HIGH FIVE AS TEN MAN PECKHAM STEAM TO A WIN

Kieran Dowding bagged a hat-trick as ten man Peckham picked up an emphatic win after three defeats on the trot. Mary Phillip brought a 15 man squad to the Kent coast, The Reachfields Stadium in Hythe the venue, Ashford FC the opponents. Nathan Gamester started in goal, with Raymond Agyemang and Fareid Yassein both unavailable, Hassan Omar started at right back with Elton Romaku at left back. With Ben Whittaker injured late on in last week's defeat Adam Carrick was welcomed back into the centre of defence partnering Jeremiah Duah Danso. In a change of formation, Joe Thomas sat just in front of the back four with a midfield three of Camilo Andres Nieva , Tidi Barry and captain Nicky Meta. Up front were Chris Weber and Kieran Dowding, with fit again Jacob Kemp on the bench alongside Yacoub Suleman, Rashane Wilson and Peter Tarrant.

The hosts got the game underway and were lucky not to have conceded a penalty in the 2nd minute. A Nathan Gamester goal kick eventually found Chris Weber on the far side of the centre circle, the quick thinking forward took a touch before playing Kieran Dowding in through the middle of the park. Under pressure the winger-cum-striker played it out to Nicky Meta on the left. The skipper played it back in to Kieren Dowding who then looked to have had his trailing leg taken from under him by an Ashford defender before he cleared it to safety. The official looked unimpressed and allowed play to continue despite the protests from the Peckham contingent.

Two minutes later however the official had no hesitation in pointing to the spot after Kieran Dowding was felled once again. Elton Romaku sent a long throw from the near touchline into the Ashford area which was headed on by an Ashford player and before the Peckham striker had time to control it he was upended by another Ashford player. Up stepped Chris Weber in the 4th minute to send the keeper the wrong way, slotting the ball home in the right hand bottom corner of the goal. Peckham’s lead barely lasted ten minutes from a strike worthy of the goal of the season award. The ball was played out to the left where it found the Ashford player who hit a thunderbolt shot from 30 yards out on 13 minutes. Nathan Gamester had no chance as the ball rocketed past him and into the top right hand corner of his goal.

The Ashford contingent must have still been trapped in the awe of their equaliser as Peckham took the lead again within two minutes of the restart. Kieran Dowding ran onto a ball over the top to lob the advancing Ashford keeper, and all this with only a quarter of an hour played. Peckham were playing with a spring in their step, and after the last three defeats, it was delightful to watch, this was the Peckham we are used to. But we have seen many times how one decision can change a game for the better or for the worse, and this came five minutes from the end of the first half.

Peckham were awarded a free kick on the near side some 40 yards from goal. Captain Nicky Meta stepped up to curl the ball towards the back post, Tidi Barry jumped to challenge the keeper, but he caught the Ashford stopper with a raised elbow as he punched it clear. A few handbags ensued and the official was quick in dismissing the Peckham midfielder who was off for an early bath. The official then proceeded to show the Ashford keeper a yellow card for raising his hands. The referee then consulted his assistant who confirmed the decisions.

Peckham would now have to play just over half the game with ten men and this incident. This could have been the turning point of the game, and it briefly seemed like it could be, as the equaliser came on the stroke of half time, and again it was down the left flank. The Ashford number nine ran onto a through ball inside the Peckham area and slotted it under the body of Nathan Gamester as he came out to narrow the angle. Despite a late onslaught from Ashford, Peckham dug in deep and defended well, Adam Carrick and Jeremiah Duah Danso with some vital blocks ensured that the half finished on level terms.

Mary Phillip’s half time team talk could also have been the turning point, along with a double tactical substitution during the break. Camilo Andres Nieva had looked out of place during the first half and was replaced by Yacoub Suleman, Chris Weber was replaced by Jacob Kemp, the formation reverting to a 4-4-1. Maybe the turning point was a combination of all four aforementioned points because Peckham came out in the second half a different team. One may have even thought it was Ashford that were a man down because you certainly couldn’t tell that Peckham only had ten on the field.

Peckham got the second half underway and within a minute the hosts were lucky not to find themselves down to ten men. Hassan Omar won the ball back and played the it out to Jacob Kemp in the middle. The Ashford number five lunged at the Peckham midfielder but just got a foot to the ball before Joe Thomas came in to nick it away. The number 5 not only pulled his shirt, he proceeded to kick out at the Menace midfielder, leaving him in a heap on the floor. The game was stopped and the official consulted his assistant and the Ashford number 5 went into the book. Had the official fully seen the incident one can only assume the outcome would have not been a good one for the Ashford player and the colour of the card may have been different.

Peckham continued to control the game and Yacoub Suleman twice came close to getting his name on the score-sheet. His first effort was in the 52nd minute, attacking down the right flank he did everything right until he unleashed his effort into the side netting, when perhaps pulling it back for Nicky Meta was the better option. His second initially came after Joe Thomas took a long throw from the near side. The ball found the head of an Ashford defender which sent it high into the air. Kieren Dowding did well to control it, heading it into the path of the Menace winger to the left of the goal. He took a slight touch on his chest before shooting goal wards from a very acute angle and saw his effort go only inches wide on 60 minutes.

