14/01/2023 – REPORT – Tiptree Jobserve FC Reserves versus Dovercourt Rovers FC

CHELMSFORD CITY RACECOURSE

ESSEX & SUFFOLK BORDER FOOTBALL LEAGUE

DIVISION TWO

TIPTREE JOBSERVE FC RESERVES:  0        DOVERCOURT ROVERS FC      4.      

Date:               Saturday 14^th January 2023.

Venue:             Shrub End Sports Ground, Colchester

            With ten matches being postponed because of the wet weather, I chose a match played on the 3G surface at Shrub End Sports Ground as Tiptree Jobserve FC had the foresight to move this fixture from their “Warriors Rest Ground”, whereas their First Team fixture at Florence Park became an early casualty. The home team sat fourth in the Division Two table with only one defeat to date, however, today’s visitors, Dovercourt Rovers FC had won all their twelve league games to date and sat twelve points ahead of second placed Tavern FC who had two games in hand.

            This afternoon’s weather was very windy with a heavy chance of rain later, but this fixture was never in doubt with another new referee, Ben Cooper, to me at least, being in charge of events, overall, with no cautions and few incidents of note I felt he had a fine game. His job was made easier by players showing little or no dissent to his decisions and he tried to let play flow whenever possible, bringing the ball back as he thought fit.

            Dovercourt kicked-off playing against the strong wind, those fences around the 3G pitch need to be made higher on a day like this, Tiptree Jobserve Reserves pressed forward using the long ball which the visitors controlled before working their own way forward through Bowler (L)and Selwyn who looked to use their wider players who had pace to find Watkinson and Johnson who were equally as quick. First foul was Selwyn on Akinlolu taken by Scott but keeper, Sims was quickly out to catch and whose clearance found Johnson who played the ball wide to Watkinson and from his cross Johnson was inches away with a left footed sliding effort. After the initial thrust from the home team, Dovercourt Rovers had upped a gear and pushed forward at pace from midfield, then down both flanks with Tiptree Jobserve Reserves having to defend, Fay worked some space on the left side before crossing towards Watkinson, but Owalabu steered the ball out for a throw-in. Bowler (L) sent another cross to the far side where Simpson, supporting the attack fizzed a low cross into the area where the ball hit Irons with Owalabu clearing once again. The impetus from Dovercourt Rovers did not relent, Bowler (L) crossed to Watkinson who was tackled by Gill (D) who conceded a corner, which was cleared out to Scott who went on a long run down the left side before sending a deep cross over towards O’Hare, but the ball was overhit and had too much pace to cause concern.

            With fifteen minutes gone the wind had not relented and this might be a factor as the game wore on, Johnson chased down defender, Owalabu, gained possession and crossed towards Watkinson but Hudson cleared from inside the penalty area but only to Bowler (L) whose cross was headed over by Bowler (R). Tiptree Jobserve struck back with a break by Kirwan down the left side, a decent cross followed, headed clear by Bowler (T) but only to Barham whose right footed effort flew wide. On twenty minutes Brundle fouled O’Hare, silly foul really, as O’Hare was heading towards the corner flag, Scott took the free-kick, low towards the near post, keeper, Sims fumbled the first effort which spilled out towards Barham but the keeper quickly regained possession. Johnson was fouled high up the pitch, a few yards outside the penalty area, Selwyn lined up the free-kick, taken left-footed and home keeper, Greenwood made a fine flying save parrying the ball wide, its taken till now for either keeper to have made a proper save! A long and high throw-in from Selwyn was headed out by Irons to Bowler (L) whose first time effort cleared the catch fencing to land in the car park. As we approached the thirty-minute mark, it was Dovercourt Rovers who had seen most of the ball possession and who had shown the greatest goal threat with the Tiptree Jobserve Reserves defence working overtime! The referee had cause to speak to McDonald who complained when a free-kick was not forthcoming for a push in the back, his team still had possession, so play had continued.

            The first goal came from a free-kick, McDonald was upended by Akinlolu mid-half, Selwyn, took the free-kick left-footed, curling the ball into the penalty area, Hudson attempted to head the ball clear, but as the ball came back from Simpson on the right side there was ELLIOT FAY to slot home at the far post. Tiptree Jobserve Reserves now had to raise their game, their passing and movement had been decent until that goal, the final ball to their forwards had let them down and likewise their finishing in front of goal. Barham started one such move, Kirwan ran the whole length of the pitch to reach the ball and cross to Gill whose effort did not trouble keeper, Sims. Dovercourt Rovers once again played out of defence Fay swept a fine ball into Johnson who leant back, snatched at the loose ball, and hit the safety net behind the goal, the visitors goal intentions remained positive though. A rasping shot from McDonald forced keeper, Greenwood into a fine save, conceding a corner, taken by Selwyn and headed over the cross-bar by Johnson. As the half closed, McDonald chased down an error by keeper, Greenwood, was it a foul on the keeper, was it a penalty, no, a throw-in was correctly awarded with keeper, Greenwood receiving lengthy treatment as whilst the players made contact it was a fifty-fifty challenge on the edge of the penalty area.

