Eastside – survivor16b

Guest Blog: Essex Alliance League Round-up (Wk 14 – Sat 20 Nov) [EAL 21-22 22.11.21]

Hello and welcome to the latest action from the Essex Alliance League, which continues on this blog this season under the “Guest Blog” strand. This edition looks at the action across the League divisions and action in the Fenton Cup & Fenton Trophy on Saturday 20 November. My thanks to the EAL’s Rob Parker. This round-up is posted with the author’s permission. Thanks for reading.

Guest Blog written by Rob Parker for EAL [EAL Twitter: @EssexAllianceFL]

With additional reporting by Scott W

Essex Alliance League Round-up- Sat 20 November

FENTON CUP

There was further Fenton Cup action this weekend as the first round action came to a close with Jolof Sports at home to Kit Out London, both seeking a place in the last sixteen. A close game saw the two teams finish level at 2 – 2 at full-time, forcing the game into a shootout in which Jolof held their nerve to win it 4 – 2. They now head on to face FC Petrocub in the next round.

In the day’s second round action on an adjoining pitch, two of the league’s Premier Division sides met in East Ham with hosts London Cranes taking on Oakside with a place in the quarter finals the reward for the winner. In an eleven goal thriller, it was ‘Side who eventually prevailed by the odd goal, winning 6 – 5 to confirm a home quarter-final against DTFC. Oakside’s scorers were Brandon Burgess, Kieren Huddart, Jed Ofori, Luke Caston, Demi Elegushi and Mussa Jamanca.

FENTON TROPHY

In the Fenton Trophy, there were four further ties completed with Royal Forest Reserves’ perfect record put to the test as the Division Three leaders faced Division Two St Francis. A very closely fought contest was won by a youthful Saints side as Ross Basunda’s goal proved the pivotal moment in the game in a 1 – 0 victory.

Division Two’s Loughton Lions also had a stern test ahead of them as they welcomed an in-form Melbourne Sports side to Debden for their second round clash. Lions have been in some decent form themselves in recent weeks and progressed with 3 – 1 home victory thanks to strikes by Thomas Osmond, Lucas Maxwell and Jordan French to ensure their run in the cup continued.

Another Division Two side safely through are Rainham Working Mens Club as they navigated what proved to be another very competitive game against Division Three’s Glendale. An own goal midway through the first half of the game in Rainham’s favour proved to be the only scoring moment of the game as the Dales couldn’t convert second half pressure into chances, Rainham winning 1 – 0.

The final game from this competition saw six goals as Together United looked to cause a surprise as they were paid a visit by Division Two’s Unitey at Peter May. But it was the higher placed side who made their advantage count with Bubintende Masadi’s hat-trick doing the damage with Mohammed Abaker and Jordan Vib also finding the back of the net in a 5 – 1 win.

SENIOR DIVISION

There was plenty of Senior Division action too over the weekend, despite some sides being involved in cup action, and Chadwell Heath Spartans opened up a five point lead at the top of the table after coming out on the right side of a 2 – 1 win at FC Baresi. Abdirahman Sabriye struck for the hosts but Jack Evans and Aaron Hunwicks replies for Spartans gave them a crucial three points. Lymore Gardens also took advantage of others being out of action to move into the top four, earning themselves a solid win away at FC Petrocub in Noak Hill. Another close game was settled by the odd goal with Andre Rashford and Dylan Roberts efforts the difference as Garden won 2 – 1, their fifth win of the season so far.

Moving into mid-table, Leyton Royal have joined a cluster of clubs sitting on thirteen points following a terrific win on Saturday, defeating Tower United in a 4 – 0 scoreline at Fairlop Oak. That result saw Royal confirm a fourth league win and with games in hand, could still be pushing for a solid top half finish. For Tower, they remain in the bottom three, four points adrift of safety approaching the half way mark. Not far behind Leyton Royal are CSM London who moved to the cusp of mid-table themselves after a hugely important win at Lakeside, beating Rapid Chingford 5-2 to pick up three points. Munnir Saad scored twice with Kamran Khan, Ramone Senior and Leon Barnard goals completing the win in favour of the visitors.

Just a point behind CSM lie Blue Marlin who moved themselves out of the relegation zone on Saturday with a local derby victory against Chigwell Town in Hainault. The journey of just a few yards proved a fruitful one for Marlin, overcoming a John Lye goal for Town with strikes of their own from Nile Laidlaw and Lindsey Marsh to win it 2 – 1.

PREMIER DIVISION

In the Premier Division, there was a huge result affecting the top end of the table as Wapping produced a top performance to send leaders Frenford A to their first defeat of the season. Meeshaq Malone scored twice and Shahid Ali grabbed the other to overturn the only goal in response by Damilola Olaiya for the visitors and give Wapping a 3 – 1 victory to move second, albeit eight points behind the leaders. The top goal scorers in the division are Eastside with thirty-five so far this campaign and they now sit third after coming through an entertaining game against All Prospects. Michael Dager and Abid Haque scored twice each and Basekou Gassama netted the other to overcome a Prospects fight back to win it 6 – 4. It was also a winning Saturday for another side sitting on thirteen points as Dagenham United continued their promotion push with a solid performance on the road away at London Park City. Iaia Jau netted a brace and Shaquille Mathurin grabbed the other to win 3 – 1, United’s fourth league win and placing them just goal difference away from a spot in the promotion places.

With games in hand, Crookz United are one of the sides who could still spoil the party in the promotion places and presently sit eighth in the table from five games after defeating North East Lions in a 2 – 1 scoreline at Peter May. Ben Joao and John Afrane-Kesey goals were the difference between the side, Mace Johnson striking the Lions consolation off the bench.

DIVISION ONE

Belfry have moved to the cusp of the promotion places once again in Division One as they secured a big win at the Marshes, defeating Francis Luke in a 9 – 0 scoreline. Kieran James was in fine fettle with a five-goal haul for his side with Victor Davis, Warren James, Gabriel Ogunwomoju and Luke MacDonald also scoring to confirm a fifth league win on the spin. Second placed RCXI moved a point closer to the leaders but missed the chance to go top as they were held to a 2 – 2 draw away at Something From Nothing. Despite the eleven point gap between the sides going into the game, SFN put in a solid performance against their promotion chasing opponents to earn a big point.

Wanstead remain well placed to make a charge for promotion, sitting fourth and on the back of another league win, having defeated Barkingside A 5 – 0 at the Flats on Saturday. That win saw the in-form Wanstead move to twelve points, five adrift of the promotion places as Edson Lami’s tremendous form continued with another four goals, adding to Suhaib Abeid’s strike. Just a few goals behind Wanstead sit their local rivals Newham Wanderers who are fifth in the table after seven games following their weekend’s efforts, defeating Forest Green 5 – 1 at Leyton Sixth Form College. Nuno Dentampol netted twice off the bench with Seco Embalo, Robertson Morais and Macane Caleir goals rounding off the scoring.

It was also a good afternoon’s work for Kwanzas London Sport who will hope to build on an excellent result as they defeated Ilford Reserves 2 – 1 in Hainault to pick up their first points of the season. Despite a difficult start, that will give Kwanzas plenty of confidence and saw them move off the bottom, just a point adrift from safety.

DIVISION TWO

The high-scoring Old Esthameians have pushed themselves up into the promotion places following the weekend’s results as they earned a local derby victory at home to strugglers Newbury East, winning the game 5 – 0. That confirmed a fifth win in seven this season and became one of four teams level on fifteen points. Another side in the fifteen point club are Emerson & Upminster Reserves who reached that mark with a home win on Saturday as ninth placed Ryan Under 23s were the visitors to Hall Lane. Tobi Onafeko and Danny Gillham were the scorers in the game for Emerson to edge the game 2 – 1, netting their own fifth league victory in the process. Mekhi Charles-Armstrong got the only goal for the Ryan side here.

There was a five goal thriller in the division’s final game where Redbridge Community were the hosts to an FHN Athletic side, the teams beginning the game just three points apart. But that had increased to six by full time as FHN came through a five goal thriller, winning 3 – 2 thanks to goals from Carl Gbolade, Merrill Appiah and Kieran McKoy.

DIVISION THREE

With the leaders out of action in Division Three, FC Baresi Under 23 took full advantage of that situation by recording maximum points at home to Harlow Inter to go top, edging a tight game 4 – 3. Akins Subair scored twice and Jamal Harvey once for Harlow but two Kii Jean-Baptiste efforts plus goals from Harrez Aliane and Hanza Hafesji gave the points to Baresi.

Lymore Gardens Reserves also took advantage of other sides being out of action to move third in the standings following the weekend’s results as they came through 5-3 winners with Flyers Under 23s. Rob Small struck twice and Warren Isoka, Marcel Destouche and Omani Green one each to render Flyers goals from Kai Eaton, Ethan Sowonola and Aaron Weymouth as just consolation. There was an impressive win for ASA too who made home advantage count with a big 6 – 1 victory against Old Barkabbeyans Reserves at the Marshes, leapfrogging their opponents into the top half of the table. A hat-trick of braces done the damage with Jubayed Miah, Atif Haider and Arun Jeyashankar goals proving the difference, Klodian Meta netting the Old Barks reply.

