Tunbridge Wells 2-1 Sevenoaks Town - We wanted to put the record straight - Larkin

Thursday 08th April 2010

TUNBRIDGE WELLS 2-1 SEVENOAKS TOWN
Bulmers Cider Kent League
Thursday 8th April 2010
Stephen McCartney reports from Culverden Stadium

AN INSPIRATIONAL pre-match team talk from manager Martin Larkin ensured pumped-up Tunbridge Wells stunned their local-rivals Sevenoaks Town to claim the local bragging rights for the first time in four clashes this season.

Ashford-born Larkin, who now lives across the border in Hove, may be a quietly spoken man off-the-field, but his hyped up team-talk, where he demanded that his side “take it with the scuff of the neck,” and that “we’re all in this together,” and that the team in red showed “desire” and that “work-rate brings rewards,” sent his troops ready for a battle that Sevenoaks’ players couldn’t cope with.

From the very first whistle Tunbridge Wells’ players meant business and they got off to a flying start as the returning Danny Powell punished a mistake to hand the home side the lead.

But calm sixth-placed Sevenoaks levelled just before the hour-mark through Chris Walker’s far post header, before fifth-from-bottom Tunbridge Wells collected the points, courtesy of Andy McMath’s penalty just four minutes from time.

“We’ve done well against Sevenoaks for all the years since I’ve been here and the FA Cup (defeat) hurt us at the start of the year,” Larkin explained to www.kentishfootball.co.uk afterwards.

“The league game hurt more, losing up there, after playing so well, so we wanted to put the record straight, just gave them a gentle nudge to let them know we’re still here.

“I think we did that today. We played well all round the pitch.”

Larkin felt his troops deserved to tale the three points.

“I’ve said to them, we’ve been playing so well recently, now we’ve got to dig in one day and grind something out.

“I think we did that and I thought we played really well. I’m going to be a little bit biased, but the best stuff going forward came from us!

“They had the option off their long throws and a couple of other things but nothing that really bothered us too much. We played the better football.”

Tunbridge Wells got in Sevenoaks’ faces from the first whistle to the last, and the visitors just couldn’t live with the passion all around the Culverden Stadium pitch.

The home side created a couple of half-chances, which weren’t taken by Keelan Mooney and Powell, before they took a deserved sixteenth minute lead.

Sevenoaks left-back Michael Cook was sloppy when his attempted header back towards his goalkeeper Sean Funnell failed to find it’s intended target. Instead Powell pounced onto the loose ball and hooked his shot past the stranded keeper and the ball bounced into an empty net.

Despite playing poorly, Sevenoaks did go close on three occasions during the first half, but the Kent League’s leading goalscorer, Bill Shinners, was denied on three occasions by goalkeeper Michal Czanner and a couple of goal-line clearances.

Tunbridge Wells did have a second goal ruled out - an offside flag had already been raised by the time Powell had headed past Funnell, following Carl Carnell’s header across the box after Alex Rich’s right-wing cross.

But man-of-the-match Powell should have been red-carded for a sickening challenge in the 41st minute - for some reason referee Mr Saul Kay didn’t even issue a card!

Malik Fotana slid in to tackle Powell, and as Powell tried to jump over the grounded big central defender, it appeared that Powell stepped on the left-side of Fotana’s face.

Jones, along with his physiotherapist, issued treatment and as Jones trudged off the pitch at the half-time interval, he described Powell’s challenge as “abysmal!”

Powell was a menace to his former side all night and he really should have wrapped up the victory early in the second half but he powered Mooney’s cross from the left over the crossbar from just six-yards out.

But Sevenoaks Town clawed themselves back into the game, levelling through Chris Walker’s eighth goal of the season, after 57 minutes.

Following a trade-mark long throw from Jamie Johnston, the home side didn’t react when Joe Minter had time and space to whip in a cross from the right and nippy left-sided winger Walker was left unmarked at the far post to power a header past the exposed Slovakian goalkeeper.

Czanner was penalised for handling outside his penalty area as Shinners pressurised him, but Minter’s driven free-kick from inches outside the box (in a central position) was blocked by Czanner, who made amends.

Sevenoaks keeper Funnell made his best save of the match halfway through the second half when Andy McMath’s free-kick was met by the unmarked Powell and his bullet header was destined to find the bottom far corner, but the keeper got down low to make a first-class save.

Sevenoaks didn’t really look like scoring; the closest that they came was when Fotana’s drive from distance bounced into Czanner’s arms.

But Tunbridge Wells claimed the morale-boosting victory in the final four minutes, which inflicted a third straight defeat on their local rivals.

