Windsor & Eton 1 Fisher 1 (Fisher won 4-3 on penalties) - Fisher set up all SCEFL Premier Last 16 FA Vase tie against Punjab United after shootout win over Windsor & Eton following a keenly contested Fourth Road encounter

Isuzu FA Vase Fourth Round Proper, Saturday 24th January

For the second weekend in succession I went to watch a Last 32 FA Vase encounter, and also visited a ground for the very first time, on this occasion it was Stag Meadow, home of  Combined Counties Premier Division North Windsor & Eton, who were hosting Fisher, who are in the Southern Counties East Premier Division, so an all Step Five showdown.

This game should have taken place last weekend, however, the game was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch, and despite plenty of rain leading up to this rearranged fixture, the pitch, although pretty soft and squelchy in places, was in remarkable condition considering, so fair play to the ground staff for getting the pitch playable and looking rather good.

Both sides already knew their Fifth Round opponents, and one Fisher were very familiar with, fellow SCEFL Premier side Punjab United from Gravesend, with the tie scheduled to take place in Gravesend on 7th February, so who could set this up and take one more step closer to Non League Finals Day at Wembley for the Vase final in May.

Windsor & Eton sat sixth, just outside the play offs places, two points off fifth placed Ardley United with two games in hand, they had only lost one league game all season too and had multiple games in hand over most teams above them, so they were certainly one of the front runners in the Combined Counties Premier North that's for sure. A real test for Fisher you could say.

Fisher themselves sat in tenth spot in the SCEFL Premier and only three points from the play off places in what is a very tight battle between a handful of teams for those top five places, they were not exactly setting the world alight in the division though and had lost five league games this season so far, so looking at the two sides and how they were doing in the divisions, you would think that the hosts would probably be expected to win this tie.

But this is cup football, and you don't get to the Last 32 of a national competition without having a bit about yourself, and Fisher certainly have that in abundance and they certainly began the contest on the front foot and stunned their opponents by taking the lead after just nine minutes, skipper Jack Gibbons sent a lovely ball behind the hosts backline and saw Festos Kamara breeze in behind before thumping a powerful effort beyond hosts keeper Finley Purcell and into the far corner.

Their was certainly a stunned silence inside the arena, the hosts aren't used to losing so they would have to come from behind if they were to continue their Vase run, the closest they came to levelling was when a close range effort from Jabir Laraba was somehow blocked on the goal line after full back Luke Phillips had done well down the left, both him and Isaiah Chase-Kelly did well down the flanks for the hosts but they thwarted mostly by the visiting defence.

Fisher though were certainly giving the hosts plenty of headaches going forward themselves, it was certainly a very good battle that's for sure, most of their attacking play was going through playmaker Tom Jones, and it looked as if the visitors would take a slender lead going into the half time break, but alas they didn't make half time without conceding.

That's because three minutes before the break Laraba received the ball with his back to goal, flicked the ball around a defender before running onto it and firing a lovely effort across visiting keeper Isaac Ogunseri and into the far corner, parity restored and it meant the game would be all square heading into the break.

Who could grab the initiative in the second half then, well it was the visitors to be fair who looked the likelier to find a winner if their was to be one. although the game was tightly poised and it could have perhaps easily gone the other way too, Fisher prevented some shots on goal with last ditch blocks, whereas down the other end the visitors could not find the target despite several attempts from decent positions.

It was certainly a tense affair the longer the half went on, and you felt it would take one moment of magic, or one mistake, to settle this tight and nervy affair in front of a very decent 596 at Stag Meadow, and as penalties loomed and with six minutes of stoppage time shown, the hosts were reduced to ten men after striker Leo Decabo was sent off for a second booking after a foul in midfield, meaning if he was down to take a penalty in the shoot out, he wouldn't be taking one.

And after Fisher flashed another effort well wide deep into added on time, the referee blew his whistle and penalties would now be needed to decide who would be going through to the next round, cue more nerves and tension, it was a brilliant spectacle for sure!!!