Also in the top half, Buckhurst Way sit fifth in the standings approaching the half way point in the season, aided by their most recent success as they defeated Terin 3 – 0 at Oaks Park High School. Andrei Rizea, Dolapo Gbadamosi and Segun Dickson struck for the visitors to made it five wins from ten so far this campaign.

DIVISION FOUR

In Division Four, Dagenham United Reserves have moved to within three points of the promotion places after an entertaining away victory on Saturday against sixth placed Emerson & Upminster A where the teams share seven goals. Dagenham came out on the right side of a 4 – 3 win with two Cain Dash goals and one each from Mamadou Soumare and Tyler Leon handing their side the win, despite two Robert McKnight efforts and a Bradlee Birch goal for Emerson.

There was also an impressive win for the division’s third highest scoring side, Avondale Rangers, who picked up their third win of the season with a 4 – 2 win at Newham Royals to move their points tally onto nine. Daniel Bordman, Chris Harper, Mark Hayden and Harry Callagher were the scorers to render Gary Adams and Ashley Evett efforts as just consolation in the end. The remaining league game came from Romford where top half Flyers Under 21s were in action against an in-form Newham & Havering Borough side. The sides starting the day just two points apart and that was how it ended also with the teams sharing the spoils in a 1 – 1 draw. Andrew Elie scored for Newham to add another point to their tally, with Alex Grant responding for Flyers.

COUNTY CUP

Woodford East are into the hat for the next round of the BBC Essex Saturday Premier Cup as they came through a competitive game against May & Baker EC A over in Dagenham. East were 5 – 3 winners on the day, thanks to a brace from Billy Barr and one each for Ben Smith, Lucio Uare and Adam Tabbani. Halil Hassan’s side now face a trip to Dunmow Town in the fourth round in January.

It wasn’t such a successful afternoon for DT FC who saw their unbeaten run come to an end this season with a defeat away at Colne Athletic. They were beaten 4 – 1 against the Essex & Suffolk Border League side to end their run in the competition. In the Essex Saturday Junior Trophy, the delayed tie between Felsted Rovers and Fairlop Rovers finally got played and it was the Mid Essex League hosts who took the honours with a solid 2 – 1 win against a previously unbeaten Fairlop Rovers side.

Fixtures – Saturday November 27th (top two tiers only)

EAL Senior Division

Chadwell Heath Spartans v Jolof Sports | Chigwell Hall

DT FC v FC Baresi | Harlow Arena 3G

Kit Out London v Lymore Gardens | Noak Hill 3G

Rapid Chingford v Leyton Royal | Lakeside Sports Ground

Woodford East v Chigwell Town | Hackney Marshes

EAL Premier Division

Crookz Utd v London Park City | Peter May Centre, Walthamstow

Dagenham Utd v London Cranes | Castle Green Leisure Centre 3G

Eastside v North East Lions | Peter May Centre, W’stow

Oakside v Athletic Newham U23 | Fairlop Oak Playing Fields

Wapping v All Prospects | Victoria Park, E9

Guest Blog: Essex Alliance League Round-up (Wk 12 – Sat 6 Nov) [EAL 21-22 9.11.21]

Hello and welcome to the latest action from the Essex Alliance League, which continues on this blog this season under the “Guest Blog” strand. This edition looks at the action across the League divisions and action in the Fenton Cup & Fenton Trophy on an rain-affected day of action on Saturday 6 November. My thanks to the EAL’s Rob Parker. This round-up is posted with the author’s permission with additional reporting by Scott W. Thanks for reading.

Guest Blog written by Rob Parker for EAL [EAL Twitter: @EssexAllianceFL]

Essex Alliance League Round-up- Sat 6 November

SENIOR DIVISION

The top two sides in the Senior Division remain locked on twenty points at the top of the table as Woodford East held off a late fightback to defeat Kit Out London 3 – 2 in Noak Hill. Billy Barr, Joe Kemp and Lucio Uare all netted to take the points, cancelling out London goals from Keyshawn Greenaway and Marlon Ortiz.

Remaining second with a slight goal difference disadvantage, DTFC remain unbeaten and picked up a sixth win of the season on Saturday with a hard fought 2 – 0 victory against Blue Marlin at the Harlow Arena. The goals came from Emmanuel Chitongo and an OG for Allan Fenn’s side. With a game in hand, they still will be the favourites with the bookies but with a long season still ahead.

There was a sizeable victory for third placed Chadwell Heath Spartans who returned to league action with a big win, defeating Tower United 7 – 0 at Mabley Green. Jack Evans scored twice for Spartans with Joe Robb, Harry Goodwin, Courtney Holness, Jonathan Evans and Thomas Callagher goals helping their side to maximum points. Fourth-placed Jolof Sports are continuing their charge up the table with games in hand and remain unbeaten following the weekend’s results, this weekend securing all three points with a 3 – 1 home win in East Ham against Leyton Royal. That saw the hosts pick up a fifth league victory which, combined with just a single draw, keeps them as one of the favourites in the division.

It was a good afternoon’s work for FC Baresi who won handsomely at the Britannia, confirming a solid 5 – 0 victory against Chigwell Town to see them move up to fifth place in the table. Raymond Pok scored twice with further efforts arising through Abdisemed Giama, Tyreece Robertson and Abdisamad Mohamed. The remaining two games in the division ended in draws as Rapid Chingford overcame a six point deficit against top half Lymore Gardens to earn a valuable point in their quest to stay clear of the drop. Vlad Bucur netted the Rapid goal with Dylan Roberts’ effort for Gardens taking a share of the spoils in a 1 – 1 draw.

The final game saw CSM London host FC Petrocub over in Beckton with the sides going into the game just a point apart. And by full-time, that was how the gap remained as an entertaining game finished 2 – 2. Ramone Senior and Zakaria Ahmed goals accounted for the CSM efforts but the visitors were up to the task and ensured they levelled to walk away with a point.

PREMIER DIVISION

With the league leaders in cup action, there was a great opportunity for others to make up ground on them with Oakside doing just that, moving second in the standings with a big 5 – 1 away at Wapping to remain unbeaten. Jordan Mills-Smith netted for the hosts but ‘Side goals from Jed Ofori, Brandon Burgess, Kyrone Scotland, Joseph Omogiate and Thomas Senyah completed the win. There were some important results for sides hovering around the middle of the table with sixth placed Eastside staying in touch with the sides above as they defeated London Cranes 3 – 1 in East Ham to make it three wins for the season. Joshua Duyile scored twice and Michael Morgan once to move to within a point of the top two, albeit from more games played.

Seventh placed Athletic Newham Under 23s are another side lurking with intent around the middle of the table and, with a number of games in hand, could yet pose a danger to those further up after taking home the points from their trip to North East Lions. Samuel Titi-Lartey had scored for the hosts but Newham goals from Michael Senghor, Tajean Lewis and Nathaniel Adjei helped them finish as 3 – 1 victors. There will a sense of much relief in the All Prospects camp who, after a very difficult start to the season, finally managed to get a win on the board as they took on fellow strugglers London Park City over in Hainault. The hosts won the game 3 – 0 with strikes by Tyrese Smith Grant, Tyler Anthony and Kane Drysdale securing the points.

DIVISION ONE

There’s a new leader in Division One where RCXI took advantage of the top two sides being in cup action to leapfrog both into top spot in the table. They were 4 – 0 winners at home against Barkingside A where Stephen Duberry’s brace led the way and further goals came from Jayson Sam-Franks and Oluwaseun Koya put their side a point clear.

Fifth placed Ilford Reserves kept their hat in the promotion mix following a top performance over the weekend, taking the win from their home game against Newham Wanderers, the sides going into the game level on points. Two goals from Serghei Scupoi and efforts from Joseph Sulola, Rhys Clements and Arandell Robinson helped the Foxes win 5 – 0. The Forest Green camp will be a much more content one as they earned themselves a three point haul for the first time this season on Saturday, defeating Renegade at Leyton Sixth Form College to move up a place with tenth in the standings. They were 5 – 1 winners, despite a Nana Baah goal, to move their points tally onto three and give them something to build upon for upcoming games.

DIVISION TWO

It was a great afternoon’s work for Fairlop Rovers on Saturday as they put a dent in their opponents promotion hopes, defeating Emerson & Upminster Reserves 3 – 1 in Hainault to make it seven from seven in the league this season. Sonny Scott got on the Emerson scoresheet but that proved just consolation on the day as Rovers took home the points.

The high-scoring Old Esthameians got back to winning ways at Newbury Park, moving third in the table as a result of teams dropping points around then, following a terrific 9 – 1 victory against Royal Forest. That saw E’s pick up a fourth league win in a greatly improved outing to date this term, placing them just three points off the pace in the promotion race. The remaining game saw a close contest at the Flats where St Francis’ first league outing of the season saw them host high-flying FHN Athletic. A hard fought game saw FHN take the win, scoring both goals in a 2 – 0 victory to help them maintain their push for promotion from the division.

