Wingate and Finchley 1 Enfield Town 4
Report by Andrew Warshaw
Whisper it quietly, Enfield Town are up to second in the table.
In an almost carbon copy of how Saturday’s game unfolded, Town ultimately demolished a slick and highly capable W and F side on Tuesday night with another cracking second-half display.
In front of crowd of 300 – a large majority supporting the Towners (including a heavily strapped but slowly recovering Jake Cass) – we had things far from our own way in the opening period before improving massively to give our hosts a Halloween fright.
Having said that, we got off to a perfect start on eight minutes. Scott Thomas launched a powerful downfield header that was collected by Marcus Wyllie whose delicious cross-field ball into the box was coolly dispatched by Reece Beckles-Richards against his old club.
Marcus almost added a second with a trademark strike that whisked past the post but Wingate, pleasing on the eye and using their pace, gradually gained a foothold and probably deserved their equaliser on 26 minutes on the balance of play.
Ruben Carvalho, a box of tricks in midfield, found an extra yard of space and fired in a shot that Rhys Forster could only push into the path Elliot Long who duly converted the rebound.
Town were perhaps fortunate not to go behind when Sam Youngs, tracking back, was dispossessed near our own goal-line but this time Carvalho screwed the ball wide of an open goal.
In an end-to-end finish to a highly watchable half, Marcus had another effort clawed to safety by Blues keeper Ben Goode.
H-T 1-1
Wingate’s wide and central midfield players had given us plenty to think about but after the proverbial half-time team talk, we looked a different side – just as on Saturday – as we upped our pressing game and went for the jugular.
On 54 minutes, Dylan Adjei-Hersey’s cross from the right found Wyllie who found the tightest pocket of space between two defenders and managed to get his shot away for his 10th league goal of the season (pictured).
Now Town were firmly in the ascendancy. George Sykes, making his first league start, stole in at the back post to convert a Joe Payne freekick for his first Town goal before Goode was forced into a smart save from a Beckles-Richards drive.
With seven minutes left, Town put the icing on the cake with what initially looked like an own goal by former Towner Ben Frempah, only for it to later be awarded to Youngs whose goalbound header had taken a deflection.
After 10 goals in two games, next up the small matter of runaway leaders Hornchurch on Saturday but we go there with plenty of self-belief.
With a somewhat croaky Gavin Macpherson preserving his voice, the after-match analysis was provided by Steve Conroy.
“We knew we had to be on our game because they move the ball well but we were a bit loose in the first half,” said Steve. “They made it hard for us but the distance between our units was far too big.”
“We weren’t getting nearly close enough to them and they were dictating the ball. But second half we squeezed the pitch, nullified their strengths and went on the front foot which is how we like to play.”
Town:
Forster; Parcell, Richmond, Okotcha, Payne; Adjei-Hersey (Taaffe, 90), Thomas, Youngs (Onyeagwara, 84), Beckles-Richards; Wyllie, Sykes (Keeya, 74)