Brockham Badgers U13A got back to winning ways with a good away victory at East Grinstead.  Brockham were down to a bare eleven players for the game and will see the win as a just reward for a solid display throughout the side. Lad of the match Joe Parker at right back epitmised the determination shown by the team.

Brockham started the stronger, playing some good football, and almost went ahead early on when Stephen Kehl set up Ryan Winter - but his right foot shot was just wide.  Brockham had to wait until the 25th minute before they took the lead. Some terrier like persistence from right midfielder Henry Hill forced a mistake from the home defender and Hill pinched the ball just outside the East Grinstead box, before cutting it back to Kehl, who side footed home.

This seemed to stir the home team into action and, for the last ten minutes of the first period and for the opening stages of the second period, East Grinstead were on top. Henry Warne in the Brockham goal proved reliable as ever, behind the strong looking partnership of Jack Hunt and Thomas Bletso at centre back, with Bill Rowlands playing with maturity at left back.

The home side were unable to make their good spell count, and eventually Brockham got back on top, central midfielder Michael Carty and striker Ben Stokoe playing their part in turning the tide. Kehl extended the Brockham lead as his pace saw him beat the full back and sweeper to the ball and stroke it home midway through the second half.  Brockham then made the game safe with a third goal, this time from midfielder Dylan Peters, whose shot from outside the box took a deflection off an unfortunate defender to leave the East Grinstead keeper flat footed.

To their credit, East Grinstead did pull a late goal back and then missed a penalty in the final moments. But Badgers had done enough by then to secure the points.

The U13 Blacks made it seven points out of the last three games with an exciting away win at Northchapel.  Brockham were ahead as early as the second minute and never relinquished the lead, having just enough to see off a good Northchapel side.

Ollie Curtis made the most of a strong run on the Northchapel goal to finish in style and make it 1-0 in the second minute. Brockham were on fire in the opening quarter of the match, creating a number of chances, so it was no real surprise when Toby Dowle extended the lead after twenty minutes.

But Nortchapel came back well and, after hitting the bar, it took a couple of extraordinary saves from Brockham keeper George Corfield and some last ditch tackles to keep the home side at bay. But Northchapel eventually scored just before half time to make it 1-2 at the interval.

Northchapel started the second period the stronger, but Brockham were defending well, with Tom Kinsey, Alex Ward and Max Ruff at full back and David Atkinson and Sam Norkett at centre back all playing with determination.  With Robbie Ventham and Toby Dowle doing well in central midfield, Brockham were still creating chances even when Northchapel were on top, and after George Heymann had won Brockham a corner with some intelligent running ten minutes into the second half, Connor Mitchell was able to make it 3-1, his shot through a crowd of players deceiving the keeper. This was Mitchell's first goal for the club. 

Northchapel came back straight away to make it 3-2, but Henry Smith, having an influential second half, latched on to a chance in the home penalty box with fifteen minutes to go to once more restore the Brockham two goal advantage.

A fine header from a corner put Northchapel right back in the game, only to see Ollie Legg score from distance for Brockham with ten minutes to go and seemingly win the game. But Northchapel had other ideas and reduced the arrears again with a few minutes to play, but this time Brockham were in no mood to give up their advantage, and some solid defending and commanding goalkeeping saw the Badgers hold on to the final whistle.

The U12Bs bounced back from their Plate defeat last week to convincingly beat second placed Horsham Crusaders with their best performance of the season.

The game started with the two top sides in the division sounding each other out and the first real chance fell to Crusaders with an excellent header going just over.

It took twenty minutes to break the deadlock. Tom Moriarty kept chasing what looked like a lost cause. He kept the ball in play, and pressured a Crusaders defender into playing the ball across his own penalty area. Ollie Kong intercepted in front of goal. He doesn’t miss from there.

