17 October 2020

Erith and Belvedere          3          Humphris 30, Mpungi 75, Dasofunjo 80

Canterbury City                  0

DERES PROSPECTS BRIGHTEN WITH THREE POINTS AT LAST

After three draws, four single-goal defeats and four knockout wins, Erith and Belvedere finally achieved their first league win of the season, indeed of the decade, in a satisfying performance at Park View Road.  Greater tests will come than this 20th v 18th encounter, but this will have a significant impact on team morale.

Canterbury had the early chances, but they weren’t a real threat, and that set the pattern for the game.  Remell Grieson’s effort was an easy hold for Rilwan Anibaba, Dale Horton shot well wide of the far post and Enock Soganile finished off a promising run with a shot that spun off towards the corner flag.

At the other end James Hawkins’ 10th minute free-kick was held by Charlie Wealands just under the bar.  If that was promising, the next big chance was horrifying for Deres, as Anibaba and Patterson left the ball to eadh other in a mix-up that left Dale Horton in the clear and bearing down on goal, but Patterson recovered in time to block the shot.

A couple more half-chances came for Canterbury midway through the half, skipper Danny Keyte hitting a half-cleared ball straight at Anibaba and Liam Quinn firing a loose ball just beyond the angle of post and bar, but on the half-hour Deres took the lead with a beauty.  Hawkins made progress down the left, beat his full-back once but turned to do it again.  The chance seemed to have passed but a great ball to the far post found Jamie Humphris stooping to head home.

Lewis West floated in a dangerous cross well held by Anibaba soon afterwards, and both Soganile and Horton shot high in the closing minutes of the half, but the interval came with Deres one up.

Tim Beckford came close to scoring with his chest just 22 seconds into the second half from a Guyliano Mpungi cross.  A minute later Horton’s attempted cross at the other end flew into the woods, as did another Soganile shot midway through the half.  Canterbury’s shooting had been woeful, but the feeling remained that they just had to get lucky once.

Fortunately for Deres, however, the next success came at the road end.  Mpungi finished an excellent move with an unmet centre across the face of goal in the 73rd minute, and two minutes later the provider turned poacher, Mpungi turning in a fine ball from Humphris.  Then on 80 minutes the points were safe as Patterson found Henry Dasofunjo for a clinical headed finish.  What could have been an anxious last quarter of an hour became a celebration of the Deres’ fist league win of the 2020s.

Deres: Anibaba; Adeyemo, Hawkins (Dasofunjo 71), Patterson (Krasniqi 83), Curtis, Barrett, Mpungi, Taylor, Beckford (Humber 61), Nosike, Humphris.

Canterbury: Wealands; West, M Turner, Rumbol, Quinn, Grieson (Hyde 67), Keyte (McVie 86), Woollcott, Horton, J Turner, Soganile.