Charlwood FC Match Reports - Season 2003/2004 13-09-03 Nutfield Res 2 Charlwood 2 Ford, Turnbull, Maguire, Gough, Petman, Floyd, Porter, Hillen, Silva, Anderson, O'Hara. First game of the season then for the newly unified Charlwood FC. Last seasons first and reserve teams merged over the summer to produce to what would surely be a strong 20 man squad that even Claudio Ranieri would have trouble rotating?..... Nope. The bare eleven walked out on to the hallowed and scorching hot Nutfield pitch. Included in that 11 were Robbie, Steve and Martin, all apparently in semi-retirement and all of whom I'm sure would have prefered to be on gardening duty or at the very least holding a linesmans flag. What price Mr Turnbull to be an ever present this season? The game started in lively fashion considering the heat, and it wasnt long before Charlwood squandered their first of many chances. Some neat build up play created openings for Floyd, O'Hara and Anderson who took it in turns to decline each opportunity that came their way. At the other end an unusual central defensive partnership of Maguire & Gough held firm, ably assisted by Turnbull and Petman outside them. First blood was drawn by Nutfield however as Woods failed to clear their lines and the resulting cross was headed home for the opener. Charlwood replied shortly before halftime though. Gough tucking  away a penalty which ensured  the visitors at least went in on level terms after a half they had completely dominated. More of the same in the second period really although by now Nutfield had battled their way back into contention and created some openings of their own. Up popped Pete O'Hara though, to eventually convert a chance with a neatly executed lob over a stranded keeper. Tired limbs on both sides struggled through the remainder of the game and one such limb gave Nutfield a share of the points. Martin Hillen was rather harshly adjudged to have handled in the box and the resulting spotkick was duely despatched. A point gained then, but it should have been three. 20-09-03 - Charlwood 3 Clarkson Hyde Reserves 2 Ford, Turnbull (Hillen), Maguire, Latter, Mears (Petman), Silva, Gough, Porter, Cousins, Anderson, O'Hara To be honest, some four weeks have passed between this game being played and me writing this report so my recollections are somewhat hazy to say the least (maybe i subconciously tried to block it out?) From what i do remember Charlwood were truely awful in the first 45 minutes. On another gloriously hot afternoon the home side seemed more in the mood for a touch of sunbathing than competing in a game of footy. Players were going through the motions and nobody seemed to want to take the game by the scruff of the neck against very ordinary looking opposition. Consequently Woods set about handing Clarkson Hyde a two goal cushion. Firstly an under pressure Neil Maguire scooped the opener over Ford in goal making his early season goal tally -1. Next a misplaced pass from Silva (oops!) in the oppositions box saw the away side break the length of the pitch with little resistence to slot home number two. A half-time roasting from Martin saw Charlwood emerge from the dressing room with a little more ambition. A battling if not classy second half performance, eventually gained them all three points. Dean Gough pulled one back early on before O'Hara levelled things up with his second of the season. Oppostion legs having their first competetive game of the season were now running on empty and some relentless Charlwood pressure in the closing minutes finally paid dividends. Up popped skipper Gough to bundle home the winner with virtually the last kick of the game to get his side firmly out of jail. PS. If anyone has a better idea of how this game went (especially the goals!?) please let me know! 27-09-03 Charlwood 3 South Godstone 0 Ford, Mears, Turnbull, Cornwell, Bone, Gough, Porter, Cousins (Silva), Anderson, O'Hara South Godstone arrived in confident mood on the back of a 3-0 win over Reigate Priory Reserves. They returned having tasted their own medicine after a solid Charlwood performance. Lee Cornwell and Graham Bone returned to the side for their first outings of the season and after a cagey start to the game Woods went from strength to strength as the the match wore on. The opening goal came from Jason Anderson when having collected a raking ball from the back he advanced into the area and smashed the ball past a well beaten keeper. The back line kept chances at a minimum for the visitors although South Godstones young striker did waste two good opportunitys by blasting wide in the box. An own goal of exceptional quality gave Charlwood a two goal lead and with the pressure off the home side began to play some nice free flowing football. Gilt edged chances were at a premiuim though and it wasnt until the closing minutes that Woods claimed their third. A right wing cross from Boney found second half substitute Silva who's header back across the goal was only partially cleared to the feet of Guy Mears who struck a thunderous left foot shot through a crowd of players into the top corner. Goal of the season so far, and performance of the season so far for Charlwood against probably one of the better sides this league has to offer.   11-10-03 Charlwood 1 GSK Beechams 1 (5-4 on pens) Ford, Turnbull, Maguire, Cornwell, Betts, Cousins, Porter (Chris), Gough, Mears, Bone, O'Hara Mornin' fresh from the heroics of Saturdays game , no not Turkey but the glorious field of ice creams. The key facts from my viewpoint only (probably misses out everything at the opposite end - not that there was much until we turned round and defended it !) : 45mins prior to KO - Opposition changed and out on pitch 30mins prior to KO - Opposition perform various warm-up activity of the physical variety 20min prior to KO - Charlwood out on pitch 15mins prior to KO - Charlwood out on pitch perform warm-up activity of the vocal, inhalation and as-far-from-physical-as-can-be-gotten-away-with variety 5mins prior to KO - Charlwood goalkeeper arrives at ground KO - Boney sets the scene by scuffing the his attempted glory speciality shot from centre spot straight to their centre forward (looks good when it comes off - honest) 10mins - Beecham centre forward goes down in the box clutching his leg without a charlwood player within 15yds ( this blatant play acting deserved a yellow card but instead, wishing to avoid the cauldron of the Charlwood back-line, the player continued the charade by going off with a twisted ankle never to return.) 20mins - Second Beecham centre forward chooses to escape the attentions of a hungry for blood Bettsy, by pulling his hamstring chasing a date with destiny ball over Martins head. 25mins - Newly introduced Russian forward rides his luck and manages to catch the Charlwood back-line off guard, rounding them to pull the ball across the face of the goal only to come back off the post into Fordys safe hands. The warnings were clear. 30mins in - A Beecham corner drops on the edge of the area, unchallenged, the shot would have doubtless netted only the curtains in the house behind the sticks. Instead a vivacious challenge (can't recall by who) sent the ball spinning into the air, looping over the already committed Fordy in goal to take the visitors ahead. The ref was heard to echo the feelings of the Charlwood brave - "Jammy B*****d". Would the resolve of the luckless underdogs Charlwood hold in this hotbed of whingeing Premier Division opposition ? 