Erith & Belvedere 4-2 Corinthian - Worst team performance I have seen in 50 years, says Tony Sitford

ERITH & BELVEDERE  4-2  CORINTHIAN
Kent Hurlimann Football League
Tuesday 7^th August 2012
Stephen McCartney reports from Park View Road

CORINTHIAN boss Tony Sitford called his players’ a disgrace after they were humiliated by a brilliant Erith & Belvedere side, who should have racked up a cricket score in tonight’s one-sided Kent Hurlimann Football League fixture.

Some of the football played by last season’s runners-up was simply scintillating and sorry Corinthian – who finished in seventh-place and were runners-up in the Kent League Cup Final – had no answer to it.

Erith & Belvedere found themselves 3-0 up at the break – it should have been a lot more – as visiting keeper Lewis Craddock suffered his biggest nightmare of his career as Andy Constable scored twice and his strike partner, Richmond Kissi, converted a penalty.

Carl Cornell opened his goalscoring account for his new club, 67 seconds into the second half, before Corinthian scored a flattering two goals in the final fourteen minutes, courtesy of substitute Alfie May and Ryan Johnson’s penalty.

Sitford, 73, was clearly angry and upset with his team’s poor attitude and made his feelings public after he emerged from the away dressing room at Park View Road.

He said:  “It went wrong for 90 minutes.  They deserved to win by more than four goals. I mean, they were by far superior to us.

“I just told them in the changing room, that’s the worst team performance I have seen for 50 years’ – they were a disgrace!

“I’m not mixing my words, they were rubbish!  They’ve got no commitment, no conviction. They didn’t keep the ball, they didn’t pass the ball. They (Erith & Belvedere) out played us, out fought us.  I have no complaints.

“All I’m delighted about is that it finished 4-2 because it doesn’t look so bad, but it was worse than you could imagine.”

When asked why he thought his side put in the worst performance by a Kent League side since perennial whipping boys Sporting Bengal United graced the Kent League with their heavy beatings during their eight-year membership between 2003-2011, Sitford replied, “We’ve just asked them that in there now, because they think they’re big time Charlies. They think they’re good players and I’ve just reminded them that they’re Kent League players – and not that good, Kent League players!”

For Erith & Belvedere manager Micky Collins, he admitted his side should have scored double figures.

He said: “It could have been but we didn’t take our chances, but I’m well happy with the performance, well happy with the result.  A bit disappointed with the two sloppy goals but a good professional performance.

“As a manager you start to worry when you don’t create things and if you’re creating chances, some good chances, you’ll always get on the end of something and put one away.

“I think the football we played in the first half was probably one of the best 45 minutes we’ve had since I’ve been here and we went in 3-0 up – but it could’ve been six or seven!

“I would have moaned if we had gone in and not taken any of the chances.

“I’m really pleased.  I’m really pleased for the boys that scored.  I’m pleased with the defence and the midfield worked really hard. It was a great performance.”

Erith & Belvedere opened their league campaign with a 3-0 win over promoted Rochester United, while Corinthian lost 2-1 at home to Lordswood, who may be the surprise package this season after they followed up that with a 3-0 home win over Deal Town tonight.

VCD Athletic, Erith & Belvedere, Lordswood and Erith Town are the only sides with a 100% record after the opening two games, going into this weekend’s FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round ties.

The side at the top of the table has already changed three times at this early stage with Deal Town, Erith Town and now VCD Athletic.

Erith & Belvedere showed their attacking intent early and they should have opened the scoring with only 181 seconds on the clock but Kissi’s shot was cleared off the line beside the near post by James Lyons’ outstretched right foot.

Corinthian were gifted a free-kick following a handball by Erith & Belvedere’s left-back Karl Knight, but Johnson failed to capitalise as he stroked a right-footed free-kick across Michal Czanner and comfortably wide of the far post from 25-yards.

Craddock denied the home side an early breakthrough when Jamie Wood’s ball over the top found Cornell, who played the ball inside and Kissi cracked a right-footed drive towards goal from 25-yards, but the keeper dived to his left to tip the shot around the post.

Craddock made a comfortable save to deny central defender Richard Davies heading home Allan Matthews’ free-kick towards the far post from the half-way line.

It was no surprise when Erith & Belvedere opened the floodgates in the sixteenth minute, as prolific striker, Andy Constable, who scored 35 goals in 43 games last season, scored his first of this season.

The Deres played the ball out to former Bromley Academy midfielder Luis Regis, who had time and space to cut the ball back to Constable, who steered a left-footed drive across Craddock for the ball to kiss the foot of the far post before nestling into the bottom far corner.

Collins said: “Great move!  Because we play Andy up top a lot of people think we’re one dimensional and play only one way.  Hopefully tonight we might have proved people wrong with that.  We played some good football, got into a good area and Andy done what he’s good at and put the ball away.”

Sitford was angry that no-one picked up the prolific striker.

He said: “Don’t you think we said that before the game? Don’t you think we designated somebody to pick him up?  Don’t you think we did that?  We’ve had them watched. We’ve seen them and we’ve gone through exactly what they were gonna do and what they did they did well and we weren’t good enough!”