Luca Killner was linking well with Jamie Hanwell down the left side and, two minutes later, they released Ollie Kong who coolly chipped the goalkeeper for the second. Badgers now had the bit between their teeth. Another exciting build up between Tom Moriarty and Tim Hines on the right saw the ball played to Ollie who switched the play. Jamie, cutting in from wide on the left, found the far corner of the net for 3-0 at half time.

Badgers continued pressurising at the start of the second half and there were some delightful passing triangles as Tim Hines and Andrew Watson linked with Jamie Hanwell on the left. But the fourth goal came from the right. Ollie chased down a ball and made the perfect cross. Jamie was on the end of it for 4-0.

Now it was Crusaders turn and this team know how to head the ball. A super header from a corner, but Tom Nokes was perfectly positioned on the post and headed off the line. Spectacular! With every attack Horsham mustered, the imperial Harry Kensett was there to cut out danger. On the occasions he was not, Ed Newman was. But Horsham got their reward from another corner when their centre forward ghosted in front of the Brockham defence to head a marvellous goal.

It was the Badgers and Ollie Kong who had the last word though, with Ollie coolly completing his second hatrick of the season, and cementing Brockham’s position at the top of the division.

Even a masterclass in goal keeping by player of the week James Rabbetts could not prevent a classy Samba Youth from scoring in the last three minutes to snatch a win from Brockham Badgers U11A.

The game presented a classic contrast in styles.  Samba were very well drilled, passing the ball beautifully throughout the team, and they dominated possession and territory.  In a change to their normal formation, Brockham defended deep and in numbers, occasionally counter-attacking at pace. 

Under considerable pressure, Brockham conceded possession easily and invited Samba to attack.  But for practically all of the game, Samba were thwarted by resilient Brockham defending, including a goal-line clearance by Chris Walton and a series of athletic and brave saves by James Rabbetts.  Samba must have rued their untidy finishing, but some credit for that should go to the Brockham defence.

Samba looked set for frustration, but just before the end they managed to produce a hard, well-directed shot which gave Rabbetts no chance.

Samba deserved the win, but Brockham could easily have snatched a result.  Jordan Martin’s pace was too much for the Samba defence, and both Luke Brightman and Sam Lloyd had chances with just the keeper to beat – Lloyd’s shot being cleared off the line.

Brockham’s supporters were anticipating a defeat, but both the scoreline and the nature of Brockham’s performance exceeded their expectations and gave them much to admire.

Player of the Week: James Rabbetts.

Captain's Comment:
"Brockham played Samba who are second in the league. Brockham were defending well in the first half, with some amazing saves from James. Brockham kept on defending well for another 25 minutes, and were under pressure all the time, but the other side scored in the last few minutes.  So the score was 1-0 to Samba. We all played well and James got man of the match."
Ashley Marshall

Team: Cameron Boychuk, Luke Brightman, Tom Charman,  Alex Flint, Luc Jhugroo, Sam Lloyd, Jamie Luckins, Ashley Marshall (c),  Jordan Martin, Alistair Masson, William Pereira, James Rabbetts, Chris Walton, Lewis Wood

The home side kicked off and for the opening five minutes Brockham seemed a little unsure of themselves on an unfamiliarly small pitch. On seven minutes Teague just shot wide from Brockham’s first notable attack on goal.

The play was pretty even handed and both sides struggled to impose themselves in a packed midfield. A congested centre meant for a tight game with little room to breath and a kick and rush approach from both teams. From time to time play resembled a pinball machine game and had Turner battling for every ball.

On eleven minutes Morland opened up with a burst of speed from his own half but shot wide and a minute later Teague fired in a sweet shot from the wing which again went wide. Brockham now had Albury on the ropes, produced a sustained spell of attacking football and were rewarded with several corners.

A charging Warne came close to converting one of these corners with only two minutes of the half remaining, but it was goalless at the interval.