2nd Half Dogg'ed performance by the team keeps the visitors frustrated and Charlwood in with a chance 55mins - Real scoring chances at a premium, agony followed a quality free-kick by dead ball specialist Boney. Launched from just inside the Beecham half, the ball looped over the defence to fall first at the feet of Roundy and then at Macca. In the six yard box but a difficult angle and a tricky bounce with no time for control saw an instant shot by the General ruffle those curtains this time. 60mins - Charlwood corner drops to Oh-no-not-on-his-right ! Roundy. However, Fordy the plumber would have been proud of the line it traced from Roundys foot, smashing into the back of the net to take the Brave home side level - the keeper stone footed and bemused. Full time 1-1 (Extra time) New life breathed into the side by the goal didn't have a hope of saving everyone, a casualty of war Dave Porter could bravely continue no more and was replaced by fresh legged new boy Chris. Stubborn defending from both sides saw the visitors visibly shaken by the resolve of the side they mocked at the start of the game, in-fighting ensued and game swung perilously close to Charlwoods grasp without the home side being able to catch it. Despite the best efforts of a weary side, worried not only by the very real concern of missing the forthcoming England game on the box at 6, but at the prospect of spending the next seven days in traction, the game was forced into penalties. Order (I think) 1. Macca - Safe and clean 2. Boney - Asserted despite a history of misses 3. Roundy - Unsaveable, into the side netting 4. Chris - Followed up an energetic performance as sub with assured strike. 5. Deano - In off the post (anything they can do !) They put no.3 through Fordys legs, No. 4 in-off the post but no.5 he flicked away the uncertain assurity ( As only Fordy can do ) We win 5-4 on pens to send over-confident leaders of the Premier Division back to Crawley, tails between there legs and number 99s over their faces having faced an ice cool Charlwood who just would not melt in a hot and dusty theatre of Ice Creams - On to the second round ( where we'll probably get turned over by some lower league no-hopers knowing us ! ) Cheers Lee 18-10-03 - Brockham 1 Charlwood 8 Waite, Turner, Cornwell, Maguire, Betts (Latter), Mears (Silva), Gough, Porter, Cousins, O'Hara (Anderson), Bone Squad rotation arrived at Charlwood with a bang for this Div 1 fixture as 17 players showed up at Brockham - anyone would think we were unbeaten and top of the league?! With Martin layed up in hospital (get well soon mate)  Robbie Turnbull and Steve Petman took over the managerial reigns and immediately omitted themselves from the squad. Pete Turner stepped into the side to replace Robbie and join the other 10 starters from last weeks cup sucess, in the chosen 11. A drab opening fifteen minutes saw Brockham enjoy the best of the play and Charlwood wonder how on earth Pete O'Hara had managed to squeeze into his rather disturbing Kylie-esque hot pants / shorts? Never the less, somewhat against the run of play, Charlwood opened the scoring. Top scorer Gough arriving on cue  to head home Bones corner. Brockhams equaliser followed shortly after as Martin Betts was adjudged to have fouled in the box and the resulting penalty was stroked home. More sloppy play continued leaving Anderson & Silva on the bench to ask if the new management team had the courage and vision to make a two  man change after 20 minutes? - the answer was no. Miraculously, despite some truely shocking football at times, Woods did manage to come in at half-time with a two goal advantage. O'Haras hotpants tactics payed dividends as he followed up a Bone shot causing the defenders to avert their eyes and allowing him to scramble the ball home (as well as scramble his balls presumably?) The third came from another corner, this time delivered by Cousins and nodded home by the advancing Dave Porter. 3-1 at halftime then and nobody was quite sure how? The second 45 started much brighter however, with in particlular, Graham Bone beginning to make inroads at the heart of the Brockham defence. The best goal (in my humble opinion!) arrived when second half substitutes Silva and Anderson exchanged passes with Cousins who returned the ball to Tony Silva who after cutting inside the last defender, smashed home into the top corner. Game over now as the home side began to look more and more downhearted. The fifth and sixth goals again came from well delivered Roundy corners. Dave Porter rising well for his second of the game and Lee Cornwell powering home his first of the season. Still time for Bone to claim a well deserved goal, his persistence and quick feet enabling him to slot past the 70's retro (no gloves, i'll just spit and blow on my hands) keeper. Andersons looping shin shot over defender and keeper following an unselfish sqaure ball from Boney closed out the scoring and the game.  25-10-03 Kenley Hotel 2 Charlwood 1 Cousins, Turner, Cornwell, Maguire (Chris), Betts, Alex, Gough, Tuesley, Latter, O'Hara, Bone Hmmmmm, it could be a short report this one as A) i wasnt there and B) nobody has sent me a report. From what i have gleaned from attendees of  this fixture is wasnt a game of many chances at either end. Having said that i'm also told that it wasnt exactly a midfield battle either, so where exactly the ball was for most of this game is a mystery to me!? The teams went in at the break goaless but up stepped Graham Bone to strike one of his kick off specials and shock last years Division 2 champions into action. Kenley were back on level terms within 5 minutes when the centre half, who had stayed up after a cleared corner, powered home past stand-in keeper Roundy. Kenleys winner arrived another ten or so minutes later and although i love nothing more than to write about the oppositions goals, on this occasion i cant, as i know absolutely nothing about it. So thats the end of Charlwoods unbeaten start to the season, but bearing in mind the quality of the opposition and with a five enforced chances of personnel from last weeks emphatic victory, it wasnt exactly a huge suprise. 1-11-03 Charlwood 1 Reigate Priory Reserves 2 Waite (Ford), Mears, Cornwell, Turner, Betts, Silva, Gough, Porter, Cousins, O'Hara (Chris), Tuesley Its hard to know what performance was worse in this division one encounter. That of Charlwood or that of a truely ludicrous referee. The game started with said referee telling O'Hara and Tuesley that to save him being flippant and enforcing a retake of the kick-off, Pete should ensure that his right foot wasnt in their half before Sean kicked it!? A highly important intervention i think you'll agree, and one that was a large clue as to how the ramainder of the game would pan out. Reigate came out of the blocks fast and a scrappy opening 20 minutes saw Charlwood desperately trying to string three passes together. Chances were at a premium for the home side. The best of these were Dave Porters left footer which just cleared the bar, a clawed effort past the far post from Tony Silva after good work from Guy Mears and a Cousins effort that sailed marginally over. Reigate were very much in the ascendancy however, and were certainly unfortunate to go in at half time a goal down. That goal came from Charlwoods only fluent move of the game. The diddy men front line of O'Hara and Tuesley provided that goal when Petes right wing cross was clipped into the far corner by Sean. The second half belonged to one man and one man only. The referee, who up to this point had restricted himself to stopping the game every 15 seconds for anything resembling contact, now took it upon himself to totally destroy any enjoyment left in the game. Reigates equaliser suprisingly arrived without any assistance from the ref at all, although it wouldnt have suprised me to see him rise like a salmon to nod in at the far post. As it was, his help wasnt needed, as the corner curled in without a touch from anyone. With the scores level, Charlwood desperately tried to regain their early season form but other than some scrambled efforts in the box a home goal never looked likely. Reigate on the other hand, held the trump card in the shape of their twelth man subtley disguised in black. Pete Turner put in a strong challenge on the edge of the area which at the very worst was a free-kick. The ref gave the free kick, but then after numerous Reigate appeals and several minutes of calculations with a set square and a compass, deemed a penalty was more appropriate. No matter, as the penalty sailed high over the bar, bus shelter and road to safety. Having seen his team mate waste the opportunity presented