Essex Senior League Round Up (Tuesday 15th/Wednesday 16th October) - League Leaders Stanway Rovers hit five in eight goal thriller against Hullbridge Sports whilst second placed Woodford Town smash six past White Ensign

 (Action from The Hawthorns between Stanway Rovers & Hullbridge Sports, photo courtesy of Essex & Suffolk Groundhopper (@EssexSuffo62178))

It's been a while since I've written about the Essex Senior League so I thought'd I'd update you all with the latest goings on in the division, there were two midweek games that took place on Tuesday & Wednesday which involved the top two in the division, so let's see what went on in those games:-

Tuesday October 15th

Stanway Rovers 5 Hullbridge Sports 3

League leaders Stanway Rovers came into this contest two points clear of second placed Woodford Town (who played White Ensign at home on Wednesday) knowing that a win would take them five points clear for at last twenty four hours and keep them at the top of the division for at least another week, they were up against a Hullbridge side who are finding things tough this term, down in 15th in the table and only six points above bottom side Halstead Town, so on paper at least it looked like a nailed on home win.

It started well for the hosts too as Harrison Chatting fired the hosts ahead in just the ninth minute, but Hullbridge to their credit fought back to level after twenty minutes when Tobias Braney netted a brilliant free kick, however Stanway were to regain the lead just past the half hour mark after George Okoye saw an effort deflected in off a visiting skipper Ollie Jenkins before Jamie Bennett produced a moment of magic to increase the hosts lead just before the break, curling an effort into the top corner, meaning the league leaders had a 3-1 lead going into the break.

Hullbridge needed a response and they got it seven minutes into the second half as after Piers Hatcliff was sent through on the right, his cut back was finished off by Owen Bellamy to reduce the arrears, and then with just over fifteen minutes to go the visitors were level through Braney's second of the contest.  Stanway though were not to be denied and were back in front just four minutes later as after Bennett was tripped up inside the box, Okoye calmly converted the spot kick for 4-3, and then after Stanway won a free kick which resulted in visitors Joe Burton being sin binned for disagreeing with the decision, Tom Maycock saw his 87th minute free kick deflected home to seal what had been a bonkers game at The Hawthorns.

Wednesday October 16th

Woodford Town 6 White Ensign 0

Second placed and hosts Woodford Town knew they needed to win this one to close the gap back down to two points to league leaders Stanway following the latter's entertaining win over Hullbridge the night before, and they were up against a young and determined White Ensign side at Ashton's who were themselves looking to get into the top ten of the division with a win themselves.

It didn't take long for the first piece of action to materialise as after just three minutes the hosts won a penalty as after Josh Banfield struck the post with a volley, David Gokou-Siakouri was brought down as he tried to follow in to score,  and although Marko Protic's spot kick struck the post, Georges Kebi was quickest to react and prod the rebound home and hand Woodford the perfect start to this contest, a start that got even better after just twenty minutes when the hosts increased their advantage as a Banfield corner found Miles Mitchell-Nelson at the back post who rose the highest to head home.

And just before the half hour mark Woodford added another, the visitors failing to cleat another dangerous delivery from Banfield, and it ended up falling to Gokou-Siakouri who lashed home a volley, and you would have been forgiven to have thought the game was as good as over inside half an hour, the hosts were all over their opponents. There was still time for the hosts to add a fourth before the break as well as in the 43rd minute the superb Banfield managed to turn goal scorer on this occasion after the ball broke to him and he found the corner of the net with a lovely half volley, and Ensign, who won 7-0 at the weekend, were in danger of seeing that wiped out in this contest, 4-0 down at half time to a rampant Woodford side.

Ensign improved after the break although it wasn't difficult too after a rather disappointing first forty five minutes where they were put to the sword, however, Woodford did add a fifth goal with just under twenty minutes remaining as who else but Banfield produced another elite ball into the box where Protic nodded home from inside the six yard box,  and then a minute after that fifth goal it was six for the hosts and a fine one at that, as Nathan Sollosi drove in-field and straight through the visiting backline before finding the bottom corner for a sublime solo effort and cap a fine performance from the home side.