Windsor & Eton went first and saw their penalty brilliantly saved by the giant that was Ogunseri in the Fisher goal, the next few penalties were scored but at 2-3 to the visitors, Ogunseri saved again and meant it was match point Fisher, Kamara, who had netted that ninth minute goal way back when to hand Fisher the lead in this tie, had the chance to seal their place in the Last 16, but although he sent keeper Purcell the wrong way, he missed the target and dragged his effort wide, oops.

The hosts then netted their final kick meaning Michael Sarpong had the task of netting the winning penalty for Fisher and a second 'match point', and after taking a eternity to put the ball down on the spot, adding to the drama and tension, he strolled up to the ball and belted it in the top corner to send Fisher into the Fifth Round of the Vase, a brilliant cup tie and a hard fought one, and it will be Fisher who take on fellow SCEFL Premier Punjab United in two weeks time.

Commiserations to Windsor & Eton though, their Vase campaign is over for this season, and now they can turn their attention to catching up their games in hand and hopefully for their sakes make a successful challenge for promotion to the next level, a good club who handed out very decent printed programmes for free after you had paid a decent £7 entrance fee too, I wish them all the best going forward, and I also congratulate Fisher on their success today, one step closer to Wembley, and a decent looking matchup against Punjab United who have a very similar record to them in the league too, that should be a decent game in Gravesend!!!

Full time Windsor & Eton 1 Fisher 1 (Fisher won 4-3 on penalties)

Before I go, here is a look at the Fifth Round draw with games scheduled to take place on the weekend of Saturday February 7th:-

Hallen Vs Gornal Athletic

Bilston Town Vs Droylsden

Coventry United Vs North Shields

West Didsbury & Chorlton AFC Vs Winsford United

Punjab United Vs Fisher

Downton Vs Lymore Gardens

Great Yarmouth Town/Haywards Heath Town Vs AFC Stoneham (The GYT Vs HHT tie which was abandoned last weekend due to fog takes place on Sunday 25th January but at time of writing this it hadn't happened as yet as it's the Saturday evening before that contest!!!)

Whitstable Town Vs Cockfosters

Only two of the remaining sides, North Shields & Whitstable Town, have won the Vase before, Whitstable are the current holders after last seasons win over AFC Whyteleafe in a marathon final, and their are four Step Six sides still going too, Gornal Athletic, Bilston Town & Droylsden (those two meet each other so guaranteed one in the Final Eight) and Vase debutants Lymore Gardens, who only came into Senior Football this season, a great achievement then for those three, can they continue their runs, we shall find out in two weeks for sure!!!

Anyway that concludes my blog for today, a very enjoyable day once again, thanks for reading as always!!!
 

Lymore Gardens 2 Newbury Forest 2 - Points shared between two promotion chasing rivals as Oakside derby sees Lymore Gardens & Newbury Forest share four goals in entertaining Thurlow Nunn First Division South encounter

Thurlow Nunn First Division South, Friday 23rd January

I fancied a Friday night outing and luckily for me their was a pretty damn good matchup happening at Oakside where Lymore Gardens & Newbury Forest, who both call this ground home this season, were taking on each other in what was an important game in the top five of the division. 

Lymore continue to have a great first season in senior football, and after reaching the Last 16 of the FA Vase at the weekend in their first ever attempt, they now turned their attentions to working out how to get past a Newbury Forest side who sat two places above them in the table in second spot and six points ahead of them.

Forest themselves were trying to close the gap to leaders Hutton, which was seven points at kick off, Lymore knew a win for them would take them above third placed Stansted in the table and closer to that second place spot, and with a pack of sides not far behind them too, points for either side were certainly important and helpful, as they always are of course.

Both these sides like to play decent football, and they love to attack as well, Lymore were averaging 2.25 goals a game whereas Newbury Forest were the leagues top scorers with 76 goals, an average of 2.8 a game, so I boldly predicted a very entertaining high scoring encounter, obviously.

Well, after the opening forty five minutes I wished I had kept my mouth shut, yes their was a very decent tempo to the game, and their were plenty of efforts on goal, however not many of these were on target, and when Lymore won a penalty late on in the first half and saw the keeper save it, I thought to myself as the teams went off with the scoreline at 0-0, have I jinxed this somewhat!!!