That goal clearly shook Craddock’s fragile confidence as he allowed Karl Knight’s cross from the left slip through his fingertips and luckily for the keeper his central defender, Charlie Burgess, was behind him on the line.

Erith & Belvedere midfielder Cornell was relishing expressing his talents on the sublime playing surface and the former Tunbridge Wells player was denied by Craddock, who saved low to his right after Cornell unleashed a left-footed drive from 25-yards after some good play from the impressive Kissi.

Corinthian almost had the audacity to equalise in the 27^th minute when James Hawkins swung in a corner from the right with his left-foot and Burgess ghosted in unmarked at the far post and sent his downward header into the base of the side netting from a tight angle.

But Erith & Belvedere doubled their lead three minutes later when Burgess was booked for his challenge that fouled Kissi from behind as the pair tussled for the ball and Kissi stepped up and smashed his right-footed penalty straight down the middle of the pitch as Craddock took a step to his left.

Collins was full of praise for the former Cray Wanderers and Sevenoaks Town striker.

He said: “Considering the year Richmond had with his ankle injury, he came in on Saturday and played 25 minutes, really worked hard, got himself a goal.  He got on the scoresheet again. He gives you that extra dimension because he gives you that pace and power, a little bit more movement up front.”

And so was Sitford, saying, “What an attitude!  Outstanding!  He never stopped running, never stopped closing people down. Absolutely outstanding. We ‘ve got Micky Mouse hearts in there.  Our goalkeeper, what a nightmare.  They say you mustn’t have a go at players. They’ve got to stand up and be counted. They were appalling!”

A fine back flick from Kissi released Constable down the left channel and the striker cut in and cracked a right-footed curler, which forced Craddock into making a fine save, tipping the ball away high above his head.

But Erith & Belvedere increased their lead further from the resulting corner, in the 37^th minute.

Skipper Jamie Wood swung in the corner from the right and Constable steered the ball through a crowd of players, the ball finding the back of the net aided by a heavy deflection, which left Craddock standing a disconsolate figure with his hands on his hips.

With no-one from the Corinthian camp revealing the defender who got the last touch, Constable was awarded the goal.

Collins said: “I think it’s his goal.  I’ll claim it if I was a forward.  I’d claim loads.   You’ve got to be there to miss it and he’s managed to put it away.”

Czanner was called into action just before the break after Corinthian’s lone-striker Rob Denness played the ball inside to Hawkins, who from the edge of the penalty area stung the former Tunbridge Wells stopper’s fingers.  But the Slovakian keeper launched a big kick down the field and Constable’s right-footed chip dropped agonisingly over the crossbar from eight-yards.

Both managers were asked what they said to their players during the interval.

Sitford said: “We told them it was over. It was about going out and playing for a bit of pride.  This is the old cliché, go out and salvage a bit of pride!

“Yes, we won the second half 2-1.   Where’s the pride? We won it 2-1, but we could’ve lost it 4-1.  It’s all camouflage isn’t it?  We won it 2-1. Brilliant! But you saw it.  You witnessed it!

Collins said: “Pleased with the first half performance – now you’ve got to win the game because if they score early everyone knows they’re kicking down the slope second half and you’re going to be up against it.

“Luckily, a great strike from Hooley (Carl Cornell) – a good worked corner, it’s fell out and he’s smashed it in.  Four-nil up – game over!

“Then we’ve managed to make the substitutions to get people on, get them some minutes with one eye on Lordswood (away, in the FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round) on Saturday.”

Erith & Belvedere buried Corinthian following Cornell’s deflected strike early in the second half.

Wood delivered a free-kick from the right with his left foot and Drew Crush headed the ball across the penalty area and Cornell was lurking outside of the penalty area and he drilled a low right-footed shot, which bounced off Burgess, who was standing alone in his penalty area, and rolled into the net.

Constable has already formed a dangerous partnership with former Sevenoaks Town striker Kissi and another chance was created.

Matthews pumped the ball into the Corinthian box and Constable headed the ball down and Kissi clipped his shot straight at Craddock.

Corinthian made a triple substitution in the 53^rd minute and Sitford admitted afterwards that he would have hauled off all eleven players if he had the chance!

He said: “We wanted to make nine but failed.  We actually said it to them. If it was a friendly, I would’ve taken all eleven off!”

But to their credit, Corinthian salvaged some pride during the second half and after Johnson swung in a corner from the left, which was flicked on, Burgess headed the ball straight at Czanner in the 63^rd minute.

Substitute Lee Barnett – who had a trial with Erith & Belvedere in pre-season – sent an overhead kick towards goal, which forced Czanner to pluck the ball out of the air, before Kissi sent a diving header into Craddock’s gloves at the other end.

Corinthian scored what everyone felt was a 76^th minute consolation when Johnson was given space to run at the home side’s defence before pulling the trigger, which forced Czanner into diving low to his right to parry and May pounced on to the loose ball to slot into the empty net.

May then picked the ball out of the net and ran with it before placing it on to the centre spot.

