Tonight’s game at Folkestone has officially been called off due to a frozen pitch, the latest in a series of postponements beyond our control . We will have news of a new date in due course.
This means that our next fixture is the away game with Hastings on Saturday, weather permitting
Bowers and Pitsea 1 Enfield Town 4
Report by Andrew Warshaw
What a way to bounce back as Enfield Town recovered from the recent blip against Kingstonian with a resounding win in Essex on Saturday to move up to third pending the result of today’s Cray-Bishop’s Stortford showdown.
Town’s regular centreback pairing of Lewis Knight and James Richmond returned after suspension and were rarely troubled while Dequane Wilson-Braithwaite moved seamlessly into the rightback spot with Juevan Spencer missing out with a knee injury.
Also back in the starting line-up was Andre Coker who looked sharp and hungry on both wings while Jake Cass took his place on the bench after a period of unavailability.
It was Andre who put us in front in the very first minute, pouncing on defensive hesitation to jink his way into the box and finish with aplomb (pictured).
From then on we never looked back on an artificial surface that had the ball zipping about following a pre-match downpour.
Appeals for a penalty for shirt pulling on Sam Youngs went ignored but the next time Sam was impeded in the box after 34 minutes, the referee had no hesitation in pointing to the spot.
Sam was actually running away from goal when tripped by Bola Daowuda and dusted himself down to double our lead, Joseph Osafhae diving correctly but only managing to get a faint hand to the ball.
Adam Cunnington had already sent a bullet header wide from a Scott Thomas freekick while Coker came close to converting a Jo Payne long throw.
Almost everything Bowers tried went through former Towner Billy Crook but Oscar Shelvey’s header off target was all they could show in the opening 45 minutes.
To add to their frustration, both manager James Collins and one of his coaching staff were shown yellow cards for haranguing the referee at the interval though Town were well worth their lead.
H-T 0-2
Any chance of a home comeback was firmly snuffed out on the hour when Youngs cleverly nipped in with an outstretched leg to convert a glorious cross from Marcus Wyllie, another who had an eye-catching afternoon.
Five minutes later we were out of sight as Richmond fired home via a deflection from 12 yards after great work by Coker. Dexter Peter was unable to keep it out despite a last-ditch attempt.
Without ever losing our shape and being physically far stronger, only in the last 15 minutes did we take our foot off the gas allowing Bowers a consolation goal through debutant Francis Jno-Baptiste.
With tough away games to come against Folkestone and Hastings, Andy Leese was a happy man.
“A much better performance form us today at both ends of the pitch,” said Andy. “We stuck to a game plan and had a great start. We continued in the second half and made the game safe.”
“It was good to have a fuller squad to choose from and to have some players back to something close to full fitness. It’s a confidence boost for us as we go into a challenging run of games.”
McDonald; Wilson-Braithwaite, Knight, Richmond, Payne; Coker, Thomas (Taaffe 70), Youngs, Isaac, Wyllie (Della-Verde 66); Cunnington (Cass, 70)
Our eagerly awaited home fixture against Hornchurch has had to be moved once again because of their Essex Senior Cup Quarter Final tie at home to Billericay Town on 31st January.
It will now be played on Tuesday 28th February 2023, 7:45pm kickoff.
By Andrew Warshaw
Having the opposition watched before matches is a vital part of a team’s preparations, even at non-league level, and Enfield Town are no exception.
Almost every Saturday, whilst the first team are in action, Howard Cowley – Town’s chief scout in all but official name — is invariably taking a close look at a future opponent before providing manager Andy Leese with all he needs to know about particular strengths and weaknesses.
Few are more qualified to do the job than Howard who has almost half a century of non-league experience behind him, much of it on the management and coaching side before switching to scouting when, as he put it, “I’d done as much as I wanted but really wanted to stay involved in some way.”
The result was linking up with Andy when he was manager at Chesham United and helping to contribute to the club’s success, not least in the FA Cup.
“When Andy moved to Enfield a few years ago, it was a natural progression to come across with him,” Howard told The Dispatch. “I’m 74 now and although I don’t do every game for Enfield, I’m out almost every Saturday and a lot of Tuesdays. You should see the black book I have with all the details on hundreds of players.”
To give you an example of Howard’s detailed analysis, he watched Hornchurch no fewer three times before their scheduled December fixture with Enfield which ultimately had to be postponed because of the big freeze.
“I always write a report for Andy with a breakdown on each individual player and give my thoughts on how Enfield can best handle them,” Howard explained. “I try and work it out two or three weeks in advance in terms of which team I can catch where.”
It’s a unique insight into just how important the scout is when it comes to a club’s training programme, advance planning, team talk, etc.
“You can’t over-complicate things even if players are intelligent blokes. You have to keep it simple and straightforward,” explained Howard who, like so many people involved in non-league football, does it for pure enjoyment.
“I spend countless hours thinking about what I’m going to write and to be fair to Andy, he pays considerable attention to what I say. I try to get him my reports before a Thursday training session so he can use them to prepare for the Saturday game.”
Sometimes, of course, all the advice in the world doesn’t necessarily work out.