to him, the referee now played his joker. Tony Silva, who was already suffering an afternoon to forget having seemingly inherited the touch of Floydy past, was penalised for having arms. A toe punt from 2 yards away that would have required the reactions of Billy the KId to avoid, struck his hand, again on the edge of the area. The ref blew for another free-kick, sealed off the area for investigation, then gave another penalty. This time Reigate scored and the result was sealed. A last ditch charge from Charlwood who had now thrown three men up front, couldnt quite save a point. Substitute Chris threaded a ball through for 'Bambi' Silva who forced the only save i can remember the keeper making, and that was with his knee! In short, Charlwood didnt deserve the points, but the referee made damn sure they didnt get them.     8-11-03 Nutfield Reserves 0 Charlwood 5 (Senior League Cup 2nd Round) Ford, Mears, Cornwell, Maguire, Betts, O'Hara, Gough, Porter, Silva (Bone), Anderson, Tuesley (Chris) A welcome win for Charlwood after two defeats. This Redhill & District Senior League Cup fixture was officially an away tie but Nutfield asked to play at the theatre of ice creams - and who can blame them. These two teams met on the first day of the season and ground out a rather lacklustre 2-2 draw. This time, with Charlwood fielding a stronger team it was a much more one sided affair. To be fair, Nutfield did start well and honours were pretty even until Dave Porter broke the deadlock, arriving on cue to steer home a Jason Anderson cross. Anderson then came close when his dipping shot from 25 yards was tipped over by the keeper. From the resulting corner however, Charlwood found their second. Sean Tuesley picked out the near post run of Porter who headed his second of the game and fourth of the season. Pick of the bunch was probably the third. Pete O'Hara turning on a sixpence and looping his shot past a bemused defence and keeper into the far top corner of the net. The second half continued where the first left off. Charlwood in the ascendancy with any danger of a Nutfield attack snuffed out early by a tigerish Woods defence. The fourth goal eventually came after good play between Anderson, Porter and Tuesley saw Sean score for the second game in a row. Still time for the most obvious penalty you'll ever see to be turned down. Jason Anderson scythed down in the box in the clear view of everyone bar the referee it seems? Pete O'Hara could and should have scored his second but his close range volley had only the squirrels in the woods behind taking cover. Those same squirrels are more than safe though when captain caveman Dean Gough is around. His left foot swipe catching nothing but fresh air when well placed in the box. Substitute Graham Bone bagged the fifth. His low free-kick somehow avoiding a number of flailing legs before nestling in the far corner to seal a well deserved passage into the next round.    15-11-03 Merstham Newton Reserves 1 Charlwood 2 Waite, Mears (Turner), Maguire, Cornwell, Betts, O'Hara, Gough, Porter, Silva, Anderson, Tuesley (Cousins) A return to league action for Charlwood as they looked to extend their stay at the top of the table with a victory over Merstham Newton. The first half didnt go to plan however, with Woods giving a disjointed performance lacking either the desire for a battle or the quality required for a decent passing game. With only 15 minutes on the clock. Sean Tuesley was forced to retire with a hamstring problem. Cousins came on to his favoured left side, pushing Silva over to his prefered right and O'Hara into his more accustomed position up front. Charlwood just couldnt find their rhythm though.Too often the final ball was poor and time and time again the home side were gifted with possesion. No suprises then when Merstham opened the scoring with a looping effort clearing both keeper and defence despite the best efforts of Neil Maguire on the line. On the few occasions that Woods did manage to break down the defence they couldnt find the finish. Pete O'Hara lofted one into the keepers arms and Tony Silvas' first time side footer found only a defender on the line with the keeper on walkabout. Without the intervention of stand-in keeper Paul Waite things could have been doubly worse. His excellent parry when the Merstham striker was clean through preventing a two goal margin at the break. Harsh words all round at the interval, in particular from Martin Betts. His 'THEY WANT IT MORE THAN US!!!' cries are probably still reverberating around his old school grounds as i type. It seemed to do the trick though and a rejuvenated Woods upped the anti. The midfield looked up for the fight and almost immediately Dave Porter released Silva. His deep cross found O'Hara at the far post and only the angle prevented him nodding home from close range. Jason Anderson then went close, eventually poking wide after a typically mazy dribble. With Charlwood now firmly camped in their opponents half the equaliser had to come soon and not for the first time this season, the breakthrough came from a Roundy corner. With Maguires hysterical screaming for him to hurry up ringing in his ears, he ambled across, had a cup of tea, made a daisy chain, then swung in a beauty for the smallest man on the pitch, in the shape of O'Hara, to leap and head home. Woods now pressed for the winner. Silva had his toe poke tipped over after an almighty goalmouth scramble but Lee Cornwell found the net in similar circumstances. Stretching one of those impossibly long legs, he crashed the ball home after a calamtous attempted clearance by the keeper. Anderson could have made it three after again riggling free inside the area, before shooting wide across goal. Merstham then regrouped, threw an extra man up front and forced Charlwood into rear guard action for the final 10 minutes. Paule Waite, looking every bit like a young Neville Southall, pulled off another outstanding save when clawing over a deflected effort in the dieing minutes. An impressive display allround from Paul, his distribution to the flanks in particular breaking up the usual thump down the middle. Woods rode their luck in the closing moments but probably deserved the points on the spirit shown in the second half. A word too for the referee, who was one of the best i've seen for a few seasons. He let the game flow, gave players a speaking to only when required and although he did make mistakes (as all refs will) was quick to hold his hands up to it and apologise. Lets hope we have him more often, although he'll probably have a stinker now i've said all that!?     22-11-03 Charlwood 7 Nutfield Reserves 1 Ford, Turner, Cornwell, Maguire, Turnbull (Chris), Mears, Gough, Porter, Cousins, Silva, O'Hara (Waite) The heavens opened over Charlwood on Saturday and the Nutfield floodgates werent far behind. This was the third and final encounter between these sides this season and in similar fashion to the last fixture, Woods rolled out worthy winners. With a number of key players out, the untried partnership of Pete O'Hara and Tony Silva started up front, which in turn allowed Guy Mears a midfield role on the right side. Nutfield upset the form guide by scoring first and to be fair it couldnt have been more of a gift if Stuart Ford had stuck a bow on it and belly laughed Ho Ho Ho. His scuffed clearance arrived at the feet of a grateful Nutfield player who guided it back past him into an unguarded goal. Minutes later however, Nutfield returned the compliment with interest. Pete Turners right wing cross found a hapless Nutfield defender who battled with a teamate for the right to head into his own net from a couple of yards (sorry Pete!). If the first one was careless, the second was downright hilarious. The Nutfield fullback , under pressure from Silva, squeezed a back pass to his keeper who somehow managed to slice his clearance backwards for own goal number two. 2-1 to Charlwood then, and the home side thought about going home and letting Nutfield beat themselves?! The second half saw Woods turn the screw and rattle up five goals that