Kentish Football 
Fisher 3-0 Norton Sports - Everyone loves to hate us but we don't care, says Norton's Ben Taylor
Sunday 19th September 2010
FISHER 3-0 NORTON SPORTS
FA Carlsberg Vase Second Qualifying Round
Sunday 19th September 2010
Stephen McCartney reports from Champion Hill Stadium
NORTON SPORTS player-manager Ben Taylor, who appears to be the Kent League Public Enemy Number One, has promised to make things a nightmare for visiting sides when the club return to Woodstock Park next month.
The 30-year-old central defender, who missed today’s FA Vase defeat to fellow Safety Net Associates Kent League side Fisher due to a foot injury picked up during the battle of Winch’s Field against landlords Herne Bay last Wednesday, was criticised by Herne Bay chairman John Bathurst following the 1-1 draw, for his side’s “ale house tactics”.
But Taylor, who was speaking to www.kentishfootball.co.uk following his side’s 3-0 defeat at Champion Hill, defended his corner.
“It just annoys me really,” he said. “I’m a bit p****d off with this, I shouldn’t swear, I apologise, but at the end of the day, I mean for the first 25 minutes we played Herne Bay off the pitch. Anyone at the ground will tell you we played them off the park.
“A player’s booted me, I’ve gone off injured, same player, it could’ve been a red card, he’s gone through my keeper, my keeper’s gone off injured and then another three or four incidents after it and they’ve got the cheek to turn around saying we’re kicking people off the pitch.
“At the end of the day they’re babies, it’s sour grapes. We drew with them 1-1, they don’t like it because we’ve taken points off them. As far as I’m concerned they’ve taken points off us!
“I think all of that is just babyish mate, it’s just pathetic! It’s not really worth talking about.”
He added: “I would just like to say I’m not a baby, I don’t have sour grapes, football’s football. Both (sets of) players were out there putting it about.
“It weren’t the friendliest of games, it never will be because it’s a local derby, but I’d like to go on record and hopefully you’ll print this and say thank you very much to Herne Bay’s chairman and thanks for letting us use their ground. I appreciate everything they’ve done.
“It’s just a shame it’s come to this, which I think there’s a lot more behind the scenes. Canterbury are moving in, I think, more the fact that he wants to get rid of us because he knows we’re going.”
Norton Sports have since vacated Herne Bay’s Winch’s Field and are making the finishing touches to their Sittingbourne based ground at Broadoak Road, close to the Kent Business Park, although it seems that the Kent League will be giving the club a year’s grace, similar to Holmesdale, when it comes to installing floodlighting.
Taylor said: “Well, we had our ground grading half-eight Monday morning and providing we get the hard standing done and the dug-outs done - but the hard standing’s virtually done, another day or two that’s done. The dug-outs have been extended so that’ll be done this week, so we’ll be there anyway whenever our next home game is, it will be at Woodstock Park.”
He added: “We thank Herne Bay, it’s a shame we’ve gone out on that note. The chairman wanted me to apologise for my players kicking their players, apparently so, and the Norton supporters shouting things at him, but it’s alright for their players to kick my players and their crowd to abuse my players, that’s alright?
“I’ve got to be apologising to Herne Bay’s chairman for something that’s out of my hands?”
And Taylor has promised to make their home a fortress to rival clubs.
“We’re going to batter Herne Bay,” he laughed. “I’m hoping that we’ll get a few more people watching us, rallying around us and for once the opposition team can be on the other end of a barrage of abuse from the crowd because I’m sick of playing away every week.
“You still get the local Herne Bay supporters and you still get abuse and you think we’re supposed to be playing at home here and I’m being abused by the supporters but it’ll be nice to have supporters backing us.
“I thank all the ones that have been there and come to watch but I think we should at least double, treble our support at Woodstock so hopefully we’ll just establish ourselves there and hopefully make it a nightmare for teams to come to hopefully.”
Taylor has been criticised by a Herne Bay supporter on an internet fans’ forum and he tells him to come face-to-face instead of hiding behind a computer screen.
“You’ve got the one from Herne Bay going around putting on the internet, “I’m happy Ben Taylor gets injured and never kicks a ball again!”
“I mean, what is all that about? If he wants to lower himself enough to lower himself - If he wants to talk face-to-face he’s more than welcome to. I’ll buy him a beer.”
