Saturday football fixtures
The Fleet will want to bounce back from being hit for six by Dartford last week. Two defeats in a row but the Rocks put in their best performance of the season on Tuesday so they will be keen to build on that.
The Fleet will want to bounce back from being hit for six by Dartford last week. Two defeats in a row but the Rocks put in their best performance of the season on Tuesday so they will be keen to build on that.
Club secretary Craig Johnson said: “I received a call from Lee on Monday evening, informing me of his decision to resign from his position as first-team manager. Whilst results have not been as everyone at the club would have liked, Lee’s call to me was still a bolt out of the blue to us all.
Should have killed them off in the first game. The Rocks are looking a little tired as they play their 42 game of the season.The Dockers rotten away form continues but no disgrace against an in-form Motormen who might have a say in the play offs themselves.
CHADWELL BOXING club Olympic boxing hopeful Nina Smith has had her dream of fighting for GB at this years games counted out. The 29-year-old from Grays has lost her place at British Boxing’s national training centre at Sheffield and so ruling her out for the Under-51kg category.
Up against some fierce competition she refused to let the field of nearly 200 runners intimidate her, finishing the fast paced 4k race in an impressive 3rd place. Her next challenge will be back at Basildon this Saturday, in the Southern Schools Inter County Championship.
But Orsett A look strong favourites for the title folllowing another positive performance, this time at the expense of Belhus B. Orsett reached 137-4, for whom Joe Mitchell was undefeated on 45 not out, the highest individual score of the event to date. Offering reliable support were Tom Haden, 18, Jack Plom 19 not out and Connor Boreham with a fine 23. In reply, Belhus were dismissed for just 28 runs as Will Gibbon claimed two wickets for five runs and Plom picked up one wicket from two overs without conceding a single run.
Within minutes a shot by Fleming was saved by the keeper but Dave Everett seized on the rebound to level the score. Southend worked hard and drove forward in numbers to reclaim the lead however strong tackling by Declan Salmon backed up by a string of outstanding saves by Danny Hick kept them out. A hit out by Salmon was quickly moved up the field by Josh Brody who then passed to Jimmy Venus whose dribbled through the defence before hitting a shot from the edge of the area which left the keeper rooted to the spot.
Firstly a chip over from Ian Rudgeley was collected by winger Sam Boshell to score close to the posts, and moments later Thurrock had a penalty 8 metres from the Walsham line, Michael Stanley instead of going for the corner chipped over the top of a static defence and sprinted to touch down close to the dead ball line, Neale added both conversions. The visitors come back well and scored a try against the run of play with Austin crossing for an unconverted try.
Tilbury left Capershotts with many saying either it was a point gained or two points lost on a cold chilly afternoon in Waltham Abbey. Tilbury were indebted to a last minute strike from the excellent Ben Crooks who was at the heart of the defence.
Thurrock had to make the short journey across the Dartford bridge to their local rivals but needed a big performance if they were to pick up any points from the high flying Darts. The opening encounters where encouraging for Thurrock as they match the home side in all areas, but when the fell behind in the tenth minute, then the thirtieth and again on thirty four minutes it became a one sided event.
Smith then looked as is he might have won a penalty when he tumbled in the box but Mr Pickford – who irritated both sets of players and fans throughout the afternoon with his inconsistencies and lack of conviction in decision-making – waved away the appeals.
But the heart of the problem is the strike force. The root, as we have shown before, is that, whether you have one partnership up front or twelve, they need to be firing and the Grays Athletic strikers are not scoring enough goals. So it feels as if Grays are playing with nine men. Ironically, now that Hakan has plumped for Joe Sweeney, he has gone off the boil.
Another defeat to bridge neighbours Dartford. The game was dead and buried at half time. Last gasp agony for Rocks as they lose in dying minutes to the Urchins
Once again, Grays swopped their strikers and once again, the men up front could not find a way through a modest but effective Waltham defence.
The result now sees them just hanging on to the last remaining play off place but with Tilbury, Sudbury and Brentwood breathing down their neck, they could see their downward decline continue.
L&M Electrical are the current holders of the new GetIntoFootball Thurrock Business League after receiving their shield at a special presentation tournament at St Clere’s School in Stanford-le-Hope on Thursday 12th January – now organiser Faye Lambert wants others to follow them and generate a second division next season.
The Essex Schools Cross Country Championships, held at Gloucester Park, Basildon on Saturday , saw 14 year old Gemma Holloway, a year 10 pupil from William Edwards School, take on some tough competition in her 4.6k race, up against girls three years older than her. Despite being scored separately, the Inter Girls (year 10 & 11) and Senior Girls (year 12 & 13) ran together to make up the 87 runners on the cold and windy start line.
With Thurrock’s run of injuries taking its toll on first team players and Crostyx heavily strengthening their second team this was always going to be a tight game. Thurrock started the brighter of the two teams having some excellent chances but the striking trio of Matt Gaut, Christian Jenkins and returning Captain Steve Abbott just could not convert them. As the game went on Crostyx became stronger and won two short corners and converted them both to put the home side 2–0 up. Thurrock finished the first half under pressure but Gary Ginsburgh, Tommy Ing and Luke Danbrook stayed strong to hold out until half time.
With 15 minutes Thurrock played their last roll of the dice, with Earl Gorman coming on in the centre replacing Ben Stanley. But still the visitors could not find a way through, and it looked ominous that it not going to be Thurrock’s day. With time running out Michael Stanley made an incisive break getting stopped short of the line the forwards managed to recycle the ball but Frankie Neale ran out of space near the corner but had the nous to keep the ball in play throwing it back into the field of play and the on rushing Bevans-Royston picked the ball off his toes at full steam and made up for his earlier misdemeanour and crashed over to score wide out. At last the Thurrock fans had something to cheer about albeit in the 74th minute
It was over hour an hour before we saw any real chance created. Thurrock a move wide on the right with Paul Terry who put the ball through to Luke I’Anson some 20 plus yards from goal struck a fine shot with his left foot just inches wide. The best move of the half came from Ben Hunt wide on the right flank, turning and twisting his marker hi put over a perfect cross but was just to high for Lee Boylan who was out jumped by centre back Chris Holland.
HORNDON’S John McDermott boxing dreams lay in tatters after he was stopped by exciting prospect David Price in the English heavyweight title. David Price took just 73 seconds to beat McDermott. He landed some early punches including a superb uppercut and had the likeable Thurrock man down three times before the referee stopped the fight and claim the English heavyweight title.
The first goal attempt came in the third minute when Sam Higgins’ shot was blocked. The rebound fell into the path of Greg Cohen, whose strike was parried away by keeper Nick Hamann. Carshalton had an amazing let-off a minute late when an angled drive from close range from Higgins hit the inside of the post and somehow curved across the face of the goal when it seemed impossible for it not to go in.
Dockers triumph over Grays Ath in noon derby. Solid point in mid-table clash for Rocks. Once again, Sam Higgins on the score sheet. Another durable point for the Fleet. They worked hard to carve out this point.
Things got worse for Grays and perhaps summed up their season when the Dockers took the lead in a move that summed up everything good about the Dockers. They plugged away at the edge of the box, played one-twos until Good saw his chance and shot from just inside the box and into the goal.
However, with major shopping centre Lakeside, claiming half a million shoppers weekly, next to the Essex site, and both sites adjacent to the M25, one of the UK’s most congested routes, traffic trouble will be near impossible to avert. This congestion risk is compounded by the fact that entrance into the park and ride sites is ticket-only – any people with misplaced tickets will unfortunately add to the resultant tailbacks and could cause a domino effect onto the already congested M25.