DIVISION THREE

Royal Forest Reserves’ maintained their lead at the top of Division Three at the weekend following a solid home win, beating mid-table Buckhurst Way 3 – 0 at Fairlop Oak. Tom Alexander, Josh Trainor and Will Asenso were the men on target for the Trees as they made it five wins from five to stay two points clear of the chasing pack. Sitting in second and closest side to the leaders, FC Baresi Under 23s ensured their promotion charge continued but didn’t have things all their own way with a five goal thriller at home to Lymore Gardens Reserves. Omani Green and Ashley Dixon both netted for Gardens but two Harrez Aliane efforts and a Leo Siki goal were just enough to earn Baresi a 3 – 2 win on the day.

Old Barkabbeyans Reserves are sitting third in the table and fought back from behind twice in their game at Glendale on Saturday to take all three points in a 5 – 3 scoreline. Wesley Kangi had twice given the Dales a lead, along with an Attila Szabo effort but two Callum Elliott goals and one apiece from Christopher Plummer, Kacper Kasprzycki and Robbie Osborne were enough for Barks to win. Melbourne Sports are in a run of good form and are up to fourth in the table after picking up a fourth league win of the season on Saturday with a 5 – 3 win of their own against Flyers Under 23s. Joshua Adu, Kai Eaton and Muhammed Waqas had got their names on the Flyers scoresheet but those efforts proved to be in vain as Mels took the win.

The biggest win of the day came from Walthamstow where Together United’s top form in the league continued with a thumping 8 – 0 victory against Terin to see them move up a place in the table. Stanley Kweya netted a hat-trick, Rocky Bush scored two and one apiece from Fifi Banin, Remel Green and Aaron Vernege finished things off.

DIVISION FOUR

Fairlop Rovers Reserves are following closely in the footsteps of their first team counterparts and moved top of the Division Four table on Saturday as they earned themselves a 2 – 0 home win against Avondale Rangers over in Barkingside. That was their sixth win this term and places them a point clear of the chasing pack. Moving up to third, Sporting Pillars continue to show their prowess and made it three wins and a draw on Saturday with a 5 – 1 win on the road away at Collier Row A. A recognisable name from the past, Chris Rowlatt, scored a hat-trick for Sporting with Rayan Allam grabbing two for his side to keep them well in the mix.

Dagenham United Reserves are up to fourth and put into the biggest win of the division in Rainham, running out 7 – 0 winners against Newham Royals. Cain Dash was in a rush to help his side, scoring four, with George Martin, Imad Khan and Michael Whitelock efforts helping United to take the points back down the A13.

After picking up their first win of the season only recently, Flyers Under 21s are really starting to find some form now and doubled their points tally with a terrific win on the road, taking maximum points in a 5 – 0 win at Emerson & Upminster A. That enabled Flyers to move off the bottom and up three places to eighth. And completing the league action, another side who have struck a little bit of form are Newham & Havering Borough who, after taking a point from the league leaders on Saturday, went one better to beat West Essex Under 23s 3 – 1, making it two wins for the season. George Sadler-Stephens scored for West but Borough goals from Afam Okafor, Alexander Gerada and Andrew Elie were enough to claim the win.

COUNTY CUP

There were some mixed results in the county cup competitions where Frenford A put themselves into the hat for the fourth round after returning back down the A12 with a 2-1 victory to their name, defeating Ramsey & Mistley Reserves. They face an equally lengthy trip to the Cambridgeshire border to face Debden in round four.

Crookz United had what looked on paper at least to be a tasty looking tie away at Hashtag United Development on Saturday as the Premier Division side faced a trip down to Billericay. But their hopes were dashed, going down 6 – 0 thanks to a treble from Samuel Pratt, plus one each from Chandler Wray, Matthew Gauci and Charlie Drew.

In the Essex Junior Trophy, Division One high-flyers Cowley Community are through but needed an extra thirty minutes to see off Division Two’s Rainham Working Mens Club, the 2020 finalists going through to the next round with an eventual 4 – 2 win under their belts. Also through are Belfry who faced a trip up the A12 to Great Baddow on Saturday and came away with a solid win under their belts, winning 3 – 1 to set up another tie against their close league rivals, Cowley, later in the month.

Something From Nothing saw their cup run come to an end with defeat against Chingford Athletic A at the Flats. SFN came out on the wrong side of a seven goal thriller, losing 4 – 3 to exit the competition. Another side who saw their run come to an end were Francis Luke who had a tough game against one of the semi finalists in the 2020 competition, Brentwood Athletic Reserves. Luke went down 5 – 1 on the day at the Marshes to end their participation.

In the day’s rearranged London Junior Cup tie, Wanstead made the trip to south London to take on Bromley & South London League side Eltham Town. They will be disappointed with the end result, going down 10 – 1 to make it feel like a very long trip home.

Fixtures – Saturday November 13th (top two tiers only)

EAL Senior Division

Blue Marlin v Rapid Chingford | Fairlop Oak Playing Fields

Chadwell Heath Spartans v CSM London | Chigwell Hall

FC Petrocub v Chigwell Town | Noak Hill 3G

EAL Premier Division

Athletic Newham U23 v London Park City | Flanders Playing Fields

Dagenham Utd v North East Lions | Castle Green Leisure Centre 3G

Eastside v Wapping | Peter May Sports Centre, Walthamstow

Frenford A v All Prospects | The Drive

Guest Blog: Essex Alliance League Round-up (Wk 11 – Sat 30 Oct) [EAL 21-22 1.11.21]

Emergency ‘keeper (& player-boss) Aaron Hunwicks pulls off good save for Spartans in Fenton Cup this weekend

Hello and welcome to the latest action from the Essex Alliance League, which continues on this blog this season under the “Guest Blog” strand. This edition looks at the action across the League divisions and action in the Fenton Cup & Fenton Trophy on an rain-affected day of action on Saturday 30 October. My thanks to the EAL’s Rob Parker. This round-up is posted with the author’s permission with additional reporting by Scott W. Thanks for reading.

Image by Chadwell Heath Spartans FC (@CH_SpartansFC)

Guest Blog written by Rob Parker for EAL [EAL Twitter: @EssexAllianceFL]

Essex Alliance League Round-up- Sat 30 October

FENTON CUP

Despite the incessant rainfall on Saturday morning, most football survived at the weekend with the day’s only Fenton Cup action seeing Chadwell Heath Spartans make the trip over to Hainault to take on Blue Marlin in first round action. A hard fought game saw Spartans edge through, winning 2 – 1 thanks to goals from Harry Amoah and Thomas Callagher.

FENTON TROPHY

There was also one Fenton Trophy tie too over the weekend as Royal Forest hosted FHN Athletic over at Roding Valley High School as the two sides fought for a place in round two. Tom Osmond is a regular feature on the Forest scoresheet and he scored four for his team which, combined with Joe Owers’ brace, was enough for Royal Forest to win the tie 6 – 2.

SENIOR DIVISION

It was a busy afternoon in the Senior Division which has new joint leaders after Woodford East moved top of the table following their solid home win, defeating CSM London 3 – 0 to go clear on goal difference. Adam Tabbani scored twice and Lucio Uare grabbed the other to keep them well in contention though the chasing teams do have a game in hand. One of those also well in contention is DTFC who trail by just goal difference on East and remain one of only two unbeaten sides in the division after they came through a tough test at home against Lymore Gardens. Jake Kissiedu and Billy Golledge goals proved the difference in the end to win the match 2 – 0, continuing their unbeaten run.

It was a good afternoon for Kit Out London who were made to work hard for their latest win with FC Baresi the visitors to Noak Hill, the sides starting level on points before the game. Mark Matthews and Hadi Osman both got on the Baresi scoresheet but three Kit Out goals from Amalraj Kakumanu, Alex Solomon and Yasin Zougui saw them take the points late on in a 3 – 2 victory. There were two big results at the other end of the table where Rapid Chingford picked up just their second league win of the campaign, edging a close game with relegation threatened Tower United, winning 2 – 1. Abubakar Maxamed’s goal had given Tower a chance in the game but the two Rapid goals saw them over the line, shifting them up to ninth place.

It was a similarly big result for Rapid’s rivals, Leyton Royal, who had a trip to Chigwell Town to contend with as the sides met over at Fairlop Oak. Mark Howe struck for Town but Royal goals from Muresan Razvan and Vlad Farcas were the difference to help their team record a narrow 2 – 1 win, their third success of the campaign.

PREMIER DIVISION

It was the battle of the top two sides in the Premier Division over the weekend with Frenford A making the trip to Castle Green to take on Dagenham United, both sides going into the game sporting unbeaten records. Shaquille Mathurin grabbed a United goal but his efforts proved in vain as Frenford recorded an important 4 – 2 win that saw them move nine points clear of the rest. It’s been a season of mixed successes for Eastside so far but they had a day to remember on Saturday with a huge win against All Prospects to move themselves clear of danger. Five goal performances from Joshua Duyile and Michael Morgan set the tone, Abid Haque and Ifeanyi Umeh netted twice each with Junior Mandeng-Fotabong and Johnathan Odutulu goals completing a 16 – 0 win.

