Kentish Football 
Fisher 1-0 Hendon - We're looking a decent side, says Fisher boss Steve Firkins
FISHER 1-0 HENDON
Pre-Season Friendly
Monday 30th July 2012
Stephen McCartney reports from Champion Hill Stadium
FISHER manager Steve Firkins says he has a selection headache ahead of their opening Kent Hurlimann Football League fixture at Tunbridge Wells at the weekend.
Firkins was delighted with his side’s performance during their impressive 1-0 win over Hendon – a side that finished in seventh-place in the Ryman Premier League (which is two division’s higher than The Fish) last season.
A fine finish from midfielder Richie Monan, 24, inside the opening eight minutes of the game ensured Fisher signed off their pre-season campaign with a morale boosting victory, ahead of their trip to Culverden Stadium on Saturday.
Hendon fielded a strong squad at Champion Hill, which included former Dover Athletic and Gillingham star Junior Lewis, 38, who is Hendon’s player-coach and midfield play-maker Darren Currie, 37, who was a full-time professional at several clubs up until 2011, before he dropped down into Conference South with Boreham Wood at the start of last season, before signing for Hendon last November.
Firkins, who has appointed Gary Davies as his assistant manager, said he was pleased that his side bounced back from their 3-0 defeat to Farleigh Rovers at the weekend.
He said: “We were abysmal on Saturday. I think the players know that!
“What allowed us to play was that Hendon are a footballing side as well and they play good football so we tried to match them.
“I think overall they had more possession than us over the course of the game but I think our shape looked good. We pressed them in the right areas and I think we restricted them to a minimal amount of chances so that’s what I was really pleased about.”
Hendon played their own brand of carpet football during the entire game and both teams should be applauded for keeping the ball on the deck, which produced an eye-catching game of football for the football purists in the crowd at Champion Hill.
Hendon’s Ben Goode was the busier of the two goalkeepers and he was called into action on two minutes when Zac Henry unleashed a right-footed angled drive from 25-yards, which forced the keeper to dive full-length to his right to push the ball away to safety.
Fisher scored what turned out to be the winning goal inside the opening eight minutes.
Midfielder Adam Wadmore chipped the ball in between the two Hendon central defenders and Monan nipped in and dinked a right-footed shot past the advancing Goode and the ball bounced into the middle of an empty net.
Firkins said: “It was a good start. I just felt after the performance on Saturday we had a chat and I said we’ve got one more game. There’s lots of opportunities for the lads to come in and stake a claim for this coming Saturday and most of them took their chances.
“It’s going to be a nice problem for me Saturday to pick a side to go down to Tunbridge Wells.”
Speaking about the winning goal, Firkins added: “I thought it was a well worked goal. Again, they were a big side, a good side. It was going to take something a little bit special I think to break them down.
“Richie is a good player. I’ve always rated Richie. This is his first pre-season that’s he’s had. He normally goes away with his family but he’s sort of sacrificed that this year to try and have a good pre-season.
“We missed him over the last two weeks because he had a bit of a groin strain. He came back tonight. I wanted to give him 90. I was quite tempted to take him off after about sixty minutes.”
Fisher created more openings than their higher-league opponents, who were more than content to spray hundreds of passes around their own half of the field in a Spanish-esq passing game.
Fisher should have doubled their lead when lone striker Lee Wilson was left unmarked inside the Hendon penalty area and he met Monan’s right-wing cross with a glancing header, which sailed wide from ten-yards.
And after at least 20 Hendon passes inside the Green’s half, the ball was won back by Fisher and Rob Depeazer noticed that Goode had strayed off his line and cracked a right-footed shot from 45-yards, which was sailing towards the top left hand corner before the keeper reacted by sticking out his right hand above his head to deny the former Greenwich Borough midfielder a worldy.
Hendon’s only chance of the first half saw seventeen-year-old Fisher keeper Billy Hensman charge to the edge of his penalty box to thwart the impressive Jordan Clarke, who had latched onto Currie’s ball over the top from inside the Hendon half of the pitch.
That chance was to be the last one of the first half and Fisher went in at the break with their lead intact.
Firkins said: “Overall, possession wise they probably had more possession but we mixed it up and got at them in good areas and we actually created chances for ourselves. If it would have been two I don’t think it would have been an injustice but unfortunately it wasn’t.