could truthfully be called their own. Mr Assist (aka Anthony Cousins) provided the telling ball for the next three. His corner found skipper Dean Gough, who headed his fifth of the season. Another cross saw O'Hara score with his head for the second week running before Cornwell scored with his feet again (isnt this the wrong way round?) turning the ball home from a tight angle after yet another Roundy corner. O'Hara then turned provider for the sixth, his deep cross met by Silva who volleyed home side footed. There was another goal, although the details somewhat escape me. I do remember an excruiatingly painful celebration involving a YEEEESSSSS!!,  a 50 yard run, a swan dive in the centre circle, an embarressed child and Neil Maguire, so maybe he had something to do with it? 06-12-03 Charlwood 3 Merstham Newton Reserves 1 Ford, Mears, Maguire, Cornwell, Betts, Bone, Gough, Porter, Silva, O'Hara After a week off, Charlwood returned to face a Merstham side that despite their low league position had given them a tough battle in the recent away fixture. Wearing the classic, if a little snug, blue and black striped kit of yesteryear Woods resembled not so much Inter Milan.....more Inter Nalorganfailure really. The opening 15 minutes saw some stiff challenges from the visitors with some tackles so late that they havent actually happened yet. Every free-kick awarded and every yellow card received was met with howls of protest, with in particular, the self styled 'hard man' number 7, demanding his crayons back on a number of occasions. As the game began to settle Charlwood started to make progress. Tony Silva stole the ball off a nervy defender but having rounded the keeper his cross was just too high for Pete O'Hara to convert. Pete did find the net just minutes later however. A sweeping passing move starting in defence saw Gough feed Silva who in turn found Martin Betts wide on the left. A delicious ball from him eluded the Merstham defence and a sweetly executed lob from O'Hara did the rest. A short while later and the Mertsham net was bulging once again. A crashing 25 yard free kick from Graham Bone left the keeper standing only for the referee to discount it on the grounds that Lee Cornwell had strayed into an offside, and clearly non-interfering, position. Cornwells luck was also out when his close range header was somehow blocked on the line following a menacing Bone corner late in the half. Despite Charlwoods superiority the one goal lead never looked enough against a hard working, if limited Merstham eleven. Second half chances came and went. Silva mis-hit following a clever Porter cut back and Cousins was unlucky with his curling effort that just drifted wide. The inevitable sucker punch arrived midway through the second period. For once a miserly Woods defence failed to clear their lines and Mersthams only on target strike pulled them level. Two minutes later though, the away sides wild celebrations were cut cruely short by skipper Dean Gough. Central midfield partner Dave Porter wriggled free and his near post cross was duely converted via Deanos shin. Boney showed glipses of his class, in particular when his mazy dribble and shot cannoned back off the far post. The rebound fell to Silva who cut back for Roundy who screwed his shot into a pack of players. At the other end Neil Maguire had to be alert to a breakaway. A straight 30 yard chase for the ball with the useful looking and pacey Merstham centre forward saw Neil just managing to stretch out an aging leg to toe the ball back to Ford and safety. Having survived a scare, Woods went on to secure the three points. Half chances for Porter, Silva and Cousins couldnt be taken so it was left to Dean 'goal machine' Gough to put this match to bed. Roundy, for the umpteenth time this season, supplied the corner from which Deano applied the finish for his second of the game and seventh of the season.     13-12-03 Clarkson Hyde Reserves 1 Charlwood 3 Ford, Turner, Cornwell, Maguire, Turnbull (Mears), O'Hara, Gough, Porter, Cousins, Silva (Chris), Anderson The final game of 2003 saw Charlwood extend their winning run to five games and ensured they would be sitting pretty at the top of the table come the turn of the year. The good quality if narrow pitch of Banstead Cricket Club played host to a topsy turvy kind of Charlwood performance so often witnessed this season. In the early season home encounter between these sides, Woods produced a lacklustre first 45 before mounting a late comeback to overhaul the half time two goal deficit. This time round, virtually the opposite performance, but the end result remained the same. Looking fired up from the start Charlwood soon raced into a two goal lead. Pistol Pete O'Hara, pushed out to the right side of midfield to make way for the returning Jason Anderson, grabbed the first. Quickest to react to Jasons flick on, he lobbed the advancing keeper in trademark fashion. The second arrived just a few minutes later. Tony Silva, starting his third game up front, hassled the full back into making a hash of his back pass, allowing Silva to steal in and slot past the keeper from a tight angle. At this stage a cricket score, on a cricket pitch, looked likely. Had Anderson, Silva or Cousins taken the chances that came their way, i'm convinced the home side would have folded to a heavy defeat. As it was though, Charlwood began to take their foot off the gas and Stuart Ford had to be quick off his line on a number of occasions to repel the mounting Clarkson Hyde challenge. Two goals to the good at half-time then, but Charlwood still couldnt find that crucial third to kill off a spirited Clarkson who were beginning to look far from the worst side in this division as their league position suggested. Anderson was unlucky when his flicked header thumped against the foot wide metal goalposts to safety. Even Dean Gough couldnt find the target this week, the meaty post and and a good reflex save from the home keeper thwarted his two close range opportunities. Clarkson eventually claimed the goal their hard work had deserved, even if the goal itself was somewhat fortunate. Following a good Charlwood attack the under pressure full back launched a hit and hope clearance that fell at the feet of the home striker. To his credit he still had a lot to do to escape the attention of Lee Cornwell and beat Ford in goal, but thats precisely what he did. That goal set up a rather frantic last 20 minutes. Ford had to be agile in goal to block a goal bound effort with his feet, and the Charlwood defence werent able to relax until Anderson eventually sealed the result in the final 5 minutes or so. Second half substitute Guy Mears fed O'Hara whose inviting cross found Jason to steer the ball home. All in all, a reasonable Woods performance, and certainly the right result. It could have been so much easier, but what fun would that have been? Merry Christmas everybody!    