Croydon 1-1 Erith Town (Croydon won 3-1 on penalties) - We should've won by more - Beckingham

Sunday 03rd May 2009

CROYDON 1-1 ERITH TOWN

(after extra time - Croydon won 3-1 on penalties)

Bulmers Cider Kent League Cup Final

Sunday 3rd May 2009

Stephen McCartney reports from Park View Road

CROYDON became the first team to take the Kent League Cup outside the county as they beat holders Erith Town 3-1 on penalties in a disappointing final at sunny Park View Road.

The Trams were by far the better team, but the opening 90 minutes failed to produce any goals and blooded Tony Atkins headed home a 102nd minute opener to give the Surrey side a deserved lead.

But as it appeared that Erith Town’s star striker Marcus Cassius was going to freeze on the big stage, but the 19-year-old latched onto Adam Cotterell’s defensive splitting pass to slot home past Tim Roberts with just three minutes of extra time left to force a penalty shoot out.

But Croydon, backed by good vocal support, picked up the silverware for the very first time, courtesy of converted spot kicks from skipper Dave Waters, Calvin Headley and Tim Murdoch, with only Kevin Spriggs scoring for an Erith Town side that froze on the day.

Erith Town’s one and only first half chance arrived after 28 minutes when Alan Matthews’ long throw caused panic in the Croydon penalty area and the ball was played to Cotterell and his right-footed floated chip was comfortably plucked out of the air by Roberts.

Croydon’s right-sided midfielder Ben Yiadom dived under Alan Hanlon’s challenge and a well-worked free-kick resulted in Murdoch squaring the ball to Atkins, who spun and drove a left-footed shot, which brought a comfortable save from Bradshaw.

And just before the break, Atkins fed Yiadom down the right and after cutting in, whipped a cross into the Dockers’ box, but the unmarked Ray Freeman glanced his header wide.

The best chance of the entire first half fell Croydon’s way inside stoppage time when Justin Hemmings’ long throw was flicked on by Bronek Dabrowa at the near post but Atkins directed his header straight at Bradshaw just six-yards out.

Croydon squandered yet another chance on the hour mark when Yiadom’s cross was headed down by Atkins and Freeman poked the ball straight at Bradshaw.

But the Dockers’ goalkeeper, who picked up a Ryman One South play-off final winners medal for Cray Wanderers yesterday, was finally tested when he dived to his right to beat out Yiadom’s left-footed drive, after the former Greenwich Borough winger cut in from the right.

The disappointing Dockers’ almost snatched the winner with ten minutes left but Dean Kearley nodded Matthews’ near post throw over.

Croydon should have brought the trophy presentation forward a lot earlier, but Freeman and Murdoch failed to hit the target when it looked easier to score and skipper Waters, who was fantastic at the heart of the Trams’ defence powered Murdoch’s injury time corner agonisingly inches over the bar.

Croydon were left to temporarily rue those missed chances, but their vocal army of supporters to the left of their dug-out erupted when Atkins broke the deadlock .

Youth-team product Calvin Headley whipped in a precise cross from the left and Atkins glanced his diving header into the right-corner from just six-yards out, beating Craig Hewitt in the process and cutting his head for the second time, which forced him to wear his third sky blue shirt of the game.

GOAL: Croydon striker Tony Atkins leaps to head his side into the lead during the first period of extra time.
Photograph courtesy of www.kentleague.com

Cassius, who didn’t get any change out of Waters and Gareth Broom for the first 116 minutes of this hard-fought contest, grabbed a dramatic late leveller -and then squandered an excellent chance to win it at the death.

The pink booted nineteen-year-old striker was released through the heart of the Croydon defence, and slotted the ball past Roberts from just inside the penalty box for his 43rd goal of the season.

DRAMA: Despite being shut out by Croydon's defenders Dave Waters and Gareth Broom, Marcus Cassius beats Broom in a foot race and slots home a dramatic late leveller for Erith Town to take the game to penalties, which Croydon eventually won 3-1.
Photograph courtesy of www.kentleague.com

Bradshaw made yet another save when he finger tipped Steffan Payne’s bullet header onto the crossbar, following another Murdoch corner from the left.

Cassius really should have grabbed goal number 44 at the death, but his shot on the turn agonisingly sailed over the crossbar, which despaired the Erith followers, who got behind their side the longer the hard-fought game went on.

Eighteen-year-old Bradshaw made two fine penalty stops, thwarting Payne and Hemmings, but Cassius (saved), Kearley (foot of left hand post) and Matthews (saved) missed from 12-yards and Erith Town surrendered their grasp on the trophy to a club that play across the border in Surrey.

