Thursday, 10 September 2015

Match 4. Glebe v Crockenhill

Saturday 5th September 2015 @3pm
Kent Invicta League
GLEBE 1-2 CROCKENHILL
Foxbury Avenue, Chislehurst, Kent.

Admission: £5 including Programme (A5, 16pp)
Attendance: 85
Refreshments: Guinness £3.50. Kit Kat 60p.

Stayed local due to family commitments this weekend.  Despite Glebe being chucked out of the FA Vase on ground issues, they were still at home in a rearranged league fixture in what was their first Saturday home match at the spruced up ground at the bottom of Foxbury Avenue. Just a 10 minute bus ride on the 160 from Sidcup Rail Station or about a mile walk to Chislehurst Rail Station, although it’s a steep hill from that Station.

As you enter the Sports Ground there is a pitch in front of you where the vets were playing then you see beyond it, the club building and the newly erected fencing surrounding the main pitch.  The clubhouse has a main room and a function room. It also has the bar and a food kiosk behind on the way to the toilets.  The England rugby was on the several TV screens and as I arrived at 2.40pm the gateman was just inside taking admission, before opening the admission gate 15 minutes before kick-off.  The ground is fenced off on 3 sides and has trees behind the far goal completing the enclosure.  The pitch is in good condition and is railed with dugouts on one touchline and a 100 seater stand on the nearer touchline, of which 50 seats was delivered only 2 days beforehand.  Still floodlights and a covered standing area to complete this season and a protected walkway from dressing room to ground to be constructed to progress higher I imagine among other things. But perfectly acceptable for Step 6 apart from the aforementioned list.

Glebe started the match in dominant mood and should have been a goal up after 15 minutes but the referee and assistant didn’t spot the ball hitting the wheel on the bottom station half a yard inside the goal before bouncing back into play. Both teams thought it had been awarded only for the referee to point for a goal kick!  This decision galvanised the away side into action and they had the better chances before, on 36 mins a corner wasn’t cleared properly by the Glebe defence and the 2nd cross to the far post was directed across the goal into the far corner by Dalrymple.

Early in the second half and Glebe didn’t learn from their first half mistakes by again failing to completely clear the lines in defence and the return was stabbed home from close range by Johnson,  So Glebe found themselves 2 goals down against the run of play.  They did bombard the visitors for the last half hour, with bookings escalating, language on the field deteriorating as Glebe reduced the arrears with a ¼ of the game left when a free kick was headed in.  Despite the pressure and about 5 minutes stoppage time, Crocks stole the 3 points against a good Glebe side who should be up there about at the end of the season.



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