First Team Vs Hollands & Blair

25 January 2020

Erith and Belvedere          0

Hollands and Blair             3          West 74, Connor Heffernan 79, Bearman-Dyce 83

LATE LETDOWN FOR DETERMINED DERES

A committed and impressive performance from Erith and Belvedere still ended in defeat, but if anything it was an encouraging one against a team unbeaten in their previous six games and challenging for promotion.

There were only three outfield changes to the starting line-up from the team that was hammered 7-1 in the November fixture at Star Meadow, but the mentality was worlds apart.  The referee mentioned that a Blair player had said to him “we can’t handle them, they’re too fast for us” as Deres’ midfield passed around them.

The always impressive Chan Quan created the first opening on 15 minutes with a superb forward ball that Guyliano Mpungi couldn’t match with hie effort on goal.  Four minutes later Kameiko Pope-Campbell threatened, but Blair keeper Adam Highsted’s hefty clearance created a chance at the other end before Connor Heffernan shot straight at Dan Teeley.

Blair had some good chances midway through the half: a fine volley by Harry Kingdon tipped over by Teeley when it looked set for the bar and an unpredictable rebound, and two efforts disallowed when the whistle had gone well before the ball went over the line.  Harry Goodger had another volleyed effort from distance easily held by Teeley seven minutes before the break.

Early in the second half Calum McGeehan tried an overhead kick smartly saved by Teeley.  Deres hadn’t been greatly troubled thus far, but a turning point came when central defender Reggie Yembra turned his ankle on 55 minutes and had to be carried off.  In the 58th minute Stuart West’s header hit the bar, but Deres’ best chances came just after the hour, with Ramell Lake’s far post cross being met by Mpungi’s header just wide, and Quan’s header from a corner blocked on the line.

It was on 74 minutes that Blair broke the deadlock, West improving on his previous header with one on target from a corner.  Five minutes later Connor Heffernan pounced on a loose ball in the box to hammer home for 2-0, and in the 83rd minute Caleb Bearman-Dyce, who had replaced Connor Heffernan seconds earlier, ran on alone to a forward ball that caught the Deres defence totally napping.  Teeley came out to block but the finish was cool, calm and collected the three points for Blair. 

But as the referee said, it was never a 3-0 game.  Nevertheless it put Deres back down to 18th place as Fisher picked up a point from a goalless draw with Erith Town.

DERES: Teeley; Hill, Dobson, De Melo, Yembra (Towner 55), Jones, Muchenje (Edwards 70), Quan, Pope-Campbell (Cooke 84), Lake, Mpungi.

BLAIR: Highsted; Kingdon (Brown 72), Mingle, West, Cameron Heffernan, McGeehan, Simons, Valencia, Connor Heffernan (Bearman-Dyce 82), Goodger, Stone (Welch 67).