Another goal was coming and the Menace faithful only had to wait another minute for it to arrive. The ball fell to Kieran Dowding who only had one thing on his mind, skipping around the Ashford number four before shooting from the edge of the area. The keeper did well to dive across his goal but the Peckham striker's shot had too much on it and it found its way into the bottom right hand corner of the goal.

The ten men of Peckham were now 3-2 up, but there was still a long way to go before the game was over. Mary Phillip opted for a third change with Peter Tarrant replacing Joe Thomas, who has worked himself into the ground. Kieran Dowding could now taste a hat-trick, as despite being alone upfront he was getting a lot of joy when running at the Ashford defence. He had a great chance to get it in the 76th minute. In almost an identical position to his second goal he unleashed an effort from 20 yards but he couldn’t get his foot around the ball and sent it well wide of the Ashford goal.

The next goal however would certainly prove pivotal in the outcome of the Match, and that goal came for Peckham a minute later. Yacoub Suleman picked up the ball just outside the Ashford area and with some nifty footwork managed to outwit the defender before crossing back into the 6 yard area as the keeper dived at his feet. His pass found the unmarked Jacob Kemp who slotted the ball into the empty net to make it 4-2.

With just under ten minutes to play Rashane Wilson replaced captain Nicky Meta, who left the field to a deserved round of applause, handing the armband to Kieran Dowding. Ashford had to go for broke now if they wanted to find a way back into the game. Frustration was apparent amongst their players, their number 8 sent to the sin bin in the 83rd minute, when the official missed an obvious handball.

For Peckham it was now all about game management, preserving their two goal advantage and seeing the game out until the end. With five minutes of the 90 to play Mary Phillip was forced into making a further change. Hassan Omar looked like he had tweaked his hamstring and was unable to continue, so Joe Thomas was reintroduced to the game. With time running out for the hosts they piled men forward, leaving themselves vulnerable at the back and Peckham should have killed the game off in the 89th minute but some last ditch defending denied them a fifth.

The game was now well into added time when Rashane Wilson picked up a yellow in the sixth added minute for a late tackle. The icing on the cake however came a minute later as Kieran Dowding eventually completed his hat-trick and got Peckham’s fifth goal. The move started deep in the Peckham half, in fact it was out by the nearside corner flag. Jeremiah Duah Danso intercepted the ball just inside the area and under pressure played a short pass to Joe Thomas by the corner flag and with an Ashford player bearing down on him he took a couple of touches before clearing the ball to Kieran Dowding near the centre circle. Taking a few touches he played it out to the left to Yacoub Suleman and continued his run towards the Ashford area. With two against three the odds were surely against Peckham and as a defender came across the Menace winger squared the ball to Kieran Dowding just inside the ‘D’. Taking a couple of touches he rounded the defender and slotted the ball past the advancing keeper and into the net, bagging his third of the game making it 5-2! The Peckham bench, players and handful of supporters erupted in jubilant celebration. With a further three minutes remaining Peckham shut up shop and saw out the game.

Peckham were immense, and fourteen of the fifteen players (!) should feel proud of their performance. Nathan Gamester commanded his area and although he had no chance with either goal, was never really tested by the hosts. Adam Carrick and Jeremiah Duah Danso in the centre of defence never put a foot wrong (other than Carrick falling over the ball once!), Elton Romaku made some important challenges and provided amazing support going forward. Hassan Omar slotted into the right back position and made it his own. Joe Thomas provided defensive cover and was also immense when driving the team forward, captain Nicky Meta worked his socks off and Chris Weber was great holding up the ball once again and calmly scored from the penalty spot. Kieran Dowding however was on another level, showing once again what an important player he is for Peckham. Camilo Andres Nieva didn’t have the best game by his high standard, but we all know what he is capable of. And the subs, Jacob Kemp brought stability back to the midfield, and got on the score sheet, Yacoub Suleman created havoc on the wings. Peter Tarrant calmed things down and did the simple things very well in the middle, and Rashane Wilson created problems for the Ashford defence.

This was the Peckham team and performance we had been used to, the three previous defeats were just a blip and if this team turns up for the games ahead, then who’s to say we won’t be up there at the end of the season? Next week however cup fever comes to the Menace Arena as we welcome the Clapton FC in the London FA Senior Trophy.

Peckham Town FC (4-1-3-2): Nathan Gamester; Hassan Omar, Jeremiah Duah Danso, Adam Carrick, Elton Romaku; Joe Thomas; Camilo Andres Nieva, Tidi Barry (sent off 40 mins), Nicky Meta (c); Chris Weber, Kieran Dowding.
Subs. Yacoub Suleman (on for Camilo Andres Nieva), Jacob Kemp (on for Chris Weber), Peter Tarrant (on for Joe Thomas), Rashane Wilson (on for Nicky Meta) & Joe Thomas (back on for Hassan Omar).