This is how the table looked after the latest matches:-

Stanway and Woodford both won as seen above meaning they remain as they were with two points between them at the summit, Wakering, Romford & Takeley make up the remainder of the top five, Walden are four points off those places but do have games in hand as they continue their quest to break into those play off places.

Down at the bottom Halstead continue to hold up the rest with FC Clacton just a point above them, in fact only three points separate the bottom four, so very tight indeed down there as those sides try their hardest to grab a win or two to try and put some daylight between themselves and the rest down there.

Anyway that's you all up to date with the Essex Senior League, thanks for reading.

   

BBC Essex Senior Cup Round's One & Two Review (Tuesday October 15th) - Walden, Oakley through to Round Two, Dunmow Town, Harwich & Parkeston, Takeley, Ilford, West Essex & Rayleigh Town all progress into Round Three

Another week and another round of BBC Essex Senior cup fixtures, the bulk of them Round Two contests with a couple of Round One ties still to be completed, let's see what happened yeah.....

Round One

Saffron Walden Town 3 Stanway Pegasus 2

This Essex Senior League Vs Thurlow Nunn North tie was played last week and Walden won an entertaining contest 3-2, but due to a referee error (sin binning a player which are not in the rules of this competition) it meant the game had to be replayed, Walden got their noses in front once again through Ross Wall, but just like last week, Max Booth levelled after he received a ball from Palmer before firing home between the keepers legs. Walden though, as last week, retook the lead after Eman Okunja netted, only to see Pegasus pin them back once again to 2-2, The Bloods then went down to ten men but managed to find a winner through Solomon Ofori and win what was another cracking contest between the two sides, and just like last week, Walden ran out 3-2 winners to progress into the next round.

Little Oakley 2 Athletic Newham 1

It was third time lucky for this all Essex Senior League contest after two postponements, one for the weather and then one when the visitors coach broke down on route, and when this one did get underway it was Oakley who struck first after ten minutes when Daniel Rowe found the net, heading home a rebound after an initial effort from Bobby Rea was saved.  And Oakley managed to double their lead from the spot after twenty six minutes through Lewis Wood to take control of this tie, a tie that looked likely to be drifting towards a home win, but then the visitors pulled one back with six minutes to go through Abdul Khamis to make it interesting, however Oakley's two first half goals proved enough for them to take their place in Round Two.

Round Two

Halstead Town 1 Dunmow Town 2

It was Essex Senior League against Thurlow Nunn South at Rosemary Lane, and The Humbugs drew first blood here when Dean Agar netted four minutes before the break to give Halstead the lead, running onto a great ball down the middle before firing past the keeper, but Dunmow managed to level with fifteen minutes remaining with an incredible goal from Alex Georgio. And then with four minutes to go Dunmow stunned their hosts by taking the lead through another brilliant strike, this time from Darnell Fuller, and it proved to be the winner as the visitors progressed.

Harwich & Parkeston 0 Benfleet 0 (Harwich & Parkeston won 3-1 on penalties)

Thurlow Nunn North Harwich & Parkeston hosted Essex Senior League Benfleet at The Royal Oak, and after a goalless first period where both teams had chances to score, and following a blank scoresheet in the second period, it meant the tie would have to be decided on penalties, and it was the Step Six hosts who prevailed in the shoot out to shock their ESL opponents and make it through to Round Three. 

Takeley 1 May & Baker 1 (Takeley won 4-2 on penalties)

Essex Senior League Takeley welcomed Thurlow Nunn South May & Baker to Station Road, Bakers of course had knocked out the hosts big rivals Stansted in the last round, and after withstanding quite a bit of pressure from the hosts, Bakers got their noses in front late on in the first period to give themselves hope of another upset in the competition. Takeley's pressure though finally told when a superb cross from Charlie Wardle found Conor Clarke who sent a diving header into the net to bring the hosts level, but with no further goals in this tie, it meant penalties would be needed to see who would progress.  However, Bakers were unable to repeat their penalty shoot out success from the last round as they succumbed to the hosts in the shoot out as Takeley progressed.