10-1-04 Limpsfield Blues 5 Charlwood 0 - Senior League Cup Q/F Ford, Turner, Cornwell, Maguire, Betts (Petman), O'Hara, Porter, Gough, Cousins (Chris), Silva, Anderson Charlwood celebrated the new year with a thoroughly good thrashing. With four weeks between this game and their last, plus a mountain of festive food on board, Woods weren't in the best of shape to face impressive premier division outfit Limpsfield Blues. The away side started with 10 men due to the late arrival of skipper Dean Gough. Apparently he did show up some 5 minutes into the game, although nobody is able to confirm this. From the very first kick Woods looked edgy. Poor control, misplaced passes and a general lack of cohesion in their play contrasted greatly with slick football being produced by Limpsfield. Nevertheless it was Charlwood who were presented with the first real opportunity of the game. A defensive error saw the ball run into Tony Silvas' path, who rather shocked by the generosity, shot too early and too tamely into the keepers arms. From that moment on, Blues (confusingly playing in red?) took control of events. Luck was on their side for the first, when Stuart Fords clearance, following an underhit backpass, smashed into the advancing striker and balooned into the empty net. The second followed shortly after, with the home side breaking the length of the pitch, following a messed up Charlwood free-kick, to slot home with ease. Jason Anderson did his best to redress the balance, cutting inside and striking a dipping effort goal bound only for the keeper to claw it away. Limpsfield then virtually killed off the game inside 20 minutes when another show of comedy Charlwood defending resulted in the third goal. Woods did show some spirit in patches but whenever they did manage to create something, found the keeper too good to beat. Dave Porter stung his fingers with a rasping shot that deserved better and Pete Turner saw his half volley from the edge of the box beaten away in similar fashion. In truth though Limpsfield were a class above and this showed with their fourth and fifth goals which were born more of their quality than Charlwoods lack of it. A suprisingly subdued Martin Hillen took the half-time team talk and sent out the side with a damage limitation policy for the second 45. To their credit, Woods did show a bit more steel in the second half. The defensive unit at last began to repel the attacks and Stuart Ford pulled off some useful stops when called upon. At the other end Charlwood failed to find the target for the first time this season. Perhaps their best chance was scuppered by the incompetent referee who failed to spot a blatant trip on Anderson when put clean through by a sliderule Silva through ball. To rub salts into his wounds Jason was then booked for calling the ref a c**t for not seeing it, which could be seen as more of a compliment than a slur, as at least a c**t is useful. Putting aside the poor referee, lack of recent football and not getting the rub of the green, the bottom line is that Charlwood were beaten by a very good side. Arguably the best they have faced this season. Woods now need to put this performance firmly behind them and concentrate on the next two all important league fixtures that could make or break their season.    17-1-04  Charlwood 3 Frenches Athletic 2 Ford, Turner, Maguire (Morgan), Cornwell, Betts, Bone, Gough, Porter, Silva, Anderson (Cousins), O'Hara After last weeks cup catastrophe Charlwood returned to the league programme and continued where they left off with another three points. Frenches Athletic, having lost only one of their six league outings were expected to be a reasonable test and after a poor first half proved to be just that as the game wore on. Woods should really have settled this game in the first half and had the final ball been better would probably have gone in at the break several goals to the good. As it was they had to settle for just two. Inevitably Pete O'Hara bagged the first, latching onto a long through ball and firing past the keeper, with the aid of a deflection, for his ninth goal of the season. Pete went close to doubling his tally later in the half when his lofted attempt just cleared the crossbar with the keeper all at sea. Meanwhile the Charlwood defence looked largely untroubled, dealing with any rare Frenches advances in an unfussy fashion. The midfield four worked hard for possesion and continued to search for gaps in the Frenches rearguard for the strikers to exploit. Clear cut chances were few and far between though and it wasnt until the final moments of the half that Woods turned their superiority into a second goal. O'Hara found space in behind the Frenches full back and slotted a square ball for Jason Anderson to steer home from 15 yards. Globetrotter Dan Morgan appeared for the second half, at the expense of Neil Maguire who was rested for the following days Charity Cup game. Maybe it was complacency? Maybe a lack of fitness on an increasingly sticky pitch? Maybe Maccas' withdrawal? (surely not!??),  but Charlwood just weren't the same in the second period. Frenches began well, forcing the home side backwards before eventually scoring some ten minutes after the break. With their tails now up, Athletic continued to probe and Woods struggled to keep them at bay. One rare opportunity did fall to O'Hara, but his shot flew over when well positioned on the edge of the area. On the whole though, Charlwood were clinging on. Pete Turner was particularly fortunate not to concede a penalty when inflicting GBH on an opponent deep in the 18 yard box. Anthony Cousins then committed a crime of his own at the other end. Having replaced the injured Anderson, he received the ball from Silva, beat his man sublimely with his first touch of the afternoon, and with the goal at his mercy struck thin air firmly into the back of the net to a chorus of laughter from the sidelines. To be fair, Roundy did make ammends a short while later. With Frenches throwing caution to the wind in their quest for an equaliser, they left gaping holes at the back. Cousins exploited this, picked up the ball on the left side, carried it down the wing and delivered a Silva bound cross only for the full back to intervene and rifle home and unstopable volley past his own bemused keeper. A late Frenches consolation goal brought a little more reality to the scoreline and although this was a welcome win, much more will be needed to beat Kenley next week. 24-1-04 Charlwood 0 Kenley Hotel 0 Ford, Turner (Morgan), Cornwell, Maguire, Betts (Turnbull), Bone, Gough, Porter, Cousins (Silva), Anderson, O'Hara A game of few chances and fewer still goals. A win for either side would have seen one or the other take the upper hand in the title chase. As it was, the result probably suits the chasing pack who might once again have the smell of blood in their nostrels. In a game where Stuart Ford wasn't required to make a single save, this is perhaps a good time to pay tribute to the collective rock that is the Charlwood back four. Pete Turner, Lee Cornwell and Martin Betts supply the bone crunching, thigh high challenges that leave opposition strikers twitching in their beds on a Saturday night. Adding a little finesse (his words not mine) to make up this foursome is Neil Maguire who sweeps up the ball, plus any body parts the other three might leave behind. Ably assisted over the season by the timeless Robbie Turnbull and the homeless Guy Mears, this motley crew have conceded a miserly 16 goals in 14 games. (I've left out the Limpsfield game for effect lads!) Lee aside, they dont feature too heavily on the goals scored or assisted list, and as these match reports lean heavily on those statistics, their efforts are well worthy of a mention. Right, that should shut the miserable bastards up for a while. This game typified the kind of defensive performance mentioned above. Apart from the first ten minutes and  a couple of shakey moments in the second half, Charwood never looked seriously worried by a Kenley side breathing down their necks at the top of Division One. With Deano and Dave Porter controlling the play well, plus Roundy and Boney working the lines to good effect, Charlwood enjoyed the lions share of possesion in the first fourty-five. The only thing lacking was a bit of creativity in the final third, with probably the best chance screwed wide by Graham Bone after excellent work from Porter to find him. Jason Andersons header over after a Boney cross, (possibly corner) was the only other half chance Charlwood could muster in the opening half, despite their overwhelming dominance. The second half saw Kenley throw an extra man into midfield, which did even out matters to some degree. That combined with some tiring home legs on a quagmire of a pitch, meant Kenley grabbed a larger share of possesion, without ever forcing Ford to dirty his gloves. The chances, few as they were, were exclusively Charlwoods. Jason Anderson turned brighly and shot firmly, but straight at the keeper and in the final few minutes Woods luck deserted them completely. Lee Cornwell rose in trademark style, to head goalwards in a heavily congested goalmouth. Somehow the keeper managed to get something on it which diverted the ball up onto the underside