Southend Manor 0 Enfield 4

Essex Senior League, Tuesday December 14th

I was over at Southchurch Park on Tuesday night to see if Enfield could revenge their shock defeat to Manor at Woodside Park earlier this season, and a Dwade James double helped them to do just that as they took all three points in this contest.

Since netting that astonishing 1-0 win in Bishop's Stortford against the E's back on the 10th November, Manor have have played only three times in all competitions and have lost all those games netting just once, and they have conceded eleven, although eight of those came at home to league leaders Walthamstow at the weekend in losing 8-1, this after taking the lead as well.

Manor did push Redbridge and Stansted close though in those other two games so were at least competing and making life difficult for their opponents, Stow aside obviously, but they were up against an Enfield side who had beaten Walthamstow and Little Oakley after that shock loss to Manor, and also netted a 2-2 draw against Redbridge, and were only denied a third straight league win after a late Motormen leveller, so on paper it looked like the visitors would edge this one.

After a rather mundane opening thirty five minutes, which saw the visitors create the only real chance of note, a powerful effort from Alex Warman thumping back off the crossbar, Enfield got their noses in front seven minutes before the break when Samrai Gebrai worked his way into the box and squared for James to fire a first time effort into the roof of the net.

And three minutes before the break E's doubled their lead in style when Warman, who struck the bar earlier of course, managed to find the net this time when he sent a superb long range effort over Manor keeper Sean Campbell and send the visiting side into the changing rooms two goals to the good.

You felt it might be a long second half for Manor, they had done the same at the weekend, going in behind at the break against Walthamstow before being hit for six in the second period, and you hoped for their sakes it wouldn't happen again, well seven minutes into the second period they did concede again as after Gebrai had been felled by Campbell, James struck a rather poor penalty which although Campbell got to, he could only parry under his body and across goal into the far corner.

Credit to Manor though they certainly continued to battle and work hard and try and make life difficult for their opponents, but they had created nothing of note going forward with E's keeper James Bransgrove a virtual spectator in the majority, it was hard to see how the hosts would get a sniff if truth be told going forward.

And with seven minutes remaining of the ninety, Enfield added a fourth goal when skipper Reece Conway glanced home a free header from inside the box to cap a solid performance from the visitors and send them up to fifth in the table, albeit sixteen points off leaders Walthamstow with a game in hand. The visitors had not been at their best this evening, but they did more than enough against a hardworking Manor who lacked any real threat up front.

Manor fall to a fourth successive loss in all competitions and really need to solve their goal scoring issues as well as tighten up at the back, too many sloppy moments have cost them lately, and they remain second bottom and in trouble with only Sporting Bengal United below them in the table, albeit seven points behind them. Much work to do on the training pitch as they say.

Full time Southend Manor 0 Enfield 4