FORD  UNITED
THE  CLUB  WITH  NO  BEER!

Parched and thirsty Canvey fans stood, their tongues hanging out, without a beer at Ford United last night, the club unable to sort out its drinks licence before the 7:45ko.  But at full time, it didn’t really matter; the Yellow Army was drunk on the excitement of yet another victory, the fifth in six games.

Ford are something of a mystery side; nobody knows too much about them other than the fact that they won the Division 1 championship last year.  But they are a side who seem to have appeared from nowhere and, it must be said, what a neat set-up they seem to have (apart from a beer free clubhouse!)  They looked good, they defended well and were quick on the break but, on reflection, their biggest asset last night was the ‘rub of the green’ rather than any real tactical approach.  Had the ball bounced more favourably for Canvey, especially in the first half, they might have won by six.  But, as often repeated on these pages, 'might have beens' don’t count.

The game was played at a fast pace from the off and it looked as if Canvey might go into an early lead with assaults being made on Chris Harvey’s goal from as early as the 5^th minute.  It was the hard-working Lee Boylan who was first to come up with a hard luck story, his terrific early shot smashing into the post before falling into the path of Chris Duffy.  With defenders closing down on him, Duffers unfortunately skied his shot and it ended up somewhere in the adjoining fields.  Mind you, it shouldn’t have mattered because in the middle of all this was a blatant handball that, inexplicably, everybody in the ground saw except the officials.

As seen in several recent Canvey fixtures, the opposing attack was finding the Canvey defence difficult to breach and had to resort to long balls which had to be chased.  Trouble for Ford is that chasing long balls is bread and butter to the likes of Steve Ward.  'Chaser in Chief' for Ford was No. 7 Glenn Poole, but crosses are only dangerous if there is someone in the middle to connect.  However, on the one occasion when Poole’s cross was aimed for the head of Andy Aransiba it was lucky for Danny Potter that No. 10 just missed the connection.

Visiting fans were left to wonder, why do opposing goalkeepers have the game of their lives when they play Canvey?  The 19 year old Harvey pulled off some superb saved, mostly from Neil Gregory who was trying his luck from all over the 18yd box.  He was also on top form when it came to taking out high crosses and for the first half at least, his handling was excellent.  With Brayley sending over balls from the left and Duffers doing the same from the right, it needed to be.

Canvey were looking good value for money and whenever they came forward they played the ball on the deck with some very neat touches.  Not every touch of the ball came off perfectly, but it was still exciting to watch.

The outstanding player in the home defence was No. 4 Warren Hackett.  Although Greggers was on form and his timing for jumps almost perfect, the strong and solid Hackett was making his life as difficult as he could.  Time after time he was there to clear from Greggers feet or his head and he had a first-class game.

Half Time Ford United 0  Canvey Island 0

In spite of having to forego their half-time pint, Canvey fans quickly got behind their team for the second half and, in return, the team went straight into top gear.  It was not surprising, therefore, that Canvey’s opening goal came after only 3 minutes and it was top scorer Neil Gregory who took the honours.  Greggers was on the right of the 18yd box when he sent in a low, hard shot that was blocked by a desperate outstretched leg of a defender.  But when the deflection fell straight back to him he teed himself up and unleashed the sort of volley that we have now come to expect of him.  Although the shot was straight at Harvey, it was so powerful the ‘keeper couldn’t keep hold of it and it bounced off his chest, into the side netting and then out again.  There was a half-hearted appeal by defenders that the ball hadn’t crossed the line, but even they didn’t believe that one – and nor did the ref.

By reply, Ford went straight onto the attack and it was ex-Canvey man Gary Kimble who sent a long ball forward that Aransiba chased for all his worth.  Sensing that he was off-side, the entire Canvey back line pulled up to appeal to the linesman, who kept his flag firmly to his side.  With more space than he know what to do with, the No. 10 had only Potter to beat and although the Canvey ‘keeper got a hand to the ball, it was a good goal and, suddenly, the scores were once again even.

But Canvey continued to keep up the pressure on the home goal.  A succession of corners were  won and the shots continued to come.  In one furious 60 second spell we saw another handball in the Ford 18yd box, the ball then fell for Boylan to hammer onto the post before falling to Greggers who put in a dynamic shot that Harvey managed to palm onto the crossbar.  Canvey were making enormous dents in the Ford defence, but they couldn’t make another hole.

The service from Chris Duffy’s flank was good and one cross, on 66 minutes, was completely missed by the entire defence as it fell, rather awkwardly, for Gregory waiting to the left of the 6yd box.  Because of the awkward bounce Greggers couldn’t connect cleanly and the ball went just wide of the gaping goalmouth.

In between the action in front of Harvey’s goal, there were odd forays into Potter’s area, but these consisted mainly of long, hopeful shots or quick bursts that were quickly turned away.  It was the more creative Canvey approach that was paying the best dividends.  The Ford defence was under constant pressure and, to be fair to them, they acquitted themselves well.  A lesser defence would have been four or five goals down by this stage of the game.

Goal number two was well taken by Lee Boylan in the 70^th minute.  It was good service from the right that led, eventually, to the ball being half-cleared from the 6yd box and falling to Boylan who was on the edge of the penalty area.  Seizing the half-chance, Boylan controlled the ball, turned and hit home a great shot to take his season tally to six.  He might have made it seven or even eight, but for some terrific acrobatics from Harvey and one very brave save right at his feet just two minutes later.

Ford might have been in with a shout, trailing by just the odd goal and to their credit, they never gave up the chase.  Their midfield fought for every ball and in spite of some tough challenges the referee did well to keep the game flowing.  A shame, however, that the man in black was happy to let it go when players took chunks out of each other, but for dissent, Neil Gregory was shown a yellow card.  Whatever Greggers said, it must have been bad, or was this yet another example of the inconsistency seen in referees this season?

Eventually, the game was taken beyond Ford’s grasp by a super goal by my Man of the Match, John Kennedy.  Lee Boylan did all the hard work and actually set Greggers up with a great opportunity to fire home.  Again, Harvey did well to block the shot but he couldn’t hold it and it ran free.  Reminiscent of the days when Alan Brett used to always be ready for the follow-up in these situations, JK was ready to pounce and he was ready, willing and extremely able to hammer the loose ball into the back of the net.

Three goals that might have been more and a very good all round performance.  The second half in particular was fast moving and always exciting with so many opportunities being created.  Such a shame that No 6 John O’Sullivan totally lost it in the 86^th minute and tried to deck Kevin Dobinson.  To be sent off with a straight red card is bad enough, but the gestures he made to the crowd as he walked to the tunnel were degrading both to himself and to his club.

That’s another local derby for Canvey.  Can they keep up their record (and their recent run of terrific form) when Braintree visit Park Lane next Saturday?  I can't wait to find out.

Match Report by Merv

Weather Conditions:  Warm, dry evening.

What did you think of today's match? 
Who was YOUR man of the match?
Any comments at all on the match?
 
Share your thoughts on the
Discussion Board