Barking & Dagenham 2-1 Havering

WITH TEMPERATURES SOARING by the Thames, Havering arrived determined to turn up the heat on the hosts at Barking Riverside. They would however meet with stern resistance from the Barking & Dagenham defensive unit, as the home side ran out narrow winners in the first of three games in a week.

A towering display at left back by George Carey’s Jahcorey Blair-Charles, and a Superman sight performance from Grafton’s George Miller lead the way for the hosts.

Missing five players due to injury and illness, the early signs were not good. The technically gifted Havering side came out spraying passes around and Barking & Dagenham were left chasing shadows.

Opening

It wasn’t long before the visitors manufactured an opening – on six minutes – but Miller was in the way.

The Grafton stopper was again busy on ten minutes, making a point blank save as Havering were showing no signs of slowing down. Pass after pass generated another chance, but this time it was Blair-Charles in the way. The George Carey full back’s last-ditch challenge denied Havering the opener their endeavour deserved.

Mid way through the first half, the visitors finally broke through. A rash challenge inside the box led to the awarding of a penalty, which was calmly converted for the 1-0 lead Havering so richly deserved.

The visitors nearly made it two nine minutes before the break, but were denied first by Miller, and then on the follow up by Blair-Charles. The home side were rocking, and half time couldn’t come soon enough.

Desperate

Another Havering raid on the stroke of half time would once again nearly yield the second, but the hosts desperately cleared their lines.

The ball went up field and was chased by late call up Joel Ladegbaye. With the Havering keeper rushing out of the penalty area, the George Carey striker’s persistent pressure caused a mix up in the visitor’s defence, and they gifted him the ball just outside of the box. Presented with the ball – and with the goal gaping – Ladegbaye needed only to roll it into the empty net, and the BAD Boys had equalised against the run of play.

Relieved to go in level at half time, the hosts came out looking sharper in the second half. The flow of constant Havering attacks was slowed, and the home side began to gain a foothold in the game.

Pace

The pace of Ladegbaye was a constant worry for the visitor’s defence, and he narrowly missed with a low shot five minutes into the second half.

The scare awoke Havering from their slumber, and they once again started to pass the ball around confidently.

Still, with Miller as the last line of defence, Havering could not breach the Barking & Dagenham back line as another low shot on forty-three minutes was expertly saved by the Grafton keeper.

With fifteen minutes remaining, Barking & Dagenham switched Ibrahim Msabah from central midfield to central defence. The change worked a treat, as Msabah began to stem the flow of Havering attacks, and allowed the home side to turn the tide.

Suddenly it was Havering on the back foot, as the newly released Chinoso Ibeh began to make inroads in central midfield.

Eastbury’s Otis Akpata – who had also been a late call up – was beginning to look dangerous on the right, and the hosts began to believe that they could actually win the game.

Unstoppable

With eight minutes left, their belief was confirmed. A long ball up the left flank by Blair-Charles found top scorer Denzel-Decardi Nelson charging towards the Havering penalty area. The St Peter’s winger expertly took the pass in his stride, before hitting an unstoppable shot across the Havering keeper and into the net for the winner.

Defeat was harsh on Havering, who had dominated large periods of the game. The BAD Boys will however be pleased to have won a game in which they were missing a third of their squad.

Next up for Barking & Dagenham is a home game against local club side Triangoals Youth FC of the East London and Essex League.

Barking & Dagenham: George Miller (Grafton), Marvellous Oppong (Northbury), Ruari Stanton (Northbury), Jahcorey Blair-Charles (George Carey), Chinoso Ibeh (St Peter’s), Denzel Decardi-Nelson (St Peter’s), Ibrahim Msabah (George Carey), Benjamin Oluyemmy (Northbury), Theodore Mintah (Valence), Joel Ladegbaye (George Carey), Evergreen Eleagu (St Peter’s), Otis Akpata (Eastbury)