Oakside moved up a number of places, taking advantage of results around them to gain territory on the sides above following an emphatic 5 – 0 home win against one of the other promotion chasing sides in the division, North East Lions. Mussa Jamanca scored twice while Freddie Anderson, Demi Elegushi and Luke Caston all struck to take ‘Side to the win. The division’s other fixture saw Athletic Newham Under 23s seeking to improve their indifferent start to the season as they were paid a visit by promotion chasing Wapping in East Ham. Athletic struck through Rodney Botuli and Christopher Barbosa goals but two Wapping efforts off the bench from debutant Josh Morris saw the game end level at 2 – 2.

DIVISION ONE

Division One has new leaders this week as Cowley Community made the most of others being out of action to move two points clear at the top, taking maximum points in a 3 – 0 home win against Renegade. Chris Wright, Michael Taylor and Lekan Bakare efforts took them to victory in Newbury Park, their fifth success of the season. There was also a shift up the table for RCXI who moved up to second as they came away victorious from their trip to Kwanzas London Sport, edging the game 3 – 2. Michael Temitayo scored twice and Ayo Matthews also netted to give their side an important win, taking their points tally to thirteen for the campaign.

DIVISION TWO

Division Two was a goal-fest at the weekend with some big scorelines with one of the most important results coming from Debden where tenth placed Loughton Lions had a tough looking game against Rainham Working Mens Club who had won every game this season. But football proved it can throw up a few surprises and the Lions roared to an incredible 4 – 0 win.

If that performance was miraculous enough, you’d go far to beat an incredible Ryan Under 23s comeback on Saturday which had seen them trail 6 – 2 to Redbridge Community with Akiljo Balliu (3), Frankie Francis (2) and Tevini French all striking for the visitors. But that wasn’t the end of the game by any means as a stirring fightback thanks to a four-goal haul by William Amoah plus one goal each for Ryan Washington, Luke Hillier and Leon Humphrey then win it for Ryan 7 – 6. Incredible.

With their rivals dropping points, Fairlop Rovers had the chance to give themselves a bit of daylight at the top and they duly obliged with a stunning win away at Old Esthameians, scoring nine in a 9 – 2 victory in Newbury Park. Jack Kibblewhite scored a hat-trick, Harry Oliver netted twice and one apiece from Logan Simmonds, Dylan Scutt, Harry Rouse and Bailey White finished things off. The remaining game in the division came from Loughton where Emerson & Upminster Reserves were the visitors to face Unitey, the sides locked on nine points each going into the game. Emerson will be pleased with their efforts on the day though as they came through 2 – 0 with goals from Ross Brabrooke and Reece Martin.

DIVISION THREE

Old Barkabbeyans Reserves are up to fifth in the table in Division Three as they closed the gap on sides above with a solid 7 – 3 home win against Flyers Under 23s. Robbie Osborne scored a hat-trick with further efforts from Kacper Kasprzycki, Alex Donkor and Mehdi Ahorbi. Two debut goals from Joshua Adu and an Ethan Sowonola effort accounted for the Flyers efforts in reply.

It was also a seven-goal day for ASA over at the Marshes where Terin were the visitors and looking to open their points account for the season. Miran Miran and Fahad Abdallah both got on the Terin scoresheet but an ASA hat-trick for Mithurn Vijayarajah, two from Atif Haider and singles from David Rigby and Irfan Bahadur made it a comfortable 7 – 2 win for their side. There was also victory for now sixth placed Melbourne Sports as they saw the visit of high-flying Buckhurst Way to Hainault on Saturday. The Mels were in fine form however and turned the tables on their head with a good performance to win 4 – 0, picking up a third league win and move to nine points in the process.

There was plenty of entertainment in the division’s remaining game where Glendale were the visitors to Lymore Gardens Reserves and led early through a Wesley Kangi strike. But Lymore battled hard and were 3 – 1 up at the break and well in control. A stirring fightback from the Dales earned a point however as Wesley Kangi struck again and Was Lawal’s close range effort finished it 3 – 3.

DIVISION FOUR

Chingford Harriers remain top of Division Four but have seen their lead cut in recent weeks, including a disappointing draw against strugglers Newham & Havering Borough on Saturday. Nick Shawyer struck twice and in-form Darlington Ojo once but three Borough goals led to this one finishing 3 – 3 in the end. It will feel like an important milestone for Flyers Under 21s who opened their points account for the season on Saturday with a terrific win against fourth placed West Essex Under 23s down at King George’s Park. They were 2 – 0 winners on the day to ensure they closed the gaps on the sides above, though they remain bottom for now.

The early season form for Sporting Pillars suggests they will be there or thereabouts by the end of the season and they maintained their unbeaten run in the league with a 2 – 0 win against Emerson & Upminster A. Emanuel Jacob scored twice off the bench for this side and proved the difference between the two teams in the end. Meanwhile, Dagenham United Reserves joined the six point club in Division Four as they record a second win of the season with a 2-0 home victory against Collier Row A, closing the gap on their opponents to just goal difference. Cain Dash and substitute Mamadou Soumare were the men on the scoresheet to complete United’s victory.

COUNTY CUP

It was a mostly disappointing afternoon the London Junior Cup although last year’s finalists, FC Petrocub, did continue their run in the competition with a win against their semi final opponents last season, Jolof Sports. Petrocub were 3 – 1 winners on Saturday to see them through into the next round. There was a narrow defeat for Together United who faced a trip to south London to take on Standard Ballers in a nine-goal thriller. That contest was edged by Ballers who netted late on to take a 5 – 4 win.

Fixtures – Saturday November 6th (top two tiers only)

EAL Senior Division

CSM London v FC Petrocub | West Ham Community Ground 3G, Beckton

DT FC v Blue Marlin | Harlow Arena 3G

FC Baresi v Chigwell Town | Britannia Sports Ground

Jolof Sports v Leyton Royal | Flanders Playing Fields, East Ham

Kit Out London v Woodford East | Noak Hill 3G

Rapid Chingford v Lymore Gardens | Lakeside Spts Grd (2.30pm KO)

Tower Utd v Chadwell Heath Spartans | Mabley Green 3G

EAL Premier Division

All Prospects v London Park City | Fairlop Oak Playing Fields, Hainault

London Cranes v Eastside | Flanders Playing Fields

North East Lions v Athletic Newham U23 | Peter May Centre

Wapping v Oakside | Victoria Park, E9

Guest Blog: Essex Alliance League Round-up (Wk 5 – Sat 18 Sept) [EAL 21-22 20.9.21]

Penalty for CH Spartans tests FC Pretrocub ‘keeper (Image by @ABridgeTooFar16)

Hello and welcome to the latest action from the Essex Alliance League, which continues on this blog under the “Guest Blog” strand. This edition looks at the action across the divisions and the inter-divisional Cup competitions (Essex Premier Cup, Essex Junior Cup, Essex Junior Trophy) from Saturday 18 September. My thanks to the EAL’s Rob Parker. This round-up is posted with the author’s permission with additional reporting by Scott W. Lead image by @ABridgeTooFar16 , used with thanks. Thanks for reading.

Guest Blog written by Rob Parker for EAL [EAL Twitter: @EssexAllianceFL]

Essex Alliance League Round-up- Saturday 18 September

SENIOR DIVISION

With county cup action involving a number of our clubs this weekend, a limited Senior Division schedule saw league leaders, Chadwell Heath Spartans, on the road with a trip down the A12 to take on FC Petrocub at Noak Hill. Trailing by a goal at the break, Spartans fought back and took all three points with Courtney Holness and an own goal contributing to a 2 – 1 victory. Second placed Woodford East took advantage of sides around them being out of action as they climbed up into the top two with a big away win in Hainault against Blue Marlin. Billy Barr has been in good form and added another four goals to his tally here, with Lucio Uare netted twice and Adam Tabbani and Jack Haspineall also netting in an 8 – 1 win.

Completing the top-flight action, there was a key battle at the other end of the table as winless Tower United were at home to CSM London on Saturday in Mabley Green seeking to open their points account. And that was exactly what they did as Abubakar Maxamed struck four goals to counter a CSM fight-back from Joel Palmer, Lukman Hasan and Oscar-Ikye Williams in a 4 – 3 scoreline.

PREMIER DIVISION

It’s three from three now for the Premier Division leaders after Frenford A extended their winning run with a hard fought victory away at Crookz United on Saturday. Both sides went into the fixture unbeaten but it was the leaders who will have come away the happier of the two teams, recording a 2 – 1 win to move four points clear at the top with Damilola Olaiya and Nesar Torkamani scoring for the visitors. Crookz Utd responded through John Afrane-Kesey. Sitting second are Marcelona who also kept their unbeaten record running for another week as they secured a second draw to go alongside their solitary win, as they were involved in a incredible 4 – 4 draw away at Oakside who made their competition debut. There proved to be little between the sides as they settled for a share of the spoils. Oakside’s goals came from a brace from Moustapha Kane, plus strikes by Luke Caston and Jack Swaby.

Another side making their league debut were Athletic Newham Under 23s who finally got underway at the weekend as they hosted All Prospects in East Ham. Daniel Devey scored for the visitors, making their return to this level, but that effort proved not quite enough as Newham scored five of their own to win it 5 – 1.

There’s little to separate the sides in fifth and sixth where Eastside presently sit in the former on the back of a win and a defeat in their opening two games. London Park City were their opponents this weekend with Alexandru Gheorghe and Wais Heshemy efforts finding the target for their side. But substitute Ifeanyi Umeh’s hat-trick plus a Michael Morgan goal gave ‘Side the 4 – 2 win.

