Fisher 0-0 Corinthian - I'd love to win something for boss Tony Sitford, says Matt Longhurst

FISHER  0-0  CORINTHIAN
(Corinthian win 2-0 on aggregate)
Macron Kent League Cup Quarter-Final Second Leg
Monday 23^rd January 2012
Stephen McCartney reports from Champion Hill Stadium

MATT LONGHURST says he wants to guide Corinthian into the Kent League Cup Final this season, after booking their place in the semi-finals for the second successive season.


Assistant manager Longhurst, who was in charge of team affairs as manager Tony Sitford is still on holiday in the Dominican Republic, got his tactics spot on as Lee Barnett’s brace in the first leg was enough to progress.

“The person who I’d like to get to the final for is Tony Sitford – he’s been absolutely brilliant for me,” said Longhurst.

“I’ve learnt a lot from him since I’ve been at the club.  He phoned me from the Dominican Republic last night for half-an-hour.  He’s texted all the lads today saying ‘good luck’ and he’ll be dying to get me on the phone when I’ve finished talking to you.

“I’d love to get to a cup final and win something for him as much as the club because of the way it’s run.  It’s a brilliant set-up and these lads deserve to get something out of the season. 

“It will be a great achievement.  We’ll definitely go in as the underdogs, no matter what team we play.”

Fisher, who needed two goals tonight to take the game into extra time, didn’t threaten Daniel Bygrave in the Corinthian goal, as central defenders James Lyons and Jamie Billings snuffed out a toothless Fisher attack.

Fisher boss, Steve Firkins, couldn’t hide his bitter disappointment of exiting the competition.

“We ain’t been able to score in 180 minutes against a mid-table team, same as ourselves and for me that is poor,” he bemoaned.

“The last few weeks has just been pretty poor.  We’ve had enough chances but not been putting them away but tonight I don’t think their keeper has had a serious save to make and that’s the most disappointing thing for me!

“They’ve stuck everybody behind the ball, given us the challenge to break them down.  Instead we keep thumping great big balls into the box, which is simple for their keeper and their back four.  Instead of asking them the way we wanted to play, they just haven’t done it and it’s not acceptable.

“It’s not good enough!  We’re not good enough!  Good luck Corinthian in the next round.”

Longhurst added: “Obviously it’s over two games.  First game, two pieces of brilliance from Lee Barnett to give us a lead to come into this game, which was always going to be difficult.  Fisher are a good side, one of the better sides in the league, who try to play.

“We set up a little bit different this game.  We looked at two slightly different centre midfielders to play in there with RJ (Ryan Johnson).  I thought it was a big plus to get Chris Kinnear back tonight.  He went on holiday and missed the last two or three games so we’ve missed him and he’s come in and done really well.

“It was about coming here, we had a game plan.  We didn’t want to sit back but at the same time the longer it went on and they hadn’t scored the more frustrated we knew they would get and we might create our own chances in the final twenty minutes, which we did and probably should’ve put the game to bed.”

Fisher keeper, Joe Hagan, 20, who is on a dual registration from Tonbridge Angels, where he is understudy to Lee Worgan at the Blue Square Bet (Conference) South club, made some fine saves late on as it was Corinthian who were the more likely to score during an uninspiring stalemate at Champion Hill.

Corinthian, who played a negative 4-5-1 formation, created the game’s first chance inside a minute and a half, but an attempted lob from lone striker Barnett from 35-yards – trying to replicate the first goal in the first leg at Gay Dawn Farm thirteen days ago – dropped over the crossbar.

But a decision from Lewisham based referee Paul Howard denied Corinthian a sixth minute opener – which would have put the tie beyond Fisher’s reach.

Ben Wilson swung in a corner with his left foot from the right, which was met by a towering near post header from Lyons from eight-yards, which bounced down off the crossbar and Ryan Johnson stabbed the ball over the line from a yard out but the referee deemed he had fouled George Beavan and the skipper’s ninth goal of the season was chalked off.

Longhurst said: “We’re a long way from it so it’s difficult to see but in my opinion it looked like there was nothing wrong with it to be honest.”

Had the goal stood then Corinthian would have been home and dry.

Longhurst added: “The game would’ve opened up a lot more in terms of them having to score four goals on the night and over the two games I don’t think they’ve really hurt us too much.  Our goalkeeper hasn’t really had too much to do even though they’ve had a lot of possession.  If we had scored in the sixth minute I don’t think them getting four goals would have been achievable.”

Visiting keeper, Bygrave, 19, made a comfortable save from Danny Tipple’s curling left-footed free-kick from 25-yards and was equal to Peter Afolayan’s right-footed rasping drive from the edge of the D.

Hagan’s kicking during the first half was poor and he almost gifted Corinthian the lead in the 13^th minute when his kick evaded Frankie Warren and fell at Mark Axel’s feet but the midfielder didn’t accept the gift as his 25-yard drive was gathered by the relieved keeper, who made up ground to save beside his left-hand post.

Both camps felt Corinthian left-back Wilson should have been red-carded half-way through the first half for sliding in with his left leg to connect with Warren right in front of the Fisher dug-out, leaving the central midfielder in agony.

The former Thamesmead Town defender was lucky to pick up a yellow card.

“We’ve got young Ben Wilson, who has come over from Thamesmead, he didn’t have the greatest night tonight,” admitted Longhurst.

“I think it’s a sending off, if I’m brutally honest.  I thought he was very lucky to stay on the pitch.  We told him that at half-time.  I think Fisher can feel a little bit aggrieved with that.  I would’ve definitely been calling for it, not calling for him to be sent off, but he was lucky to stay on the pitch.”