“A game plan can last 90 minutes or 90 seconds. You have to be able to think on your feet. Just because I see a side in action in one game doesn’t necessarily mean they will line up the same way. Luckily some sides have a core of a players who play every week.”
Howard is characteristically modest when it comes to what kind of difference he feels his input makes.
“As a previous manager, I know the best preparation in the world may not always work if the game plan isn’t followed, or if the opposition changes its shape. I can only provide what I’ve seen.”
Hastings is one example of how his scouting report paid dividends. “I watched them twice and thought they were very impressive. Then Enfield went and beat them. Ultimately it’s down to the players on the pitch but in general I’d like to think the information I give Andy helps him prepare fully. My mantra is that I give Andy the best information I can and it’s up to him what he does with it.”
His only regret is that by the very nature of the job, he can’t get to enough of Enfield games.
“It’s useful to watch them because if I know their own strengths and weaknesses, it helps with what I can provide in terms of dealing with the opposition.
“On the other hand, it’s very hard for me to watch Enfield sometimes if they are doing something wrong, bearing in mind I know the opposition inside out. I feel I have to keep away from the dugout, it’s not for me to get involved. But it can be hard emotionally to disassociate myself which of course doesn’t happen when I’m watching the opposition.”
After suffering an unexpected setback against Kingstonian, Enfield Town aim to bounce straight back this Saturday at lowly Bowers and Pitsea.
Just a reminder this is a 2pm kickoff so those making the trip need to plan accordingly.
Bowers may be third from bottom of the table but they are fighting for their lives and have actually only been beaten three times in the league on home soil.
On their day they can be dogged opposition although in their most recent outing they lost 1-2 at home in midweek to neighbours Canvey Island in the Essex Senior Cup.
One familiar face in the Bowers line-up could be former Towners favourite Billy Crook who joined the club in November from Cray Wanderers.
Town defenders James Richmond and Lewis Knight have both completed their three-game bans while Jake Cass could also be back after a period of unavailability.
The game marks the first of three successive away trips for Town with tough fixtures to come against Folkestone and Hastings.
Three points in Essex on Saturday would be a fantastic springboard from which to go into those games as we aim to maintain our place among the leading positions.
Directions to Bowers can be found here:
Our re-arranged Middlesex Senior Cup quarterfinal against Northwood – postponed Tuesday because of a waterlogged pitch – will take place on Tuesday, Feb 7
This date has now been officially confirmed. Kickoff details to come
Tonight’s Middlesex Senior Cup quarterfinal has been postponed because of a waterlogged pitch
We will inform you as soon as there is a re-arranged date
Enfield Town 0 Kingstonian 1
Report by Andrew Warshaw
A great opportunity missed is how manager Andy Leese described Saturday’s result – and few would disagree.
Having secured those back-to-back derby wins over the holiday period and with teams in and around us all dropping points apart from Hornchurch, victory could have pushed us even further up the table.
Instead we allowed visitors who hadn’t won in 15 away games to claim victory despite a second-half rally that on another day might well have yielded a positive outcome.
Before kick-off, as the sun made a brief appearance on a generally wet afternoon, a minute’s applause took place in memory of club life vice-president Keith Wortley who sadly passed away recently.
With Josh Hill having returned to Dulwich after his loan spell (he has since moved on to Hemel Hempstead) and James Richmond and Lewis Knight both serving the last of their respective three-game suspensions, the management team was forced into yet another central defensive partnership, Anthony Wordsmith coming in alongside Dequane Wilson- Braithwaite.
Things didn’t go much better in terms of personnel because by halftime, both Anthony and James Dayton were back in the dugout having been forced off through injury.
To make matters worse, Town were a goal down as a result of Great Evans’s freekick which skimmed off the wet surface and beat Nathan McDonald who appeared to help the ball over the line.
Evans had already fluffed the best chance of the half when he was through on goal but shot straight at Nathan.
H-T 0-1
There is little doubt that Kingstonian, for whom midfielder O’Shane Stewart and striker Joe Boachie were especially eye-catching, deserved their interval lead.
But having created very little in a flat first half, Town came out with renewed urgency and intensity.
Sam Youngs and Lewis Taaffe both went close while Marcus Wyllie’s cross from Chez Isaac’s chipped ball just had too much pace for Adam Cunnington who again led the line relentlessly (pictured).
After weathering a 20-minute Enfield spell, Kingstonian twice missed a golden chance to put the game to bed on the counter.
Thereafter they were fortunate not to pay the price as they rode their luck in the final quarter.
Not once, not twice but three times we hit the woodwork, first through Marcus Wyllie’s angled left-foot drive against the far post, then Jueven Spencer’s 30-yard thunderbolt and finally, deep into eight minutes of stoppage time, through Lewis Taaffe.
In between, Kingstonian skipper Rob Tolfrey tipped over a rasping Youngs effort but in truth Tolfrey should have been tested far more often over the 90 minutes.
“I’m as upset as I’ve been all season today,” said Andy. “We got what we deserved. It was a great opportunity had we applied ourselves properly but the first half was way too passive.