Coggeshall Town 1 Ilford 4

It wasn't that long ago that hosts Coggeshall were a level above Ilford in the pyramid, but these days the visitors hold the higher ground in the Essex Senior League as The Seedgrowers now ply their trade in the Thurlow Nunn South, well it was the visitors who grabbed an early lead when Kaan Junior struck after just three minutes when dispatching a lovely free kick, and just past the half hour mark Junior netted again for The Foxes after producing another lovely finish as they went into the half time break with a two goal cushion. That cushion though was halved nine minutes into the second period when Sam Hollocks pulled one back for the hosts after a free kick from wide evaded all, but Ilford managed to restore their two goal cushion from the spot through Junior who duly completed his hat trick in the process just past the hour mark. And the visitors then added a fourth goal to pretty much end the contest when Joel Appiah netted an easy tap in after the keeper had saved midway through the second half as The Foxes progressed into the next round.

Harlow Town 0 West Essex 2

Thurlow Nunn South league leaders Harlow Town would have fancied their chances at home to Essex Senior League West Essex, well it didn't start well for the hosts who went behind very early on when Balla Ndao put West ahead after tapping in at the far post. Things were to get harder for the hosts late on in the first period when they were reduced to ten men when Jesse Ansen was shown a red card, meaning they would have to play the entire second half with a man light. The hosts second half also began in difficult circumstances when they had to sub their keeper James Pellin and stick an attacking player (Cav Clarke) in goal, less than ideal you could say, and it was no surprise when Oumar Ndao added a second for the visitors when Clarke was caught in no mans land and saw a looping effort from some distance find the net with just under twenty minutes to go to seal West's place in Round Three.

Rayleigh Town 5 Holland 0

This was Thurlow Nunn South against Thurlow Nunn North at Thames Road on Canvey Island, and it was the South hosts who grabbed a 15th minute lead after a driving run from Albert Perry saw him play in Jimmy Dalton to slot home, and just seven minutes later Rayleigh had doubled their advantage following a right footed strike from Tommy Sykes. The hosts were rampant and made it three with eleven minutes of the first half remaining when Owen Barratt netted after a great driving run, and it was four for the hosts six minutes before half time when after Barratt was brought down inside the box, Ollie Quick netted the spot kick to all but end this contest inside forty minutes. The hosts slowed down after the break but did manage to add a fifth five minutes after the break as Dalton grabbed his second of the contest after converting a ball in from Leo Clark, the damage though had been done in the first half as Rayleigh cruised into Round Three.

So, after tonight's remaining Round One ties were completed, which saw Saffron Walden Town & Little Oakley progress, these are the two remaining Round Two ties, which should take place next week I'd suspect:-

Saffron Walden Town Vs Great Wakering Rovers

Little Oakley Vs Romford

Two pretty decent looking games eh, once these have been played we will have a completed line up for Round Three which sees Buckhurst Hill, Dunmow Town, Harwich & Parkeston, Takeley, Ilford, West Essex & Rayleigh Town along with the winners from the above games joining all the bigger boys from Essex in Round Three, the draw for that Round will be done in due course so stay tuned.....

Kidlington 2 Welwyn Garden City 4 - Bailey Stephenson nets hat-trick as Welwyn Garden City survive late Kidlington revival to get back to winning ways in the Southern League Central

Southern League Central, Saturday October 12th

Another day and another road trip with fellow footie fans as four of us made the journey from our meeting point at the Brook Street Roundabout junction of the M25 north west to Oxfordshire and to a small town just outside Oxford in the shape of Kidlington and more specifically Yarnton Road.

