Amateur Football Combination Premier Division

King’s Old Boys 1 Old Meadonians 5

Returning to their league programme after spending their last two matches sharpening their teeth on lesser fry in cups, Old Meadonians flayed and macerated newly promoted Kings’ Old Boys at Kings’ finely appointed Brockley ground on Saturday to leave the hosts hanging on by the skin of their teeth second from bottom of the table. In coach Paul Rumley’s post match briefing, held in camera, he said he was reminded of Meads' purple ten year patch of the noughties, by Saturday’s first half performance which left the visitors five up and virtually lapping opponents who had no answer to their total football.

Leading the virtual procession of goals, the first came on fifteen minutes from John Shea whose charge from the back of the queue allowed him to head in Jack Holmes’ in-swinging corner at the near post. This was followed five minutes later by a bewildering six man move which put Holmes clear on the right and Ed Glover brought his cross down and redirected the ball into the top corner.

Number three was Ryan Bright’s as he tamed another Holmes cross ten yards out, he then slipped his marker and in a classic one on one dipped his right shoulder to have the keeper floundering and flashed the ball in with a cultured left foot. Fifteen minutes of further pressure ended with an agricultural felling of Jack Costello and Glover sent the keeper the wrong way from the spot.

There was just time before the break for Meads’ keeper Gary Robinson to launch a massive clearance to within twenty five yards of the home goal where Glover chested the ball down and his instant left foot half volley brought an excellent tip over from the Kings’ keeper. Relief was short lived for the hosts as Ali McCombe’s booming header notched up Meads’ fifth from Holmes’ resultant corner. The second half saw the visitors psychologically sitting back but nonetheless still managing to hold the hosts at bay with ease and keep a clean slate until the last minute when centre back, McCombe thought it a good idea to even up his personal tally by putting a thirty yard back pass past keeper Gary Robinson into the corner of his own net.

This meant that McCombe, as a forfeit, was decked in Meads’ version of a dunce’s cap, a pink Harpo Marx style wig in the bar afterwards.

Ryan Bright and Ed Glover were named joint MoM.
Squad: Robinson, Goode, O’Sullivan, McCombe, Pointer, Costello, Gerrish, Shea, Holmes, Glover, Bright, Mace, Quinn.

November 25, 2014