The Second Half, That Never Was

With the wind and rain in their faces, Canvey struggled through the first half today and really had little chance of overcoming the elements.  The pitch, which has defeated five attempts to stage the Hendon versus Dagenham FA Cup game so far, looked absolutely terrible.  There was no chance to play the fast, flowing football that has taken Canvey to the top of the league.  As manager Jeff King said afterwards, the pitch was the same for both teams, but perhaps he held back a little in not admitting that Hendon adapted to the conditions rather better than the Islanders.

"But never mind," said all the fans as the first half drew to its conclusion.  "We'll have the wind behind us in the second half.  Just watch us then!"  Sadly, the second half revival never fully materialised.

Hendon took the lead after 6 minutes when David Adekola was put through with a long ball and he ran onto it well.  He took just one touch to set himself up, then unleashed a powerful volley that left Ashley Harrison stranded.  With the wind behind them, this type of break by the hosts always looked dangerous and none more so than Adekola.  Ash had to tip another one of his shots over on the half hour, when he hammered a long lob from just outside the area.  Fortunately the Canvey keeper was always alert and pulled off one or two rather tasty saves.

Disaster struck for Canvey after 20 minutes when Mick Bodley limped off with what appeared to be a groin strain.  Whether the injury was serious or simply a precaution for next Sunday remains to be seen, but the loss of Bodley had quite an effect on the Canvey defence.  A reshuffle was necessary and Sammy Cooper came on in his place but with Stimson at Park Lane playing in the reserves, the loss was significant.

What little 'football' there was certainly belonged to Canvey.  They tried so hard to maintain their usual game, but the pitch just wouldn't allow it.  On one or two occasions they mimicked the home side's lob and run tactic and, strangely, it seemed to be just as successful.  Neil Gregory tried so hard to adapt to the conditions that resembled Canvey beach at low tide.  He certainly got stuck in and managed to win the ball but his delicate knock-on or flick rarely got further than the next patch of mud.

Wayne Vaughan was another player who adapted well - but perhaps not well enough - to the unusual conditions.  He ran and ran but once again, the heavy pitch just wouldn't allow for his delicate and skillful touch and so many opportunities were lost.

After the break, Canvey had the wind behind them but they still had that terrible pitch beneath them and so, realistically, things didn't change that much.  The vast majority of the play was in the Hendon half, but credit to the home team, they adapted to the conditions well.  They closed Canvey down quickly and closed ranks at the back when necessary.

Andy Jones came on for Adam Miller and this was manager King's affirmation that a lose or a draw was not acceptable.  He wanted a win and on a surface like this fans were confident that Jonah might be able to turn things around.  

The ball was rarely out of the Hendon half and Canvey were certainly mounting the pressure.  Ashley Harrison had little to do and one felt for him, standing alone in the Canvey half in that horizontal rain. Four corners by Steve Tilson followed in quick succession and as soon as the ball was cleared, Canvey pumped it back into the danger area.  It was from corner number four that Neil Gregory snatched the equaliser.  It was something of a scramble in the goalmouth, but it was a tremendous goal all the same.  Perhaps now the winner would come, if only the pressure at the front could be maintained.

Steve Clark came on for Wayne Vaughan (who had run his heart out) and Canvey had their 600+ goal scoring machine in place.  Once again the message was that attack was what was important, three points the target.

 But perhaps this is where Canvey were just a little unfortunate.  With so many players forward, especially after losing Bodley, Hendon found that their lob and run method might not be so mad, after all.  They found one or two routes through and started to look dangerous, in bursts, once again.  From one such burst a good cross came from the left wing and found Haule who seized the opportunity and, as it turned out, the points as well.  Hendon had re-taken the lead - two goals to one.

On a different pitch this game would certainly have had a different outcome.  But the game isn't about 'if only' or 'what if', it's all about who can put the ball away on the day.  And that's what Hendon did.  The conditions suited them and they took advantage of the mud and were certainly happy for the standard of football to be brought down to their level.  That isn't sour grapes, it's a reality.

Good luck to Hendon on Monday (I can't see this pitch being ready, unless there is a heatwave between now and then!) and for Canvey, roll on Port Vale.

Match Report by Merv.

Weather Conditions:  Awful driving drizzle, terrible wind. appallingly heavy pitch.

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