Kentish Football 
Bromley 2-0 Chelmsford City - We've got the potential of a top-six side, admits Mark Goldberg
Tuesday 26th February 2013
BROMLEY 2-0 CHELMSFORD CITY
Blue Square Bet South
Tuesday 26th February 2013
Stephen McCartney reports from Hayes Lane
BROMLEY boss Mark Goldberg says his team realised their full potential after beating fourth-placed Chelmsford City at Hayes Lane.
The Ravens went into the game with an unwanted statistic of winning eight of their last 36 home league games at their 75-year-old stadium since the start of last season.
But Goldberg’s side won their first home game since beating Eastleigh 3-1 on 5 January thanks to an impressive all-round display against play-off chasing Chelmsford City.
Former Chelmsford winger Ishmael Welsh contributed to both of Bromley’s goals, taking corners that were converted by Louie Theophanous and substitute Tony Finn, as Bromley secured morale-boosting back-to-back wins after grabbing a 3-2 win at Billericay Town at the weekend.
The underachievers climbed up one place into thirteenth in the Blue Square Bet (Conference) South table with 39 points from 29 games. They are eight points adrift of fifth-placed side Boreham Wood and eight points clear of third-from-bottom AFC Hornchurch.
”All credit to the team because it wasn’t just the first half we played the way we wanted to play, but in the second half I think we got stronger as the game went on,” said Goldberg after their fifth home win of the season.
”They (Chelmsford) were falling about with their own injury problems and I think we battled, as well as we played our own football so it was probably, all in all, the most convincing home win certainly of the season.”
Bromley should be challenging the likes of Salisbury City, Welling United, Dover Athletic, Chelmsford City and Boreham Wood at the top of the table.
Goldberg said: “I hear stories that we’ve got potential. We should be doing a lot better and we’ve got the potential of a top-six side, but I think everybody should be really pleased that we’ve assembled a team that’s got that sort of potential but once you give us an opportunity to develop that team to reach their potential, hopefully if we can keep them next year then I’m sure that team would develop into a top-six team.
”The fans’ are disgruntled because they think we should be doing a lot better. I’m proud of the fact that the fans’ think we should be doing a lot better. We’ve assembled a team, a squad, that they’re very happy with, that’s got a lot of potential.
”You just don’t put a team out and they perform. It takes time and you have to develop them and they have to get to know each other and build on it and teams like Welling have had the same team for three years’.
”I think we should be doing better but the reality is that it takes time. Good things do take time.”
Chelmsford City, who welcome Tonbridge Angels to Melbourne Park at the weekend, almost took the lead with only 80 seconds on the clock.
Left-winger Aiden Palmer cut inside Sanchez Ming and cracked a right-footed drive from 22-yards, which sailed just past the top of the near post, with Bromley keeper Joe Welch flying towards the well-struck effort.
Chelmsford City created their second chance when right-winger Anthony Cook picked up the ball just inside the Bromley half, made a 40-yard run to reach the by-line before twisting and turning Bromley left-back Marlon Patterson before whipping in a cross for Omer Riza to plant his towering header over the bar from eight-yards.
But Bromley’s first chance led to them opening the scoring.
Central midfielder Danny Waldren cracked a right-footed drive from 25-yards, which deflected off Chelmsford skipper Kenny Clark to force a corner.
Welsh, who was making only his fourth appearance for Bromley since his move from Chelmsford City, whipped in the resulting corner from the right towards the far post and the ball was headed down by Moses Swaibu and Theophanous stabbed the ball over the line to score his sixth-goal for the club from a couple of yards out for Bromley to open the scoring with 9 minutes and 50 seconds on the clock.
Goldberg said: ”It’s great for us to score from a set-piece because we’ve had too many occasions where we’ve put in a good ball into the box from corners and not attacked them well enough so we’re really delighted to get the goal the way we did.”
Bromley keeper Welch saw Cook’s angled right-footed drive flash just past his near post, but Chelmsford should have equalised on the half-hour mark.
Cook swung in a corner from the left with his left-foot towards the far post where central midfielder David Rainford headed across goal and just past the top of the far post.
Bromley should have doubled their lead just 85 seconds later.