Back to today, Fisher stretched their unbeaten run to four games by booking their place in the first round of the FA Carlsberg Vase by taking the three goalscoring chances that came their way.
Norton Sports played the better football and created more goalscoring chances and although central defender, skipper Jack Goodger made three strong challenges, it was Fisher that committed the more fouls during this second qualifying round tie.
A dire opening 20 minutes, Norton Sports should have broken the deadlock when a driven shot from big target man Andy Irvine was blocked and Jamie Sharman flashed a shot just past the post from 25-yards out.
Fisher’s first chance arrived when Hulusi Mustafa evaded a strong sliding challenge from Daniel Baverstock to find Rob Hughes out on the left and his cross was nodded wide by lone striker Raphael Akala.
Norton Sports showed their Corinthian spirit just past the half-hour mark when Akala was released down the right wing and cut inside full-back Lewis Taylor, before going down with a turned right ankle. Taylor responded by stroking the ball a few yards out of play before calling for the referee’s attention so the Fisher number nine could receive treatment.
Norton’s best chance to score came in the 36th minute when midfielder Ryan Rook (who had a pre-season trial with Ryman Premier League side Tonbridge Angels before returning) whipped in a cross from the right for striker Harry Goodger to stab a shot from close range at the near post, which was grabbed low down by Fisher keeper George Kamarasi.
But despite all those chances, Fisher grabbed the lead, against the run of play, after 42 minutes.
A ball out of defence by striker-turned-central defender Cedric Abraham released George Savage on the break down the right flank and his bouncing centre evaded Akala inside the box but Hughes was left unmarked at the far post and fired the ball past keeper Nick Shaw.
Things got even better for Fisher - or even worse for Norton Sports - as the hosts doubled their lead within three minutes as a ball through the middle was latched on to by Akala, who reacted to sloppy defending from Daniel Baverstock to steer the ball past Shaw into an empty net.
Taylor, who made a double substitution at the break, felt his side had pulled a goal back within the opening two minutes of the second half.
A throw in from substitute John Emmerson was picked up by Harry Goodger, who cut the ball back to Jack Goodger, who delivered a first time cross from the right and Irvine’s back header looped over the Fisher keeper and was destined to drop in at the far post, but right-back Kris Hollidge produced an excellent acrobatic kick to punt the ball off the line.
Fisher hit Norton Sports on the break and Akala came close to scoring again but his angled drive arrowed over the crossbar, before Kamarasi made a fine block to his right to prevent substitute Ashley Baverstock’s low drive, which clearly moved, finding the back of the net.
Fisher’s flattering third arrived in the 61st minute as they punished a sloppy mistake from substitute defender Emmerson inside the box and he gave the ball and the ball found it’s way over to Mustafa, who produced an excellent finish, driving a low shot across Shaw to find the bottom far corner from outside the box.
Fisher squandered an excellent chance to have grabbed a fourth when Hughes released substitute Dexter Babalola through on goal and after cutting inside three players he decided he was going nowhere so he laid the ball off to Einar Benedikttson, who played the ball through for an offside Babalola, who slotted the ball into the net.
Norton’s luck was summed up when Ashley Baverstock’s left-footed drive left the Fisher keeper rooted to the spot, only to see the ball bounce agonisingly off the foot of the post.
This sparked a revival in Norton’s play, as they threw everything but the kitchen sink at Fisher, but the hosts went on to keep their third clean sheet of the season.
Sharman’s left-wing cross found Irvine at the near post and his low shot was parried by Kamarasi and Lewis was on hand to sweep the ball clear, before the Fisher keeper saved Sharman’s left-footed angled drive.
Taylor admitted that last week’s events against their landlords and their ground situation took it’s toll.
“Fair play to Fisher, they had three chances and took all three of them, assisted by three Norton players,” he said.
“But we went into today’s game, there’s a lot going on behind closed doors with Herne Bay, the ground and all that and basically even if we won today we wouldn’t have a pitch to play on. We’d have to get something sorted out so we went out here with the best intensions to win obviously.
“For the first 20 minutes they didn’t have a look in but they get a goal against the run of play. The second goal is a mistake.
“We came out for the second half and let them in again then we’re playing again and I just think we could have comfortably come away here today comfortably with a result.
“You’ve watched the game, we could’ve comfortably got something today, but I think they should feel very happy. We’ve come here and we ain’t scored. We’ve done everything else other than put the ball in the net.”