This was a first visit for me to Kidlington in general and it is a pretty decent set up, the clubhouse is good, it has a nice seated stand and some cover just up from that, and also had a small covered terrace behind the goal where you enter the ground to one side of the goal, this was where the noisy home support stood to make all their nose, armed with a drum too, and to be fair they sang throughout the contest regardless of what was happening on the pitch, so kudos to them for the support they gave their side.

Their is also a nice outside area next to the clubhouse and also a nice small tea bar too selling lovely bacon rolls and a decent coffee too (they also did chocolate bars, crisps and cans of drink, oh and sausage rolls too) so more than adequate for an afternoon at football, all at decent prices too.

Now Kidlington are struggling this season somewhat, they sat second bottom and only off the bottom on goal difference after losing six of their seven league games thus far, and only picking up a solitary point all season, they were finding things tough you could say, there opponents today were having a much more solid campaign, sitting in fifth spot and the final play off place having picked up sixteen points in their nine games thus far, that's five wins, one draw and three defeats.

WGC had not won for two games though in the league, so wanted to get back to winning ways here, and they were expected too against a side who had lost their last three in the division after picking up their only point of the season against Hertford Town back at the end of August, and it didn't take too long for the visitors to get there noses in front either.

Full back Zuriel Otseh-Taiwo was given the freedom of the penalty area after being left totally unmarked at the back post he received the ball, and took a touch before rifling a powerful effort beyond hosts keeper Charlie Barnett after just five minutes of the contest, and you felt that maybe the hosts were in for a long afternoon.

The hosts to their credit did battle hard though thereafter and it looked as if they would get into half time just a goal behind, but, right on half time they conceded a second goal crucially and it was a very well worked free kick from the visitors too, Bailey Stevenson took the free kick by playing it into strike partner Bradley Wadkins, Wadkins then played it back into the path of Stevenson who drilled a lovely low effort beyond Barnett and into the bottom corner, WGC were now two goals to the good heading into the half time break and looking well set for victory.

And three minutes after the break the game looked over after Stevenson did well to win the ball on the left wing before he lofted an amazing effort over Barnett into the far corner for a truly brilliant goal and a wonderful piece of skill, I am sure he meant it but whether or not he did it didn't matter and now the visitors were cruising and you felt at this point it could get ugly for the hosts.

Things didn't improve for the home side just before the hour when they saw boss Craig McKay sent off from the dugout for something he must have said to the assistant on that side of the pitch, and then two minutes after that Stevenson was so close to grabbing his hat trick when thumping an effort against the bar, WGC were hunting for more goals and Kidlington were doing all they could to prevent further damage.

Credit to the hosts though who continued to fight for the cause and in the 72nd minute they won a penalty after brilliant play down the right from substitute Dineen Hellifield Meegan saw him drive into the box before he was fouled, and Powfil Raposo stepped up to dispatch the spot kick and give Kidlington small hope of maybe getting back into the contest.

That small hope became a real possibility though seven minutes later when they pulled another goal back as after a terrific driving run down the left from Charles Bacon, his ball in eventually found it's way to Raposo who fired a lovely effort right in the top bins, and all of sudden WGC were in danger of letting a three goal lead slip from nowhere.

A tense last 10-15 minutes ensued as Kidlington did all they could to get back on level terms, a thought that was totally unthinkable with twenty minutes to go, and the visitors were hanging on somewhat at times, they stood firm though and were always in danger of springing a counter attack on their opponents who had pushed up searching for that elusive leveller.

And deep into stoppage time, WGC did just that and countered on their opponents, with the attack ending with Stevenson sweeping home a decent finish from inside the box to complete his hat trick and seal the visitors win, but oh boy they made it a lot harder than they should have done after cruising earlier in the game, fair play to the hosts though who so nearly pulled it back. 

It means the hosts remain second bottom with just one point, whereas WGC get back to winning ways and they remain fifth with nineteen points after a sixth league win of the campaign and open up a four point gap to sixth, a very decent game to watch, especially the second half, I certainly enjoyed my first visit to Yarnton Road.

