Kentish Football 
Holmesdale 2-4 Beckenham Town - We were on a different planet to them, says Michael Marks
Tuesday 27th September 2011
HOLMESDALE 2-4 BECKENHAM TOWNKent Hurlimann Football League
Tuesday 27th September 2011
Stephen McCartney reports from Oakley Road
BECKENHAM TOWN assistant manager Michael Marks admitted he can’t wait for their FA Cup Second Qualifying Round tie at Worthing on Saturday.
Fresh from their 5-1 home win over their Kent League rivals Fisher in the FA Carlsberg Vase last Saturday, Beckenham climbed up to ninth place in the table after winning a six-goal thriller at bottom-of-the-table Holmesdale.
They got off to a flying start as French striker Elstrom Die smashed home a loose ball following a seventh minute corner, before left-winger Jake Hobbs converted a 25-minute hat-trick, a brilliant volley, sandwiched between two clinically taken penalties.
Faced with an uphill struggle at 4-0 down at the break, Holmesdale manager Fabio Rossi threw on big target man Steven Strotten at the break and the 23-year-old pulled two goals back for the Bromley outfit and also struck the crossbar with a last-gasp free-kick as Holmesdale piled on the pressure.
“They put us under a bit of pressure didn’t they?” Marks said afterwards.
“Four-nil up at half-time and then I thought the game was a bit too easy for us in the first half and then they came out and had a go but I think we was comfortable.
“I think our minds may have been wondering to Saturday to tell you the truth as we should’ve been six or seven up.”
Holmesdale have won only two of their eleven league and cup games this season, and Rossi awaits his first league win since taking over from Gary Davies, who resigned earlier in the month.
“I don’t think we played bad first half,” Holmesdale coach Ross Mitchell said afterwards.
“Credit to Beckenham first of all, I thought they were a very, very, very good side.
“We came out fighting second half. We told the players at half-time they’ve got to play with a bit of pride and that’s exactly what they’ve done.”
Holmesdale belied their lowly league position and started the local derby on top. Striker Tunde Adermonu blasted a right-footed shot over the crossbar after Dexter Babolola and Matt Hammond combined down the left.
The striker then sent a right-footed shot on the turn into visiting keeper Nick Blue’s gloves, before Beckenham went up the other end and opened the scoring with their first chance inside seven minutes.
Hobbs, who was immense during the first half and gave Beckenham right-back Nathan Paul a nightmare for the 56 minutes that he was on the pitch, whipped in an inswinging corner from the left, which found Carl Gibbs at the far post and his initial shot was blocked, but Die rifled the loose ball, a right-footed shot high into the roof of the net from two yards out.
Marks said: “He got a poachers goal. That’s what he’s all about. Then little Jake got a hat-trick, two penalties and a great volley. A great goal! He’s on fire, little Jake. We had to wrap him up in cotton wool in the end and get him ready for Saturday.”
Mitchell added: “It’s always disappointing to concede from a set-piece. It was a bit of a melee in the box, a bit of a ricochet and they’ve scored a goal but we have to learn from that and work on that.”
Despite their early set-back, lively Holmesdale almost equalised when Robert Wells’ bent a right-footed free-kick around the wall and a diving Blue pushed the ball away from his near post.
Beckenham Town, however, doubled their lead when Wells was guilty of barging Die off the ball on the very edge of the penalty area down the left hand side when the diminutive striker was going away from goal.
Hobbs stepped up and sent goalkeeper Daniel Teeley the wrong way with a right-footed penalty, which nestled into the bottom right-hand corner, to give Jason Huntley’s side a 2-0 lead after 19 minutes.
Teeley excelled when despite being off his line, he got back to tip Hobbs’ hooked right-footed volley from 40-yards onto his crossbar shortly afterwards.
Beckenham called the Holmesdale keeper into action again after full-back Chris Hatt gifted possession to Hobbs, who played the ball inside to striker Alfie Nunn, whose dink released Gibbs, who teed up Hobbs, whose left-footed angled drive was turned around the post by the diving Teeley.
