retired_destiny1124

17.2.07
Harrow Hill (1) Bognor Regis (1)
It could have been a better result, but I was pleased that we battled back to score in second half injury time to salvage a 1-1 draw with Bognor Regis at Larksfield Road. It was another match that we were outplayed for large portions of the match and only a few saving tackles and solid work by Craig Farr kept us locked in a scoreless match at halftime. Midway through the second half Bognor Regis took the lead when Luke Nightengale wended through three attempted tackles to score past Farr. It looked like another disheartening defeat until Adrian Cregg was in the right place to pick up a loose ball at the far post and ram it into the goal for a dramatic equalizer. Even a draw was welcome after our play in the last three matches.

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24.2.07
Basingstoke (0) Harrow Hill (0)
Another draw that could be considered a victory- or at least a good result. Basingstoke had us under pressure through much of the match, but a MOM performance by Craig Farr managed to keep their scoring at bay. We did finally create some decent opportunities in the second half, but our forwards seemed timid and passed up shots on several that looked plenty good enough for me. I was hoping for more, but am pleased with the effort and determination we showed to earn the draw when outplayed.

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3.3.07
Hayes (3) Harrow Hill (1)
If you look at the stats, it is easy to wonder how this scoreline came to be. We outshot the home side 14-7 and had many good scoring chances included in those. Hayes took advantage of a slow start by us and built a 2-0 lead in the first 10 minutes of play. They hit us on a counter-attack to get off on a flyer as Frannie Collin scooted past everyone to score on Craig Farr. Farr then misplayed a cross and that allowed Shane O'Doherty a goal. We tried to rally, but Hayes keeper Keita Karamoko was on his way to MOM honours and made several excellent stops. We also aided Karamoko by poor shooting. We went down 3-0 at halftime thanks to a disputed penalty call on David Hall, that Donal Broughan converted the kick. The second half belonged to us, but it took us until the late stages to finally score on Karamoko when Mark Yates snapped home a shot after a nice lay off pass from Peter Adeniyi. It was another frustrating match for us, but at least we might be returning to better health as Michael Gahan, Cathal Feeney and Jason Smith all made their first appearances in quite some time.

retired_destiny1124

4.3.07
It is clear that this is the 'grind' portion of the season for our young club. We still feature mostly 16 and 17 year olds in our lineup and they just aren't use to playing this long of a season. It is a learning process for them and myself and we will just have to keep struggling through it. Fortunately, with 10 matches remaining in the season we remain fairly well above the relegation fray with a 12 point margin over Farnborough in 20th place. Our current 11th place position seems a bit precarious, unless we manage to get back to playing with the rhythym we showed earlier in the campaign.

***

6.3.07
Harrow Hill (1) Sutton United (1)
Unhappy is a mild word for how I felt about our backline play. We had Sutton United- leading 1-0 into injury time in the second half- and terrible backline play allowed them to equalize. Throughout the match Craig Farr had come up with brilliant saves because our backline was unable to cope with their forwards, but the Referee also had a hand in their chances as they got away with two offsides and the play they scored the goal on was close. Our goal came from Jonathan Mooney as he picked up a poor clearance and fired it past Frank Talia midway through the first half. It was frustrating to come so close to beating the club that is clearly going up out of ECS- and then squandering the chance.

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10.3.07
Harrow Hill (1) Thurrock (1)
Our frustration continued as we again gave up the equalizer late in the match when it appeared we finally might gain a win. Mark Yates made a brilliant shot in the first half past Ryan Robinson from a very sharp angle to get us the lead. We had a half-dozen good chances to add to the lead, but our shooting was wasteful as we failed to hit the goal with any of the best chances. The equalizer was another cross that we failed to adequately defend as Andrew Reilly ghosted in unmarked and flicked a header past Craig Farr. The whole club, including me, is a bit down as we seemingly can't get the one good break we need to break through for another win. We need to find a way to win soon- it has been 8 matches now. The disappointing thing was this was the second match in a row that the equalizer looked to be offside- no call on either one. I have already been warned on my comments, so am not free to say anything more- unless I like paying a fine.