Full time Kidlington 2 Welwyn Garden City 4

Haverhill Borough 1 Haverhill Rovers 2 - Substitute Ryan Twinn heads home 83rd minute winner as Rovers take bragging rights in Haverhill derby against Borough at The New Croft

Thurlow Nunn First Division North, Friday October 11th

 I decided to take up an offer to go and watch the Haverhill derby for the very first time with three other friends of mine so jumped in the car to head North and venture to The New Croft in Haverhill for the first derby of the season in what was a Thurlow Nunn North contest.

Now tonight's 'hosts' were Borough, both sides share The New Croft these days and although both sides had that similarity, their starts to the league campaign were anything but, nineteen points and fifteen positions separated them in the table, Borough were down in 16th spot and only two places above the drop zone, although they were eight points clear of that.

That's three wins, four draws and five defeats in their twelve games ahead of this contest, whereas in stark contrast Rovers sat top of the pile having won ten of their twelve games so far, drawing two and having not lost a single game in the division, so on paper at least it was not a contest was it?

Well no, because this is a big derby in these parts and form and league positions go out of the window, and a healthy crowd of 500 turned up, which for a step six game is pretty special, to see which side would claim the bragging rights of this Suffolk town, well it was hard to see who was where in the division in the opening forty five minutes in a tight and competitive first half, as expected.

It looked as if the half would end goalless as well as chances were at a premium, but in first half added on time Rovers edged ahead in the contest when Clinton Frank made space with a run out to the right, allowing Kai Nicholls, who had only been on the pitch a few minutes, thread a ball into Luke Lindsay, and the latter fired a lovely effort into the bottom corner and the visitors had a slender half time advantage.

The match had been played in a rather decent spirit for a derby is this size, but that all changed early in the second period, Rovers were reduced to ten men after Frank had been fouled on route to goal just outside the box, but his back chat to the ref saw him sin binned just two minutes after the break, Borough defender Jonny Tully was booked for the challenge, and he was to be involved in the melee that ensued ten minutes later.

Tully and an opponent squared up to each other and Tully pushed him to the ground, sparking a melee which saw Rovers goal scorer Lindsay knock someone to the ground himself, the result was a second yellow to Tully in ten minutes or so meaning he was off, and Lindsay been shown a straight red for his violent conduct, meaning both sides were a man light for the rest of the evening.

Frank did return to the pitch a few minutes later and the game then settled down again after that spark, and with around twenty minutes of the contest to go, Borough grabbed a leveller when after Micky Cipriani had seen an effort blocked, he managed to find the net with a second attempt after the ball had come back to him, so the game was nicely poised heading into the latter stages.

Rovers made their final changes with fifteen minutes to go, one of those coming on was Ryan Twinn, and he was to be the match winner as eight minutes after he entered the field of play, he managed to nod a wonderful cross from Nicholls back across goal and into the far corner despite Borough keeper Zac Tuvey getting his fingertips onto the ball in a desperate attempt to prevent it finding the net.

That proved to be the winning moment and saw Rovers take the bragging rights although they were made to work very hard for the points against a Borough side who would have been disappointed to have lost such a tight game, it means Rovers are now five points clear at the top with eleven wins from thirteen games, Borough remain 16th but it's a sixth loss in thirteen now in the division for them.

Full time Haverhill Borough 1 Haverhill Rovers 2

BBC Essex Senior Cup Round One/Two Review - Tuesday 8th/Wednesday 9th October - Buckhurst Hill first side into Round Three, Benfleet, May & Baker & Dunmow Town all reach Round Two

This week saw some rearranged games in Round One of the BBC Essex Senior Cup as well as one match from Round Two, let's see how those games went:-

Tuesday October 8th

Round One

Benfleet 3 FC Clacton 3 (Benfleet won 4-1 on penalties) 