of the bar and back into his arms, via a couple of defelections. Points shared then, and all Charlwood can do now is make sure they win their remaining games, and hope someone can nick a point or three off of Kenley before the season is out.  14-2-04 Sala 2 Charlwood 1 Ford, Turner, Cornwell, Turnbull, Betts, Bone, Gough, Porter (Morgan), Cousins, Anderson, O'Hara (Silva) Charlwoods poor form in 2004 continues. Sala, a team supposedly in turmoil after their manager upped and left them with a stash of cash in his back pocket, turned in the sort of performance that belies their mid table position. Charlwood on the other hand looked jaded, second best in every department and only decided to make a game of it in the last 20 minutes. The first half saw a very energetic Sala dominate play for long periods although their only real effort on goal was a long range dipper that narrowly cleared the bar. Woods played in bursts with most good things coming from the feet of Boney and Roundy on the flanks. More often than not though, their work came ondone in and around the box as a well marshalled Sala defence delt with anything thrown at them in the final third. No goals at the interval then and very little positives for Martin Hillen to pick up on in a subdued half time teamtalk. Matthew Bone went close to opening the scoring early in the second period when finding himself clean through with just the keeper to beat. Unfortunately the keeper in question wasnt about to let that happen and somehow flung himself to parry the ball away to safety. Lee Cornwell then set about hurting the opposition in a different manner by ramming their centre halfs head with his own. The Sala player faired worse as he was trussed up 'Terry Butcher stylee' in swathes of bandages whilst the Charlwood medical team worked wonders with their limited emergency supplies and stuck an elastoplast on Lees' bonce. Apparently the Blue Peter appeal for the 'Charlwood Bucket & Sponge Fund' is on target and we may well see this in place for next season....fingers crossed. Back to the game, and with a late supply of energy Charlwood suddenly upped the anti. A flurry of activity in the Sala box would have seen Charlwood take the lead but for some poor finishing and fine goalkeeping. Just as things were looking up for the away side though, Sala went up the other end and scored. Some slack defending allowed a free near post header to bulge the net and send a gobby Sala into raptures. Charlwood soldiered on, at last showing some spirit sadly lacking in the previous 60 minutes and Pete Turner was unfortunate not to score with a header from a precise Turnbull cross. With Charlwood pushing men on the innevitable then happened as Turner found himself one on one with a speedy Sala forward. Pete could do nothing more than bring him down in the box and was probably fortunate to escape a card. The resulting kick sent Ford the wrong way and gave Sala some breathing space in the final frantic few minutes. Charlwood eventually scored the goal their late efforts deserved. Substitute Silvas' cross found Gough who chested down before Cousins slammed the ball high into the net. Too little to late though, and Woods' record of one win, one draw and two defeats since the turn of the year needs to improve before a good start to the season goes to waste.       21-02-04 - Charlwood 4 Brockham 2 Ford, Turnbull (O'Hara), Cornwell, Turner, Betts, Morgan, Porter, Gough, Cousins, Silva, Anderson The last time these teams met Charlwood bombarded Brockham with corners and scored four of their eight goals via the head. This time out Woods suprised them with a shock tactic, not corners, oh no, thats so last year. This time it was throws. Dan Morgan, getting his first start of the season following his world travels, provided the ammunition for all four home goals. After some poor performances this year Charlwood at last started a game at a sprint and thoroughly deserved to take all three points. Brockham arrived on the back of a 6-0 drubbing over Nutfield whilst Woods had slumped to a feeble defeat at Sala. All change here though, as after a period of early sustained pressure Charlwood eventually broke the deadlock. Jason Anderson out-tiptoeing his marker to glance home the first of Morgans rapier throws. Dave Porter then came close to making it two when his near post header fell onto the top of the bar following a clever Cousins corner. Pete O'Hara received an early call from the clubhouse to replace Robbie Turnbull whose hamstring had decided not to play ball. Pete then wasted no time in taking his goalscoring into double figures, arriving bang on cue to poke home at the far post with his very first touch. Brockham weren't completely outdone though and with some pacey frontmen came close to reducing the defecit on a couple of occasions. Woods defence held firm however, and at the other end Anderson was unlucky not to add to his tally, when his looping headed effort found the post with the keeper nowhere to be seen. Tony Silva had a chance too, but dragged his shot wide went left clear following  a defensive error on the stroke of half time.. A fired up Charlwood dressing room saw plenty of encouragement during the break. In particular Martin Betts giving his vocal chords a good tune up in his own inimatable style. Brockham had some enthusiasm of their own however, and clawed a goal back shortly after the restart. Stuart Ford wont be best pleased with his part of it though, as a low shot somehow crept under his body and into the net. An equaliser followed shortly after and all of a sudden Woods' hard work looked likely to fall apart at the seams.  Almost instantly though, Charlwoods lead was restored. Yet another Morgan cruise missile found Anderson with a near post flick and O'Hara was on hand to steer the ball back beautifully into the top corner with a fine finish. Back came Brockham and Ford had to be at his best to parry a well struck shot at the near post before Woods again began to take charge. Charlwoods fourth should have arrived from the penalty spot when Anderson has his legs taken from beneath him in the box. The ref had other ideas though and waved play on. Not to be outdone, Dean Gough, who would no doubt have taken the penalty, grabbed the final goal anyway with a close range header from yet another Dan throw. Throughout the game Brockhams main source of encouragement seemed to be a referral to our ariel superiority and shouting 'its all they've got aint it?'. Correction, we've also got another three points. Ta very much. 28-02-04 Frenches Athletic 1 Charlwood 3 Ford, Morgan, Turner, Cornwell, Betts, O'Hara (Chris), Porter, Gough, Cousins (Maguire), Silva, Anderson With the poor start to 2004 now firmly behind them Charlwood steamrollered past Frenches to earn another three points. Frenches aren't a bad side if allowed to get forward, although from our previous encounter it was easy to see that at the back they weren't quite so competent. Therefore some no frills defending and long balls over the top were the order of the day. In the first couple of minutes the keeper flapped at a straight forward cross and was lucky to escape further punishment when the ball fell into a defenders path. Tony Silva had the first opportunity of the day, latching onto a through ball and forcing the keeper into a rare save. From the resulting corner however, Woods broke the deadlock. The old Charlwood one-two did the trick. That being....1 - Roundy crosses to the near post. 2 - Dave Porter arrives to flash a header into the net. Its been a simple but effective goal formula on a number of occasions this season. The next goal was truely route one stuff. Stuart Ford launched a mighty kick from his hands and with the Frenches centre half and keeper unsure about who should claim it, Jason Anderson intervened and glanced home from the edge of the area. With this tatctic clearly looking like it would pay dividends, Charlwood then proceded to try it another dozen or so times before the half was out. Try as they might though, Anderson and Silva couldnt quite get the final touch onto numerous punts from the feet of Ford, and the back four. Not pretty stuff this, and it drew the inevitable cries of 'its all theyve got aint it' *YAWN* from the home side. 