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Our Surrey Senior Cup campaign began with a 3-2 win over a Crystal Palace Academy side, with Taff grabbing a hat-trick against the side he played for at every level in past years, as did Richard Harris. There followed my favourite game of the season a barmy 3-4 win at newly promoted Crowborough Athletic. Hidden in the Ashdown Forest, the trip there felt more like going to a Pheasant shoot that a football match, their picturesque ground a world away from the dreaded Crem or Corinthian Casuals. In an end to end feast of attacking football it was Taff again who bagged a brace, Macca struck and Carlton Murray-Price, another blast from the past, grabbed the winner. The star though was the versatile Jabbie whose box to box display down the right was simply outstanding as was the Leafe Army singing, using the acoustics of a metal stand and spooky forest setting to maximum effect. The deer were stampeding to get way. Days like that make it all worthwhile!
December was grim, really really grim with a shock League Cup loss 0-3 to Chipstead, league losses at home to Sittingbourne and away to surprise package Godalming Town with Macca a shock departure, apparently at odds with Stuart Massey. In his place though came former Player of the Season Ryan Gray who resumed his place on the left wing. Gray scored on his debut, along with Taff in an exciting 2-2 Friday night draw at Merstham, an evening spoilt only by dozens of kids kicking balls every bloomin' where whilst we were trying to watch the one on the green bit in the middle. Oi, Ryman League, ban all footballs inside grounds other than the one that matters! Merstham also saw the introduction of giant keeper Rob O'Hara; an inch short of 7 feet tall to replace the shell-shocked Matt Mann whose frequent errors had cost vital points and team confidence and "Scarlett" was to become a firm fans favourite as a confident and effective presence at the back.
The Boxing Day game, well 27th this year, was a huge disappointment as we bafflingly got lumbered with Met Police (as Croydon travelled to Corinthian Casuals - yeah well done League!) who brought three men and an Alsatian and beat us 2-1, only a Scotty goal causing any Christmas cheer. The Ref had a big say, sending off Captain Ali Reeve for a full-blooded ball-winning tackle that deserved only applause. Even the Met Police officials described the decision as "criminal" and its effects on the festive festival "a hanging offence". OK, I made the last bit up. Scotty scored twice more in a 2-2 draw with Corinthian Casuals, our first game of 2009 and then, horror of horrors we lost at home to fellow strugglers Chipstead 1-2. Hell, this was a team we played off the park a few months earlier. Two more returnees were winger Mark Hammond and Ellis Conroy whilst ever-popular Callum MacLean endured a cruelly injury prone season with only fleeting glimpses of the talent we know he is.
Mid January Mersthan were once again our undoing in the Surrey Senior Cup with their scorers Kevin Locke and Kay Ageyai, in reply to a Ronnie Green strike. I'm saying nothing...
With the dwindling Leafe Army entering near despair we pulled a stunning win out of the bag when Rob Smith scored a well deserved winner at Walton & Hersham's dilapidated Stompond Lane. The notable performance of the day was a quite brilliant display at right-back by Jason Goodchild, his ferocious tackling timed to perfection all afternoon. Some bad news then reached us that Paul Scott, so impressive carrying the Captain's armband during Ali Reeve's three match ban for not being a Freemason, had been involved in a serious car accident and had broken bones in his neck. Clearly out for a long while it gave manager Massey extra need to bolster the forward line.
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