A dramatic end to this all Essex Senior League tie saw hosts Benfleet come from 3-1 down with minutes to go to end up winning a shootout, Rhys Fatt gave the hosts the lead just before the half hour mark but it took the visitors just eight minutes to find an equaliser when Ben Sargeant netted nine minutes before the break, and then just like that they had turned the match on it's head when Cory Rider put through his own net to hand the visitors the half time lead. And it was a lead that was to be increased just before the hour mark when Emmanuel Ikwuegbu added a third for the visitors and it looked as if they would take the win and progress, but Benfleet managed to pull one back in the 86th minute through Billy Carter, and Carter netted again five minutes into added on time to take the tie to penalty kicks.  And the hosts completed a remarkable recovery to win the shootout to progress into Round Two.

Saffron Walden Town 3 Stanway Pegasus 2

Essex Senior League Saffron Walden had to fight all the way in this one before they eventually edged out Thurlow Nunn North side Stanway Pegasus at Catons Lane. Walden started well and led with barely a minute on the clock through Ross Wall but a Max Booth penalty brought Pegasus level, only to see Walden retake the lead Correy Davidson, but, Booth then netted his second spot kick of the contest as a busy first half ended all square at 2-2. Walden though managed to score the all important third goal with eleven minutes to go when Wall added his second of the contest as they managed to avoid a surprising loss to a Pegasus side who ended the game with ten men after Smith-Walter was sent off late on.  

However, this result would not stand after all, this is because the game will have to be replayed on Tuesday October 15th after a referee error, the man in the middle sin binned a Stanway Pegasus player during the contest but this rule does not apply to this competition so it results in the match being ordered to be replayed, rules are rules I guess,  but very frustrating for all involved no doubt.

Little Oakley P Athletic Newham P

The rearranged all Essex Senior League contest scheduled to take place between Little Oakley & Athletic Newham was sadly postponed for the second time in seven days although it wasn't the weather that caused this cancellation, this time it was caused by the visiting teams coach breaking down on route to North Essex, meaning the game could not take place and will be rearranged once again.

 

Stansted 1 May & Baker 1 (May & Baker won 4-2 on penalties)

Thurlow Nunn South visitors May & Baker caused a surprise at Hargrave Park as they dumped out Essex Senior League Stantsed.  The hosts got their noses in front ten minutes before the break after a Ryan Ramsey corner was only cleared as far as Callum Leggatt who fired home brilliantly, and the hosts had a golden chance to double their lead eight minutes after the break but Sam Uwandu saw his penalty saved by visiting keeper Ryan Bungatadu. This proved pivotal in the contest too as six minutes after that penalty miss Bakers netted a leveller as a fine though ball picked out Lee Harris who showed superb pace to run at goal and chip home beautifully, and after the tie went to penalties, Bakers prevailed in the shootout to progress into Round Two. 

Round Two

Barking 0 Buckhurst Hill 1

Khadean Campbell netted the only goal with twenty minutes to go as Buckhurst Hill became the first side into Round Three of the competition, it looked as though the game would be heading towards penalties until Campbell popped up with the winner, sending them into the the Third Round against and be in the hat amongst some of the big boys in the County. 

 

Wednesday October 9th

Round One

Dunmow Town 3 Burnham Ramblers 1

Darnell Fuller, Alex Costas Georgiou & Reggie Pegrum were all on the scoresheet for Dunmow Town as they won their rearranged all Thurlow Nunn South Round One tie against Burnham Ramblers at Catons Lane.

So, there are still two Round One ties outstanding after the postponement of one and the ordering of a replay of the other, those will take place on Tuesday October 15th along with six other Round Two ties, these are below:-

Tuesday October 15th

Round One

Little Oakley Vs Athletic Newham (winners home to Romford week beginning October 21st)

Saffron Walden Town Vs Stanway Pegasus (winners home to Great Wakering Rovers week beginning October 21st)

Round Two

Halstead Town Vs Dunmow Town

Harwich & Parkeston Vs Benfleet 

Takeley Vs May & Baker 

Coggeshall Town Vs Ilford 

Harlow Town Vs West Essex 

Rayleigh Town Vs Holland 

That brings you right up to date with the BBC Essex Senior Cup, stay tuned for more blogs on this in the coming weeks and months.....

