'Are you having breakfast?'
Ah, yes. Pre-Season has finally begun, and my first visit to Meadow Park this year was preceded by an excellent fry up courtesy of my good mother. Hopefully this will be a recurring theme of the new season (I must ring her to remind her I'm at the Dagenham game….).
Following our feast, the good lady and myself wandered the 5 minutes down the road to Meadow Park, home of Boreham Wood FC. Following her shock of having to pay £12 to see my local team (but that is a different story for a different day) we took our seats. The first thing to strike me was just how busy it was in the stand, with us being fortunate to find a pair of seats together. Between us, we managed to estimate there were around 350 there, and I was rather stunned when I later found out it was in the region of 850, which should signal a very healthy return for The Wood, especially when residuals such as food, drink programmes etc are taken into account.
After watching the teams warm up, and listening to requests for a silver Vauxhall to be moved from the car park immediately, the teams came out to mildly rapturous applause, and the pre-season fixtures were finally underway. Boreham Wood lined with 4 of their new signings on display - Jordan, Smith, O'Loughlin and McMahon, all of whom I was very interested to see perform after writing my last article. Watford's XI was mainly made up of youngsters, with the notable names on the teamsheet being Lloyd Doyley and Cult Hero John Eustace.
Watford immediately put Boreham Wood under pressure from the kick-off and had their first real chance in the third minute, with Marvin Sordell blazing the ball out of the stadium from approximately 5 yards. Maybe he was distracted by the demands from the PA that if the silver Vauxhall wasn't moved it would be clamped (his Vauxhall?). Wood soon fought back and started playing some great stuff of their own, and it was at this point where I realised that Daryl McMahon was playing at a different level to his Boreham Wood team mates. His first touch after 2 minutes was a sharp Cruyff turn to avoid a challenge, and most of Wood's good play was coming through him. After some good skill in and around the area from McMahon, Wood won a free kick on the edge of the box in the thirteenth minute (the attempted Watford clearance went straight into the back of the referee's head - one of the simplest joys in life). Mario Noto stepped up and curled and absolute pearler into the top corner, leaving the Watford keeper no chance: 1-0 Boreham Wood.
Wood were to hold this lead until the half hour mark, although Watford did have their chances to level before then. Debutant Michael Jordan kept out a deflected effort that looked like it had him beaten, as well as a couple of chances that demanded last minute blocks from The Wood's rearguard. Their quality in possession was beginning to show, with their passing game constantly stretching the home side. That being said, Boreham Wood weren't afraid of knocking it about themselves, with a lovely move resulting in David Bryant having a shot turned round the post. Again, Daryl McMahon was instrumental in most of Wood's better play going forward.
However, the equaliser was coming and when it arrived it was both spectacular and deserved. A half cleared landed on the barrel chest (hark at me) of John Eustace, who controlled well and volleyed in from 25 yards, leaving Jordan no chance. 1-1.
Shortly afterwards followed a spell of real domination from Watford, with Jordan being called into action twice to make good stops. On the counter, Wood nearly nicked the lead with a great effort from McMahon, who was causing real problems for the championship side. Shortly before half time, Watford were made to pay for their wastefulness when Jordan's long clearance made it's way to Chaaban, who finished well to give Wood the lead going into the break. Despite Watford's possession and chances, Wood were value for the lead, as they were really taking it to their championship opponents who were perhaps taken aback by the tempo set by the home side. It was a very entertaining first half after not really expecting too much exertion in the opening friendly fixture.
Watford effectively had a brand new team out for the second half, and their freshness was evident from the start. On 49 minutes Piero Mingola fired a low shot through a crowded penalty area, and from then on in Watford had the lions share of the possession. From here on in, the game unfortunately lost it's rhythm as substitutions came thick and fast leaving the game stopping and starting at regular intervals. This was not helped by the PA system having a bit of a meltdown leaving it impossible to know who was coming on. Of those who did come on, I was impressed with Charlie Hunter's ability on the ball, but fear for the physical side of his game. However, he is still extremely young so hopefully this will come before he is thrown in at the deep end. Akinola showed good energy when he made his appearance from the bench, but wasted a good chance to win it with a header wide. Watford continued to press and Jordan was called upon twice to make very good saves, as Boreham Wood eventually hung on for a 2-2 draw.
Overall, it is obviously a good result, friendly or not. This was Boreham Wood holding their own against a Championship side, who, although not full strength, showed their ability in large portions of the game. Of the debutants, Daryl McMahon was the standout and looks like he will be a fantastic signing for Wood next season. His ability on the ball is of a level higher than BSS (with all due respect), and he also has that extra few seconds on the ball that decent players seem to have. If Borehamwood use him as their primary playmaker next season they should be fine in terms of scoring chances created. In contrast, despite his goal (and it was exceptional) Mario Noto seemed almost threatened by McMahon, and there were a couple of times where it seemed to me he was trying to prove something by playing a flashy long ball (which never came off), as well as a shot from 30 yards which ended up in the car park behind the ground. Ian Allinson looked extremely annoyed at times with him, and had to remind him to keep to his role so that the team weren't stretched.
Michael Jordan had a busy debut, and pulled off some great saves, so his performance must be counted as a positive. However (there is always a however), he did not look comfortable with crosses at all and this could be a problem as the season progresses. I'll happily reserve judgement for now and look at the positives, as his shot stopping was first rate. Charlie O'Loughlin and James Smith both looked solid if unspectacular on their debuts (they are defenders after all) and the return of Ali Chaaban was welcome, as was his goal and all round display. Luke Garrard looked solid sitting in front of the defence as well, composed on the ball and in the tackle. So all in all, a lot of positives to take from the game, even if it died a bit in the second half (I caught the other half looking at her Kindle on a couple of occasions) The Wood lined up as follows:
Team: Jordan (Sub – Baker-Owers 81 mins.), Kamara (Sub – Matthews 45 mins.), D. Brathwaite, Garrard, Smith (Sub – Walker 75 mins.), O’Loughlin (Sub – E. Brathwaite 62 mins.), Chaaban (Sub – Yaku 45 mins.), McMahon, Bryant (Sub – Akinola 71 mins.), Noto, Godfrey (Sub – Hunter 62 mins.).
Tonight sees the arrival of League Two side Dagenham and Redbridge, who should again pose a stiff test for The Wood. Having been relegated last season, The Daggers will be looking to hit the ground running, so it should make for an interesting evening. I would expect to see a fair amount of rotation, as a few players played the entire 90 minutes on Saturday and so I doubt they will do the same tonight. Last season saw The Daggers win in a 4-0 rout, but I'm sure Boreham Wood have enough in them now to match or even better Saturday's result. I'm going to sit on the fence and say a 1-1 draw (as I did last week), but hopefully we will see an entertaining 90 minutes at Meadow Park. I would be very surprised if McMahon was involved as much after Saturday, so this could give Mario Noto the chance to remind everyone what he is all about, as well as seeing some more of the younger players at Boreham Wood give manager Ian Allinson some food for thought.
That's it from me for now, I'll be back with a report of the game and a look at Wood's highly successful PASE scheme. As always feedback is most welcome, and you can find me on Twitter @wearethewood. Please continue to share the blog, we've had over 500 views so far which is fantastic.
We are the wood!
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