Erith & Belvedere   0         

Hollands & Blair     2          Prescott 6, 83          

SCEFL Challenge Cup Final, 2 May 2016

 

Continuing the series counting down the 100 most memorable games in our history.  Today, in an otherwise disappointing season, we still reached a final – but even that was disappointing.

 

It could be said that the Deres are still recovering from the events of early autumn 2015.  The season had begun full of optimism after the FA Vase run and 3rd-place finish the previous season, and with Alfie May prolific in attack.  After a stuttering start we were on a good run, with home victories over the eventual top two in the league, until things fell apart: and it was all down to Hythe Town. 

 

Hythe were under new management, Tony Beckingham joining them from East Grinstead, and were busy recruiting.  On 29 September, three days after playing for Deres at Fisher, Alfie and Sam May plus Ryan Johnson made their Hythe debuts – and Alfie scored – before most Deres fans even knew they’d gone.  Deres manager Matt Longhurst criticised them for not “showing any gratitude or loyalty towards players, staff or the club itself”.  Ironically, ten days later he left to replace Beckingham at East Grinstead! – and George Benner and Colin Richmond followed him.  Ben Wilson joined the group at Hythe, Byron Walker left for Cray Valley and Adam Marsh for Sevenoaks.  We had lost a manager and eight players (six of them moving upwards) in a fortnight.

 

John Wilfort, from the double-winning team of 2012-13, took over as manager, soon to be joined by Paul Springett as player-coach.  He won his first two matches, the second being the first tie in our run to the SCEFL Challenge Cup Final – a 3-2 extra-time win v Fisher, the 118th-minute winner coming on his debut from Ashley Robinson, who had moved from Beckenham as Wilfort’s first signing.  Robinson was to finish the season as top scorer with 11 and second in the appearance table to Denzel Gayle.

 

Yet perhaps unsurprisingly the remainder of the season saw inconsistent performances, apart from a bizarre couple of games at the end of January when we beat Holmesdale 6-1 away and Fisher 7-0 at home, the first time since 1975 we’d scored 6 or more in successive games (against two of the eventual bottom three).

 

The SCEFL Cup run continued with a 1-0 win at Corinthian on 3 February (Romario Hart scoring) and on to a two-legged semi-final against Cray Valley PM.  In the first leg we went down 2-1 at home, Ennis Fyffe putting us in the lead but two in the last 12 minutes giving CVPM the initiative.  In the second leg Byron Walker scored against his old team to put CVPM 3-1 up on aggregate, but Romario Hart struck back quickly and Ashley Robinson’s penalty drew the tie level.  In extra time both teams had a player sent off and two goals in three minutes by Liam Wright clinched the tie: 4-1 on the night, 5-3 on aggregate.

 

So to 2 May and a final at PVR.  Deres, who had finished 4th bottom but 18 points clear of relegated Holmesdale, faced Hollands and Blair, who had finished runners-up but 12 points adrift of Greenwich Borough.  Deres had home advantage although of course the teams used Welling United’s facilities.

 

A crowd of 326 were there for the occasion, but the Deres contingent were to be disappointed as the team never really got going in an anticlimactic scrappy match.  Blair, looking for a good finish to their first season at this level, took the lead when striker Sam Prescott headed home a 5th-minute corner from Bryan Greenfield.  A sub-plot for those behind the goal in the first half was to see the developing niggle between Liam Wright and Blair keeper Dan Ellis, with digs and insults exchanged after balls were cleared.  In the 43rd minute it came to a head, literally.  One more niggle and Wright stupidly put his head into Ellis’ face, at which Ellis went down as if poleaxed.  A red card was the inevitable result, and rumour had it that Wright, reckoning that if he was going to be sent off for little contact he might as well get in a good shot, waited for Ellis in the tunnel at half-time and did just that.

 

The ten men put up a good effort in the second half, Robinson drawing a fine save from Ellis, but it was Blair who secured the victory eight minutes from time when Brett Ince crossed from the right and Prescott stretched to volley home the second goal.

 

There had been cuts, bumps and bruises, and Blair skipper Steve Dampier was still dazed following the clash of heads which led to his early substitution as he and Greenfield stepped forward to receive the SCEFL Challenge Cup from League Chair Denise Richmond.

 

Erith & Belvedere: Rilwan Anibaba; Ennis Fyffe, Sheriff Babatunde, Andreas Tobon (Marcus Cassius 55), Paul Springett, Aaron Fray, Denzel Gayle, Charlie Holness (George Reed 74), Liam Wright (sent off 43), Ashley Robinson, Romario Hart (Daryl Dylan 64).

Hollands & Blair: Ellis, Welch, Greenfield, Dampier (Gutridge 19), Taylor, Valencia, Ascheri, Gallagher (Ince 70), Prescott, McDonald (Michelson 85), Denness.

 

Things were not to improve for the Deres the following season as a series of increasingly poor results led to relegation.