taking over between the sticks.

Kingstonian provided much sterner opposition than their lowly league position suggested they would and a competitive first half ensued. Chances were very much at a premium as Tonbridge struggled to get going, much to the credit of the Kingstonian back line that were well organised.

It took a full half-hour for the Kingstonian goalkeeper to be tested but Matthew Allison was up to the task touching over the bar an effort from Sid Sollis.

Sollis, who had a frustrating first half-hour in which his touch was unusually heavy and was missing the pin-point delivery of an absent Tommy Chapman, came to life with a shot from 40 yards that didn’t trouble Allison but seemed to provide the spark that ignited his evening.

After 36 minutes a pass through the centre of the Tonbridge defence sent Orlando George chasing a 50/50 ball with Mitchell diving at his feet. The subsequent collision left the goalkeeper with an injured leg from which he ultimately substituted.

In the first minute of first half added time, Sollis, from wide on the left hand side and about 35 yards out produced a shot that whistled past Allison and into the net.

Mitchell’s substitution introduced Ziyad Ghali and the young striker was on the score sheet within five minutes. A shot from 20 yards from Sollis came back off the underside of the crossbar and Ghali was on hand to nod home the rebound.

Kingstonian were back in the game quickly when a shot from George from 25 yards was too much for Pateman but, within two minutes, Tonbridge had restored their two goal advantage when a free kick from Liam McCreadie found the head of Jack Bray whose effort was well saved by Ellison but the rebound was headed home by Jack Fenton.

The Tonbridge back line, with Bray dropping into the central defensive spot, did well to protect their goalkeeper limiting Kingstonian to a single shot that Pateman saved with his feet.

The game was made safe with a piece of individual brilliance by Ghali who left a couple of defenders in his wake before rounding the goalkeeper and slotting home.

Kingstonian added a second to the scoreline three minutes from time when George converted a cross from Kailen North to score from close range.

In injury time, Sollis cut in from the left and sent a shot agonisingly wide that would have been a delicious icing on the cake.

Manager Billy Thornton commented after the game that they made it hard for themselves in the first half but the second half performance showed the characters they have in the squad whilst accepting it wasn’t a great performance.

League leaders Merstham, as expected, won 9-2 at Raynes Park Vale to maintain their two point lead over the Angels. Third place Maidstone visit Longmead next Monday and also have Merstham to play in their run-in and they will have a big say in the destination of this close run title race.

Hendon 1 Tonbridge 2

Match 115/16/1422 - Saturday, 1st April 2017 - Ryman Premier

Hendon (1) 1 Ball 14 (pen)
Tonbridge (0) 2 Elder 68, McCollin 86
Attendance: 264

Entrance: £6 Senior
Programme: £2
Mileage: 154/7,934
New Ground: 306

A couple of millimetres, a linesman's flag and Tonbridge's play-off hopes remain ... just.

I think it is generally accepted that Tonbridge might need to win each of the last five games to make the end-of-season lottery and given that one of those five is away to Havant any slip up elsewhere might prove to be fatal.

We are now at the point of the season where the pedantics of "must win" no longer apply. This was a must win and it applied to both clubs with Hendon desperately in need of the points in their quest to stay in Ryman Premier.

Tonbridge's newly-arrived loan signing Vas Karagiannis, from Maidstone, went straight into the starting line-up whilst the returning Bradley Fortnam-Tomlinson had to be content with a place on the bench.

For the vast majority of Tonbridge supporters this was a new ground, although one or two might well have visited on a groundhop when Silver Jubilee Park was habited by Kingsbury Town or Edgware. They found a traditional old stand with loads of wooden uprights obscuring the vision but it had some character unlike the Atcost structures that adorned the other three sides. It seemed at odds to have a 3G pitch that significantly sloped but it at least had a more natural bounce than the one at Harlow.

The opening stages were fairly cagey with the home side having an early free kick that was sent over the crossbar by the influential Matt Ball whilst the visitors employed the home goalkeeper, Tom Lovelock, who comfortably dealt with a shot from Nick Wheeler and a header from Sonny Miles.

However it was the home side that went ahead after 14 minutes when an innocuous challenge from Jack Parter downed Reis Stanislous resulting in the referee pointing to the spot. From a distance of 75 yards it was difficult to judge whether the decision was a good one, but the position of the foul just inside the 18 yard box begged the question as to whether the challenge needed to be made at all. Ball sent Jonny Henley the wrong way to put the hosts into the lead.

Lovelock saved well at his near post to deny Karagiannis and from the resultant corner Miles headed wide as Tonbridge responded positively from the setback.

Nathan Elder failed to get a shot away when in front of goal and with Wheeler supplying a succession of crosses the visitors where dominating in terms of possession and chances made.

After 35 minutes, Henley made a good stop low to his left to deny Ball who had met Khale De Costa's cross.

The second half was progressing much the same as the first as Tonbridge were creating plenty of half chances whilst, on the break, Hendon were also quite dangerous.

After 66 minutes, Steve McKimm decided to shuffle his pack bringing on Andre McCollin for Alex Akrofi and within a minute the Angels were level. A cross from the right from Karagiannis was bundled, scuffed, choose the phrase you like (!) past Lovelock to give Tonbridge parity that they certainly deserved.

A draw was certainly of no use to Tonbridge and probably was not Hendon's requirement so McKimm went for the win introducing Luke Blewden for Luke Allen after 67 minutes. Lovelock made a fine, diving stop to save from McCollin and a shot from Parter was deflected against a post and back into the hands of the goalkeeper.

Hendon introduced their Guyanian international, Marcel Barrington, who brought a save out of Henley and also shot wide in a matter of moments.

One last throw of the dice from McKimm brought a goal fashioned entirely from the bench after Dan Thompson came on for Elder. Blewden won a vital challenge to feed a pass to the edge of the box from where Thompson created space to cross for McCollin to stab the ball wide of Lovelock whose save was a millimetre or two too late as the linesman's flag signalled the goal.

Henley made his only handling error of the afternoon in injury time when he spilt a shot from Da Costa but recovered quickly to reclaim the ball. Barrington tested the Tonbridge man one more time but he was equal to the task and the vital three points were on their way back to Kent.

Pictures below from Dave Couldridge and Kathryn Bell