Cray Valley 3-1 Barkingside - It's always nice to get a big team, says Paul Gross

CRAY VALLEY (PAPER MILLS) 3-1 BARKINGSIDE
London Senior Cup Sponsored by Coventry Scaffolding First Round
Tuesday 8^th October 2013
Stephen McCartney reports from Middle Park Avenue

CRAY VALLEY (Paper Mills) player-assistant manager Paul Gross says he will enjoy their trip to Conference Premier neighbours Welling United in the last sixteen of the London Senior Cup.

The Millers produced a first round shock with a comfortable 3-1 win over a poor Barkingside side – as they won their first game at home at the seventh attempt.

The Essex side arrived in Eltham sitting in the bottom five of the Ryman League Division One North table and their manager Matt Frew made four changes to the side that were thrashed 6-0 by Guernsey in The FA Trophy Preliminary Round on Sunday.

Cray Valley were without Jamie Wood, Adam Gross, Joe Nwoko and Gary Cooke for this first round tie.

Cray Valley winger Harrison Carnegie scored two first half goals to give the seventh-placed Southern Counties East Football League hosts a commanding lead before Laurent Hamici curled home his first goal for the club to give The Millers a deserved three-goal cushion.

Outplayed Barkingside scored a late consolation through a quality free-kick from midfielder Matt Gulfer.

“Nice to play higher opposition and get a win,” said Gross, who featured as a striker for the last remaining eighteen minutes.

“We generally do well against higher opposition, but just shows how far we’ve come in the last four or five weeks. We’re really gelling as a team. We’ve found our shape and the players’ are enjoying it.”

Gross was pleased that their fourth win on the bounce also brought their first home win of the season.

He said: “A nice one to get that one off our back.  I don’t know what it is, whether the grass is a bit long, the boys are moaning about that, but it’s nice.  It’s not been all negatives at home, but it’s lovely to get that first one in front of a nice crowd as well.”

It could have been a different story had Barkingside converted an early chance from their first corner inside the opening three minutes.

Gulfer swung in his corner from the right and the ball sailed across the penalty area but dominant central defender Sean Crossley could only head wide.

Cray Valley opened the scoring inside the opening 13 minutes.

Central midfielder Jimmy Rogers pinged an excellent diagonal pass which was brought under Carnegie’s spell before the right-winger drilled a low left-footed shot across goalkeeper Chris Clark to find the bottom left-hand corner.

“Good find Harrison,” said Gross.  “He done well in his first friendly against Thamesmead, then he got another couple of chances, didn’t quite go his way. He’s come back in again tonight, a lovely touch, a lovely finish.

“Jim’s made a massive difference to be honest,” added Gross.  “I’ve brought Jim in – I played with him at VCD – he’s a lot fitter than what he was and that weren’t the first ball he played, he played three or four excellent balls in behind tonight and that’s why he’s in there.”

A fine pass down the left by Adam Marsh released the impressive Tunde Aderonmu down the left who cut the ball back to Hamici, who snatched at his shot and drilled a right-footed shot narrowly over the crossbar.

Cray Valley continued to dominate and they created another chance against their newly-promoted opponents.

Marsh played the ball across the pitch to Carnegie down the right who cut the ball across goal towards Hamici at the far post.  The striker swiped and missed the ball but kept his composure to cut the ball back to Aderonmu who unleashed a low left-footed drive which forced Clark into making a low save.

The Millers’ doubled their lead, however, in the 34^th minute, courtesy of a fine move.

Rogers played yet another delightful through ball which released Carnegie, but the ball took a bobble just as he was going to take a shot on goal. He held the ball up, cut the ball back to Rogers, who dinked the ball to Michael McKenna, who reached the by-line before flashing the ball across goal and Carnegie applied the finish at the far post from close range.

Gross revealed work on the pitch at training has paid off.

He said: “Just shows, I go back to that four weeks ago. They was good enough to let us have the pitch down here. Things weren’t going our way. We worked on a bit of team shape, changed the format, changed the personnel. It gives the players a lot more freedom to express themselves.  All players can express themselves and it paid off.”

Hamici stole the ball off Barkingside central defender Dave Cooper before going on and unleashing a right-footed drive from 25-yards, which Clark saved low to his left.

And on the stroke of half-time, left-back Dan Gunner played the ball up to Hamici, who cut the ball back from the by-line for Aderonmu to blast a fierce right-footed drive across goal and past the far post.

Gross said he and manager Steve Chapman were pleased at the break, enjoying a commanding 2-0 lead against a Ryman League outfit.

Gross said: “It’s the old Cray Valley thing, we start games well and as you saw we faltered a bit for the first five to ten minutes. We went to pieces again. We just got to drum it into the boys, keep doing what we’re doing and that’s all we try to do.”

Barkingside came out early in the second half with more purpose and Crossley clipped a long ball forward out from defence to release striker Richard Oxby down the right but the skipper lashed his right-footed angled drive high and wide of the near post after 61 seconds.

Crossley – one of three central defenders for Barkingside – came up from the back again to glance his header past the post under pressure following another corner from Gulfer.

But The Millers killed the game off with a third goal in the 56^th minute - Hamici’s first goal for the club.

Goalkeeper Bobby Sturgeon kicked the ball up field and Hamici rose to win a header in an aerial battle with Crossley, which released Aderonmu down the left.  The pacy winger cut the ball back to Hamici, who took a touch and curled a beautiful right-footed shot into the top right-hand corner, over the dive of the keeper to score his first goal for the club.