Richard 'Dickie' Sawyer Memorial Match (Corinthians XI 3 Battlesbridge XI 2) - A Corinthians XI come from behind to defeat a Battlesbridge XI in an evening of celebration and remembrance for the wonderful Richard 'Dickie' Sawyer

Memorial Match Remembering Richard Sawyer, Saturday October 5th

After Corinthians Premier Cup clash on Saturday afternoon, the evening bowed to a remembrance match remembering a very special man in the shape of Richard 'Dickie' Sawyer, who we all sadly lost a few weeks ago whilst he was on holiday in Spain, a devastating loss for his family and friends at the age of just 46 years old.

Dickie was a big part of a lot of peoples lives, and two of his two footballing loves locally were Corinthians and Battlesbridge, so it was very fitting that the clubs got together to put on this memorial match in his honour and remember such a fantastic person who will be sorely missed by all that knew him.   

The event was also supporting the charity 'Cardiac Risk in the Young' which is a cause that will help save lives and prevent other families from experiencing the kind of loss Dickie's family have, and many others have done too, the family of Dickie have set up a memorial fund to help CRY (Cardiac Risk in the Young) raise awareness of young sudden cardiac death, support those affected, support CRY’s screening programme and fund research and pathology.  A link to this page can be found here https://www.c-r-y.org.uk/richard-dickie-sawyer/ so if you want to give to this please do, I certainly will.

Richard was more than just a coach at Corinthians, he was a big part of how it functioned, he dedicated a lot of his time to nurturing young talent and his influence can still be felt today as his love for football and his desire to help others on and off the pitch certainly earned him the respect and admiration whoever he worked with or came across.

His words of encouragement and infectious enthusiasm to players during training sessions, and his presence at Corinthians was invaluable and his passion for the sport was only matched by his kindness, which was felt by all who knew him, I can vouch for this as can many others, every time I met him he always had a smile on his face, and he was always keen to find out how I was and what I had been up to, he genuinely cared about the people he knew and loved, and I will always remember him in this way.   

Hundreds had turned up to his funeral on Thursday, a testament to how loved and how many wanted to pay their respects, and a big old crowd turned up to this memorial game to help support his family and also pay their respects to such a wonderful person, it was a night to remember but also celebrate the 46 years Dickie had spent on this earth.

The Corinthians squad was made up of people Richard interacted with over his six year spell at the club, so a compilation of the Men's First Team, Women's side, U18s side & club representatives, whereas the Battlesbridge squad was made up of old team mates from Richard's playing days, and players he shared many holidays and nights out with. He spent a good part of twenty years playing in the Black & Yellow of Battlesbridge, so as said before it was fitting they should play against Corinthians this evening in his honour.

The clubs would be playing for a trophy, The Richard Sawyer Memorial Trophy, the club had also organised every player who took part in this game to sign a board and also a football which would be handed over to the family, their was also a wreath of a black and yellow shirt created for the occasion too, very fitting and a wonderful memory of this evening.

An impeccably observed minutes silence was carried out before the contest, and then the fun could then begin between two sides who really wanted to win but were there mainly to give Richard a fitting contest in his memory, Corinthians managed to go ahead after just three minutes after a handling error from the Battlesbridge keeper allowed the hosts to tuck home,  only for the visitors to level after fourteen minutes as a loose ball inside the box was fired home.

And Bridge got their noses in front midway through the first half after a brilliant strike, meaning Dickie's former teammates had the slender advantage at the break.

The hosts though weren't going to denied in this one, and levelled in the 63rd minute after a bobbling effort from outside the box defeated the keepers dive, and then with twelve minutes to go they grabbed what proved to be the winner after a through ball was run onto and slotted into the corner despite a touch off the keeper.