I needn't worry though as the second half was a breathless affair and more in line with what I had anticipated this encounter could well be like, Lymore went close again early in the second half when they struck the bar, and they were certainly the side in the ascendency, but, eight minutes into the second period came the breakthrough, and relief from me that it wouldn't finish 0-0, as Forest got in down the left before squaring across goal for a tap in.

That lead didn't last long though as Lymore responded in the best possible way, levelling two minutes later when Wisley Baltazar looped a finish into the far corner, and then just past the hour mark they led thanks to a wonderful curling effort from Zidane Bolessa which went across goal and in off the far post, and at this stage it looked as if Lymore could go on and add a few more goals.

That didn't happen though and they allowed the visitors back into the contest, and with just over fifteen of the ninety remaining, found a leveller, Lymore claimed their was a foul, but the referee played on (it didn't look like a foul to me) and as the hosts stopped Forest got themselves in down the left again, and a ball across goal was tapped home from close range, and this game headed into it's final moments all square.

Now it was Forest who looked the likelier to find a winner if their was one to come, but Lymore regrouped and then became the side who pressed for the winner, and deep deep into added on time they so nearly found the winner as a corner kick swung into came back off the post and then hit an attacker and went wide of the goal, and Forest could breathe a big sigh of relief.

A brilliant second half then after a goalless opening forty five minutes which wasn't at all dull either, but it would end all square and see both sides pick up a well earned point.

Full time Lymore Gardens 2 Newbury Forest 2

  

Southend United 1 Wrexham 3 - Goals from Jac Jones, Carrick Murphy & Sammy Chesworth help Wrexham to a hard fought win over Southend United & progress into the Last 16 of the FA Youth Cup for the very first time

FA Youth Cup Fourth Round Proper, Thursday 22nd January

I visited my local football ground of Roots Hall on a rare Thursday night outing to see if a young Shrimpers side could cause another upset in the FA Youth Cup and set up a mouth watering Fifth Round tie at current holders Aston Villa, but they needed to get past Wrexham in order to do this.

The Shrimpers youngsters were seeking to reach the Fifth Round of The FA Youth Cup for just the third time in the club’s history, Danny Heath’s National League U19 Alliance Academy South Division table-toppers had defeated Swindon Town on penalties in the previous round,  and they now faced another Category Three Academy opposition in the form of the young Red Dragons.

 

Wrexham’s status as an EFL Championship club means they were exempt until the Third Round of the competition, and after sweeping aside EFL Youth Alliance North West Conference counterparts Port Vale in that round, they now travelled to the Essex Coast to see if they could themselves set up a Fifth Round match up against the current holders.

 

It was certainly a big incentive for both sides, and a superb crowd of 1,078 had turned out to see which side would progress, and fair play to the visitors who had travelled in decent numbers too, I reckon their were around fifty or so in the section I sat in, which on a Thursday night is very good indeed, but the majority of the crowd were hoping that The Blues could pull of another shock result.

After eighteen minutes it was advantage Wrexham, a lovely through ball from Sammy Chesworth sent Jac Jones through on goal, hosts keeper Josh Barrett made a decent stop to prevent the initial effort, but unfortunately for him the ball bounced back off Jones who then slotted into an empty net, and the Blues now had to find a way back into the game.

The hosts were the better side for the majority of the first period thereafter though and again belied their lower ranking in the tournament, Mitchell Ward saw an effort turned round the post by visiting keeper O'Keefe, and then Nikolay Zlatev somehow headed a point blank header against the visitors post late on in the half, and it meant Wrexham went into the break with a slender lead and the next goal was oh so crucial.

O'Keefe had to be smart to save from Dadson early in the second half as the young Blues pressed once again for a leveller, but they were dealt a hammer blow just before the hour mark when Carrick Murphy doubled Wrexham's advantage after his effort was deflected past Barrett, and now the hosts had a mountain to climb and it certainly flattened the atmosphere inside the stadium.

Wrexham you felt could now go on and maybe add a few more, Chesworth had a golden chance to make it three not long after, side footing wide from close range, however, the Blues found a second wind and won themselves a penalty with twenty minutes to go which was converted by Zlatev, and it was very much game on again, and the noise levels has risen up a few notches once again.