Former Chelmsford left-back Marlon Patterson fed the ball into Jones’ feet, who dribbled into the penalty area before he cut the ball back to unmarked skipper Ali Fuseini, who unleashed a right-footed drive from 25-yards, which was tipped over by visiting keeper Danzelle St Louis Hamilton, high to his right.
Goldberg said: “I think we had a number of chances like that. One could’ve argued he should’ve kept it on the deck, but the ball was bouncing so he did well to get his feet over the ball.”
Goldberg won the tactical battle over his opposite number Glenn Pennyfather.
”The difficulty of playing the formation that we’ve been playing recently is that when you’re playing one player up front and you’ve got another one in the hole it can be quite predictable and we’ve been working very hard on that,” explained Goldberg.
”Louie’s movement has been exceptional, which has allowed the third man to run in behind and create a lot of space for the likes of Mike Jones, Ali Fuseini and the two wingers to get into dangerous positions so I think you’ll find what difference there’s been recently is the good movement.”
Mike Jones, who was signed from Kent League neighbours Greenwich Borough two years’ ago, was the driving force behind Bromley, playing in the hole behind lone striker Theophanous and relishing a free role which must have seen him cover every blade of grass.
Goldberg admitted: “I think we’ve found a position finally for Mike in the hole that suits Mike well, for us and for him and the team. I think it’s his work ethic and what I love about him is how he runs at players.
”He’s still learning the game. We’ve got to remember that we picked him from the Kent League two years’ ago and we’re still trying to develop him and learn how best to play him, but he’s earnt the right to start now in that position. If he carries on providing consistent performances like he has done today and in the last two games, you never know that could be his position.”
Fuseini, who was also pulling the strings in Bromley’s engine room, swept a ball to release Pierre Joseph-Dubois down the right and he cut the ball back to right-back Ming, whose first time cross bounced off Theophanous at the near post and the ball bounced harmlessly wide.
Chelmsford City were also off-target following their fourth corner of the night, Max Cornhill glancing his header harmlessly wide from sixteen-yards after Cook’s corner.
But Bromley went agonisingly close to taking a deserved 2-0 lead going into the break, 77 seconds into time added on.
Keeper Welch kicked the ball straight down the middle and Jones flicked the ball forward to release Joseph-Dubois through on goal. The Frenchman took a touch which forced him to stroke a right-footed shot across the keeper from a tight angle, the ball trickling against the foot of the far post.
”I thought at half-time with Pierre hitting the post on the countdown to half-time I thought we dominated possession and dominated most of the clear cut chances on goal and I thought we didn’t quite get our just reward.”
The Bromley faithful feared their side’s chances of getting something from the game would vanish as they expected Chelmsford to roar back after the interval.
”You felt that having not taken advantage of good pressure that they would come back at us for the second half and we’ll be punished for not finishing,” said Goldberg.
”But in the second half we created more chances and we carried on with the way we left off.
”I really don’t remember when Joe Welch was troubled too much.”
Bromley were forced into making a defensive change only five minutes into the second half when Swaibu – who is good enough to play League Two football – was forced off after turning his ankle.
Helge Orome, however, was a composed character and slotted in beside Jack Holland at the heart of Bromley’s defence.
Goldberg, who has used 38 players in all competitions this season, said: “Our defence did extremely well especially Moses coming off injured and Helge slipping in so brilliantly. That was a little bit of a scary moment when Moses came off. Helge hasn’t played for a couple of games but he reads the game so well. He’s shown that he really is a young talent coming through.”
When asked how long Swaibu will be ruled out with his ankle injury, Goldberg replied: “I think it’s unlikely that he’s playing on Saturday to be honest. Let’s hope he comes back within another 10 days, two weeks.”
The Essex side were forced into making three changes after the break and they should have done better with a 62nd minute corner.
Cook had too much curl on an inswinging corner from the left and all Clark could do when ghosting in at the far post was to push his header harmesssly wide.
Bromley called St Louis Hamilton into making his second save of the night in the 67th minute.
Chelmsford substitute Kyle Vassell whipped in a cross from the right and the ball was picked up by Bromley central defender Jack Holland on the edge of his box.