HALF-TIME:    0 – 1.

            One player change, from the restart, this from Tiptree Jobserve Reserves who replaced Owalabu with Rodwell, first action of the half saw Gill (D) foul Watkinson, then a strong run by Akinlolu, who was given an advantage when the referee played on after an attempted foul but the player eventually over-ran the ball to lose possession. Gill (D) fouled Selwyn with a scissor tackle across the halfway line, Selwyn, who else, took the free-kick, a fine lofted effort that fell deep inside the home penalty area, where Irons missed his header, the ball falling to Johnson who was flagged off-side. An attack started by Brundle saw Watkinson give chase down the left side, and from his cross Rodwell headed the ball away for a corner on the left side, RHYS BOWLER took the corner kick which, being aided by the strong wind, eluded everyone to land inside the goal at the far post. We had witnessed a frantic start to the second half and before we could draw breath, the visitors scored again, Tiptree Jobserve Reserves tried to play the ball out of defence, keeper Greenwood passed to O’Hare whose onward pass ricocheted back to KIERAN WATKINSON who calmly lobbed the ball over the stranded keeper from outside the penalty area. Tiptree Jobserve Reserves replaced Kirwan with Young, but the damage had now been done with those two goals inside the ten minutes since half-time.

            Irons set the next home attack going finding Barham, in turn he passed wide to Scott whose deep cross was headed clear by Bowler (R), and on sixty minutes Tiptree Jobserve Reserves replaced Akinlolu with Flatts. With the floodlights now on, Selwyn tried his luck, deliberate or not, with a wind assisted effort from the wide on the half-way line but keeper, Greenwood clutched the ball under his cross-bar. A cross from Barham was headed goal-wards by Alverez, keeper, Sims parried the first effort then saved the second from Young, conceding a corner, clearly, keeper, Sims did not want to concede, his team have only shipped nine goals in thirteen league games so far. Keeper, Sims was in action again soon after, having fumbled a fine shot from distance, the ball ran wide to Young whose powerful shot crashed back off the right hand upright to be cleared. Dovercourt Rovers, once again in possession, started a three man move, which saw Johnson scampering through, aided by an error by Rodwell, but Johnson missed his chance to score a goal, and with the game stopped, Dovercourt Rovers replaced defenders Simpson and Brundle sending on Webb and Kernott as straight replacements.

            Fay, for Dovercourt Rovers ran through a static home defence, sending in a cross which Johnson cheekily backheeled wide, but only just, and on sixty-seven minutes Dovercourt replaced Bowler (L) with Caudill. At three goals down, Tiptree Jobserve Reserves needed to get the ball and hold onto it, possession had been lost too easily in dangerous areas and the visitors had clinically capitalised. Once again, a defensive error allowed CHRIS JOHNSON to steal the ball, race away from mid-half, towards goal and score a deserved goal for his workmanlike display upfront, to me he is like a wasp, no matter how hard you try swat him away, he keeps coming back to annoy you. Tiptree Jobserve Reserves made a double substitution on seventy minutes, Barham and Hudson were replaced by Gill (M) and Bedford, at least they got some action for the last twenty minutes whilst Dovercourt Rovers replaced Johnson, with Watt taking his place. A fine run by Young, for the home team saw him cross to O’Hare whose knock-down fell to Gill (D) but his shot was well wide, another error, this time by keeper, Greenwood, almost let in the Watkinson for number five, the keeper did recover to thwart the attempt though. The match finished, in torrential rain, with Watkinson and Fay running through with the latter player just off-side from a fast break from half-way.

FULL TIME:     0 – 4.

            Given the poor weather conditions both teams tried to play attacking football, Tiptree Jobserve Reserves, drop three places to sixth after this defeat, their lack of a proven goal-scorer, undoes some of the better approach play from the Division Two team. League leaders Dovercourt Rovers FC retain their lofty perch, having now opened up a fifteen-point lead with a twenty plus goal difference over their rivals. The Dovercourt Rovers style of play is a fast-passing game, the youthful players have played together over many years, and they have pace to cause problems from almost all their players.

            Now, let’s turn to my “Star Player”, for Tiptree Jobserve Reserves every player tried their best, however, no player stood out with the defence under constant pressure, substitutes, Flatts and Young did try to improve the set-up but the damage was done by then. For Dovercourt Rovers, this was the second time I had watched them this season, their style of play does not vary, defensively sound, they rely on the midfield to spring forward and rely, not always, on pace to get forward. Captain Selwyn and Bowler (L) drive the midfield but with the attacking pace and flair of Fay, Johnson, McDonald and Watkinson they will give most teams a run for their money. Three of those players scored, the latter, Watkinson just shades out the other three but collectively, a fine team performance.

Teams:

TIPTREE JOBSERVE FC RESERVES

Colours:                        Blue Shirts, Blue Shorts and Blue Socks.