After the break, the frustration of the, at times, stifling first half continued for a while, but openings appeared as the players began to adjust. A promising Albury two-on-one attack was stopped comfortably by Bennett, when it seemed like the home side had a clear chance of breaking the deadlock.

There was plenty of heart being shown and a marvelous lightning break out of defence by Brockham had Albury backpedaling. Teague and Morland combined instinctively but the ball was collected by the Albury keeper, who positioned himself well.

The football was now more in free flow and fruitful combinations were taking shape, producing action at both ends. Watson and Tiley chased forward with plenty of spirit and at the back Killick was turning in another colossal performance.

As the game was drawing to a close Morland picked up the ball at the edge of the area, turned on his heel and shot hard and clean. The effort crept just wide of the woodwork.

The game ended as a scoreless draw and the referee deserves a mention for his fair and alert handling of the game.

Man of the Match: Daniel Killick

A sleeping Brockham saw Mogador with the early advantage, which soon brought about the first goal of the game - an open strike by the Mogador forward found saw the ball slide past the line.

Mogador kept the momentum up and a second goal was near but they were denied by the outside of the post. The next couple of minutes saw Jacob Vaughan in the Brockham goal pull off a brilliant save to deny Mogador a certain goal.

A blistering run by Matthew Ford down the line saw Brockham fighting back but the run ended with a Mogador goal kick. The kick was taken but quickly shut down by Kemal Dogansoy, who took the ball down on the chest, let it bounce and struck it powerfully into the back of the net for the equaliser.The last ten minutes saw the tables turn as Brockham looked the more attacking side, with great play from Ford, Denham and J,Finn. Half time was looming but Brockham had a burst of energy that saw Dogansoy score again to make it 2-1 at the interval.

The second half saw an unexpected sideline antic that led to a halt in the game. The Mogador players got sent to the dressing room for 10-15 minutes which unsettled the Brockham side. With ten minutes to go, the Brockham players took a more defensive role to keep their lead alive. Mogador had another chance but was denied by a brilliant header off the line by Dogansoy. With the whistle in the refs mouth, we knew the game was at an end - but not for Mogador. Vaughan saved but couldn’t prevent the ball from heading towards the goal and the game was level once again at 2-2.

The kick-off was taken quickly but the whistle was sharply blown to signal the end of the game.

Man of the match was awarded to Dogansoy for brilliant running and defending

The young Brockham team got off to a shaky start on the astroturf at Redhill, on a particularly chilly morning. 

St. Joseph’s started very confidently and consequently Brockham were slow to find their shape for most of the first half.  Indecision in defence led to an early St Joseph's shot flashing across the goal only to hit the post, much to Brockham’s relief. 

Multiple attacks followed by St Joseph's, requiring a confident save from Aidan Torpey and several solid clearances by Callum Glenn.  Just before the break, Brockham began to push forward into the St Joseph’s defence, with Max Austin crafting a good attempt at goal - but the first half ended goalless. 

Brockham started the second half with better shape and launched several attacks.  Torpey, now out of goal, flashed a corner kick across the face of the goal, but no-one was able to stab it in.  Torpey also broke through the St Joseph's defence to launch a firm shot which was well saved by the goalkeeper's outstretched foot. 

Brockham then fell back into a ‘follow the ball’ routine.  St Joseph's took that opportunity to attack and a surging run on goal produced a great save by Joseph Issberner.  St Joseph's earned themselves another corner which was well delivered and the ball was popped into the back of the net.

Brockham then fought back with a quick throw in by Justin Hurst to Torpey, who quickly passed it onto Chloe Stimpson who promptly placed the ball into the back of the net for the equaliser.

However, Brockham repeated their defensive indecision of the first half and St Joseph's quickly took advantage to plant the ball just inside the left hand post.  Hopefully a lesson learned by the young Brockham side and next week they will start with more energy and discipline to prevent their opponents from getting the upper hand.

Joint Man of the Match: Aiden Torpey and Joseph Issberner

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