I'll certainly be making a big charge for the league next year, says Micky Hazard

MICKY HAZARD says he loves teaching the youngsters at Sevenoaks Town the beautiful game.

Sevenoaks Town recorded their largest FA Vase win with a blistering 5-0 home win over their Southern Counties East Football League rivals Canterbury City at Greatness Park yesterday afternoon.

Target-man, Harry Smith, 18, grabbed the headlines with four goals and Jarmeel Jno-Baptise smashed home a right-footed hooked volley into the top corner from ten-yards.

Sevenoaks Town now look forward to a home tie against Lancing on 21 September.

Hazard, 53, travels down from Sawbridgeworth in Hertfordshire to coach the youngsters at Greatness Park, something that he has enjoyed doing for the past three years.

The club made wholesale changes during the summer and youth team manager Paul Lansdale took over the chairmanship from Tony Smart and is now first team manager and has given the club a new lease of life.

Hazard, who helped Tottenham Hotspur win The FA Cup in 1982 and the UEFA Cup (Europa League in today’s money) two years’ later, also played for Chelsea, Portsmouth and Swindon Town during a seventeen-year playing career.

When asked why he coaches at Sevenoaks Town, Hazard replied: “Because I got linked up with them three years’ ago, somehow, I don’t know how it came about, but I’ve been coaching them for a while and Paul (Lansdale) the chairman asked me to get more heavily involved. I have done and I’ve been involved for two and a half, three years now.

“It’s a good club. Everything they stand for I believe in. The good.  We try to get our players to behave respectively and sometimes I don’t because I’m a pro and I’ve been brought up to be a winner, which I try to teach them to be a winner, with a little bit more dignity if you like.

“We’re trying to teach them all the right things to bring kids’ through and give them a chance and you’re welcome at our club, you’ve got a place to come and play and I love it. It’s what I stand for.”

Sevenoaks Town have a young side – their entire back four against Canterbury City contained eighteen-year-old’s and Hazard knows they will make mistakes during the course of the season.

He said: “We’ll have periods in games and in the seasons when we’re not playing as well as we can and it’s about how well were prepared to fight and dig in those periods.

“If we fight and dig as hard as we can when we’re not playing well and the times when we are playing well it will stand us in good stead because that beautiful football with that desire and will to win will all add us to make us a much better team.”

Sunderland born Hazard added: “Were trying to preach the beautiful game and some people say you can’t do it at a lower level. Maybe you can’t?  Maybe you won’t win things but when these boys gain their experience in a years’ or two years’ time, experience of playing and fighting at this level and knowing the quality of our play that they’re capable of playing, who knows what they can achieve?”

Sevenoaks Town joined the Kent League back in 2003 and their highest ever placing was sixth-place in season 2009-10.

When asked what his aspirations are for the season ahead, Hazard replied: “I’m here to teach them and one day make us a very, very, very good side. That’s our aim. 

“We will learn from each game and the boys’ will learn and whenever we play they will be in a game and they will come across some quality football and we will go out to learn. That’s the first priority for us, to learn and to develop and in a years’ time what we are experiencing now, we’d have learnt and be ready for next time so we’re going into every game thinking we’ve got a chance.

“The aspirations are, it’s maybe a year early. Next year I’ll certainly be making a big charge for the league. I’m not prepared to put pressure on the boys’ by saying we’re going to win the league this season, but we’ll shock a few people along the way and I think they’ll be surprised by the quality of our football and surprised how competitive we can be as well.  We’re a good side. We’re going to be a good side.”

Whyteleafe arrive at Greatness Park on Tuesday night fresh from their 2-0 win over Greenwich Borough at Church Road at the weekend.

The Surrey outfit are in fourth-place in the Southern Counties East Football League table with four wins and a draw from their opening five league games.

They are one of only two sides in the division that have made it through to The FA Cup First Qualifying Round, the other being Tunbridge Wells.

Sevenoaks Town remain in the bottom six, having collected one win from their opening four games.

Hazard said: “Title favourites, but who cares?  I don’t think about the opposition.”

Visit Sevenoaks Town’s website: www.sevenoakstownfc.co.uk

Sevenoaks Town  v  Whyteleafe
Southern Counties East Football League
Tuesday 10^th September 2013
Kick Off 7:45pm
at Greatness Park, Mill Lane, Seal Road, Sevenoaks, Kent TN14 5BU