Holmer Green Party Thwarted by Tiger Poop

Unenforced Signs of Great Britain Number 357

 

Things to do at half-time: undertake Owl Census.  (0)

Hopperational details
Date & Venue	Tuesday 9 April 2013 at Airedale Park
Result	Holmer Green 2 London Tigers 3
Competition	Spartan South Midlands Premier League (Step 5)
Hopping	Quick change of plan when it turned out that a cup semi-final (see my last post) was being held at a neutral venue that I have already visited.  This ground is #512 on the lifetime list.  One more ground (London Tigers!) for me to do in this division.
Pre-match preparation
Holmer Green are bottom of the league table and need a miracle to avoid relegation.  Their last game was a 4-6 defeat at Hadley (in front of a crowd of 11) after they had been 4-1 up!  Tigers sit a few places above and will probably be safe whatever happens.
This match in one sentence
Heartbreak after a spirited performance from Holmer Green had seen them draw level from two goals down, but a 96th minute winner took the points for Tigers.
So what?
Unofficially, I believe that this result mathematically confirms Holmer Green’s relegation.  They could still avoid last place by overtaking Hatfield, but they can’t overtake Hertford.  Tigers need one more point (or for Hatfield to drop points) to be mathematically safe.
The drama unfolds
Holmer Green attacked from the whistle and shot narrowly over within seconds to announce their intent.  They played positively and with heads up in an even contest.  They encouraged teammates, more so than Tigers who tended to berate each other as the game went on.  My scene-setter clip comes from around 15 minutes into the game.  Green are in green! The second clip has the game’s opening goal.  Holmer Green lost concentration after a lengthy stoppage for an injury, and Tigers took advantage with this strike.  The scorer is either Terence Cariba or Jabir Laraba … (see later.)  0-1 after 29 minutes The home side regrouped and to their credit this was not the signal for floodgates to open.  My final first-half clip shows their best chance of an equaliser before the break – Joe Gleeson’s shot is straight at the keeper.  0-1 at half-time Holmer Green kept pressing in the second half.  They had plenty of possession but not all of it in dangerous areas, and Tigers looked fairly comfortable at the back.  When the home side found a way through, they found a keeper, Adam Atour, in good form, as the next two clips show.  Flying saves for goalkeeper fans out there.  These are at 60 and 70 minutes respectively. They had an even better chance when an excellent diagonal through ball from Joe da Silva in midfield was then played through to Dean Allen, but Atour saved with his legs at close range.  The tally of missed chances was now starting to mount up. Therefore it came to pass that a dipping and swerving shot from distance seemed to deceive the home goalkeeper and the ball pinged off the left-hand post to nestle in the opposite corner and Tigers were two up with only 14 minutes left.  The scorer was Terence Cariba – he scored twice but I am not sure whether this was the first or second.  0-2 after 76 minutes The shout on the pitch was, “We can still do this!” and Holmer Green got back into the game immediately with an excellent low finish from Allen who has now scored for five games on the trot.  1-2 after 77 minutes They almost had a leveller soon afterwards as Tigers began to look jittery at the back.  This clip comes from the 84-minute mark and has some corner carnage. There was another lengthy stoppage for an injury and it was the 90th minute on my watch when this freekick led to the equalising goal.  The scorer is Michael Green, who is pleasingly wearing Green and playing for Green.  (By the way, the referee was Mr Corner, who should be a lino really so his nominative determinism can be fine-tuned.)  2-2 after 90 minutes Unbelievably, however, they gave away the points and their last hold on a place in the division by conceding a goal in the 6th minute of stoppage time.  Tigers had players lined up on the edge of the area and there was not much that Dan Little could do as the winner was smacked in.  The scorer was either Terence Cariba or Jabir Laraba (whichever one didn’t score the first!).  Credit to both teams – a great game for the passing neutral and I hope Holmer Green keep their heads up for next season in Step 6.  Final score 2-3 Apologies for the confusion over identifying the Tigers' goalscorers this time.
The programme
Hopping for Moorfields Update
Tallies up to 185 goals from 53 games which remains around 3.5 per game.
Mars Bar Watch 2013
A standard 58g bar cost a season-standard 60p in the clubhouse.  Standard.
What Next?
Follow @GrahamYapp on Twitter for further hopping announcements.