Battlesbridge almost forced a penalty shoot out when they struck the post late on, but it was Corinthians who won the trophy but more importantly had played their part in what had been a decent contest played in the right spirit with plenty of commitment, just what Richard would have wanted, everyone here had certainly done him proud, and I am sure he was watching and smiling from above.

A really good evening and one that I was certainly proud to be part of, rest in peace Dickie, you'll be missed.....

Full time Corinthians XI 3 Battlesbridge XI 2

        

 

Corinthians 6 Lawford Lads 0 - Max Jones nets four & Justin Hazell nets brace as Essex Olympian One Corinthians thump Essex & Suffolk Border One Lawford Lads to progress in the BBC Essex Saturday Premier Cup

BBC Essex Saturday Premier Cup, Saturday October 5th

I was over at Stambridge Memorial Ground for the first Saturday in October to see Essex Olympian Division One leaders Corinthians take in Essex & Suffolk Border League Division One Lawford Lads as the bulk of the BBC Essex Saturday Premier Cup Round One got underway.

The hosts have been having a good season to date, six league games into their campaign has seen them drop points in only one of those games, a frustrating 2-2 draw with Canning Town, but apart from that game they have won the other five, netting nineteen goals in those five wins too, so it was clear to see what Lawford Lads would have to be wary of.

Lads themselves had played four league games so far this season and had two wins from those four games, they had netted twelve goals in those four games so they obviously knew where the net was too, so maybe goals were on the agenda in this one as both had only kept one clean sheet all season so far, although the hosts were probably favourites to win this one but you never know in cup football.

And the hosts were the better team in the opening forty five minutes but it was a largely frustrating half for them in terms of not being able to force home their advantage, chances came and went for them and it looked like it could be one of those days and they had to be wary of the visitors going forward at times and almost went behind when a through ball saw the visitors round keeper Dylan Skinner and slot home, only to see the flag go up for offside.

It was a warning to the hosts, they were less than happy with their first half performance despite having most of the ball, but their mood was lifted just before the break when they managed to get their noses in front when an effort from Ricco Booker was parried across goal by the keeper, but into the path of Max Jones who had the simple task of converting into the empty net, and the hosts had the half time lead.

Lawford Lads would have been very disappointed in conceding with the last kick of the half, they had dug in and made it difficult for their opponents who were visibly frustrated up until that goal went in, no doubt the half time team talk was to keep it tight and hope a opportunity came along to get them back in the contest, but this was all blown out the window after Corinthians netted three times in the first seven minutes of the second period to all but end the contest.

Two minutes after the break it was two for the hosts when a ball was kept in at the back post and lofted over to the far post where Jones had the simple task of nodding home for his second of the game, and just three minutes later it was 3-0 as after brilliant play from Curtis Dobie on the left eventually saw him play a ball into Jones who somehow controlled and sent an overhead kick into the far corner to complete his hattrick.

Lawford were all the show at this point and didn't know what had hit them, and in the 52nd minute it was 4-0 and another for Jones who claimed a fourth of his own after he was played in on goal before firing across the keeper and into the far corner, four goals in seven minutes including the one before half time, it had been a devastating spell from the hosts, and they could enjoy the rest of the contest now.

The one slight blot on the copybook came where Dobie was judged offside and he reaction to that saw him sinbinned for ten minutes, but it really didn't make much difference to be honest as Corinthians still managed to increase their lead with ten men after a lung busting run from skipper Alfie Knight saw it ended with him being fouled inside the box, and Justin Hazell stepped up to fire home the spot kick with just over twenty minutes to go.

Dobie came back on after his punishment and went back to work again, causing issues down the left for the Lawford defence, and with four minutes to go he created another goal, getting to the ball before the keeper did to play a ball across goal for Hazell to prod home into the empty net and complete a good days work for the home side who take their place in Round Two of the competition.

Full time Corinthians 6 Lawford Lads 0