Wrexham though saw Chesworth denied brilliantly by Barrett on two occasions as the visitors looked to quickly restore their two goal cushion and flatten any comeback thoughts from the hosts, and then with twelve minutes remaining Barrett was adjudged to have brought down Wes Graham inside the box, penalty, and Chesworth finally beat Barrett to net from the spot, and The Dragons had that two goal cushion once again.

The hosts fought valiantly thereafter but never really threatened to get back into the contest, and in fact Barrett had to deny Chesworth again to prevent a fourth for Wrexham, Chesworth had been a constant threat to the hosts if truth be told, especially in the second period, The Blues best 'chance' was a cross from Dadson which O'Keefe had to turn over the bar but in the end Wrexham saw out the contest and had won through to the next round and set up that tie against Aston Villa.

A good battle indeed, The Shrimpers gave their all once again and can be proud of their achievements in this seasons FA Youth Cup, and fair play to Wrexham who scored their goals at key moments in the game, and certainly had to withstand a lot of pressure from their opponents, especially in the first period and after the hosts had briefly got back into the game, a well earned win and a good reward for them too as they reached this stage of the competition for the first time in the clubs history.

Full time Southend United 1 Wrexham 3

Below is the updated Fifth Round draw after three more Fourth Round ties (including this one) were completed this evening:-

Chelsea Vs Manchester City

Sunderland/West Bromwich Albion Vs Queens Park Rangers/Brighton & Hove Albion

Stevenage Vs Crystal Palace

Oxford United Vs Manchester United/Derby County

Burnley Vs Charlton Athletic

Swansea City Vs Blackburn Rovers

Aston Villa Vs Wrexham

Everton Vs Ipswich Town

Those outstanding fourth round ties will be completed by the end of January, and then it will be Last 16 time in February.

Anyway that completes tonight's blog, I hope you enjoyed reading!!!

Harpenden Town 1 Whitstable Town 4 - Javaun Splatt brace helps current FA Vase holders Whitstable Town reach Last 16 of this seasons competition after they saw off Harpenden Town in their Fourth Road tie in Hertfordshire

Isuzu FA Vase Fourth Round Proper, Saturday 17th January

I made my first ever trip to Rothamsted Park, home of Harpenden Town, as they hosted a very important match in the FA Vase against last season winners, Whitstable Town, in the Last 32 of the competition.

Harpenden were in the midst of a record Vase run, and if they could knock out last season's winners of the competition, then they would be in dreamland, however, that was going to prove a tough assignment as Whitstable are flying this season, eleven points clear at the top of the Southern Counties East Premier, and on a thirteen match unbeaten run too, so to say they came into this contest with confidence was probably an understatement.

Harpenden themselves had lost more than they had won in the Spartan South Midlands Premier and sat down in tenth in that division, so if you looked at form and where each side were in their respective divisions, then an easy away win was on the cards right, well, we all know that isn't always the case, especially in a big Last 32 tie in a national competition, anything can happen on the day, that's what makes cup football so exciting, right?

So, how did Harpenden reach this stage of the competition this season, well after thrashing Wisbech Town 6-1 away in the First Round Proper, they then went to high flying Essex Senior League Little Oakley and recorded a very decent 1-0 win there before they then saw off Haringey Borough at Rothamsted Park 3-2, setting up today's match against Whitstable, the visitors came in at the Second Round Proper stage and needed an injury time goal to squeeze past Infinity and prevent themselves from a penalty shoot out in that one.

And then last time out in the Third Round they saw off Eastbourne United 3-0 at home, the visitors had only last four games all season in all competitions and as said they were heavy favourites to progress in this tie as well, but no doubt Harpenden would draw on that spirit and grit that had got them to this stage of the competition, so it wasn't a fore gone conclusion for sure.

A very decent crowd of 743 were in attendance too, the second highest crowd of the hosts history, and a sizable contingent had travelled from the Kent coast and were making all the noise as they tried to encourage their side to grab the perfect start, well after sixteen minutes they were celebrating as their side grabbed the opener, hosts keeper Alfie Bomfield had made a superb save moments earlier to prevent the visitors from going ahead, but he could do nothing to stop Javaun Splatt's close range volley, this after Bomfield had saved an initial effort, advantage Whitstable.