Welcome to Eversley and California, It's a Lovely Place

Hopperational details
Date & Venue	Saturday 7 April 2013 at the Eversley Sports Association Ground.
Result	Eversley & California 1 AFC Croydon Athletic 2
Competition	Combined Counties League Div One Cup Semi-Final (Step 6)
Hopping	511 on the lifetime list – chosen for me because it sounded interesting by Tweeter friend @cat_daisy.  That’s random enough for me on the day when most people use the same method for picking Grand National bets.
Pre-match preparation
Both teams placed in the top half of their league table.  Eversley & California are still in with a shout for the title, but that is probably unlikely now for AFC Croydon Athletic.
This match in one sentence
AFC Croydon Athletic took a while to get into their stride but two goals in quick succession just before the break proved enough.
So what?
AFC Croydon Athletic will play either Staines Lammas or Feltham in the final - their semi-final is played on Tuesday.
The drama unfolds
Thanks to the AFC Croydon Athletic website for help in identifying scorers. E&C started strongly with Neil Williams posing a threat.  An early effort hit the side netting.  It took them 23 minutes to take the lead, however.  It was a soft walk-in goal for number 9 Chris Fox after the offside defensive line had been broken.  The lead was entirely deserved at this point.  1-0 I took three short clips in quick succession around the 30 minute mark.  E&C are in the yellow-and-blue.  The first one finishes with an offside flag - would it have been a penalty if onside, I wonder?  The others show Athletic getting into the game and starting to make Richard Shelley work in the home goal. The visitors responded to the deficit and took control of the game with two goals shortly before the interval.  Daniel Cumber crossed from the right and it looped up and over the keeper to nestle in the net, not unlike a goal I scored for Selwyn College Third Team back in 1977-78.  I told everyone then that I meant it, and I trust he will do the same.  1-1 after 39 minutes Alan Bidi-Lacadoug then smacked a shot in from a central position and the game had been turned round.  1-2 after 41 minutes and at HT Within one minute of the restart, Neil Williams was bearing down on the Croydon goal again.  With the keeper beaten, his shot cannoned back off the post.  E&C put two subs up front but the second half proved to be a scrappy affair as Croydon sat back and looked for the break, and the home side got more desperate.  With 15 minutes left, they came close with this placed effort (by Jermaine Hamilton?) that went into the side-netting.  Generally speaking, the Croydon defence held firm. I took a few more clips in the closing minutes.  In the last one, E&C keeper Richard Shelley came up for a corner and won the first header – but only a cynical foul stopped Croydon from breaking away to score.  The referee did not allow them to take the freekick quickly, which rather rewarded the defender despite his yellow card.  The result was not affected, though, and the whistle went a few seconds later.  Final score 1-2
The programme
Something random
Eversley & California is a new club name for 2012-13 – Eversley FC have formally merged with California FC, who are a youth football club taking their name from the California district of Wokingham.  Together with the cricket club they have developed a large and impressive site which is leased from an aggregates company.  It is a work in progress but will be a fantastic facility. AFC Croydon Athletic is a “phoenix” club.  I last saw them in their previous incarnation going very well with a one-sided win at Ashford Town (as they were then) in Kent, three years ago to the day.  Then in 2012 their owner was arrested and eventually given a prison sentence for his part in a cricket spot-fixing scandal in the England v Pakistan series.  The club did not survive, and the new club plays at a different venue.
Hopping for Moorfields Update
I have double-checked the figures and can confirm that we are now running at 178 goals from 51 games at an average of 3.49 per game.  This was the 11th three-goal game of the season.
Mars Bar Watch 2013
Two standard 58g bars for £1.00 at the Shell petrol station on the A405 just off the M25 towards St Albans.  If you have the self-control to save one for later, this is the cheapest confirmed price of the season so far.
What Next?
Hitchin Town v Bedworth United at Top Field tomorrow evening (Monday 8 April) and, if the Yappmobile gets through its service in good time, maybe the Staines Lammas v Feltham semi-final on Tuesday.

