Valence 1-5 Roding Cannington
RODING CANNINGTON CAME up trumps in the Barking and Dagenham Post Primary School Cup final against Valence Primary School at Barking Abbey.
Star players Josh Nichols and Blaise Uwandji inspired their team to a deserved 5-1 win, with a brace each in front scores of parents, teachers and fans.
The two schools were part of 33 that started the competition back around Christmas time and they had overcome various opponents to reach the big final.
Roding started the game extremely determined to put Valence on the back foot, which is exactly what they did, when West Ham United academy’s Uwandji headed home a Nichols corner in the opening five minutes.
The Arsenal youth player Nichols soon found himself back in the thick of the action, as his free-kick from nearly the half-way line, just went over the bar.
Valence struck back inside the opening 15 minutes, to make it 1-1, when district captain Joe Martin, guided home a corner at the back post.
Martin kept the pressure coming as two minutes later he struck a shot from outside the box that was steered wide by Rokas Kancauskis.
Roding soon returned the pressure as Valence goalkeeper Charlie Monkhouse had to pull off a string of saves against Nichols and his team-mate Mekai Zachariah-Fadina.
It wasn’t until the stroke of half-time, when the score line altered, when Uwandji let loose a screaming over-head kick from a Nichols corner to give his side a 2-1 lead at half-time.
However, it was Valence who came up the blocks fastest to begin the second-half, as district player Jaqwaan Williams, almost jabbed one home from close range.
But it wasn’t long before Roding were back on the attack and almost found the net again, when Daniel Adesanya rang the crossbar, after Nichols broke through from the wing.
Ten minutes into the second-half saw controversy, as Valence goalkeeper Monkhouse was sent off for bringing down Nichols, as he broke through just outside the box.
The forward slotted home the free-kick in the bottom right to make it 3-1.
Valence then stepped up their attack and almost brought the score line down, as energetic Feranmi O Niyi tried his luck from distance, almost finding the net.
Stand-in keeper Giovanni Gjini then pulled off a huge save by punching clear a Nichols attempt.
They didn’t stop pushing as Charlie Rich dribbled through Roding’s defence, but put it just wide of right post, before his team-mate Kien Connelly also produced some excellent footwork, but was denied by Kancauskis two minutes from time.
Uwandji and Nichols once again used their skills to link up down the right side of the pitch, before delivering a cross into the box, which Harry Penny converted with his left foot to put his school 4-1 up.
Nichols finally found his second of the match in the final minute, when he latched onto a loose ball and slotted it into the bottom left, just before the final whistle sounded to win the game 5-1.
Match Report by the Barking & Dagenham Post
Valence: Charlie Monkhouse, Charlie Rich, Kien Connelly, Bobby Breen, Billy Brookes, Jaqwaan Williams, Okiki Shamisideen, Uchenna Efobi, Effayo Bassey, Feranmi O Niyi, Silash Pun, Giovanni Gjini, Tunmise Adetona, Joe Martin
Roding Cannington: Daniel Adesanya, Isaac Angbore, Mert Mengi, Josh Nichols, Blaise Uwandji, Mekai Zacariah-Fadina, Ledion Shalaku, Harry Penny, Harry Marsh-Young, Rokas Kancauskis, Ben Aggrey, Jack Munday