Sixth-placed Wapping trail by just goals scored and opened their points account for the new season with a closely fought 1 – 0 home win against North East Lions courtesy of Meeshaq Malone’s goal. That result saw the hosts bounce back well from their opening defeat to take maximum points in Hackney to move into the top half of the table.

DIVISION ONE

In Division One, two sides are fighting hard at the top of the early standings where Cowley Community presently hold sway at the top on goal difference following a second consecutive win, recording a 3 – 2 win at home against Something From Nothing in a five goal thriller. That man Chris Wright netted once again with James Allen and Kyle Cargill strikes edging the contest.

Renegade are up to third in the table as they completed the full set of results, adding a win to their draw and defeat, the victory coming at the hands of Wanstead at the Flats. Vincent Follea, Deon Thwala, Nana Baah and Daekwon King-Douglas all struck to give the Hackney based side their maiden win in a 4-2 score-line. Also at the Flats, Newham Wanderers bounced back well from their defeat last time out in the opening round of games to reign supreme as they welcomed Francis Luke. Wanderers goals from Admir Cassama, Robertson Morais and Joao Cruz were crucial to separate the sides with Saico Djop’s effort in reply proving insufficient as the hosts won 3 – 1.

Barkingside A opened their new season in some style with a solid 4 – 2 victory as they hosted Forest Green at Nutter Lane, the visitors remaining winless after their opening two games in the competition. The hosts had a double from Josh Rowe plus goals from Umaru Kabia and Harry Nicholson to thank for this success. That win sees ‘Side move up to fifth and gives them much hope for the campaign ahead.

It was also a good afternoon’s work for Belfry who got their own campaign off to the best of starts as they took maximum points in a 1 – 0 score-line, scoring in the dying embers of the game to defeat Ilford Reserves at May & Baker, a game which looked well fought between two well equipped sides.

DIVISION TWO

It’s Rainham Working Mens Club setting the early pace in the fourth tier this season after they got a third win of the campaign already following a solid away victory at Ryan Under 23s in Walthamstow. Workies goals from Matthew Humphreys, Nick Tormey, Connor Kain, Odo Osei-Tutu & Sean Tormey were enough in the end to round off a 5 – 1 win. William Amoah netted the solitary goal for the Ryan side here. Three further sides sport a perfect record in the division where FHN Athletic presently lead the chasing pack on the back of a second win of the campaign, sending Emerson & Upminster Reserves to a 4 – 1 defeat in Hainault. Dan Lane struck for the visitors but Joseph O’Hare, Michael Barek, Terron Fordjoe and Amos Agyei goals handed their FHN side the points.

Fairlop Rovers are the third side with a 100% start so far in the division but had to do things the hard way as they came from behind against a solid Royal Forest side to record a 4 – 2 win on the road in Loughton. Joe Owers and Martin Cannon blasted onto the Royal score-sheet but two Dylan Scutt goals in reply plus efforts from Toby Stephens and Harry Oliver did just enough to rescue the points.

There was a nine-goal thriller served up in Loughton’s other match offering as Unitey hosted Redbridge Community at Roding Valley High School. Brandon Fulton certainly knows where the goal is and he scored a hat-trick for Unitey here, adding to Jordan Vib and Ahmed Dousa goals. Two Frankie Francis consolations and goals from Harvir Bhangal and Alibacar Dabo netted in reply for Redbridge.

DIVISION THREE

It’s Old Barkabbeyans Reserves presently setting the pace in Division Three as they exploded in front of goal on Saturday, winning 13 – 1 away at Terin to go top of the pile. Mehdi Ahorbi’s five-goal haul set the side on their way with Chris Plummer, Callum Elliott, Alex Donkor Junior, Kacper Kasprzycki, Robbie Osborne, Okey Obialo, Jason Cassama and Ryan Lindfield efforts making it a memorable day.

Royal Forest Reserves made their bow in the fifth tier on Saturday as they made the short trip of a few yards to face Melbourne Sports at Fairlop Oak. Two goals apiece from Tom Alexander and Will Asenso were the difference between the sides in the end as Forest firmly laid their roots in the division with an excellent 4 – 1 win. Also back in action for the first time this season, ASA made a good start with an opening victory in Hackney Marshes as they faced Glendale. Trailing at the break to a Khari Pobi strike for the Dales, second half ASA goals from Mithurn Vijayarajah, Jubayed Miah and Saranth Veersasingam changed the context of the game, Wesley Kangi netting another for the Dales late on as ASA won 3 – 2.

Lymore Gardens Reserves responded well to their opening defeat of the campaign as they returned home from Chigwell with all three points after sending Harlow Inter to a 5 – 2 defeat. Macauley Harrington and Ashton Livermore-Rose both scored for Inter but those efforts proved not quite enough with Lymore doing enough to take the spoils. It was also a great day for Buckhurst Way as they also reversed their fortunes from their opening game in the competition to take home the points with them from their match at Flyers Under 23s. Muhammed Waqas got on the hosts’ score-sheet but Way edged the contest with two of their own to win it 2 – 1.

DIVISION FOUR

Fairlop Rovers Reserves stay top of Division Four on the back of a third consecutive win to make it a good afternoon for the club. Jake Atherton’s goal for Flyers Under 21s made this a real contest but Rovers done just enough to edge it 2 – 1 and maintain a three point gap at the top. Elsewhere, Chingford Harriers are up to second in the table taking a goal difference advantage over the other sides level on points aided by a big win on the road as they defeated Collier Row A, 8 – 0. Jake Kemp was in fine fettle with a hat-trick, Edwin Jabbari and Darnell Lamothe both scored twice with Jesse Middleweek’s effort rounding things off.

In third, Emerson & Upminster A keep themselves in contention at the top as they made it two wins from three so far this term, returning home from Loughton with all the points against Avondale Rangers. Bryn Compton-Lowe led the way with two goals, Tyler Huggett and Robert Spratley striking with the other goals in a 4 – 0 win.

Also on six points, Newham Royals came out on the right side of the “Newham” derby as they defeated Newham & Havering Borough, oddly, quite a long way from Newham! Rainham was the host venue for this five goal thriller which saw Ashley Evett, Andre Peters and Billy Grainger goals separate the sides in a 3 – 2 Royal win.

COUNTY CUPS

It was BBC Essex Premier Cup day for a few of our sides with mixed fortunes. DT FC came from two goals down at the break against Walthamstow Reserves to advance into round two, turning things around in the second period thanks to goals from Billy Golledge (2), Lewis Evans, Stanley Green and Kieran Hipgrave to run out 5 -2 winners to set up a clash at home to Holland Reserves. Leyton Royal perhaps picked up the result of the day for our sides with the longest of trips, almost the entire length of the A12 as they headed to the north of the county to take on Lawford Lads. A terrific performance saw them win 3 – 1 and book a return trip up the A12 where they now head to Tiptree Heath in round two.

It wasn’t such a great day for two of our other representatives who both slipped to narrow 2 – 1 reverses. Chigwell Town were up against Essex Senior League Reserve Division side May & Baker Reserves and were edged out in a close game thanks to goals from Brandon Johnson and Tolu Dina goals for M & B. Over in Leyton, Epping Town were the first visitors at Lymore Gardens’ new home at the County Ground. Another closely fought game saw our side edged out with Epping the beneficiaries with a 2 – 1 victory to book their place in Round Two.

Both Dagenham United sides were also in county cup action where the first team saw their Essex Junior Cup campaign come to a halt in the opening round with a big 5 – 0 defeat against local rivals, Barking Under 23s who hail from the Isthmian Development League. Things were a little more plain sailing for Dagenham United Reserves who faced fellow Essex Alliance League opposition with West Essex Under 23s the visitors to Castle Green in their Essex Junior Trophy clash. Dagenham came through by the odd goal in seven, winning it 4 – 3 to go through to Round Two.

Fixtures (Top 3 tiers only) – Saturday 25th September (2pm KO unless stated)

EAL Senior Division

Chigwell Town v Lymore Gardens |

CSM London v FC Petrocub | West Ham Community Grd 3G, Beckton

FC Baresi v Tower Utd | Britannia Sports Grd, W’stow

Kit Out London v Chadwell Heath Spartans | Noak Hill 3G

Leyton Royal v Rapid Chingford | Fairlop Oak Playing Fields

Woodford East v Blue Marlin | Lakeside Sports Ground 3G (2.30pm KO)

EAL Premier Division

Frenford A v Marcelona | Jack Carter Centre

North East Lions v Eastside | Peter May Sports Centre

EAL Division One

Francis Luke v Renegade | Leyton County Ground

RC XI v Cowley Community | Belhus Park, Aveley

Something from Nothing v Belfry | Wanstead Flats

Fenton Cup – Round One

DT FC v Dagenham Utd | The Harlow Arena 3G

Full fixture list available at essexallianceleague.com

S20-21 Round-ups: Essex Alliance League (Wk 8 – Sat 24 Oct) [EAL 20-21 26.9.20]

Hello and welcome to a guest blog, going through the action in the five Essex Alliance League divisions on Saturday 24th October, along with the Olympian League action, it is good to have guest content on other Grassroots Leagues, thank you Rob. This round-up is posted with the author’s permission, with thanks. Thanks for reading.