Sitford praised eighteen-year-old May for his commitment after coming on.  

He said: “He did a good little job. He worked hard. He showed the others what it was about. He grafted and he worked hard. Jamie Taylor came on but he worked his heart out. He was winning balls. 

“I just find it appalling. Players have got to understand that people would give their right arm to come and play at this lovely setting, lovely evening.  They’d play football and give it 100% - not come to a place like this, which is lovely and give 80%.  They (Erith & Belvedere) didn’t have a player out on the park that didn’t give it 100%.  We’ve got eight out there that gave 60-70%!”

Collins said: “Corinthian play really good football and Tony and Matt (Longhurst) set them up to play a certain way and at times it’s pleasurable on the eye to watch.

“Yes, people say they lack a cutting edge up front, but maybe the two goals, we’ve been sloppy and maybe we have gifted them to them, but they play great football and it’s a pleasure to watch at times.

“I just think sometimes in the Kent League it’s a very, very tough league to get out of and sometimes you just have to have a different bit to your armoury.”

Constable, who was awarded the man-of-the-match award, squandered a couple of chances to score his hat-trick.

Substitute Badar Mohamed had time and space to whip in a fine cross from the left by-line, but Constable’s downward header from a tight angle went across goal and bounced narrowly wide of the foot of the far post.

Constable then hooked a right-footed shot over the bar after Cornwell’s corner was flicked on by Matthews and Crush, before Cornell was denied a headed goal by a fine save from Craddock, who dived full-length to his left to turn around the post.

But Corinthian scored a flattering second in the 89^th minute when Davies slid in to bring down Denness in the corner of the box and Johnson sent Czanner the wrong way from the spot with a right-footed penalty to give their battering a tinge of respectability.

Reflecting on his side’s two blemishes, Collins said: “I can’t blame Michal for the parry.  He’s made a save, we haven’t followed up and cleared our lines. We’ve allowed someone to run off us from midfield whose got a shot off, which should never have happened.  We stopped doing that all night and stopped them taking chances like that. One slip of concentration and they’ve hit a good shot, he’s made a save. We haven’t followed up, their boy has. Good goal.

“For the penalty, to be honest we should’ve cleared our lines at left-back. We never and the ball’s fell in and Richie has dived in and made a poor challenge.”

Sitford, who was on the end of a painful 9-0 home defeat to Maidstone United in the FA Cup in the Preliminary Round last September, expressed some home truths.

He fumed: “I’m under no illusions. We were out-played, out-fought in every department on the field and I have no hesitations to say if they play like that for the rest of the season you’re looking at the champions.

“Seeing them they’re well organised, they’re strong, they played some good stuff. They play more direct but they’ve got the players to do that and the players they’ve got up front, they hold it up, they work off eachother. The movement from the little fella (Kissi) is superb, absolutely superb, top drawer.”

Sitford was bitterly disappointed with the reaction to the humiliation from his players after the game.

He said: “I don’t mind being beaten. We were beaten by a better team, but I don’t mind being beaten if everybody’s worked hard and put a shift in, but when you get people who don’t put a shift in and they point a finger at other people, I can’t stand that!

“I’ve let them have an argument in there for a couple of minutes before I stopped it. They were pointing fingers at each other instead of standing up and saying ‘how did I do?’ – not how did he do?

“Sorry, I’ve got players who have committed absolutely nothing.  The three subs that came on did better than the starting three.  It’s as simple as that!

“I’ve been in the game a long, long, long time and I don’t criticise the players’ but there is a time when players’ need to read or hear the truth. People say keep it in the dressing room, do this, do that.  Yes, that’s right, but every now and then they’ve got to be told they ain’t good enough!

“I’ve not been in there. I’ve not raised my voice. You’ve not heard me raise my voice. I’ve just told them that unfortunately we’re nowhere near good enough! That was woeful and if we continue to play like that we’re a bottom three side and that’s what I’ve just told them!”

Erith & Belvedere: Michal Czanner, Allan Matthews, Karl Knight, Sean Johnson (Badar Mohamed 71), Drew Crush, Richard Davies, Jamie Wood (Huseyin Budak 73), Carl Cornell, Andy Constable, Richmond Kissi, Luis Regis (Lewis Wood 73).
Subs: John Wilfort, Marvin Francis

Goals: Andy Constable 16, 37, Richmond Kissi 30 (pen), Carl Cornell 47

Corinthian: Lewis Craddock, Joe Minter, Ben Wilson, Mark Axel (Jamie Taylor 53), Charlie Burgess, James Lyons, Adam Marsh (Lee Barnett 53), Ademola Jinalu, Ryan Johnson, Rob Denness, James Hawkins (Alfie May 53).
Subs: Nad Nnitua, Matt Longhurst

Goals: Alfie May 76, Ryan Johnson 89 (pen)

Booked: Charlie Burgess 30, Ryan Johnson 65

Attendance:  49
Referee: Mr Chris Myatt (Dartford)
Assistants: Mr Wally James (Bow, London E3) & Mr Michael Kent (Sittingbourne)