retired_destiny1124

17.3.07
Histon (1) Harrow Hill (0)
The struggles continued as we allowed them to score early in the match and then Histon completely shut us down to beat us 1-0 at Bridge Road. Neil Andrews found a seam in the center of our defense and a good pass from Ross McGlynn set him up nicely to fire a shot past James Evans. Histon had other chances to score, but their shooting was not particularly good. We had few chances to score as their backline shut us down with good tackling in their area. We only managed to get two shots for the entire match, a sad statistical reminder of our current woes.

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24.3.07
Harrow Hill (3) Yeading (0)
The sunshine finally broke through again as we had plenty of help from struggling Yeading in beating them 3-0 at Larksfield Road. We got off on a flyer thanks to a mis-hit header by Matthew Appleby as he deflected a blast from Stephen Quinlan past his own keeper- Brian McKenna- to give us the lead in the 2nd minute. After several good tackles ruined chances for us, we moved ahead 2-0 as a good pass from David Hall allowed Stephen Reid to drive a shot off the hand of McKenna and into the goal. Early in the second half Yeading gave us another push toward the win as Nathan Bowden-Haase deflected a ball that caught McKenna already moving to the other side of the goal as it trickled in for the 2nd own-goal on Yeading. The match was never in doubt after John Gaffney's two footed tackle earned him a redcard midway through the second half. Earning MOM honours was Michael Gahan, back in a midfield role for us. Craig Farr earned the clean sheet.

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31.3.07
It was gratifying to reach an agreement with the Board on a new contract. On the flip side of the coin, Mike Davies and James Leather have told me they won't stay on after this season. I am still debating about whether to offer new contracts to Martin Reynolds and Anthony Martin.

***

31.3.07
Braintree (1) Harrow Hill (0)
It was back to disappointing for us as we gave up a goal on an early corner and then despite playing well and pounding away at their goal- could not score and lost 1-0 at Cressing Road. Sean Francis outleapt David Hall to deflect a corner past Craig Farr in the 8th minute and earn MOM honours in the match. We took control of the play after that, but despite coming close- could not find a way to ruin the clean sheet of Bradie Clarke. Besides losing the match, early on we lost Michael Yates to a broken nose. He should be out a couple weeks and losing our leading scorer at this juncture of the season is disheartening.

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7.4.07
Bishop's Stortford (0) Harrow Hill (0)
Despite having two men sent off in the first half on their 2nd yellow cards- we were not able to apply pressure in the second half and were left with a scoreless draw in a match that we should have won. We came close to scoring a couple times in the first half, but Chris Wright was right there for the save. Craig Farr earned the MOM honours with a couple terrific early saves when both sides were even. I don't know what the resolution of our offensive woes are, but I think I have to leave the blame at the door of our forwards. The worst news of the match was that our skipper- Stephen Place- hurt his leg and may miss the remainder of the season.

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9.4.07
Harrow Hill (1) Lewes (0)
It was finally our turn, as a late, controversial penalty kick turned into the match-winner for us as we beat Lewes 1-0 at Larksfield Road. The first half saw the visitors control more of the play and generate more quality scoring chances than us. Craig Farr earned MOM honours for his fine work in keeping them off the scoreboard on his way to a clean sheet in the match. We began to assert ourselves more in the second half, but were having our usual problems taking full advantage of our chances. The call that turned the match was when Gerry Gill tripped Paul Furse in the area at 87 minutes. Stephen Reid calmly converted the penalty kick past Paul Wilkerson for the 84th minute winner. A couple saving tackles kept us from yielding the equalizer. The match cost us rightback Karl Johnson for the rest of this season as he fractured an arm. The best news to come from the match is that we are now certain to avoid relegation- as we are currently in 12th place with a 10 point margin over 20th place Newport County. Sutton United clinched the top spot today and thus gains the automatic promotion.