Guest Blog written by Rob Parker for EAL [EAL Twitter: @EssexAllianceFL]

Essex Alliance League – Saturday 24 October

SENIOR DIVISION

It was a goal-filled weekend in the top flight with thirty-two goals scored across the six fixtures, ten of those coming in the clash between Chigwell Town and CSM London where Town ran out emphatic 9-1 victors. Mark Howe scored four of his sides goals, Ross Chimes got two and one each from Joe Creasey, Lewis Mcgillicuddy and Harry Burgess. Keifer Cole grabbed the CSM goal back in reply.

At the top end of the division it remains very tight with FC Baresi still leading the way by a point, aided by a narrow win over the weekend as they took home all three points against Tower United at Mabley Green. Recent signing Ashley Godwin made the difference with the only goal of the game to win it 1-0.

DTFC are just behind and with a game in hand as they continued their quest for the title with a trip to West Ham to take on London Cranes. Two goals from Billy Golledge were accompanied onto the score-sheet by efforts from Terry Olivo, Jermaine Francis, Jake Kissiedu and Jamiah Plentie which saw them to a comfortable 6-0 win.

West Essex Reserves saw their chances hit as Blue Marlin took maximum points in Newbury Park, edging the contest 4-3. Goals from Jordan Mills-Smith, Josh Morris, Nathan Desnoes and Tyreese Robinson proved just enough as they overcame the three goals scored by West to hand Blue Marlin their second league win of the season.

That result allowed Lymore Gardens to close the gap on the sides at the top of the table after they returned home from Hainault with all three points in a 4-0 victory at All Prospects. A goal apiece from Andre Rashford, Dylan Roberts, Dushane Powell and Karel Francis earned Lymore a fourth league win in seven as they moved fourth.

Completing the top flight action, it was a good afternoon for Rapid Chingford as they continued their much improved recent form and put a temporary dent in Jolof Sports’ title credentials, holding their opposition to a 2-2 draw in Chingford. Gabriel Prisecaru and Andrei Boga goals accounted for Rapid’s goals while Papa Ndiaye and Mamadou Sene struck for Jolof as Rapid moved up a place to eleventh in the standings.

DIVISION ONE

There were some huge results at the top end of Division One as present leaders, Leyton Royal, missed the chance to extend their lead too much at the top as they were held to a draw against Chadwell Heath Spartans in the battle between the division’s two unbeaten sides. Defences were on top of this one with the game ending 0-0 to keep both sides undefeated.

Second placed Woodford East couldn’t capitalise on those sides dropping points as they fell to second successive defeat as third placed Eastside beat them 4-0 at the Marshes. Johnathan Odutulu scored twice with Lawrence Amadi and Michael Dager grabbing one each to take their side to a fourth league win in six, extending a very promising start to the season.

Kit Out London remain very well placed to stay in the mix as the fifth placed side made it three wins from four on Saturday as they hosted old rivals London Park City at Noak Hill. In a closely fought game, Amalraj Kakmanu and Kachi Yassine goals were the difference on the day to secure a 2-1 victory.

Francis Luke continue their improved form and moved away from the bottom of the table after taking all three points home from their trip to Ilford to face Frenford A. Jordan McLaughlin had got on the hosts’ score-sheet but his efforts were in vain as Francis Luke scored three goals themselves through Louison Kamba, Saico Djop and Saif Altamash to win it 3-1.

The remaining game in the division came from the Marshes were North East Lions were the hosts to take on Kwanzas London Sport. The two teams had to settle for a share of the points as Louis Blake’s goal for Lions was cancelled out by a Kwanzas strike to end this contest level at 1-1 on the day.

DIVISION TWO

It was first versus second in the game of the day in Division Two as Cowley Community hosted Belfry at the Leyton County Ground, the sides meeting for the first time. As predicted, this game was a close contest but Jeremy Lynch once again got on the scoresheet, Jamie Redington netting the other to secure a crucial 2-0 win for Belfry in their battle for the title.

Chingford Athletic A closed the gap on the sides above them as they got the better of Rainham Working Mens Club at Town Mead. Nathan Wilson scored for the Workies but braces from Luke Primett and Eric Kelly in reply plus an Aaron French goal enabled Chingford to run out 5-1 victors.

Keeping chasing with Chingford are Newham Wanderers with only goals scored keeping Wanderers below them in fifth. Newham’s promotion push was kept up with a big away win as they picked up a 6-2 local derby victory away at Forest Green. Malam Injai scored twice adding to Bradley Harris, Macane Caleir, Robertson Morais and Shazib Miah efforts.

Unitey also scooped themselves a big win, their second in succession, as they picked up all three points from their home clash against Old Esthameians in Loughton. Brandon Fulton had a memorable debut scoring four of the Unitey goals, Eddy Litambolo scoring the other in a 5-1 success.

Also in Loughton, Royal Forest had a much improved afternoon as they picked up their first league win of the season with an important win against St Francis. Tom Osmond scored four of the goals in a sparkling performance, Joe Owers and Samuel Gregory netting the others to earn their side a 6-2 win.

There was also a first league win for Barkingside A at the second attempt and it was a huge win as they were up against third placed Dagenham United at Nutter Lane. They bounced back well from defeat last Saturday to earn all this points this time around, ending as 3-0 winners and will be hopeful of extending that form with games in hand.

DIVISION THREE

The big result of the day in Division Three came from Barkingside where Fairlop Rovers made it two excellent wins in succession with a 4-1 victory against the league leaders, FHN Athletic. Cory Regisford scored for FHN but Rovers were in great form with Logan Simmonds netting two and one each from George Birch and Louis Goodman rounded it off.

That result allowed Melbourne Sports to close the gap on the leaders to just two points with a game in hand as the Mels’ good start continued with a 4-2 away win against Flyers Under 23s in Romford. That was Sports’ fourth win in six as they moved second while Flyers continue their quest for their maiden points this season.

Loughton Lions took advantage of results around them to go third and are another side likely to be in the chase, aided by their most recent victory, a 2-0 home win against ASA. That enabled them to also pick up a fourth league win and lie just a point off the promotion places going into the second quarter of the season.

Just through the hedge, there was a topsy-turvy game involving Glendale and Old Barkabbeyans Reserves where second half Dales goals from Mouhamed Gueye and Wesley Kangi looked to be sending them to victory. But late Old Barks goals from Klodian Meta and Kudzai Madziya earned them what had looked like an unlikely point in a 2-2 draw.

DIVISION FOUR

There was plenty of goal action in most of the Division Four games with Emerson United Reserves grabbing the result of the day with a big 8-1 victory against Newham Royals in Upminster. Archie Pitfield done most of the damage with a hat-trick with goals from Ross Braybrooke, Joshua Gibbins, Joe Reece, Harry Wilkins and Marcus Williams finishing things off.

Unbeaten Custom House United also made ground on the league leaders as the third placed side came out on the right side of a 5-2 win as they returned home with the points from their trip to Brentwood United Reserves. Jamie Wooster scored twice with Matthew Guy, Paul Wooster and Liam Sullivan efforts also making the scoresheet in their third league win.

There are always goals in Together United games and Saturday was no exception, combining with Avondale Rangers in a seven-goal thriller in Walthamstow. Chris Harper scored twice and Laurence Brady once for Rangers but their efforts proved just consolation as United got it together to score four themselves in a 4-3 win.

The form of Collier Row A hasn’t gone unnoticed as their recent form continued over the weekend, earning them a third league win in seven as they took maximum points from their clash at home to Dagenham United Reserves. Row edged the game by the odd goal in a 2-1 scoreline which sees them move up a place to fifth in the standings.

The day’s remaining game in the league involved the league leaders, Royal Forest Reserves, who were at home in Hainault against Chingford Harriers with the sides only having one defeat between them this season so far. You could have predicted a tight game therefore and so it proved with the matching ending in a rare goalless draw as defences reigned supreme.

S20-21 Round-ups: Essex Alliance League & Cups (Wk 6 – Sat 10 Oct) [EAL 20-21 12.10.20]

Hello and welcome to a guest blog, going through the action in the five Essex Alliance League divisions plus action from the Cups on Saturday 10th October, along with the Olympian League & ESBL action, it is good to have guest content on other Grassroots Leagues, thank you Rob. This round-up is posted with the author’s permission, with thanks. Thanks for reading.

Guest Blog written by Rob Parker for EAL [EAL Twitter: @EssexAllianceFL]

Essex Alliance League – Saturday 10th October

SENIOR DIVISION

With a number of sides in county cup action this weekend, FC Baresi took full advantage of that to move four points clear at the top of the table, returning home from their trip to Newbury Park with all three points in a 2-0 win against Blue Marlin. Alfie Hatch and Denzel Conteh grabbed the all important goals to secure a fifth league win.

Over in Hainault, there was a second league win of the season for Chigwell Town who entertained Tower United. Abubakar Maxamed scored twice and Abdirahman Sabriye once for the visitors but braces from Ross Chimes and John Lye paved the way to Chigwell victory, with Joel Donnelly scoring the other goal in a 5-3 scoreline.