The visitors looked the more dangerous of the two sides, Splatt is an international for British Virgin Islands and you could see his quality for sure, the hosts didn't create too much themselves although they did go close with a long range effort and were more than holding their own against a quality opponent, and the game was still in the balance at half time as The Oysters held a slender lead.

Harpenden did actually start the second half well, but they were given a sucker punch just past the hour mark when a lovely cross to the far post found Splatt who nodded home across goal into the far corner, and at that point you felt it was how many the visitors would get, but fair play to the hosts, they rallied and were soon back in the game themselves.

That's because with just over fifteen minutes to go a ball into the box found it's away to midfielder Conor Clarke who produced a wonderful volley beyond visiting keeper Daniel Colmer, and suddenly it was game on again and you could feel the nerves from the visitors and their support, could the hosts produce an unlikely comeback, they were certainly giving everything they had and causing some alarm in the visitors back line.

Well, with ten minutes to go the tie was as good as done, and Whitstable managed to net a very scrappy third, after a scramble inside the six yard eventually saw Nathan Jeche on hand to turn the ball home, Harpenden continued to try and find a second goal to perhaps give them a sniff of a comeback, but they were always in danger of a visiting counter attack as they tried to push forward.

And, in the 89th minute came probably the best goal of the game, saving the best till last you could say, as Bradley Schafer curled a beauty from outside the box across the keeper and in off the far post, a beautiful way for the visitors to cap their afternoon, but it was a flattering score line for them and a harsh one on the hosts who had certainly more than played their part in this cup tie.

Congratulations then to Whitstable Town who are a handful of games away from another Wembley outing, a lot of football to be played between now and then obviously, and a promotion charge to boot, but it will take a very very good side to stop them for sure and a league and vase double is still very much on.

Also when done to Harpenden on their fine Vase run this season, they left everything out there today and should be proud of how they battled and played in this one, also a very welcoming club indeed so thank you for that as well, and a banging strips and chips too from the caterers there today too, was certainly well received, another top day!!!

Full time Harpenden Town 1 Whitstable Town 4

Before I go, there were obviously another fifteen scheduled ties today, although only thirteen of them actually finished/went ahead, so here are today's results in the FA Vase Fourth Round:-

Droylsden 2-1 Sherwood Colliery 

South Liverpool 2-5 Winsford United

Chadderton 0-2 North Shields

West Didsbury & Chorlton 1-0 Nelson

Coventry United 6-0 GNG Oadby Town

Bilston Town 1-0 Gresley Rovers

Heather St John 0-4 Gornal Athletic

Reading City 1-2 Lymore Gardens

Benfleet 0-2 Punjab United

Cockfosters 2-1 Crawley Down Gatwick

Hallen 1-1 Hythe & Dibden (Hallen won 4-2 on penalties)

Barnstaple Town 1-2 AFC Stoneham

Downton 0-0 Slimbridge AFC (Downton won 4-3 on penalties)

The two ties that did not go ahead or finish were as follows:-

Windsor & Eton P-P Fisher (This game was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch)

Great Yarmouth Town A-A Haywards Heath Town (This match was abandoned ten minutes into the second half with the score 1-1 due to thick fog rolling in off the Norfolk coast, meaning the game could not continue)

This means both these ties will now be played next Saturday, which is 24th January, so fingers crossed both can get played and then complete this round and also complete the last 16 draw, which will be made on Monday 19th January.

Well done to all sides who progressed into the hat for Round Five, Wembley for them gets ever closer and continues the dream of walking out onto the hallowed Wembley turf in May.  Thanks to all who took the time to read this blog, it's very much appreciated!!!

Hutton 6 Dunmow Town 0 - Elliott Howson nets hat-trick as Thurlow Nunn South leaders Hutton smash six past Dunmow Town, there were also wins for Cannons Wood, Brimsdown, Stansted & Burnham Ramblers in today's league action

Thurlow Nunn First Division South, Saturday 10th January

For the second weekend in a row I found myself over at New Lodge, Billericay, but this time it was for a Thurlow Nunn South contest between league leaders Hutton & third from bottom Dunmow Town as the hosts looked to keep up their promotion charge, and the visitors were looking to cause a surprise and improve their chances of getting away from a relegation fight.