“One or two players today clearly weren’t fit. We’ve also got as number missing and it clearly caught up with us. It’s a real blow, a disappointing day all round but good teams bounce back starting on Tuesday night at Northwood in the Middlesex Senior Cup.”
Town: McDonald; Spencer, Wilson-Braithwaite, Wordsworth (Okotcha, 17), Payne; Wyllie, Thomas (della-Verde, 66), Dayton (Taaffe, 37), Isaac, Youngs; Cunnington
After two superb back-to-back wins over the holiday period without key players, we aim to make it three a row tomorrow, Saturday, when we entertain Kingstonian at the QEII Stadium, kick-off 3pm.
Back in August we drew 0-0 with the K’s at their latest temporary home of Tooting & Mitcham.
Perhaps unsurprisingly because of their situation the K’s have had a challenging season to date and are only one point above the drop zone in 18th place with 19 points from 21 games.
Recent results have not helped – not least failure to win in 15 away games – though they suggest K’s have come close to taking points off clubs in the promotion race.
They only lost by the odd goal against both Cray and Carshalton and picked up a 0-0 draw away at Aveley.
Tickets for all our January home games can be purchased here
After our confidence-boosting derby wins, we are now in fourth place, only four points behind leaders Hornchurch and with games in hand over other playoff contenders.
It promises to be an exciting second half of the season with every point proving invaluable and tomorrow, despite us still being without James Richmond and Lewis Knight who are serving the last in their three-match bans, Anthony Wordsworth is available for selection again following his two-match suspension.
Next Tuesday, Jan 10, we visit Northwood, South Central League leaders, in the last eight of the Middlesex Senior Cup, 7.45 kickoff.
It’s a trophy we’d very much like to win and your support will be much appreciated. Address is Chestnut Avenue, Northwood, HA6 1HR
Haringey Borough 1 Enfield Town 2
Report by Andrew Warshaw
On a ground where we invariably get scant reward and with several key players still missing, Town made it back-to-back derby wins on Monday to round off a thoroughly satisfying Christmas and New Year period.
In front of over 800 fans, a significant number of whom were Towners fans making the short journey, we moved up to fourth in the table as other results went in our favour.
Following the Boxing Day rout of Potters Bar, this was always going to be a different encounter altogether against a team who invariably raise their game against us.
After controlling the first half, we at times had to dig in but Nathan McDonald was largely untroubled by Haringey’s pacey forwards.
Skipper Scott Thomas, with another outstanding midfield display, led by example while all those around him put in a committed shift. The management team now have the proverbial nice selection head-ache when those unavailable are back!
After a minute’s applause to celebrate the life of Pele, we got straight down to business and deservedly took the lead on 19 minutes.
Sam Youngs, with an audacious piece of improvisation, forced a tip-over save from Luke Mewitt and from the resulting short corner, Josh Hill – arguably man of the match – powered home a header from James Dayton’s cross (pictured, right).
Town continued to dominate and although clearcut chances were in short supply we were well worth our halftime lead.
H-T 0-1
Haringey have a habit of never lying down and almost restored parity within two minutes of the restart when the teenage Stefanos Georgiou cut in from the left and skimmed the bar.
Two Borough freekicks in dangerous positions then ensued, both of which thankfully came to nothing, while Town suffered a blow when Dayton had to be subbed with what looked like a hamstring or groin problem.
His replacement, Lyle Della-Verde, almost doubled our lead when he dribbled past his marker and saw his left-foot shot flash just wide.
Town needed that second goal to halt Haringey’s quest for an equaliser and got it on 85 minutes courtesy of some neat interplay. Della-Verde played in Youngs and his low cross was knocked home by the tireless Adam Cunnington.
That should have been that, only for a nervy, blood and guts finale as Borough halved the deficit.
On 90 minutes, Jueven Spencer, who otherwise put in a faultless display, was adjudged to have up-ended Kaylen Hinds who sent McDonald the wrong way from the penalty spot.
In the ensuing melee as Haringey’s players sought to grab the ball with time running out, Nathan was booked and Haringey’s ex-Towner Olu Durojaiye shown a straight red card for a headbutt for which he can have no excuses.
Down to 10 men, Haringey arguably had their best period but we managed to see the game out and might have added a third with the very last action.
With every one of Haringey’s players committed forward, the ball was deflected into Della-Verde’s path but after running half the length of the pitch unchallenged, his shot was pushed to safety by Mewitt, followed by the final whistle.
“I felt we controlled the game today,” said Andy Leese who must have been delighted with the commitment from everyone in all-blue and another eye-catching display from new signing Chez Isaac. “We scored from a well-worked corner and withstood some Haringey pressure in the opening period of the second half.”
“The last 10 minutes were more fraught than they needed to be but we had the cushion of the second goal by then. A great three points in the context of the other results around us. A successful Christmas period where we have adapted and coped with the loss of some key players.”
Town
McDonald; Spencer, Hill, Wilson-Braithwaite, Payne; Dayton (Della-Verde, 51), Thomas, Isaac, Youngs, Wyllie (Taaffe, 76); Cunnington