It was also a great afternoon for Rapid Chingford who picked up a crucial first win of the season to move them away from the bottom, seeing FC Petrocub slide to a second successive defeat after a perfect start. Bogdan Galan double and strikes from Dragos Aenasoaie and Andrei Boga were enough for Rapid, overcoming visitor goals from Vitalii Chiriac, Nicolai Gutu and Maxim Volosin in a 4-3 win.

DIVISION ONE

The title race remains interestingly poised in Division One with the top two sides both having won all five games so far. Leyton Royal extended their record but had to come through a tough contest away at Kwanzas London Sport as goals from George State and Bogdan Toana overcame an Antonio Semedo strike from the hosts in a 2-1 scoreline.

Remaining top on goal difference, Woodford East maintained their own great start as they took maximum points from their trip to London Park City. Callum Drummond, Matthew Stacey and James Collier goals proved enough on the day as they ended with a 3-1 win under their belts.

Moving up to fourth place are Eastside who made it two wins and a draw from their opening fixtures as they secured an important 6 – 2 home win against Francis Luke in a local derby. A brace apiece for Lawrence Amadi, Michael Dager and Junior Mandeng-Fotabong were sufficient for Side with Saico Djop and Joseph Mcnroe goals just consolation for FL.

North East Lions will be pleased with their efforts also as they scooped a second league win of the campaign with a victory at another local side in Wapping. A 4 – 3 win was secured by a Rweal Azizur hat-trick with Aaron Abbott grabbing the other to render strikes from Ashraf Ameer, Gracia Muhemba and Shamsun Noor as just consolation.

DIVISION TWO

Dagenham United remain top of Division Two but had to settle for a share of the spoils as they were held at 2 – 2 by previously bottom of the table Royal Forest. Ruben Silva and Lewis Bennett both got on the United scoresheet but Forest will have been pleased to secure a first point of the season to get their account underway.

Belfry are ominously poised to strike, just a point back from the leaders, and they made light work of their trip to Leyton to take on Forest Green. There were hat-tricks galore including one for debutant Jeremy Lynch, with Daniel Osborne and Sam Paterson equalling that effort. Luke Macdonald and Mujib Ayoola goals completed the scoring in a thumping 11 – 0 victory.

Sitting in third place, Cowley Community kept up their decent start to the new campaign with a closely fought home win against Unitey in Leyton. Aiden Gentle and Kyle Cargill goals were enough in the end to edge this encounter 2-1 with the visitors slipping to the bottom by full-time as they go in search of their first points.

Newham Wanderers are also sitting pretty with three wins from four so far after promotion and they took maximum points from their local derby game against St Francis, running out 3-0 winners at the Flats. Hamido Jalo, Marcelino Rodrigues and Bradley Harris found the back of the net for Wanderers to keep them in the hunt at the top end of the table.

It was also a good afternoon for Chingford Athletic A who have moved up to fifth in the table following a big 5-0 home win against Old Esthameians as the sides met at Town Mead. Eric Kelly’s rich vein of form continued with a hat-trick as Harry Miller and Shazad Edwards goals completed a deserved victory.

DIVISION THREE

In Division Three, it’s as you were at the top end of the table as FHN Athletic stay two points clear of the rest but had to come through a tough battle at home to Bailey Football Academy to take the points. Mustafa Burkhari and Fahd Umar goals kept Bailey interested but Athletic scored three times themselves to edge this one 3-2.

Over in Romford, Old Barkabbeyans Reserves kept up with the leaders but had to overcome a tough test themselves as they edged a five goal thriller against bottom of the table Flyers Under 23s. Klodian Meta scored twice and Sam Thompson once to help their side to an eventual 3 – 2 win in what was an improved Flyers performance.

Melbourne Sports remain third as they held off a comeback from Glendale, scoring twice late on to win it 5 – 3 after the hosts had fought back to 3 – 3. Alex Armah netted a Mels hat-trick with Jordan Green and Adnan Nuralt getting the other to render strikes from Enoch Apraku, Mohammed Gueye and Valter Correia as just consolation for the Dales.

Loughton Lions got back to winning ways this weekend as they put six goals passed a visiting Lymore Gardens Reserves side to secure a second league win in three. Will Osmond and George Bird swooped in with braces, Charlie Harper and Ryan Hazell scoring the others in a 6-1 scoreline.

ASA made their long awaited debut in the competition on Saturday as they made the trip to Barkingside to take on Fairlop Rangers. In the end, the two sides had to share the points as Saigeethan Senthan and Irfan Bahadur goals helped ASA to take a point in an eventual 2-2 draw, a result which was enough for Rovers to move sixth in the standings.

DIVISION FOUR

Royal Forest Reserves’ return to league action was a successful one as they moved three points clear at the top of the table following a hard fought 2 – 0 home win against Dagenham United Reserves. Anayo Ukwunnah and Josh Trainor scored the two goals for Forest to keep their side unbeaten in the league so far.

Moving second in the standings, Together United picked up a second league win on Saturday, overcoming Brentwood United Reserves in Chadwell Heath in a 5 – 3 scoreline. Jake Southam, Connor Goom and Sam Bentley all found the net for Brentwood but a Stanley Kweya hat-trick and Fifi Banin brace brought it all Together for the visitors to take the points.

Collier Row A will have been pleased with their afternoon’s work as they made it two wins for the season over the weekend with a 4-1 win against Newham Royals. After such a difficult start, Row are now up to fifth in the table with Royal dropping to seventh as a result of that performance.

Completing the league action from Saturday, Emerson United Reserves were the hosts as Avondale Rangers visited Upminster in a mid-table battle. The game was closely fought and the teams had to settle for a point apiece with Adam Friend’s goal for Rangers equalled by a Sonny Scott goal for Emerson.

COUNTY CUP

It was a big county cup weekend for Essex clubs and in the Essex Junior Cup, three of our sides made safe passage into round two with West Essex Reserves proving comfortable 4 – 0 winners in their game against Toby Reserves and will now face fellow Senior Division side, Chigwell Town, next month.

Also making it through in impressive fashion were Jolof Sports who took on CSM London in the East Ham derby game and picked up a 4 – 1 win to book a second round clash away at Manford Way Reserves in November.

And they will be joined in the second round hat by Lymore Gardens who also had a home tie with Olympian League Dvision Five side Collier Row Reserves, with the visitors taking on an in-form Lymore side. They were 3-1 winners and secured a spot in round two against Leytonstone United. There was just the one defeat for our clubs as DTFC were edged out by Essex & Suffolk Border League Division One side Dunmow Town with Town winning 2-1 on the day to make the draw for the next round.

In the Essex Junior Trophy, there were two all-EAL ties completed as Division One side Chadwell Heath Spartans overcame Custom House United 7-2 to go through to the next round where they will face Harold Wood Athletic A next month. The other clash came from Ilford where, in the battle of the borough’s “A” sides, it was Barkingside A who came out on top, beating Frenford A 4-2 to book a clash at home to Glendale in the next round.

S20-21 Round-ups: Essex Alliance Lge (Wk 5 – Sat 3 Oct) [EAL 5.10.20]

Hello and welcome to a guest blog, going through the action in the five Essex Alliance League divisions on Saturday 3rd October, along with the other Grassroots divisions, it is good to have guest content on these Leagues, thank you Rob. This round-up is posted with the author’s permission, with thanks. Thanks for reading.

Guest Blog written by Rob Parker for EAL [EAL Twitter: @EssexAllianceFL]

SENIOR DIVISION

Just a point separates the top three sides in the Senior Division with FC Baresi still leading the way, assisted by their enthralling victory over the weekend in a nine-goal thriller against Chigwell Town. Ali Shikeey scored twice and one apiece from Amais Khan, Marvin Smith and Denzel Conteh sent the hosts to a 5-4 win.

It’s as you were just behind the leaders with DTFC putting in a comprehensive performance against one of their rivals for the title as they saw off FC Petrocub 7-0 at the Harlow Arena. Jake Kissiedu’s hat-trick was accompanied by Billy Golledge and Kieran Hipgrave braces to extend their perfect record so far.

Another side sporting a perfect record so far are third placed West Essex Reserves who are also sporting four wins from four so far and maintained that start to the season with a hard fought 2-1 win away at Lymore Gardens in their contest in Loughton. Mitchell Arthur and Mason Iley netted the West goals as they returned home with the points.

Jolof Sports are the sitting fourth in the table, the last of the four unbeaten sides in the top flight after they made it three wins from three so far on the back of their most recent performance which saw them beat All Prospects 5-1 in East Ham. Mussa Jamanca scored twice with Abib Diop, Papa Ndiaye and Mamadou Sene also netting for Jolof. Prince Esanbor got the consolation for Prospects here.

Moving up the table are London Cranes who recorded their first victory of the new season on Saturday with a stunning 5-2 home win over Tower United in West Ham. Mohamed Hassan and Asad Yousef had netted for Tower but a home brace for Mathius Sendawula plus strikes from Fred Karyngo, Shadrack Sibasa and Valentine Djeikuyi gave victory to the hosts.