'It's all we need' should have been our response.... if we could be arsed. Instead,  Woods let their feet do the talking and in one foray cut open the home side with some intricate passing that ended with Porter slotting a lovely ball through for Silva. His feet didnt so much talk, as weep uncontrolably, as he made a right royal mess of it and scuffed the ball in the vague direction of the goal. After the break, Charlwood did their damndest to chuck it all away as usual, and it wasnt until after Frenches had clawed a goal back that they sprung back into life. Anderson was unfortunate when his shot on the turn clipped the bar from an acute angle and a cameo appearance from Neil Maguire on the right wing brought back memories of old when he replaced Cousins as a second half sub. The crucial third goal was a strange one. With the around 20 players, a linesman, and people on the sidelines going ape about whether the ball had gone out for a throw Pete O'Hara kept his head to slot home a cross (i think from Maguire?) and wrap up the game. Spare a thought for young Chris (sorry, still dont know his second name!?) who having come on for O'Hara with 10 minutes left on the clock only managed 5 of them with a full set of teeth. A clash of heads (or rather clash of head and mouth) left him with just an evening of casualty to look forward to. His departure left Charwood down to ten men, but some frantic defending ensured they held on for the victory.  Still time for Anderson to mess up a chance for his second as well, as he found himself clean through on goal, only to dribble the ball all the way into the keepers grateful arms. No matter. Another win notched up, and a step nearer promotion.     6-03-04 Charlwood 3 Sala 0 Ford, Morgan, Turner, Cornwell, Betts, Silva, Porter, Gough, Cousins, Anderson (Chris), O'Hara Sweet revenge for Charlwood in this all important Division 1 encounter after Sala had turned them over in the away fixture just a few short weeks back. The visitors moved heaven and earth in trying to get this game postponed due to a lack of available players. Strange then, that they should turn up with a squad of 14?! In fact, by kick-off they had two more in their squad than Charlwood, as Neil Maguire's back gave way in the warm up (caused by some rasping Nathan shots no doubt?) and was forced to sit this one out. The match itself went much the same way as Wood's last two games as they raced into a first half lead and never looked back. The opener arrived early in the half when Lee Cornwell timed his run to perfection and hooked the ball into the roof of the net from a Cousins corner. Just as Sala were trying to recover from that, Jason Anderson continued on his mini scoring run to slot home a Pete O'Hara pass for his third goal in as many games. The half was just beginning to warm up by now with some hefty challenges being put in by both teams. Charlwood gave as good as they got and effectively wrapped up the points when Dean Gough added to his impressive goals tally this season with yet another goal from a corner (I'll do a stats count on that sooner or later). Deano's close range header was somehow blocked by the keeper that was so impressive in the away fixture only for the ball to fall back into his path enabling him to stab home. Game over inside 45 minutes then. The second half saw a predictable early rally from Sala as they tried to redress the balance. Charlwood defended admirably though and repelled any threats to their clean sheet whilst remaining a potent threat on the counter attack. Chances came and went to Anderson and O'Hara while Dave Porter was unfortunate to see a couple of goal bound efforts blocked. Good to see Chris back in action so soon after last weeks facial injury. He looked completely unfazed by events and even had time for a couple of tricks when he replaced the a whinging Jason Anderson late on in proceedings. A good result this, and one that knocks Sala firmly out of the promotion reckoning following their recent spell of good form. Two more games to go and one win should see us up. Six points might just see us take the title - we'll just have to wait and see what those Kenley academicals produce. It will probably take them some time (plus numerous fingers and toes) to work out their points tally, so maybe we can just take the trophy anyway? 3-4-04 - Reigate Priory Reserves 1 Charlwood 0 Ford, Maguire, Turner, Cornwell, Betts, Silva (Turnbull), Gough, Morgan, Cousins, Anderson, O'Hara Quite how Charlwood didnt win this game i will never know. This result almost certainly kills off Charlwoods title hopes and makes promotion a whole lot more difficult than it should have been. As seems to be the pattern throughout the season, Charlwood lost after an extended break from competetive football. In this case however, i dont think this can be used as an excuse. This defeat lies solely at the feet of poor finishing. With Charlwood kicking into a pretty strong wind in the first half, early honours were fairly even. Reigate, having beaten Charlwood earlier in the season, began with their tails up. Dan Morgan, playing his first game in central midfield, brought some much needed energy to that area of the pitch against a young Priory side, and the game swung from end to end. The home side had the first real opening though, but having found himself clear of the Woods defence, their striker shot wide across goal. Soon after that Charlwood had strong a strong penalty claimed turned down when the full back clearly handled an O'Hara bound pass from Silva in the area. Pete almost found the net minutes later, adjusting his feet well to hook a cross narrowly over the bar. Back came Priory though, and Neil Maguires excellent last ditch challenge kept the score sheet blank when the striker looked odds on to slot home the opener. Charlwood were gradually gaining more possession as the half wore on and really should have gone into the break ahead. Jason Anderson latched onto O'Haras throughball but pulled his shot wide when well positioned. Probably the best move and ceratinly the best chance of the half came right on the stroke of half time. Pete O'Hara held the ball up well and slotted back to Tony Silva. He picked out Anderson in the area whose lay of fell perfectly into the path of the on running Morgan. With the goal at his mercy though he struck his shot almost too well, and the ball sailed over both keeper and bar. Goaless at the break then but with the wind in their favour, Charlwoods chances looked bright fro the second period. From here on in matters went pretty much to script. All except for two minor things. 1 - Charlwood didnt score. 2 -  Reigate did. With the wind and momentum firmly behind them Charlwood swept forward and created a whole heap of chances which one by one they declined to take. In no particular order at least five good chances fell to O'Hara, Cousins and Anderson. The dissapointing thing was that none of them even stung the keepers gloves as they fell wide or over the target. Jason to be fair, did bring a good save from the keeper with a  25 yarder out of nothing that dipped towards the top corner. Reigate meanwhile were struggling to get the ball out of their own half let alone near the goal. On the few occasions that they did cross the the half way devide Peter and Lee (weren't they a sixties group?) snuffed out any danger early or held the line well to lure them into the offside trap. Charlwood really didn't look like conceding.....then of course, they did. One rare defensive error from Lee Cornwell saw Priory wriggle free and a couple of passes later he could do nothing but turn the goalbound effort into his own net. Charlwood rallied again and surged back into Priorys half. More half chances and another penalty shout went begging before substitute Robbie Turnbull almost turned hero. His thumping instinctive volley from the edge of the area brought a fine save from the keeper who shunted the ball onto his post and back agonisingly across the goal mouth. With the final whistle looming Cornwell then had the chance to make ammends for his earlier mistake as he rose to head firmly but wide and Charlwoods last chance was gone. This game should have been over long before that though.    