Holmesdale really should have done better when they were presented with a decent chance to get back into the game when Babolola’s hooked pass released Adermonu through on goal but his low shot rolled comfortably to Beckenham keeper Blue.
That miss proved costly as Beckenham Town raced into a 3-0 lead in the 38th minute, with the best goal of the game.
Gibbs smashed a diagonal cross from the right into the penalty area and Hobbs cracked a fine low right-footed volley, which whistled across Teeley and nestled into the bottom far corner from just inside the penalty area.
There was concern over the state of the goalmouth at the Cricket Ground end of the ground before the game – Beckenham physio Andre Vincent was seen making repairs to the pitch with a shovel and soil before the game – and the pitch played a part in Beckenham’s fourth goal in the 44th minute.
Referee Martin Lehane pointed to the spot after Die was fouled by Ricky Hardie and Hobbs stepped up and his resulting right-footed penalty hit a divot and bounced up high into the top right-hand corner, which completely deceived Teeley, for Hobbs’ tenth goal of the season.
Both camps were asked their views on the penalty decisions.
Beckenham’s Marks said: “I thought all three of them were all penalties. I didn’t see them any different to tell the truth. No complaints about their one. No complaints about the other two, no! I thought the referee done alright to be fair. He done quite well.”
Holmesdale’s Mitchell added: “I think the referee didn’t have the best game tonight in terms of making decisions. I thought he got the two penalties wrong. I think Beckenham had a better claim for a penalty in the second half (when Casey Jones brought down Soloman Karche in the 80th minute).
“Wells is about four stone three and he’s managed to barge a player over. I don’t see how that’s happened!
“I think the referee’s had a poor game in terms of decisions and I think we should’ve had another penalty in the second half but that doesn’t take nothing away from Beckenham’s performance. It’s not about the referee, it’s about the two teams that are out there.”
With Strotten thrown on to form a three-man Holmesdale front line, Holmesdale came out of the blocks well in the second half and Adermonu stung Blue’s fingers with an early chance.
Strotten was a right handful for Beckenham’s two central defenders of Danny Lawson and Malik Fofana, and he released Wells down the right but the winger took a poor touch after he cut inside and his right-footed shot arrowed over the crossbar.
Marks admitted their threat ceased as soon as Hobbs was withdrawn just before the hour mark so he’ll be firing on all cylinders against Ryman League Division One South high-flyers Worthing on Saturday.
He said: “We looked after him, it might have been the wrong thing to do to tell the truth because when he went off it just seemed to be a different game but we should’ve buried the game. We should’ve been seven or eight nil up.
“We missed four great chances when it was 4-0 and when the big boy (Strotten) came on for them, done brilliantly didn’t he? He could’ve had a hat-trick but we’re looking forward to Saturday now.”
Marks added: “First half we showed our class. We were on a different planet to them and then second half I don’t know if we stopped playing or what. I think they (our players) thought it was (won at half-time). By the end of the game I was delighted that the whistle went because being fair to them (Holmesdale), there was only one way for them to come out though, if they had anything about them. They had to come out and show a bit of bottle!”
Holmesdale went route one as they pulled a goal back in the 69th minute. A punt straight down the middle by Teeley was flicked on by Strotten to release substitute Rod Davies, who was brought down by Lawson.
Strotten stepped up and fired a right-footed penalty into the bottom right-hand corner.
Beckenham should have put the game out of Holmesdale’s reach when substitute Steve McNamara played an excellent diagonal cross to find Gibbs, who’s first time shot bounced wide of the near post.
Holmesdale pulled a second goal back in the 77th minute, as Strotten scored his fourth goal in three games.
He ran at the Beckenham defence, easily beating Lawson and Fofana and managed to get the ball out from underneath his feet and stroked a superb right-footed finish into the bottom right-hand corner.
Mitchell praised his two-goal hero, who was carrying a little bit of weight.