“We’ve gone 1-0 up early, eight minutes. We’ve gone through the entire game and not conceded, which was the most pleasing thing for me. We looked good. Our shape looked good and I was really happy for the players.”
Hendon made three changes at the break and they came out with more purpose but the solid Fisher defence had formed a solid wall in front of their second-choice keeper Hensman, who wasn’t tested.
Fisher had made one change at the break and seventeen-year-old attacker Orlando Richards had pace to burn.
And the Academy product almost doubled Fisher’s lead fourteen minutes into the second half when he was released down the right channel and looked up and sent an ambitious right-footed drive from 35-yards sailing over the Hendon crossbar.
Firkins said: “He does look good the lad. He was recommended to me by Adam Lawrence (our Academy manager) I said just bring him down. They sent him down. If they’re good enough they’re old enough as far as I’m concerned.
“We had three seventeen-year-olds out there today so I’m really pleased that young lads like that can play with that type of composure.”
Firkins was once again thrilled with the emergence of central defender Ben Frempah, 17.
He said: “He was from the Welling Academy. He came in to me pre-season. From the moment I saw him I thought he was something special the lad so we’ve signed him so we’re discussing some terms with him. Hopefully we can sort something out so we can keep hold of him but he is a good player. We’re trying to get him signed to the club on another form. We haven’t got no budget but there is another option that we could take possibly so we’re looking at ways and means.”
Richards turned provider when he stole the ball off sloppy Hendon substitute right-back Adam Stoter before freeing Henry down the left and after cutting into the box his left-footed drive was pushed away by Goode, who dived to his left to deny the Fisher midfielder.
Hendon rallied in the final fifteen minutes and a poor kick out by Hensman fell to James Burgess out on the flank, but the Hendon’s skipper’s shot sailed harmlessly over from 35-yards.
And a free-kick from Hendon’s Lewis Rolfe took a deflection as it curled just wide of the near post, but despite nearly five minutes of time added on Fisher held on to record a 50% record from their eight pre-season outings to set them up for the start of the new season.
Firkins added: “I was pleased with the clean sheet more than anything. I was just pleased with the way we defended. I think we defended really, really well because it’s (Hendon) a very, very good side.
“I’m really, really pleased not for myself but for the lads because they worked hard tonight. After Saturday it was bit of a downer.
Fisher will train on Tuesday and Thursday night ahead of their season opener against Martin Larkin’s side, who finished in fifth-place last season.
“Do you know what? I’m probably one of the only managers who like pre-season,” said Firkins. “I’m quite disappointed that pre-season finishes. You just put in about 30 players and watch them play and that’s it and then it comes down to the nitty-gritty of it. It’s funny. I’ve always like pre-season.
“We’re excited. I think everybody is once it gets started. We’ve all got our hopes and dreams haven’t we? We’re all starting off on a level footing and then come Saturday a few of us are disappointed or whatever so I just hope that I’m not too disappointed put it that way.”
Fisher: Billy Hensman, Danny Taylor, Femi Olugbemi (Sean Brown 68), Frankie Warren, Ben Frempah, Rob Depeazer (Hulusi Mustafa 61), Zac Henry, Adam Wadmore (Steve O’Donnell 79), Lee Wilson (Damien Ramsamy 53), Richie Monan, Ope Aromona (Orlando Richards 46).
Subs: Pani Oritis, Luqman Adesina, Hakeem Griffiths
Goal: Richie Monan 8
Booked: Rob Depeazer 34
Hendon: Ben Goode (Cameron Inch 83), Lee Flavin (Adam Stoter 65), Lewis Rolfe, Nicholas Bondon (Richard Morais 46), James Burgess, Junior Lewis (Daniel Aboye 76), Jordan Clarke, Ashley Lewis, Brad Ambrose (Michael Ramond 46), Darren Currie, Jerome Federico (Louis Adjei 46).
Sub: Gino Kakulo
Booked: Jordan Clarke 52
Attendance: 81
Referee: Mr Sikiru Idris (Denmark Hill, London SE5)
Assistants: Mr Andrew Okocha (Peckham, London SE15) & Mr Andrey Laschikov (Clapham, London SW11)
Red Dragon I.T. Ltd