Holland dribbled with the ball straight through the middle of the pitch and progressed 60-yards to the edge of the Chelmsford box before laying the ball off to Theophanos on his right, who played the ball inside to supporting Fuseini, who rifled a right-footed driver from 18-yards, which forced the visiting keeper to dive to his left to push the shot around the post.
”He’s got a big heart for the club,” Goldberg said of Holland, who is on loan from their Championship neighbours Crystal Palace.
”I don’t think the fans quite realise yet. Jack played in the youth team back when I was involved with the youth teams. Jack was a striker for Bromley under 10’s or certainly from under 11’s onwards.
”He’s actually been at Bromley all the way through until he got picked up by Crystal Palace, I think at sixteen.
”He feels that Bromley is a club that could be…Let’s hope he continues at Crystal Palace, but Bromley will always be there for Jack.”
Bromley looked dangerous from Welsh’s corners and the ball came out to Orome, who struck a left-footed volley on the turn, which forced St Louis Hamilton into making a low save in front of his body.
Chelmsford City squandered an excellent opportunity to level when substitute David Bridges wriggled his way in the space left between Patterson and Orome and cut the ball back for Cook, but the ball flashed behind the unmarked winger, just before he was about to pull the trigger.
Chelmsford City called Bromley keeper Welch into making his only save of the night with thirteen minutes remaining.
Bridges released Riza down the right and he cut inside Patterson before drilling a low right-footed shot from an acute angle, but Welch got down low to his left and got a strong left hand toe the shot to turn it around the post.
Bromley mirrored their first goal by having a shot from outside of the box deflected for a corner, which they scored from.
Winger Welsh played the ball inside to Fuseini, who played the ball inside to Jones, who cut in and his right-footed drive from 20-yards hit Mark Haines on his back to go out for a corner.
Welsh swung in the resulting corner from the left which came out to Finn, who flicked the ball up and struck a left-footed volley from 22-yards, which screamed over the visiting keeper to find the middle of the goal in the 80th minute, to notch his third goal of the season.
”Tremendous. He’s got that in his locker Finny,” hailed Goldberg.
”Personally he doesn’t do it enough. He doesn’t score enough goals. He came on and I think we probably needed a bit more energy at the time and he gave us that.”
Chelmsford City didn’t look like scoring after that – right-back Jack Ainsley cracked a left-footed volley sailing over the Bromley crossbar from distance.
Bromley’s players received a warm reception from their followers at the final whistle, who will want a repeat performance when seventh-placed Dorchester Town (who thrashed struggling Billericay Town 6-1 tonight) visit Hayes Lane on Saturday.
Goldberg added: “I think it’s fair to say that they underestimated us today.
”We’re getting stronger. Recently we felt that we’re starting to find the right momentum, the formation and the system that we’re playing and with the players hopefully playing with an understanding.
”It does take time because if you remember we started from scratch two years’ ago, last season with a fresh group of players. We’re fortunate that at the end of last year we were able to strengthen to stay up and we were able to keep the core of that team this year.
”We’re now coming into, what eighteen months when we put the team together and we’ve added one or two to strengthen it and it takes time and we might have the potential.”
Bromley: Joe Welch, Sanchez Ming, Marlon Patterson, Ali Fuseini, Moses Swaibu (Helge Orome 50), Jack Holland, Pierre Joseph-Dubois (Tony Finn 71), Danny Waldren, Louie Theophanous (Elliot Buchanan 86), Mike Jones, Ishmael Welsh.
Subs: George Howard, Aaron Rhule
Goals: Louie Theophanous 10, Tony Finn 80
Booked: Ali Fuseini 75, Joe Welch 90
Chelmsford City: Danzelle St Louis Hamilton, Jack Ainsley, Aiden Palmer (Kyle Vassell 59), Mark Haines, Kenny Clark, Joe Whight, Anthony Cook, David Rainford, Robert Edmans (Jamie Slabber 53), Max Cornhill (David Bridges 62), Omer Riza.
Subs: Joshua Fagbohun, Junior Konadu
Booked: Anthony Cook 73
Attendance: 293
Referee: Mr Nigel Lugg (Chipstead, Surrey)
Assistants: Mr Nicholas Dunn (Deal) & Mr Paul Johnson (Raynes Park, London SW20)
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