They Killed Carshalton for a Sense of Enormous Well-Being

Hopperational details
Date & Venue	Monday 6 April 2015 (3.00pm) at Whitehall Lane
Result	South Park 3 Carshalton Athletic 1
Competition	Isthmian League Division One South (Step 4)
Hopping	Ground 559, a last-minute choice for geographical reasons because of its proximity to my earlier match near Heathrow.  I crossed paths once again with @yasser11 – we both agree that this match exceeded our prior expectations for entertainment value!
Pre-match preparation
Very little.  Both teams relatively low in the league but probably safe from relegation, both lost on Saturday.  16th plays 17th for end-of-season pride.
This match in one sentence
South Park take the points and although Carshalton will feel unlucky, they sealed their own fate by conceding some soft goals.
So what?
South Park climb to 14th place.
The drama unfolds
South Park (in red) took an early lead with a neat finish by Dave Smith.  1-0 after 13 minutes Dale Burgess then added a second direct from this corner kick.  2-0 after 23 minutes To be fair to the visitors, no heads dropped and they missed their first real chance just after the half-hour, before halving the deficit before the interval through Matthew Males.  2-1 after 38 mins and at half-time Both teams kept up the attacking intent in the second half, making it a very decent day out in the sunshine for the passing neutral.  Home keeper James Wastell was in for a busy 45 minutes – he made several good saves to protect the lead.  Carshalton’s left-sider Sean O'Toole was getting more and more service and he drew applause for a mazy run and shot, which Wastell saved easily enough.  O'Toole was clattered for this free-kick, just wide after 84 minutes. Carshalton mounted wave after wave of attack, and the final clip showed that it was not going to be their way.  Wastell needed the metalwork this time from another set piece which itself had followed a goalmouth scramble.  Both these freekicks were taken by Brendon McVey. The Carshalton keeper was then knocked over in a collision outside his box, and a minute later he dropped the ball to give Dave Smith the easiest of tap-ins as we entered stoppage time.  Harsh, but self-inflicted.  Final score 3-1
Ground Pix
Just outside, to be fair, but very Springlike!
Match Pix
Something You Don’t Get in the Premier League
Goalkeeper Top Colour Stats
Grey beats Green, but not enough to reverse the league position. The story so far: 3pts for a win, 1pt for a draw, -1pt for a goal conceded and +5pts for a clean sheet P W D L GC CS Pts PPG Purple 5.0 3.0 1.0 1.0 9.0 2.0 11.0 2.20 Green 25.0 12.0 2.0 11.0 32.0 8.0 46.0 1.84 Grey 24.5 11.0 7.0 6.5 32.5 7.0 42.5 1.73 Maroon 4.0 2.0 1.0 1.0 6.0 1.0 6.0 1.50 Red 4.0 2.0 0.0 2.0 5.0 1.0 6.0 1.50 Blue 10.0 3.0 3.0 4.0 16.0 3.0 11.0 1.10 Orange 7.5 2.0 2.0 3.5 10.5 2.0 7.5 1.00 Yellow 12.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 21.0 3.0 7.0 0.58 Radioactive Bile 6.0 2.0 0.0 4.0 12.0 0.0 -6.0 -1.00 Pink 7.0 1.0 3.0 3.0 16.0 0.0 -10.0 -1.43 Black 1.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 3.0 0.0 -2.0 -2.00
What Next?
Follow @GrahamYapp on Twitter for details!  Newmarket Road end for Cambridge United v Accrington Stanley on Saturday.  Not a new ground, but I am back in Cambridge for a 40-year college reunion dinner and that is a fitting prelude for reasons I will explain next week. Maybe.

Fame is the Thirst of Youth, says Byron

Well, I noticed this (one of several) ... not sure whether the home faithful have yet

Newby's first penalty makes the score 1-0 ...

... and his second makes it 3-2 to set up a frantic final few minutes

Hopperational details

Tuesday 28 September 2010, Carshalton Athletic 3  East Thurrock United 2 in an FA Cup 2nd Qualifying Round Replay at the War Memorial Sports Ground, Colston Avenue.  I am here because a local pigeon was late for tea, thus depriving Chipstead of my custom this time.  (Here's the proof, which will only make sense if you have read the previous post!  Only eight seconds, I promise!)

This match in one sentence

Byron Harrison’s hat-trick beats Kris Newby’s brace of penalties as the home side make the most of their replay opportunity.

So what?

Carshalton (of Step 3) have been drawn at home to another Essex side, Braintree Town (of Step 2) in the 3rd Qualifying Round on Saturday 9 October.

Who caught the eye on the pitch?

Harrison had three clear chances before he scored his first goal to equalise after the early penalty.  He completed his hat-trick before the golden-booted Newby scored from the spot again.  Both Harrison and Newby were the biggest threats for their respective sides.  However, the home fans were not really anxious about the result until the last few minutes, when visiting keeper Richard Wray joined the attack in great cup-tie style. However, the match might have developed differently if not for Carshalton ‘keeper Craig Ross.  East Thurrock could so easily have had a second goal from dangerous Newby set-pieces before the hosts settled and equalised.  The programme editor admits in his notes that Ross had been man-of-the-match in the first game.  Ross did more than anyone over the two matches to earn the place in the next round. Carshalton 'keeper Craig Ross is happy to be #13

This match had the same effect on my pulse rate as …

… being admonished at a branch of Subway when I asked if I could use two tetrahedral dice to decide from white, offwhite, wholemeal, rye, wholemeal with rye, wholerye with meal, wholebranbreadmeal and Italian fibreloaf for the superstructure of a chicken sandwich.

A snippet from the programme

Carshalton manager Mark Butler’s previous posts are at Ashford Town (Mdx) and Margate.  Seven of the sixteen names listed in the Carshalton squad page have recent connections with one or other of those clubs.  It reminds me of the time when Alan Buckley became West Brom manager and there followed several signings of current or previous Grimsby Town players.  Many of them had difficulty establishing themselves with fans and became fringe players at best.  The same page also states that Byron Harrison “has been looked at by several professional clubs and has a big future in front of him”.  Hmmm … Carshalton is his sixth club already!

What I learned today

Uploading videos takes a long time and I should plan further in advance!