Team:

Tyler Greenwood., Lewis Irons., Jude Scott., Richard Owalabu., Mark Hudson., Danny Gill (C)., Elijah Akinlolu., Eduardo Alverez., Oliver O’Hare., Kevin Barham., Finlay Kirwan.

Manager:                      Adam Frost

Used Substitutes:           Ben Rodwell., Jake Young., Mathew Gill., Adam Bedford., Mitchell Flatts.

DOVERCOURT ROVERS FC:  

Colours:                        Red Shirts, Black Shorts and Red Socks.

Team:

Sam Simms., Bradley Simpson., Keenan Brown., Thys Bowler., Harry Brundle., Kieran Watkinson., Elliot Fay., Frankie Selwyn (C)., Chris Johnson., Max McDonald., Leon Bowler.

Manager:                      Jake Whittingham.

Used Substitutes:           Joseph Wyatt., Josh Caudill., Mason Kernott., Miles Webb.

Referee:                        Benjamin Cooper.

Star Player:                Kieran WATKINSON                            (DOVERCOURT ROVERS FC)

MATCH NOTIFICATIONS

Fixture Secretaries of Clubs are required to notify all match details, date, venue, kick-off time, colours etc, to their opposition and any appointed official/s, at least FIVE days before the match.

KICK-OFF TIMES

January:                                                                        14:00pm

February:                                                                      14:30pm

March, to end of season:                                               15:00pm

ESBFL CUP TIES:                                                           30 minutes earlier, if necessary.

ECFA CUP TIES:                                                            Kick-Off as advertised

CUP TIES

There will be NO requirement for “Extra-Time” to be played in ESBFL Cup Matches, if scores are level at the end of “normal time” the match will proceed directly to penalty kicks.

SUBSTITUTES

The ESBFL allows FIVE SUBSTITUTES to be named before kick-off and ALL FIVE may be allowed to participate.

Note:

In Essex County Cups (Premier & Junior) the Rule allows FIVE SUBSTITUTES to be named and those FIVE SUBSTITUTUES may be used on a “Roll-On / Roll-Off” basis.

TEAM SHEETS

Team Sheets should be shown or sent to the Referee and the Opposition team either by text, email etc

The BLUE “League Copy” of the Team Sheet, fully completed, should be sent by First Class Post to reach Mick Willmore by the Thursday after a Saturday match.

This is the ONLY item of correspondence that is required by post.

(Allowances have been made for weeks where “Postal Strikes” have occurred)

RESULTS REPORTING

Rule 21(B)

BOTH Clubs shall notify/SMS the result of each Competition Match to the Competition within 30 minutes of the finish of the match. This will include Football Association and County Football Association matches.

The results of all League and Cup matches in the Competition should be reported by the FA Full-Time “SMS” (text) System.

Failure to comply with this Rule will result in a fine in accordance with the Fines Tariff.

FA FULL-TIME

The Referees marks, team, players, substitutes, goal scorers, red / yellow cards, and sin-bin, etc MUST be entered to “FA Full-Time” by the end of the Tuesday following a Saturday match (ie 48 hours after any match).

Failure to complete “FAFT” correctly and on time WILL incur a League Fine/s.

“MATCH DAY APP”

This “App” is run by the Football Association and if Clubs have any issues on its use, then please refer to ECFA in the first instance.

As a Competition, the ESBFL does not recommend use of the “Match Day App”, it has known faults and any Club using it should check that all details are fully recorded before exiting the application.

A known issue is “Referees Marks” which have habit of dropping off once the team statistics are entered, a number of Clubs have had Fine Warnings and / or Fines for these details being omitted.

DISCIPLINE

Since the start of the season, till the end of September, there have been 30+ players dismissed and nearly 300 cautions, there have also been 7 incidences of misconduct towards players, Match officials, members of the public and county officials.

These are situations the ESBFL Management feel very strongly about, and the statistics make poor reading, the ECFA will deal with all these cases as deemed appropriate but bear in mind these actions can be very costly both for players and your, Clubs.

WHOLE GAME SYSTEM (“WGS”)

All Club Secretaries should check “WGS” on a regular basis, if you don’t, the ECFA levy a fine (25%) for late acknowledgements and payments of fines and the Club could be put into a “SINE-DIE” situation meaning they cannot play until those debts are cleared.

Club Secretaries are also responsible for adding the matches missed by players who have been suspended.

Whilst the ESBFL regularly reviews the whole Club contents on “WGS” it is not their responsibility to monitor failures by Member Clubs to follow basic procedure/s.

REFRESHMENTS

Rule 20A

The Rule {Rule 20(A)} on Page 120 of the ESBFL Handbook states:

Refreshments for BOTH teams and Match Officials MUST be provided by the home Club at half time unless these have been declined before the game.

Clubs in default shall be fined (£15.00).

NB: Whilst the Rule does not actually detail what constitutes “refreshments”, for clarity, it is in the form of drinks, these can be hot, in the form of tea or coffee or cold, eg bottled water, diluted squash or bottled energy drinks are sufficient.