The league leaders were eight unbeaten in the league and had won their last four netting fourteen goals and conceding just two and began the day three points ahead of Newbury Forest with a game in hand, and with Forest's game being called off today, they had the chance to increase that gap at the top with what most thought would be an expected win over a side sitting third bottom in the division.

Dunmow's last two league games had resulted in goalless draws away from home against promotion chasing Brimsdown & in form Hoddesdon Town, although those two games were a month apart due to Dunmow's will documented issues off the field which almost saw the club go to the wall, but thankfully they did not and are now looking to rebuild and see if they can indeed create a side who can get away from the drop zone.

It certainly created a feeling of what Dunmow would be like, obviously after the issues they did have recently they have had to pretty much rebuild as said, so their position in the table could well be false and Hutton would have to be aware of what they were coming up against, however despite this Hutton were still expected to get the result here and increase their lead at the top.

The hosts certainly did most of the running in the opening half hour but Dunmow did look a threat on the counter for sure, in the 34th minute though Hutton did grab the lead when they were awarded a penalty after a barge inside the box, and Adam Vyse duly stepped up to net the spot kick and hand the hosts the lead.

That proved to be the only goal in the opening half, and Dunmow actually finished the half stronger and showed more than enough to suggest they were right in this contest, their number seven, Nathan Kamavuako, was their biggest threat to Hutton, but we were all surprised when he did not appear for the second half as was part of three changes the visitors made at the break, so unless he was carrying a knock or something, it was baffling if you ask me, but there you go.

Hutton though knew they needed a second goal to make it more comfortable because Dunmow were a threat when they did attack, and they managed to grab this eight minutes after the break when a lovely ball in from Solomon Asamoah found Elliott Howson who side footed home first time and Hutton now had that two goal cushion.

Dunmow to their credit kept plugging away and if they could grab a goal back could make the game interesting perhaps, but in the 65th minute Hutton were to add a third goal when a beautiful pass from George Vile split the defence and saw Ryley Duggin run onto it, round keeper Michael Doyle, and slot into the empty net, and this you felt was game, set & match although Dunmow were still competing well although they just could not deal with the hosts attacking prowess.

The hosts made it four with 77 minutes on the clock as they continued to be ruthless, William Vile had only been on the pitch a few minutes when he looped a header back across goal where Howson was in hand to convert from pretty much on the goal line, and Howson completed his treble in the 84th minute when the brilliant Duggin crossed for the sublime hosts number eight to convert and make it five.

And a rampant hosts added a sixth in the 88th minute and it was the best of the lot as Duggin curled home a beauty into the top corner to cap a fine performance from himself and his side, Howson & Duggin were the hosts best players in my view, I felt Howson may have edged it but Duggin was given the MOTM award by his team, and that's fair enough as either could have won this award.

A thumping win for Hutton then, which sends them six clear at the summit, a heavy loss for Dunmow but they can take plenty of positives from this performance despite the result, and with games in hand on the sides around them can soon move up that table if they start picking up points, which I am sure they will do, they just came up against a side in Hutton who are extremely good and are going for the title.

Full time Hutton 6 Dunmow Town 0

Let's now see what else happened in the division today, only four other games went ahead, here is how they panned out:-

Cannons Wood 3 Lymore Gardens 1 (Cannons Wood continue to climb the table after they defeated promotion chasing Lymore Gardens, Noah Adejokun handed the hosts a third minute lead and this lead was doubled seven minutes before the break after Sam Wilson netted as the hosts went into the break 2-0 up. That lead was increased further four minutes after the break when Warren Kayembe netted a debut goal for his new club and although Lymore found the net through James Smith twenty minutes into the half, Cannons Wood had done enough to earn another impressive win)

Clapton Community 0 Brimsdown 2 (Brimsdown netted a fine win in front of almost 600 at The Spotted Dog ground to get closer to the play off places, they grabbed the lead just past the half hour mark before doubling that lead soon after the half time break, and although Clapton did try and get back into the contest, even they said afterwards the best team won on the day)