McMath floated a free-kick into the Sevenoaks penalty area and Johnston was penalised (and then booked) for pulling down Tom Davey at the far post.

McMath sent Funnell the wrong way with an expertly taken right-footed penalty and Larkin was full of praise for his two goalscorers.

“I’ve been after Powell for quite a while, all year to be honest,” he said.

“He was here a while ago, sort of drifted away, went to East Grinstead. He’s someone who works really, really hard. He can finish as well and he took his goal really well. I think he can score goals in this league because he’s work rate is exceptional. He really puts pressure on defenders.

“Again, he fit’s the bill. He’s local, he’s young, he’s talented. He said to me before the game he started at Sevenoaks in the youth section years ago and he wanted to put a sort of marker down and he did. I thought he played very well.”

Praising McMath, the Wells boss continued, “He’s been absolutely superb! If they did a player-of-the-month awards in this league then he’d be winning it for the last four weeks.

“He’s exceptional from dead balls, he’s very, very good. He tells me he played in the Midland Alliance whilst he was in University up in Coventry. I don’t remember who for but he won the league up there when he was younger and his ball striking is sensational. He scored 10-15 goals a season, which is what he’s used to.

“But he’s taken time to adjust being in the Kent League because it is a little bit different but now he’s coming into it in the last five or six games.”

Sevenoaks Town manager, Simon Jones, meanwhile, admitted to www.kentishfootball.co.uk that his side lacked the passion and desire that was shown by their A21 rivals.

“I think we lacked a little bit tonight,” he said. “I would certainly agree they came out with more energy, they seemed to be more inspired by the game than we were.

“We’ve had a few highs this year. It was just one more high too many to ask for. We lacked a little bit as a team, we lacked a little bit of inspiration or what the tie meant, which is a shame.

“It was a shame to me that it was decided by two Sevenoaks mistakes, which cost us the goals,” he added.

“Unfortunately Cookie’s had a little header back, when he’s been told ‘go the other way’ and then Jamie’s never done that all season, so I don’t know why he’s decided to pull someone down in the box - but it was a penalty!

“It’s a shame we gave the goals away, rather than having the game taken away.”

Jones added: “I have to hold my hands up, I think Tunbridge Wells had more passion, they looked more eager for it. We were more content about just playing our shape, rolling the ball around, containment and trying to settle them down but it didn’t work in our favour.”

Reflecting further, the manager added: “I’m more than happy to say on the balance of play Tunbridge Wells deserved to edge it. I’m just disappointed it came down to two mistakes that we’ve been cutting out earlier in the season. Luck deserted us tonight, put it down and move on.

“We could, should have had three or four more in the first half, even how poorly we played in the first half. We’ve gone around the keeper, a couple of flicked headers that were cleared off the line so there were certainly opportunities there even in the second half.

“I felt we overplayed at times. The one time we played the simpler stuff we scored a goal so that should’ve been a lesson to the guys as we tried to reinforce that to them at half-time.

“We’re not a team of superstars. We’re not built like that so stop playing like a team of super stars!”

Whilst Sevenoaks pay their players, Tunbridge Wells don’t, but it was clear for all to see how much the home side wanted it.

“We’ve got a lot of local lads, no-one comes from far here, everyone’s within twenty minutes and that fosters a good relationship within the squad really,” explained Larkin.

“They understand how important the game is, how important it is for the club and the (supporters) and that’s been driven into them all week.”

Tunbridge Wells: Michal Czanner, Jason Bourne, Alex Rich, Sam Phillips, Scott Whibley, Tom Davey, Charlie Sharman (Jon Pilbeam 71), Andy McMath, Keelan Mooney (Benji Agana 77), Danny Powell (Ben Palmer 83), Carl Carnell.
Subs: Ryan Waterman, Brad Sandeman.

Goals: Danny Powell 16, Andy McMath 86 (pen)

Booked: Benji Agana 80

Sevenoaks Town: Sean Funnll, Michael Cook, Ossie Bayram, John Maloney (Daniel Akpoveta 58), Jamie Johnston, Malik Fotana, Joe Minter, Daniel Twin, Tony Atkins (John Akegbe 58), Bill Shinners, Chris Walker (Toby Webb 83)
Subs: Badar Mohamed, Sean Mayer.

Goal: Chris Walker 57

Booked: Chris Walker 39, Daniel Twin 70, Jamie Johnston 85

Attendance: 95
Referee: Mr Saul Kay (Sittingbourne)
Assistants: Mr Paul Yates (Maidstone) & Mr Simon Jackson (Ashford)