Bromley 1-1 Welling United - We haven't got the divine right to get three points, says Jamie Day

BROMLEY  1-1  WELLING UNITED
Blue Square Bet South
Saturday 24^th September 2011
Stephen McCartney reports from Hayes Lane

BROMLEY manager Mark Goldberg says his side deserved a point from a disappointing Kent derby against Welling United, which was played out in front of their largest crowd of the season.

Both sides will lock horns at the same venue in the FA Cup Second Qualifying Round next Saturday and third-placed Welling broke the stalemate in the 62^nd minute, when striker Luis Cumbers, 23, scored his second goal of the season.

But solid Bromley deserved a point and central defender Liam Harwood fired home an equaliser for his home-town club with only five minutes remaining.

“I think today we got at least what we deserved,” said Goldberg afterwards.

He added: “I think we defended well, although I don’t think we had too much to defend but I think we set out to control the midfield today against a very good Welling side and we dominated the 50-50 balls, we dominated the loose balls and all in all our possession was better than Welling’s.

“At half-time, I think we deserved to come in at half-time at 1-0 to us but it’s one of those things, we got ourselves in a situation where we went 1-0 down and unfortunately for us we had to make a couple of substitutions.

“Fortunately the character of the side was excellent and we kept pushing and we kept pressing.

“I thought we couldn’t gone on with five to six minutes to go and gone on and won it but it wasn’t to be.

“I think it’s fair to say we deserved at least a draw and I’m mostly pleased with the character in the side.  I’m also pleased to have a new goalkeeper on board who gave us that spine that we’ve really been lacking in recent games.”

Bromley went into the game on the back of letting in four goals against Staines Town and Woking in the past week and Goldberg handed his third goalkeeper of the season his debut, 25-year-old Tommy Forecast, who is initially on a three-month loan period from Npower Championship club Southampton.

“We’re forced to take him on a three-month period and we hope we’ll be able to secure him for the rest of the season,” said Goldberg.

When asked what the former Tottenham Hotspur keeper will bring to the party, Goldberg said: “Just experience.  We’ve played all season with a seventeen-year-old goalkeeper (Dean Santangelo), who done the best he possibly can, but with youth comes, how can I put it really, in lack of experience and on the occasion that’s going to show and unfortunately we haven’t got the time to develop a young player. 

“We really now have to be in a situation where I give every bit of ammunition and security to my team as I can and to get a 25-year-old from the Npower League, albeit a number three, has given us that security we needed.”

Forecast was one of four changes made by Goldberg, as Marlon Patterson, Gareth Williams and Orlando Smith came back into the side.

The Wings made three changes to the side that lost 2-1 to Boreham Wood last Monday evening.  Jordan Johnson, Jamie Day and Loick Pires came in for Jack Obersteller, Ben Martin (suspended) and ten-goal striker, Andy Pugh, who hadn’t recovered from his groin strain picked up in their last game.

Welling United’s player-manager, Jamie Day was a disappointed man afterwards, although his side still hang on to third place after eleven games – three points behind leaders Woking and Dartford, who beat Tonbridge Angels 3-1 at Princes Park today.

“I mean the problem I’ve got at the minute is we haven’t got a divine right to just come here and get three points,” said Day.

“I think expectations have risen a little bit and whilst we’re disappointed we haven’t won the game, it’s not the end of the world.

“In my eyes they’ve had one clear opportunity at the end, which we haven’t dealt with, other than that they’ve had a lot of possession but really haven’t done much with it.

“We’re the away team, we haven’t got the right to just come here and pick three points up.  If we keep a clean sheet, we’ve won the game and done our job, but I’m disappointed but again it’s a point and it stops the little rot of getting beat last week and we move on again.”

Bromley created their first chance inside the opening nine minutes when Danny Waldren played a short free-kick inside to left-back Patterson, whose left-footed drive from 30-yards curled past the far post.

Welling United’s first chance also came from a set-piece, former Histon striker, Zac Attwood stroked a left-footed free-kick from similar distance which bounced into Forecast’s gloves.

Goldberg was pleased that his side competed in the middle of the park and restricted Welling’s dangerous three man forward line of Pires, Attwood and Cumbers to scraps.

Day, meanwhile, wasn’t pleased that his side didn’t play their usual free flowing pacy attacking football.

He said: “We can’t play flowing football every week.  There’s going to be games where we grind out results and have to have a battle and today was one of those games.”

Welling’s next chance was also on target, in the 25^th minute, when Bromley’s wide midfielder Orlando Smith’s pass was intercepted and bounced off Lee Clarke in midfield and Pires picked up the loose ball and ran forward and slipped the ball through to Cumbers, whose low shot was comfortably saved by Forecast to his right.

Bromley striker, Leon McKenzie, who scored his first goal of the season against Woking in midfield, twice squandered openings with poor decision making inside the Welling penalty area, but Bromley’s first real chance to break the stalemate arrived in the 37^th minute.

Salifou Ibrahima’s ball over the top released Williams down the inside left channel and his low shot deflected off Day and flashed wide of the foot of the near post.