“Laurent’s a great player,” said Gross.  “He’s taken a lot of stick for not scoring but he does everything else.

“He’s got everything to his game. A great player. It’s that desire, the players have got that bit between their teeth. He flicks it on, goes for the return ball and gets his reward.

“He’s a massive player. Everyone knows that. We’re lucky to have him. He should be playing two league’s above.

“We’re trying to get as much as we can from him.  What a great lad as well though! He performs on the pitch, he’s an absolute good lad to have off the pitch as well.”

Aderonmu made space for himself at the near post but sent his diving header wide of the right-hand post from 12-yards after Carnegie crossed the ball in from the right.

Gross, 31, was delighted to get 18 minutes under his belt as he recovers from a hernia operation.

He said: “It’s been a long time. I’ve been really enjoying it. Steve’s given me a lot of leeway. I’m very grateful to him for giving me this opportunity. It’s nice to get some minutes under my belt but will I be needed? Who knows?”

Barkingside created their first decent chance in the 75^th minute when Gulfer stroked a right-footed shot from 35-yards, which whistled past the far post and at the other end Aderonmu cut in from the left to crack a right-footed curler from 22-yards, which was caught by visiting keeper Clark.

Barkingside scored a consolation in the final six minutes.

Cray Valley defender Joe Matthews collected a yellow card four minutes after coming off the bench for bringing down Barkingside substitute Lorenzo Ramsey.

Gulfer produced a piece of quality when from 20-yards he whipped a right-footed free-kick up and over the four-man wall, curling up towards the night sky before dipping into the left-hand corner of the net.

Gross said: “They had to do something tonight! They came with a higher pedigree than us so yes, alright we’ll that that!

“We re-organised at the back – we took a bit of time – we was all over the place a bit. We hadn’t adjusted.

“Quality free-kick. Nothing you can do about it but that’s why he’s playing in a higher standard probably.”

Cray Valley created a couple of late chances to win the game by more.

Substitute Jamel Willier played Aderonmu through on goal and his tame shot brought a comfortable low save from Clark, low to his left.

And a hooked pass by Hamici released Aderonmu down the left and he swept the ball out to the other side of the penalty area where an unmarked Willer was denied by the keeper at the near post.

Gross insists his side should take credit for keeping Barkingside quiet in front of goal.

“That’s a measure, that’s a mark of our team,” he said.  “The work-rate, not just the defence but from front to back that we created them too very little. One free-kick and one effort put wide. It just goes to show both ends of the pitch we’re producing at the moment and long may it continue!”

Cray Valley travel to The Skrill Premier neighbours Welling United in the last sixteen – but manager Steve Chapman said before the game that he will contact Wings manager Jamie Day to ask if the game can be played at Badgers instead of Park View Road.

“It’s always nice to get a big team, put yourself up against better players,” said Gross.

“No doubt they won’t put out their first team but does it matter?  It’s another ground, it’s another chance to get players like myself that haven’t played, minutes so we’re happy to go in any competition and go as far as we can.

“Let’s see what sort of side Welling put out,” added Gross.  “If they put the side out that they did against Erith Town there’s no reason why we can’t go and compete. If they put their first team out, we’ll just go and enjoy it and see what we can do. Who knows? Cups are full of surprises.”

When asked whether he feels tonight’s win was a shock result, Gross replied: “Not in our camp! We believed!  Steve said to the lads before we went out nothing less than a win.

“We’ve done our homework. I’ve rung round a few managers. Tony Russell (VCD Athletic manager) helped me out. I spoke to a few other managers that play these teams. 

“We’re more than capable with our own ability what we can do in this league so we’ll quietly carry on about our business and see where it takes us.”

Holmesdale visit Badgers in the Southern Counties East Football League on Saturday afternoon.

“Back to bread and butter,” was how Gross described their tenth-league game of the season.

“They’ve had a turn around. They’ve signed some players, took one of our lads down there.  They’re a good team, good passing team. It should be another great game.

“We like to get the ball down so it should be a good game. It’s our bread and butter so we go into that looking for another three points to continue the run.”

Barkingside’s supporters return to Essex hugely disappointed of their team’s poor performance.

Gross said: “I personally think you take the top five teams out of the (Ryman) North and they’re all pretty much and you take the top five Kent League teams in and they’ll survive and hold their own.

“They were poor but we also worked very hard to not give them anything as well so credit our boys as well for that.”

Cray Valley (Paper Mills): Bobby Sturgeon, Allan Matthews, Dan Gunner, Jimmy Rogers, Steve Springett, Ryan Sawyer, Harrison Carnegie (Paul Gross 72), Tunde Aderonmu, Laurent Hamici, Adam Marsh (Jamel Willer 46), Michael McKenna (Joe Matthews 79).
Subs: Lewis Wood, Dan Clarke

Goals: Harrison Carnegie 13, 34, Laurent Hamici 56

Booked: Joe Matthews 83

Barkingside: Chris Clark, George Smith, Dan Mackin (Andy Edmunds 77), Dave Cooper, Sean Crossley, Brian Suchley, Tom Davie (Lorenzo Ramset 70), Gabriel Onireti (Reece Cosson 63), Matt Toms, Richard Oxby, Matt Gulfer.
Subs: Adam Salmon, Dan Mulrooney

Goal: Matt Gulfer 84

Booked: Dave Cooper 69

Attendance: 51
Referee: Mr Peter Nagy (Harrow, Middlesex)
Assistants: Mr Rob Albert (Catford, London SE6) & Mr Scott Williams (Hackney, London E8)