When it was put to him about Herne Bay’s chairman describing his side, more or less as a “pub side”, Taylor responded: “You’ve watched us. Do we look like a pub side? It’s not fair. I could lower myself and get involved in that conversation but what’s the point?
“Don’t get me wrong, we’ll mix it up with people, we do, but I meant there’s a saying Marc Seager (Herne Bay’s assistant manager) said Wednesday night. He said “Ben, people are going to call you Millwall. Everyone loves to hate you” - and we don’t care!”
When Taylor was told the statistics of the fouls committed today (Fisher’s 23 to Norton’s 14), he laughed: “Thank you very much! Could you print that in bold and send it to the Herne Bay Times because all this animal stuff and we’re like Lordswood and we only want to kick people and we only want to bully officials, I mean, it’s just a load of rubbish!
“We’ll continue in the (Kent) League and my goal now is to finish above Herne Bay and I’ll throw that out there and if I do finish above them I’ll give them a persona phone call saying thank you very much just to mix it up.”
Fisher boss Gary Lisney, meanwhile, had no axe to grind and was pleased with the result and they now look forward to welcoming Combined Counties League outfit Warlingham in the first round proper on Saturday 2 October.
“We’ve looked sharp in the games we’ve played this year,” he told www.kentishfootball.co.uk afterwards.
“I don’t think we’ve been drawing blanks in many games so we’re always got the ability to score a goal with pace up top, a bit of flair, a bit of skill, so we’re always going to create chances.
“We played very well against Deal last week and didn’t convert our chances, but we defended very, very well that day as well. Deal came out at us in the second half and we were very resolute and very together and a clean sheet today, so now complaints.”
The Fisher boss was pleased with the timings of his side’s three goals.
He said: “I said to the players at half-time, two-nil up, the next goal is really, really important and it was vital we’d get a third goal and perhaps enjoy a little bit of possession last half-an-hour or whatever it was and if they get a goal back it’s a whole different game.”
On Norton Sports’ domination following that third goal, Lisney said: “We played 4-5-1 today so it probably invites a little bit more pressure. We’re really good going forward with a bit of pace so it suits us a little bit as well sometimes to soak up a little bit of pressure.”
For some reason the Football Association haven’t published prize money details for this season’s FA Vase or FA Trophy - but Chris Tucker's side Warlingham visit Champion Hill in the next round in exactly two weeks time. (since confirmed to be played on Saturday 2 October)
Lisney said: “The whole football community is very superstitious so if we played Ringwood on a Sunday and got through and we’ve played Norton Sports today and got through so Sunday sounds good to me.
“I don’t know anything about them, it’s not even worth looking I don’t think to be honest with you. We could go and watch a game or whatever but I don’t think that’s going to tell me too much so we’ll prepare as we always have for every game, be it league or Cup.”
* Following this report was published it has been confirmed that Fisher will play Warlingham at Champion Hill on Saturday 2 October. Dulwich Hamlet's home game against Ramsgate has been re-arranged back to it's original date in November.
* Following this report was published it has been confirmed that Fisher will play Warlingham at Champion Hill on Saturday 2 October. Dulwich Hamlet's home game against Ramsgate has been re-arranged back to it's original date in November.
Fisher: George Kamarasi, Kris Hollidge, Mark Lewis, Jamie Lawrence, Jimmy Beauchamp, Hulusi Mustafa (Kieran Burrell 82), George Savage, Einar Benediktsson (Adrian Ma 75), Raphael Akala (Dexter Babalola 57), Cedric Abraham, Rob Hughes.
Subs: Callum Roberts, Daniel Dean.
Goals: Rob Hughes 42, Raphael Akala 45, Hulusi Mastafa 61
Booked: Adrian Ma 90
Norton Sports: Nick Shaw, Michael Green, Lewis Taylor, Daniel Baverstock (John Emmerson 46), Jack Goodger, Lewis Rivett, Ryan Rook (Ashley Baverstock 46), Tony Clark, Andy Irvine, Harry Goodger (Robert Welling 59), Jamie Sharman.
Subs: Scott Appleton, Ben Taylor.
Booked: Jack Goodger 43
Attendance: 75
Referee: Mr Stefan Malczewski (Ashtead, Surrey)
Assistants: Mr Barrie Gale (Cheam, Surrey) & Mr Tim Dowdeswell (Epsom, Surrey)
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