“I thought we were a little bit nervous, but once we got into our stride, particularly second half and extra time, I thought we played some good stuff,” Croydon’s joint-manager Tony Beckingham told www.kentishfootball.co.uk afterwards.

“We created so many chances, we just couldn’t take them and we got the first goal.

“I thought defensively the boys were absolutely immense at the back. We kept Marcus Cassius quiet, anonymous almost and then one long ball down the middle you switch off for a split second and I suppose that’s the quality of the boy.

“He’s in and it’s got them back in the game and he almost won it.”

Beckingham, formerly of Holmesdale, admitted his boys were deflated following Cassius’ smash-and-almost-grab raid, but rallied his side to penalty success.

He said: “I turned it around because we were deflated because they should have won the game and it’s been pegged back like that.

“Penalties are a lottery, I don’t know of a better way but it doesn’t seem any adequate way to win or lose anything really.

“I suppose ultimately it’s got to go down to something and until someone finds a better way, it’s just the way it is.

“There’s a lot of tension out there and luckily we scored more than them.

“I’m just elated and just exhausted really. I feel I’ve got no energy left in me.”

Beckingham paid tribute to their vocal band of supporters, who got behind their heroes throughout, something that is not renowned for at this level of football.

“We’ve got a little merry band of supporters that turn up every week,” he said. “Today, obviously, they were out in bigger numbers.

“They didn’t stop for the whole game, it encourages the players. I think it was quite good because in the end Erith supporters got involved and I thought the banter was great.

“The game was played in a really good spirit and that reflected in the relationship that we’ve got between the two management teams.”

Erith Town boss Steve O’Boyle, who took over from Mark Tompkins on the eve of the new season and was therefore not in charge when Hythe Town were beaten 1-0 in last year’s final down in Folkestone, admitted he was felling “gutted but proud” of his side.

“We weren’t that great today, but what I will say, you can’t fault our work-rate, our never say die attitude, we went to the end, we never gave up,” O’Boyle told www.kentishfootball.co.uk afterwards.

“To be fair we could’ve nicked it at the end. Alright, Croydon, I would say, were probably the better side of the two, but I’m proud of the boys.

“We’ve had a great season, alright we’ve got beat today, but we’ve got to pick ourselves up.

“To get it back to one-all is credit to the boys because they never gave up.”

The former Thamesmead Town reserve team manager was disconsolate having lost the club’s grasp of the trophy on a penalty shoot-out lottery.

“Maybe that was a fair result really, a draw at the end,” he said. “They had more play than us, they had more of the ball than us and they had a bit more quality than us so to take it to penalties was fair enough.

“It’s a lottery, it’s fifty-fifty, and to be fair we’re just not very good with penalties.

“Jack Bradshaw was fantastic today, he’s made some great saves during the game and to be fair when it went to penalties I honestly believed (we’d win as) we’ve got the best goalkeeper about.

“He could have easily saved three or four penalties - he’s that good.

“He saved two but we never helped him out by scoring ours.

“I’m not going to blame people like Dean Kearley, he’s missed a penalty today (but) I’ll tell you now the fella has been immense all season and if it wasn’t for him and people like that then we’d never be here today.”

Expressing his personal feelings, O’Boyle added, “That’s hard to take at the moment but I’ve got to say I’m absolutely gutted.

“Congratulations to Tony and Ken (Thurgood), they deserved it after the season they’ve had and well done Croydon.

“They played well but to be fair the cup final came alive at the end, a bit exciting at the end. I’ve got a few more grey hairs but we’ll learn from this.”

Croydon: Tim Roberts, Jazz Gold (Calvin Headley 91), Nathan Woodbridge, Tim Murdoch, Dave Waters, Gareth Broom, Ben Yiadom, Justin Hemmings, Tony Atkins (Stefan Payne 106), Bronek Dabrowa (Ricky Spain 93), Ray Freeman.

Subs: Winfried Gnaly, Dean Rose.

Goal: Tony Atkins 102

Booked: Bronek Dabrowa 36, Ben Yiadom 76

Erith Town: Jack Bradshaw, Aaran Heyrattin, Lawrence Collins (Craig Hewitt 70), Ted Hart (Salih Hafiz 101), Dean Kearley, Alan Hanlon, Alan Matthews, Adam Cotterell, Marcus Cassius, Lee Coburn, Kevin Spriggs.

Subs: Wayne Grizzle, Adam Ebrey, Danny Kemp.

Goal: Marcus Cassius 117

Attendance: 303

Referee: Mr Andy Mead (Orpington)

Assistants: Mr Nick Dunn (Deal) & Mr Jamie MacLeod (Welling)

Fourth Official: Mr Andy Francis (Chatham)