The Daniels Done Good

Hopperational details
Date & Venue	Saturday 1 April 2013 at Wothorpe Road, Stamford
Result	Stamford 4 Kings Lynn Town 1
Competition	Northern Premier League Division One South (Step 4)
Hopping	I was last here on 7/11/09 for a 4-0 win over Grantham.  My second visit is because of the chance for @CynInHerts and I to cross paths again with a group of friends from the continent.  We therefore watched the game in the company of @doingthe116, @DutchAddick, @HansRedMagic and @1904.  These guys have an encyclopaedic knowledge of the game and have been frequent visitors to these shores.
Pre-match preparation
2nd plays 4th.  Kings Lynn tailed away at the end of last season to finish second in the United Counties Premier, but still managed to grasp a promotion place with the way things turned out across the country.  They are chasing a second successive promotion and won 7-0 last time out.  Stamford have also announced their ambition by signing six players recently, and they are buoyed by the news that a new stadium is now definitely on the way.  Good choice of fixture by our European visitors.
This match in one sentence
After an excellent first half, Stamford were two up though Kings Lynn had looked equally strong, but the visitors’ second-half comeback plans were thwarted by a quick third goal and so they endured a long lingering defeat.
So what?
Coalville Town were held to a home draw by Gresley so this is a chance missed by Kings Lynn.  Coalville have a game in hand and lead by two points.  However, both Stamford and Kings Lynn look good for a playoff place and may yet have to meet again this season.
The drama unfolds
This was a good game straight from the kickoff, with two good sides trying to establish dominance.  There was both skill and strength on display.  If anything, Kings Lynn looked slightly more dangerous, though their keeper Daniel Gay had needed to scramble to push away a curling cross-cum-shot from Tom Byrne, one of Stamford’s new faces. It still felt slightly against the run of play when Liam Richardson poked a shot into the roof of the net to give Stamford the lead.  1-0 after 20 minutes This provoked Kings Lynn.  A loose crossfield ball from the Stamford defence allowed Daniel Jacob to link with Shane Tolley, but the latter’s shot curled just wide.  On the half-hour, Tolley played a neat flick to Steve Spriggs who also shot wide.  The approach play looked promising. My scene-setter clip comes from the 35-minute mark.  Stamford are in red. The second clip followed almost immediately and captures Andy Hall getting a second goal for the home side on the break.  2-0 after 42 minutes and at half-time The 2-0 scoreline seemed harsh on Kings Lynn but their fans remained optimistic in their half-time chat, especially as they would be playing down the slope.  They started the second half on the front foot and forced Matt Finlay to make a diving catch, but Stamford’s third goal, arriving shortly afterwards, was not in their script.  Jordan Hempenstall was the scorer.  3-0 after 50 minutes Kings Lynn left themselves short on numbers at the back as they tried to get back in the game, and Stamford soon had two more excellent chances.  One shot went just wide though it would have been called for offside if a teammate at the far post had made contact, and Ricky Miller rather scuffed a shot having created his shooting chance.  However, Miller’s goal came soon afterwards – the ball fell to him in lots of space after a freekick and he shot on the turn.  4-0 after 82 minutes Stamford’s Tom Batchelor picked up a needless second yellow (and thus a red) for a late tackle, and then in the final moments Kings Lynn got a consolation goal when they worked an indirect freekick routine after a passback infringement.  Russell Dunkley lashed the shot home.  Final score 4-1
The programme
Something random
@CynInHerts received a message alerting her to the beauties of Stamford Station, so we had to check this out.  The message was correct – it is a very pleasant old-school station which has pretty much everything except a bunch of Railway Children and Ted Ray.
Hopping for Moorfields Update
Five goals, two Dutchmen and two Belgians to add to the various tallies.  End-of-season total should be over £500.
Mars Bar Watch 2013
A standard 58g bar for a standard 60p.  Uncontroversial.
What Next?
No idea whatsoever!  I may look for some local evening hops as a reward if I have some good work days this week.  Regular readers will know that I am between jobs and have a lot to do before the new school term starts on 15 April.