FC Baresi 2 Stansted 3 (A late Nathan Scarborough header saw The Airportmen take all three points against FC Baresi, the hosts did grab a ninth minute lead but were pegged back by a Michael Mignot leveller in the 26th minute, Stansted then took the lead when Mignot netted again eight minutes before the break, only to see the hosts level it up just before half time. Alfie Gleghorn was then sent off for the visitors with twenty minutes remaining but it was they who were to net a winner when Scarborough looped home a header to win it for the ten men)

May & Baker 1 Burnham Ramblers 7 (Ramblers bounced back from their narrow loss at Hutton in midweek in style as they netted seven at Parsloes against May & Baker. The game was as good as done inside half an hour after Noah Hayes netted a hat-trick by the 27th minute, Stuart Zanone then added another just past the half hour mark before netting again six minutes before the break to hand the visitors a 5-0 half time lead.  The hosts netted a penalty just after the break but were soon five goals behind again when Tom Franks headed home in the 50th minute, and the scoring was completed late on through Aiden Brown to complete a thumping win for the visiting side)  

Let's now look at how the table looks following today's results:-

Hutton's thumping win over Dunmow sees them six clear at the top, Dunmow remain in the bottom three but have multiple games in hand still, they are only three behind May & Baker who were thrashed at home by Burnham Ramblers who themselves now are only five points off the top five, Clapton CFC, who occupy that final play off spot, are only a few points ahead of the chasing pack which includes Brimsdown who beat them today.

Stansted climbed up to fourth today after their late win against an FC Baresi side who are six points above the drop zone, and The Airportmen are only two points off third now after Lymore slipped up at Cannons Wood who are now up to 11th themselves after a superb revival which has seen them climb from the bottom three to the cusp of the top ten in a few weeks.

It is tight at both ends, only six points separate Stansted in fourth and Rayleigh in ninth, whilst down at the bottom only six points separate 14th placed FC Baresi and 19th placed Dunmow Town, so plenty still to play for at both ends of the division heading into 2026.

Anyway, that concludes my second blog of 2026, hope you all enjoyed reading!!! 

Billericay Town 1 Hashtag United 2 - Goals from Max Cornhill & Luke May-Parrott see Tags to important win over Blues, Chatham, Cray, Burgess Hill & Chichester also picked up wins in Isthmian Premier today

Isthmian League Premier Division, Saturday 3rd January

My first game of 2026 saw me over at New Lodge, Billericay, for an Isthmian Premier division contest between local rivals Billericay Town and Hashtag United, this was after most other games in the area fell foul of the freezing conditions, but thanks to the hosts 3G pitch, this one went ahead.

The club were duly rewarded with a decent turnout, 1,381, with around a couple of hundred travelling and seeing if their side could pick up an important win to help them get out of that bottom four of the division, they began the afternoon three points from safety knowing if they could grab a win at New Lodge then they would be level on points with fifth bottom Cheshunt albeit having played a game more.

They would have to do something they hadn't done since 6th September and only the third time this season though, win away from home, in fact they had only won five times in the league all season with their last win coming a month ago when they thrashed fellow strugglers Canvey Island 4-0 at home.

They had claimed a decent 2-2 draw at home to Aveley in their last league outing, ending a run of back to back losses, and they were up against a Billericay side who after a slow start were trying to rebuild their campaign, in fact at kick off they were as far away from the play offs as they were from the drop zone, nine points, in 11th spot, so if they could win today it would take them closer to the top five, however a loss would see them closer to the drop zone, so important for both for differing reasons.

The hosts had only one once in four league outings in December though, including a very disappointing loss at struggling Canvey Island last time out, so they definitely did not want to lose back to back to sides in the bottom four and especially lose a derby at home too in front such a big crowd, the majority who were hoping they could win this contest as well.

The hosts certainly started the game the better and looked the likelier to open the scoring, but just past the half hour mark they were stunned as Tags skipper Max Cornhill rose to power home a header totally unmarked despite their being several hosts players inside the box, but they all just stood and watched as Cornhill powered home, and for the rest of the half the Tags dominated and could easily have added a couple more, Town had lost their way and needed the half time whistle when it came that was for sure.

