VCD Athletic 0-1 Erith & Belvedere (Abandoned 48 mins) Referee spoilt our day, rage Deres

VCD ATHLETIC 0-1 ERITH & BELVEDERE
(Match abandoned after 48 minutes due to fog)
Wednesday 20^th December 2006
London Senior Cup Second Round
Stephen McCartney reports from Oakwood

Paul Gorman criticised Greenwich based referee Mr Arif Khalfe after tonight’s London Senior Cup clash at local rivals VCD Athletic was abandoned just 130 seconds into the second half.

Fog descended onto the Oakwood ground in Crayford some two hours before kick-off, putting the second round tie in doubt.

But standing on the centre spot with at least 75 minutes before kick-off, with the floodlights on, you could see both ends of the pitch.

Both sets of players and management, desperate to play the game, quizzed the hesitant referee out on the pitch, asking if the game would go ahead - or not, and all they got in return were sarcastic and unprofessional comments.

Mr Khalfe finally decided with around 45 minutes before the scheduled start, to play the game, but the Erith & Belvedere joint-manager felt the official made the incorrect decision to abandon the game early in the second half.

The Deres had one foot in the quarter-finals - and a trip to Cockfosters - when Daryl Wilson thought his fifth goal of the season had given them the advantage after fourteen minutes.

But the former Greenwich Borough man, was unimpressed with the match official.

“Farce! It’s more than a farce - I think it’s ridiculous because you see both goals,” Gorman said EXCLUSIVELY to www.kentishfootball.co.uk afterwards.

“You stand in one box, you see the other goal. It’s just stupid really.

“The referee wanted to call it off before the game but he couldn’t because it wasn’t that bad.

“When we finished the game it was worse than it was when we came out.

“The league has to look into it. I hope there’s an assessor here tonight because that was ridiculous and I will put in a report about him (the referee) because it was just stupid.

“He didn’t want to talk to anybody, he was giving stupid comments, thought he was the centre of attention - he was just pathetic!”

The Deres, who have lost just once in seven outings under Gorman, Chris Cosgrove and Gary Davies, started well until they lost the services of central defender Laurie Mansfield, who hurt his ribs in a challenge from Vickers’ striker Leroy Huggins.

Marc Brown, starting his first game of the season, made a fine double save early on denying Paul Gross and the follow up header from Steve White, searching for his 16^th goal of the season.

Mark Nougher and Vinny Durrant went close for the visitors before a “fluke” from Wilson gave them a deserved lead.

Wilson's cross-come-shot from the right hand side sailed over Brown and dropped inside the foot of the far post.

But the injury to former Greenwich Borough defender Mansfield, however, rocked Erith & Belvedere as VCD Athletic sprung into life.

Stuart Abbott received the ball from Huggins but Deres shot stopper Neil Murray made a smart save at the second attempt.

Murray then made a low save from Huggins’ deflected low drive and then he got his body behind a fiercely driven 35-yard free-kick from Danny Penny.

Former Erith Town striker, Glen McTaggart unleashed a left-footed free-kick which produced a fine high save from Brown and at the other end Abbott drove a shot agonisingly past the upright.

Despite the second half getting underway late, the officials felt the conditions were unplayable and halted the game.

VCD Athletic boss Martin Ford, who made five changes from the side that deservedly lost 3-1 to Hythe Town six days earlier, admitted afterwards that the referee had made the right decisions.

“I thought the referee got the decision spot on,” he said. “I thought he made the correct decision to start the game and I thought he also made the correct decision to call the game off.”

He added: “I don’t think he had much choice actually. Allright, everyone’s saying we’re 1-0 down and we’re out of the cup.

“I disagree with that because I felt we were the better side the last 25 minutes of the first half.

“A sloppy start, we got punished by a fluke goal, a cross went in at the back of the net. Obviously the bloke didn’t mean it and we got stronger as the half wore on.

“I think the second half would be a good game. I think we might have got back into it but I thought the referee got the decisions spot on to start the game and to call the game off.

“When the goalkeeper can’t see the ball coming into the box it’s not the referee who has got to go and catch it is it?”

Gorman, however, added that he was pleased with the performance from his side at a freezing cold Oakwood.

“I was pleased with 40 minutes of it really, I’d say 43 because we started off well again,” he said.

“We had three really good chances before we actually scored, which was a fluke, a cross-come-shot, but at the end of the day some go in, some don’t.

“Luckily enough it went in, but at the end of the day the result doesn’t count, which was a bit unfortunate because of the referee.

“He spoilt what was simply a good day for us at the time. I’m very disappointed with the officials today, especially the referee.”

Meanwhile, Leroy Huggins has turned down an approach from Ryman Premier League highfliers Horsham and “has committed himself to VCD for the remainder of the season.”

www.kentishfootball.co.uk shall bring you previews of Saturday’s showdown between VCD Athletic and Thamesmead Town - and the Erith derby on Boxing Day - later in the week.