Match Report

Saturday 11 January 2014
SSECL Intermediate Division One
OXTED & DISTRICT 0-5 OLD BOYS CLAPHAM
Goals: Fairbrother 38, Zagajewski 49, 75, Belk 68, Shingler 72
Oxted missed pen 65

HT 0-1

Man of the match: 30. Matt Fairbrother

Line up: Harman, Allison (J Perry 54), Dundas, Price, Henderson, Fairbrother, Brunning, Breen, Varley (Shingler 59), Zagajewski, Belk ©

FLYING FAIRBROTHER SHOWS FIRSTS THE WAY

Old Boys Clapham climbed up to third in the SSECL Intermediate Division One table and are just three points off league leaders Balham FC thanks to this good win at Oxted & District. The opposition had Ian Pearce playing up front but was marked expertly by Marc Henderson and Rob Price today. Pearce is a Premier League winner with Blackburn Rovers. Oxted had three decent chances to take the lead in the first half but found Steve Harman stubbornly in their way. OBC struggled to test the keeper for much of the first half despite having a lot of possession and chances until young Matt Fairbrother showed some composure and tucked home a fine low strike into the corner of the net after some fine approach play from Adam Zagajewski. Zaggers hit a free-kick into the top the left hand corner of the net to double our lead shortly into the second half. Oxted had a goal chalked off for a player coming back and winning the ball from an offside position and then they blazed a penalty high over Harman's bar when on top. Moments later OBC went up the other end and scored with Belk rolling the ball in after more good work from Adam. Emmett Shingler hit a screaming dipping volley to add a fourth and Zaggers killed the game with a well taken fifth off the keepers under-carriage. Ouch.

The line-up today was Steve Harman in goal with an unchanged back line from the 6-1 win at Ashtead before Christmas with Steve Allison continuing at right back, Andy Dundas at left back with Rob Price and Marc Henderson at centre backs. Matt Fairbrother was handed a first team start as Paul Grace pulled out before the game. In centre midfield were Chris Brunning and Mike Breen with Kiel Varley returning to the left wing having recovered from his ankle knock suffered at Ripley Village. Up front were the dynamic duo of skipper Matt Belk and Adam Zagajewski. On the bench today was Jamie Perry and Emmett “The Flash” Shingler.

The game kicked off in glorious crisp sunshine at the picturesque village of Oxted. The pitch was playable and the game went on. Oxted had the better of the early exchanges with their striker (not Ian Pearce) racing through on Harman’s goal only for the big man to get down low and make a good save.

Oxted then hit the post when the ball cannoned around the OBC area only to deflect off Dundas and onto the base of Harman’s left hand post.

OBC looked sluggish initially and it was only little Matt Fairbrother who started the game well by drifting in and out down the right wing only sometimes to be let down by the final ball. One delightful cross for Zaggers at the back post was finger tipped out for a corner by the Oxted keeper at full stretch.

Breen had several efforts at goal from the edge of the area as Oxted got back in numbers. The only damage Breen did today with his shooting boots was to the little girl he knocked over when firing at an empty net in the warm up kick about.

Andy Dundas tried his luck from distance and his low pile driver fizzed just past the right hand post, a little to the left and the keeper would have had no chance.

Zaggers had the opportunity to fire in, up and over the wall but his well struck free kick in the 24^th minute was straight down the keeper’s throat but a warning nevertheless of the strike to come later.

Rob Price lost his footing and again Oxted found themselves one on one with Harman but this time the striker blazed over the bar.

Ian Pearce’s only contribution of note in the first half was a two footed stamp on Andy Dundas which resulted in a yellow card for the big man. The referee said after the game because Andy got straight up and didn’t make a meal of it that he thought the challenge was worse than it looked. To be fair it was not a dirty game and it was probably an accident.

OBC continued to frustrate themselves at the other end as Matt Belk was fed through one on one with the Oxted keeper on thirty-six minutes but Belk pulled his shot wide of the right hand post. It was looking as if it could be one of those afternoons….

That was until Matt Fairbrother showed his class when Adam Zagajewski danced around a couple of defenders before laying the ball back to Fairbrother to roll into the corner of the net from the edge of the penalty area 0-1 39 minutes gone. Fairbrother’s 8^th goal of the season.

As the half closed Steve Allison was bundled down in the Oxted box but the referee may have had an obstructed view and did not give us the decision and the half ended just one goal to the good.

At half time Joicey said that Oxted could have been 3-0 up today despite us retaining the ball well but we really needed to make the keeper work more by getting shots on target. The lads felt it was hard to turn on the surface and going up the hill would be easier in the second half.

It did not take long to get the crucial second goal and what a goal. Adam Zagajewski, twenty-five yards out, free-kick, slightly to the left of the D, up and over the wall like an Exocet missile into the top left hand corner of the net. Postage stamp stuff it really was. 2-0 Zaggers, his 14^th goal of the season.

Oxted had a good spell after our second goal and thought they had pulled a goal back but the striker came back from an offside position and was flagged.

Jamie Perry and Emmett Shingler came on for Steve Allison and Kiel Varley just before the hour mark. Emmett nearly scored with his first touch from a short-corner, a curling dipping cross to the back post looked as if it might have sailed in on its own but an OBC player got their head to it and it deflected over the bar for a goal-kick.

Oxted had a good spell after our second goal and were awarded a penalty after a couple of our players were adjudged to have bundled into the back of Ian Pearce, the ball actually fell nicely for them and Harman got down low to pull off a flying reflex save.

There was some nervousness on the opposition bench as the striker (not Pearce) was about to take the penalty. They were right to be uneasy as the ball flew into orbit from the penalty kick. Their manager said that he missed a pen like that just before Christmas and it cost them so he could not understand why again he was allowed to take it, especially when you’ve an ex-Premier League player on the pitch.

Such is their luck at the minute that Oxted were quickly punished for the miss when their newly introduced right back sub gave the ball to Zaggers (not one to decline nicely wrapped up gifts) who in turn neatly fed Belk to stroke home past the keeper for 3-0 on 68 minutes. Belk’s 12^th goal of the season.

Remember the Eric Cantona goal against Liverpool in the FA Cup final back in the 1990’s well The Flash hit a near carbon copy goal as he vollyed in from outside of the penalty area to give the Oxted keeper no chance. There were no clouds in the sky today but there was a flash of lightning! Crack! 4-0 on 72 minutes. Emmett’s 8^th goal of the season.

At this stage it was a case of how many as OBC knocked the ball around well and Fairbrother continued to be a constant menace down the right. In the end we settled for five goals when Zag rattled the ball in off the keepers nads to make it a painful day for the Oxted stopper on 75 minutes. Zaggers’ 15^th goal of the season.

A good game, a good performance particularly the second half with some nice football being played. Next week we are back in County Cup action against Surrey Elite side Horsley. A tough games lies ahead but the prize will be a quarter-final spot with the chance to play Cheam Village Warriors or Bagshot at home in mid-February.

Peter Joicey
12 January 2014