14-4-04 South Godstone 4 Charlwood 0 Ford, Turnbull, Turner, Cornwell, Latter, Silva, Gough, Bone, Cousins, Anderson, O'Hara Bollocks. 18-4-04 Charlwood Charity Cup - Semi Final Charlwood 6 Charlwood Village Residents 6 (5-3 pens) Ford, Turnbull (Silva), Turner, Cornwell, Pettman, Scarlett, Gough, Morgan, Cousins, Anderson, O'Hara Phew! Now where do i start? Some textbook defending saw the two Charlwood sides play out the highest scoring draw in the history of the game. The crowd that gathered to watch this epic encounter now have something to tell the grandchildren and pass on through generations of future Charlwoodites. The game started in pretty spritely fashion, especially considering a number of the Charlwood side had indulged in a spot of Honeyclubbing just a few hours prior to kick-off. Woods could have found themselves a couple of goals to the good early on. Pete O'Hara should probably have done better with at least one of three early oppotunities whilst at the other end CVR were looking good for a goal or two themselves. Their front two were a lively pair and a shakey looking Charlwood defence just escaped punishment by the skin of their teeth. Nevertheless it was the Saturday side that drew first blood. Steve Pettman lofted a lovely through ball for Jason Anderson to chase and slot home with style. That lead lasted less than a minute though as CVR came storming back to equalise  after more defensive uncertainty. With the scores level the game swung from end to end and an enthusiastic crowd, despite the appalling conditions, licked their lips in aticipation of what was to come. What was to come by half time were two more goals from the CVR number 9, and a well saved penalty from Dean Gough, that saw the Sunday side come in at the break with a suprising two goal advantage, and their hatrick hero keeping a close eye on the match ball. Somehow i don't think Martin was about to hand it over?! Things then went from bad to worse for Charlwood as within 5 minutes of the restart CVR bagged their fourth to all but seal the tie.....or so they thought. Robbie Turnbull pulled up with hamstring problems just after the goal and was replaced by a rain-soaked lino Tony Silva. With nothing to lose Charlwood then surged forward in the hope of some respectabilty if nothing else. Cousins was unlucky when his effort came back off the bar and it began to look like one of those days again. Jason Anderson was beginning to torment the CVR defence though and his mazey dribble saw him shrug off several challenges before crossing to O'Hara to nod home from close range. A short while later and Anderson made it 4-3 and sent CVR into a period of squeaky bum time. Silva curled one just wide after a defensive clearance before Anderson unlocked the defence yet again. This time his deep cross found an unmarked Silva at the back post to head home past the happless keeper and hush a predominatly CVR crowd. At this stage there looked like only one winner and Charlwood duely completed their great escape when Roudy prodded home the fifth from close range to turn the tie on its head. CVR weren't done however and with the last kick of the 90 minutes clawed an equaliser in controversial circumstances. Silva was virtually assaulted on the sideline as his legs were taken from beneath him, but without a whistle, the resulting ball into the area cannoned off a striker after a strong Maguire tackle, and looped despairingly over Ford and into the net. Extra time on and increasingly boggy pitch was not something that either teams relished. CVR though, happy to find themselves back in the game, looked the most likely winners at this stage. Neil Maguire was up for the fight however and was duely booked after his third crunching challenge on the tricky CVR winger. Macca showed his maturity by responding to the CVR crowds heckles with a swift movement of the wrist and a cry of 'WANKERS' in their direction - he had a point. With the game drawing to a close it looked like CVR were through as they struck their sixth and then missed two sitters when clean through. Charlwood dug deep into their resources though and in the final seconds a handball in the box after a full-on Dan Morgan drive gave Deano the chance to make ammends for his earlier miss from the spot. He sent the keeper the wrong way, the ref blew his whistle and this tie was going to penalties. The five men who thought they could stand up the longest were nominated for the job and in turn Maguire, Scarlett and Anderson cooly slotted home. Stuart Ford then produced a brilliant save from probably the best penalty of the lot, before Cousins and finally Gough brought the battle of Charlwood 2004 to a close, and a standing ovation from the crowd. OK, so they weren't sitting in the first place but hey!  25-04-04 - Charlwood Charity Cup Final - Charlwood 4 Horley Town A 1 Ford, Scarlett, Maguire, Cornwell, Pettman (Chris), Silva, Gough, Morgan, Cousins, O'Hara, Anderson At last some silverware for a Charlwood team that deserved something for their efforts this season. With the league slipping from their grasp in the last few weeks, a quarter final defeat in the League Cup, and no entry whatsoever into the Surrey Cup, this competition represented Woods last chance for glory this campaign. In stark contrast to last weeks semi-final downpour, the final was fittingly played out on a gloriously sunny afternoon at the theatre of ice creams. Horley Town arrived in confident mood with two or three first teamers amongst their supposedly third choice squad. A few hours later, they left, tossing their runners up medals to the kerb of the Horley Road on their short journey home. A slow start for the hosts saw Horley take the lead on ten minutes. A defensive error on the left flank let in the winger who's low cross was turned in with some style by a Horley first team striker. This only seemed to galvanise Charlwood into action though, who after last weeks heroics are getting used to turning games on their head. The equaliser came after a nice bit of midfield interplay between Gough, Cousins & Silva released Jason Anderson who blasted past the keeper at the second time of asking. Skipper and midfield goal machine Dean Gough grabbed the second. His instictive headed flick on from close range baffling the keeper who could only flap a hand at the ball on its way into the roof of the net. Horley weren't out of this tie though and only some stubborn Woods defending prevented any clear cut openings for the visitors. Cornwell and Maguire kept the lively front two predominantly quiet, aided and abetted by Scarlett and Pettman on the flanks of course. Anthony Cousins grabbed the crucial  third goal that effectively put this game out of Towns reach. Something tells me he might milk his 20 yard free-kick, against a keeper he brought to Charlwood last season, for a few months yet? His effort was a good one. Well struck but central enough that the keeper will feel he should have done better than pad it into the side netting. 3-1 at the break, and all Charlwood had to do now was contain Horley for the anticipated charge in the first 15 minutes of the second half. That they did, and then they went one better and scored a fourth. Anderson was the creator. His firm cross finding Pete O'Hara in the box who did the rest with ease. That goal finally buried a by now dispirited Horley side, who along with their opponents were beginning to flag in the heat. Woods did find the net once more, but Silvas finish after yet another keeper fumble from another Roundy free-kick was ruled offside - wrongly i might add! No matter. Shortly afterwards the final whistle blew, the Charlwood massive stormed the pitch and held their heroes aloft - well something like that anyway!.......now then, wheres that trophy?