Firkins added: “I weren’t happy with it!  I’ve seen red cards given to my players for a lot less than that!  It’s just the way things seem to be going for us.  We don’t seem to be getting the rub of the green.  I weren’t happy with the challenge. It was a poor challenge.”

Fisher winger, Chan Quan, flashed a right-footed shot from 20-yards just past the foot of the near post after going on a twenty-yard run towards the Corinthian penalty area, but Corinthian were never in danger against a disappointing Fisher forward line, which included Jamie Humphris (who is on a dual-registration with Ryman Premier League side Cray Wanderers).

Firkins said: “I said to the lads (the goals) ain’t got to be straight away.  We went in at 0-0 and we’ve got it all to do.  We needed a goal in the first half, obviously it would have been nice to score one early. 

“They set their stall out and it was hard to break down.  I thought in the final third we was poor. We never got round their back and all the things we’ve worked on in training we haven’t done once and that’s the annoying thing for me!  We had plenty of possession but in the final third we were poor!”

The longer the game went on the more comfortable Corinthian were and it was the visitors who created chances to wake up the decent crowd of 110.

A throw from Wilson saw Barnett turn and crack a right-footed angled drive from 20-yards, which was caught by Hagan at his near post inside the opening five minutes of the second half.

And at the other end, Fisher’s nippy striker, Afolyan, cracked a speculative angled drive from distance, which was beaten out by Bygrave at his near post.

With Fisher’s play lacking urgency to claw back their two-goal deficit, despite switching their formation to 3-5-2 for the final 25 minutes, Corinthian created three glorious chances inside the final twenty minutes to win a dire contest.

Firkins explained why that was the case, saying, “As the game went on, we was more and more open at the back.   Second half we started with three at the back and we were pushing George (Beavan) on a little bit more.  We were leaving ourselves exposed.  The most disappointing thing for me is we haven’t really tested their keeper.”

Ryan Johnson dinked the ball into Jamie Taylor’s feet, who laid the ball off to Joe Minter on the overlap and the midfielder turned right-back whipped in an excellent cross towards the near post from the touchline but the unmarked Barnett looped his header over from the corner of the six-yard box.

Longhurst admitted it was a good chance to win the game. “A good ball in from Joe Minter. We moved him out of midfield today to full-back to give us a bit of quality in terms of quality.  Maybe Lee should’ve done a little bit better with that, but it’s his first game back, starting for a while.”
 
Hagan, who leaked in ten goals in a pre-season game for Tonbridge Angels against a rampant Brentford side, thwarted Corinthian within two minutes.

Fisher defender Beavan played the ball across the pitch straight to Corinthian’s sixteen-year-old substitute Matt Holder, who laid the ball off to Johnson, whose driven shot was blocked by Hagan’s legs.  The ball came back out to Taylor, who found Barnett, whose low shot was blocked by a defender and Johnson blasted the follow up over the bar.

Hagan made a fine diving save low to his right to deny substitute Jack Highwood scoring with a right-footed drive from sixteen-yards, but Wilson blasted the rebound high over the crossbar as both sides had to settle for a bore draw.

Longhurst added: “We didn’t put the game to bed.  We had two or three chances, we should be putting into the back of the net.

“We’re a young side, we’ve got two or three older heads in there to help the young kids through and the club’s all about to try and get younger kids to push on and play at a higher level and go and earn some money and play at a decent level.  We’ve just got to give them a decent grounding and if we can teach them the right habits games like tonight is another part of their learning curve. It’s not just about passing the ball and try and do the right things.  You have to dig in and win games like that as well so it’s good for their education.”

With Corinthian now through, Erith Town, Herne Bay and Beckenham Town all go into their second leg ties with a lead.

Longhurst said: “I was here last year and this year and we’ve managed to reach the semi-finals, which is obviously brilliant.  Last year we got knocked out by Herne Bay and they went on to win it.

“Everybody will be the same.  If you can avoid (unbeaten league leaders) Herne Bay you’ve probably got a bit of a better chance (to reach the final).”

Firkins admitted his side didn’t deserve to go through to the last four.

He said: “Over the two legs, I thought we were poor and that’s the end of it!  There’s no other thing I can say.  I can’t make no excuses.  We weren’t good enough. That’s it.  If we play like that against Tunbridge Wells (at Culverden Stadium on Saturday), we’ll get smashed up there as well.”

Fisher: Joe Hagan, Richie Monan, Danny Tipple, Frankie Warren, George Beavan, Billy Walton, Chan Quan (Kennickson Jarrett-Elliott 65), Adam Wadmore (Ellis Wilson-Joseph 76), Peter Afolayan, Jamie Humphris, Chris Hubbard (Mark Sisson 46).
Subs: Charlie Helps, Billy Hensman

Booked: Richie Monan 61, Danny Tipple 90

Corinthian: Daniel Bygrave, Joe Minter, Ben Wilson, Chris Kinnear, James Lyons, Jamie Billings, Alfie May (Matt Holder 68), Ryan Johnson, Mark Axel, Lee Barnett (Jack Highwood 75), Jamie Taylor (Eric Astrom 87).
Subs: Lee Woodyard, Reece Thwaites

Booked: Ben Wilson 22, Chris Kinnear 55

Attendance: 110
Referee: Mr Paul Howard (Lewisham, London SE13)
Assistants: Mr Paul Cain (Croydon, Surrey) & Mr Stephen Roots (Tunbridge Wells)