Welling broke away from Waldren’s resulting corner and Cumbers released Pires, who unleashed a fierce left-footed angled drive, which Forecast turned behind high to his right.

As the game entered the final five minutes of an uninspiring first half, Bromley created a couple of chances where they could have scored.

Right-back Ugo Udoji had time and space to float in a cross but an unmarked Waldren glanced a header across the face of goal and past the far post from 12-yards.

Udoji then whipped in another fine cross from the right and found Williams just inside the Welling penalty area and his first time right-footed hooked volley was comfortably saved low down by the visiting keeper.

In truth, the 648 fans inside Hayes Lane hoped for a more exciting second half.

Reflecting on the first half, Day said: “We’re going against the hill, against the wind and like I said we’re the away team and they’ve got to come and have a go at us. 

“We had a couple of opportunities in the first half.  I thought we defended well.  We’re not going to get goals every week and be free flowing. Sometimes we have to dig in and whilst I’m disappointed at least we had a go and kept at it.”

However, it was Welling that broke the stalemate in the 63^rd minute.

Day floated a free-kick high into the Bromley penalty area from the edge of the centre circle and Bromley keeper Forecast came out and punched the ball away.  The ball wasn’t cleared by a mass of players and Pires’ flashed a low ball in from the right and Forecast parried the ball across to an unmarked Cumbers, who side-footed the ball into an empty net with his right-foot from three yards out.

Day hopes the goal will give the striker a springboard to go on and become the prolific striker he is.

He said:  “Luis has worked really hard and played well in the last eight or nine games.  He hasn’t had a bit of luck in front of goal but he’s got a goal so I’m pleased with him. Obviously I’d like to see a few more goals in the next few weeks.”

Goldberg said: “I really think their first goal was an offside decision that should’ve been made by the linesman (Greame Ions).  I don’t think he was really in line with play.  I’d like to see it on the video.  I’m very disappointed with that.”

Clarke should have done better later on when he met Johnson’s cross with a glancing header just inside the Bromley penalty area, but the ball sailed wide.

Bromley, who had more possession than Welling, deserved a point for their efforts, and their equaliser arrived with just five minutes left for a share of the spoils.

Welling went asleep following a short free-kick routine involving Patterson and substitute Harry Harding and Patterson whipped in a cross towards the far post, which was headed back across the face of goal by a jumping Waldren and Harwood’s initial header was beaten out by Thomas but Harwood reacted to the loose ball and slammed the ball into the net from three yards.

Goldberg said: “I think we took our chance extremely well.  A deep cross to the far post, headed back, the first header was blocked and then we followed it up and Liam Harwood deserves to get the goal to get us an equaliser.”

Day added: “We’ve gone 1-0 up and for 35 minutes we’re comfortable.  We’ve then given a stupid free-kick away, don’t react to it and we’ve ended up paying the price.

“We said in there (the dressing room) now, if we’re going to concede silly goals then we’re going to drop points - and we move on and we go again.”

Bromley have won four and drawn two of their opening eleven games, have scored 18 and conceded 21 and have climbed up one place in the Blue Square Bet South table to thirteenth.

Goldberg said: “A little bit disappointing in terms of the points tally and also our goals conceded but we’re doing something to do it right.  The character in the side and the confidence in the camp is still very high.”

Both managers will return to the training ground during the week to prepare for the FA Cup Second Qualifying Round clash between the two sides next Saturday.  A vital clash with £5,000 up for grabs for the winner.

A tight-lipped Goldberg said: “I’m certainly not going to be speaking about our plans for Saturday this early on to the public.”

Day added: “I think for me I wanted to win both games.  I’m just looking at today’s game and getting three points.  Obviously I’m disappointed.  Today’s game has now gone, we’ll prepare for next Saturday, the Cup game and try to win and get some money in for the club.”

Bromley: Tommy Forecast, Ugo Udoji, Marlon Patterson, Tutu Henriques (Harry Harding 68), Joe Dolan, Liam Harwood, Danny Waldren, Salifou Ibrahima, Leon McKenzie (Hakeem Araba 68), Gareth Williams, Orlando Smith (Aaron Rhule 65).
Subs: Ryan Dolby, Michael Jones

Goal: Liam Harwood 85

Booked: Ugo Udoji 90

Welling United: Daniel Thomas, Loui Fazakerley, Jordan Johnson, Joe Healy, Anthony Acheampong, Jack Parkinson, Jamie Day, Lee Clarke, Luis Cumbers, Zac Attwood, Loick Pires.
Subs: Ollie Poole, Quenten Conteh, Tamer Tuna, Andy Sambrook, Jack Obersteller.

Goal: Luis Cumbers 63

Booked: Jamie Day 42, Loui Fazakerley 45, Lee Clarke 51

Attendance: 648
Referee: Mr Phillip Knight (Canterbury)
Assistants: Mr Graeme Ions (Westerham) & Mr Neil Wallace (Crawley, West Sussex)