It was also a pleasing afternoon’s work for Blue Marlin who also picked up their first win of the campaign as they returned home from CSM London with the points. Radostin Danchev got on the scoresheet for the hosts but his efforts proved in vain as Marlin scored four goals of their own to earn a 4-1 victory, thanks largely to a Jordan Mills-Smith hat-trick and one for Tyreese Robinson.

DIVISION ONE

The race for promotion in Division One continues to offer much promise with the top two sides separated by just goal difference. Woodford East stay top with a fourth win, courtesy of a 3-1 home victory against Frenford A. Ben Smith, Callum Maltese and Billy Barr all got on the score-sheet to help their side to a fourth consecutive win.

Leyton Royal trail in second place by just a few goals with games between those sides likely to be interesting. Leyton’s 2-1 home win on Saturday came at the expense of London Park City with Cosmin Capatina and Bogdan Toana efforts earning maximum points for the hosts to keep their winning record going.

There was an impressive victory for Kit Out London who made light work of their home fixture against Francis Luke, earning themselves a 7-1 win. Amalraj Kakmanu was in good form once again with a brace adding to goals from Olajide Akala, Lewis Jacobs, Darnell Kitambo, Massi Rahimi and debutant Erik Rusnack.

Moving up third place in the standings, Chadwell Heath Spartans recorded a second league victory and remain unbeaten after they were also 7-1 winners following their match with North East Lions. Ricky Reid scored twice and there were also efforts from Caleb Roberts, Rob Hodgson, Niru Hunwicks, Miguel Martins and Tom Callagher to round off an impressive performance.

Rounding off the action in the second tier, there was a seven goal thriller in Walthamstow as Kwanzas London Sport took on Eastside with the latter recording their first win of the season. They were victors by the odd goal in seven thanks to a double from Michael Dager plus strikes by Wenbi Ghenda and Lawrence Amadi in a result which saw them move up to seventh in the table.

DIVISION TWO

There was just the one completed game in Division Two and it couldn’t have been a more exciting one with top of the table Dagenham United and Forest Green sharing nine goals between them. Rodeny Varela scored twice and one apiece from Brandon Johnson, Ola Ogunjobi and George Martin ended the game 5-4 in favour for United, a result which brought Green’s perfect start to an end.

DIVISION THREE

The big game in Division Three came from Fairlop Oak where previously top of the table Melbourne Sports took on third placed FHN Athletic, both sides sporting excellent starts. Athletic ended the day having swapped places with the Mels as Dillon Ashford-Quaye, Oluwatunmida Adebayo, Ose Egbejale and Daniel Ohuruogu all netted to win it 4-2, rendering Ross Barker and Kinsley Tatham goals as just consolation for the Mels.

Old Barkabbeyans Reserves extended their unbeaten start to the season but did drop points for the first time as they were held to a rare goalless draw at home against Lymore Garden Reserves in Barking. That result saw them go second, two points off the new leaders, while Lymore move sixth.

Moving fourth in the standings are Glendale who, after two recent draws, tasted victory this weekend as they ended Loughton Lions’ perfect start in a closely fought 1-0 victory in the Hainault battle of the hedge. Mohammed Gueye came oft the bench to net in some style from distance to help his Dales side to the win.

There was also an important first victory of the season for Fairlop Rovers who took maximum points and moved away from the bottom of the table after a 4-0 win away at Flyers Under 23s. That result moves them seventh in the standings while Flyers will seek an upturn in form after a pointless start so far.

DIVISION FOUR

Avondale Rangers have cut the gap at the top of the table in Division Four as they moved third on Saturday following a 4-2 home win against Newham Royals in Loughton. Jake Clarke scored a hat-trick for Rangers with James Whitbread grabbing the other to move their side to within one point of the leaders.

There was an impressive performance from Dagenham United’s reserve side too where the previously winless side grabbed their first win of the season as they took down Together United at Castle Green. Hans Dodoo scored twice with Amran El-Kaouny grabbing the other to win it 3-1 and end the day as the happier of the sides.

End

Round-up: Essex Alliance League (Sat 16 Nov) [EAL 19/20 18.11.19]

Written by Scott W [Twitter: @ScottMHC14] – Non-League Writer

Hello and welcome to a rare round-up of this weekend’s Essex Alliance League action, covering the League action from the Premier Division to Senior Three with results from the and Senior Four & Five on the weekend of Saturday 16th November. In memory of EAL photographer Jules Lister aka ‘Lamo the Lion’, RIP.

For more information on the EAl Divisional standings, click here: https://www.essexallianceleague.com/tables/ Thanks for reading.

Saturday 16 November

EAL Senior Division

Chigwell retained their place at the summit after a 3 – 2 win against FC Petrocub. A brace from Ross Chimes and one from Mark Howe saw them to their sixth win this term. Ghenadie Moisei and Vasilica-Cristinel Ilie both scored for Petrocub though they remain 5th, five points off their opponents here.

London Cranes sit second in the table after a 2 – 1 win at Blue Marlin. Moses Makanga and Kennedy Wampamba both netted here for Cranes to overturn a Nathan Desnoes goal and secure their sixth win of the campaign. The hosts here drop to second-bottom after one win in their seven league matches thus far. With FC Baresi in Cup action, CSM London missed a chance to overhaul them as they lost 3 – 2 at home to West Essex Reserves. Strikes by Thomas Davie, Connor Brathwaite and Abiola Balogun saw Adam Norris’ side to their fourth win in eight games to see them up to sixth. Omar Wilson and Rod Beya netted for CSM here.

Elsewhere, East Ham Inter got only their second win this term with a 2 – 1 success over Lymore Gardens to rise up to eighth. Lymore drop to seventh.

EAL Division One

In Division One, Eastside reduced the deficit to leaders Tower Utd to three points with a powerful 6 – 1 victory at strugglers Sporting Hackney Development. Idris Shittu led the way with a double here, with Michael Dager, Michael Morgan and Johnathan Odutolu also among their scorers here. Timi Oluwole got the solitary consolation for the hosts though they still only have one win from their opening six matches. Chingford Utd are only a point further back in third with a match in hand after a big 6 – 0 win at bottom side Forest Green. Marian Hrehorciuc and Ruslan Belicescu both got braces here, with Tamer-Andrei Bozgan and Mihail Vlad also on target for Utd in their fifth win this term.

All Prospects edged their mid-table battle with Tower Hamlets Reserves, winning 4 – 3 at the Robert Clack Sch. The ensemble cast of Delfim Carmo, Jose Mata, Jack Young and Darnell Fuller all got their names on the score-sheet for the hosts. Hamlets’ second-side made it a tight finish through a double from Atlant Bogdanovic and Cole Edwards strikes. The Prospects remain in fourth. Level on points with them are All Real who emerged victorious after a heck of a battle with London Park City, eventually winning 8 – 5 at the Low Hall Sports Ground. Jason Mbelek got a hat-trick here with Josias Biembongo and Isaiah Forde both getting two goals apiece. Tristan Jones also struck to secure his side’s fifth win this season.

EAL Division Two

In Div Two, Royal Forest maintained their top spot with a 3 – 1 win over Upshire Forest in Hainault. Thomas Osmond struck twice for the hosts, with Kyle Balou also on target. Leighton Hughes-Franklin replied for Upshire though they are yet to win this term. Sungate Reserves extended their 100% winning record this term with a hard-fought 2 – 1 over Rainham Working Men’s Club. Gabriel Ogunwomoju got both goals for Sungate’s second team as they kept stay second, two points behind the leaders. Nick Tormey pulled one back for WMC though they fall behind their opponents here to third spot.

Elsewhere, Three Colts went fifth with a hefty 7 – 0 triumph over Flyers at Fairlop Oak Playing Fields. Jack Luck got two of those goals, with a big ’support cast’ of James Kane, Jason Fox, James Carter, Julian Bryant and Liam Bellamy all getting one apiece. Cowley Community got their first win this season in style with a 5 – 0 success over Melbourne Sports at the Leyton County Ground. Chris Wright and Kane Greene both got two each in that one, with David Tembua also chipping in to lift Cowley up to ninth.

EAL Division Three

Finally for the round-up section, in Division Three, Chadwell Health Spartans extended their lead at the top to four points as they hammered Avondale Rangers 8 – 1 in Hainault. Jeffrey Nketia smashed four of those by himself, with Rashid Matabaro, Janel Alexander, Niven Nkansah and Bradley Downes all adding one each to give player-boss Aaron Hunwicks’ team a resounding win. Sean McGilloway netted for Rangers as they fall to fifth. St Francis lost ground on the top two as they were held 2 – 2 at Custom House Utd. Glendale went fourth with a 2 – 1 win over FC Galaxy at Fairlop Oak. Mohammed Gueye and Seyi Agboola were the goal-getters as they got their fourth win this term.

Also, Ilford Development edged to 4 – 3 away win at Flyers Development to go up to seventh place.

EAL Division Four results

Dagenham Utd Res 4 – 3 Prospect Protege

Flyers ‘B’ 1 – 2 Together Utd

Loughton Lions 2 – 2 Lymore Gardens Res

London Senior Cup – Round Three

Canning Town Res (EOFL side) 0 – 2 FC Baresi

Rapid Chingford 4 – 2 Club Langley