Could the Blues respond? They certainly did that as after starting the second half like they had begun the first, Alfie Cerulli produced a moment of magic with an overhead/shoulder flick to find the far corner, giving them a huge boost and the momentum, and they saw Charlie Ruff's long range effort strike the bar not long after as they came so close to taking the lead.

Had that gone in maybe the hosts would have gone on to win the contest, who knows, but instead it was Hashtag who retook the lead just beyond the hour mark, a lovely ball into Luke May-Parrott saw him control, take a touch before curling a lovely effort into the far corner, it was a beautiful finish and it had handed the visitors the advantage once again.

This knocked the stuffing out of the hosts who had been getting up a head of steam, and frustration had set in amongst the home fans and players once again, and again they seemed to have lost their way again, but after a period where they had to get over this set back, they began to apply pressure on the visiting back line as they searched for a route back into the game.

Hashtag though battling gamely and kept the Blues at arms length, their were some hairy moments for them though, one coming in stoppage time when an almighty scramble inside the box eventually saw Tags clear, and then with the last attack of the game Billericay thought they had salvaged a last gasp point, only for the goal to be ruled out for an infringement in the build up, I think it was for handball, but to be honest I wasn't quite sure, it kind of summed up the hosts day, but The Tags did hold on to record a fine win and an important one too.

The hosts management team came to chat to the referee at full time as well, they were obviously asking why the goal had been chalked off as well, nobody really knew why but it's another disappointing loss for The Blues who are now only six points above Hashtag United who are only in the bottom four on goal difference following this result.

Billericay Town 1 Hashtag United 2

Four other games survived the freezing weather today in the division, shall we see how those went:-

Brentwood Town 1 Cray Wanderers 4 (Att: 622)

It was second against sixth at The Brentwood Centre Arena but nobody saw what was to come as the visitors blew away their hosts in a devastating first forty five minutes. Saul Kader had given Cray a sixth minute lead before Alex Hernandez, a second from Kader & a Lateef Adaja late in the first half handed the visitors a 4-0 advantage at the half. Kymani Thomas did pull one back for the home side in the 77th minute but the damage had already been done as Cray inflicted only Brentwood's second home defeat of the season.

Burgess Hill Town 2 Lewes 1 (Att: 1,148)

The hosts charge for the play offs continued as they netted a late winner to see off Lewes at The Medical Travel Compared Stadium, Ben Pope put the hosts ahead in the 13th minute, Charlie Walker responded for Lewes on the half hour mark, but George Vorster netted in the 80th minute to hand the home side the win.

Chichester City 2 Carshalton Athletic 1 

Hosts Chichester kept their play off charge on track after they came from behind to see off Carshalton Athletic at Oaklands Park, Noah Etienne Nzuzi had given the visitors the lead in the 21st minute and they held this advantage until twenty minutes into the second half when Joseph James Moore levelled, and he netted again with 75 minutes on the clock to help his side to all the points.

Folkestone Invicta 1 Chatham Town 2 (Att: 2,166)

A bumper crowd were in for this contest at Alcaline Stadium and it was Chatham who took all the spoils to keep themselves well inside the top five as they inflicted only league leaders Invicta's second loss of the season, and a first at home. Sam Sene-Richardson handed the visitors a 17th minute lead and this lead was doubled by Kian Moynes just before the hour mark, Berr Mason did net a consolation in added on time but it was too little too late as Chatham recorded a fine win at the runaway leaders.

Let's see the table after todays games:-

Chatham & Cray edged closer to Brentwood after they both won today, the latter failing to capitalise on a rare slip up from Folkstone who still hold an eleven point lead despite their loss today.

Burgess Hill & Chichester moved closer to the top five, Lewes & Billericay stay in mid table after disappointing losses today, Carshalton are now only a point above the drop zone after they lost and Hashtag won, there are only two points between the fourth bottom Tags and 15th placed Wingate & Finchley.

That concludes my first blog off 2026, hope you enjoyed!!!