“Strotts is a good player. I’ve known Strotts for a while now and he scores goals for fun. He knows what he has to do to crack on from here but that’s four (goals) in three from him now and I think he’s put a stake down for a place (at leaders Herne Bay) on Saturday.
“He could have had four. He had one he just put past the post and he’s hit the bar, but he’ll do that all day long. He’ll score goals for fun and if he was a little bit fitter he’ll be one of the best strikers in this league.”
Marks added: “I’m a bit upset tonight with the way we’ve conceded goals because our expectations are so much higher than that!”
Holmesdale pressed for further success and referee Mr Lehane bottled a crucial decision when French defender Fofana got away with a handball shout after Davies blasted the ball towards goal.
Beckenham, who were dangerous down the flanks, called Teeley into action again when left-back McNamara was denied from 30-yards, the keeper diving to turn the ball around the post.
Another punt straight down the middle by Teeley dropped over Beckenham’s central defensive pairing and Strotten came agonisingly close to scoring his hat-trick in the 86th minute when his right-footed drive flashed inches wide of the foot of the left-hand post.
Fofana was penalised for handball, this time on the very edge of the penalty area, and Strotten cracked a right-footed free-kick against the top of the crossbar with Blue rooted to the spot deep into injury time.
Herne Bay remain at the summit, following their 4-0 win at Deal Town tonight, and Mitchell is looking forward to their trip to Winch’s Field at the weekend.
He said: “Beckenham are a very good side. Herne Bay are a very good side. Both, I would’ve thought, will be looking to do well in the league this year, if not go and win it.
“Herne Bay were close last year but we’ve learned a lot from the game today and we’ll take that into Saturday’s game and one thing they can be sure off is they are going to get a game.”
Despite only having one win from eight games to their name this season, Mitchell says team spirit and character will lift Holmesdale away from the basement.
“I’m not going to stand here and say it’s been good because it’s not,” said Mitchell, who is also the club’s secretary.
“We’ve won two games, one against Sevenoaks, one in the London Cup (a 3-0 win at Cockfosters) but Fabio has been given the task now to rebuild the side and one of the things we want to instil in the side is a good team ethic and good team spirit and anyone who watched the game tonight will see that from the side in the second half.
“We’ve got some good characters in that changing room. What we’ve got to do now and unfortunately what we haven’t done to date is settle the side down and get a consistent side. I think Fabio has managed to do that. He’s managed to get players in, he’s got players who are Holmesdale players and we’ve brought a few in. We’ve brought some of our reserves through who have done fantastic for us and now it’s a chance to build a team spirit because that will win you good games so team spirit is key for us.”
If Worthing – a side that have a 100% league record at home – sent a scout to Oakley Road, Marks hopes his side has given him plenty of food for thought.
“Let’s hope they went at half-time!” he joked. “I hope he left at half-time the geeza if he was here to see us go 4-0 up and walk off. If he stayed to the end he might’ve looked at it a bit different!”
Holmesdale: Daniel Teeley, Chris Hatt, Mark Lewis, Covey Thete (Steven Strotten 46), Ricky Hardie, Casey Jones, Robert Wells, Lyndsay Prescott-Kerr, Tunde Adermonu (Rod Davies 62), Matt Hammond, Dexter Babolola (David May 72).
Sub: Dwayne Agyemang
Goals: Steven Strotten 69 (pen), 77
Booked: Mark Lewis 45
Beckenham Town: Nick Blue, Nathan Paul, Byron Beard (Steve McNamara 56), Malik Fofana, Danny Lawson, Harry Draper, Carl Gibbs, Danny McKone (Soloman Karche 76), Elstrom Die, Alfie Nunn, Jake Hobbs (Joe Jackson 56).
Subs: Ben Slade, Adam Greenways
Goals: Elstrom Die 7, Jake Hobs 19 (pen), 38, 44 (pen)
Attendance: 49
Referee: Mr Martin Lehane (Bexleyheath)
Assistants: Mr Steve Martin (Bromley) & Mr Andrew Vincent (Bexleyheath)
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