Back On The Horse - FA Trophy preview ,recent happenings - All aboard the Boreham Bus!

Hello again - missed me?

In the weeks since we last spoke, it's been a rollercoaster time for Wood. The fantastic winning streak came to an end, one of our midfielders played in a World Cup qualifier, the Inih Effiong saga was FINALLY resolved and one of our highly rated youngsters is on the verge of joining a top end Championship team. Crazy times indeed. Let's get down to business.

How have Wood been getting on in the league?
Well, since we last spoke...

+ Wood had two wins on the bounce, a 2-1 victory over Bromley at home, followed by a cracking 4-2 win against Saturday's opponents Dover. Bromley were dispatched with goals from David Bryant (who had picked up his BSS Player of the Month award before the game) and Luke Wilkinson. Bromley responded with a 35 yard howitzer from Danny Waldren. I brought a record EIGHT friends along with me to the game. Murray demanded I mentioned his Hot Dog. There you go.

+ The 4-2 win against Dover was highlighted by an impressive hattrick from young striker Michael Thallasitis, who had hit a hattrick the previous week for the reserves. Joining on the score sheet was, you guessed it, David Bryant. The pair have struck up quite the partership in their brief time together, with Thallasitis' ability to drag defences out of position crucial in helping Bryant add to his goal tally. Wood played the majority of the game with 10 men after Luke Wilkinson's dismissal in the 17th minute. Club Captain Luke Garrard made his first team return after 3 months out injured which was a big boost to the side.

- Sadly the good run had to come to an end, and after 5 successive wins (and eight games unbeaten overall) in the league, Wood went down 2-0 away at Welling United. To lose to a team who are second in the league and are unbeaten at home all season is no disgrace, and with Wood's side learning with every game, there were plenty of positives to take out of the game. Lee Clarke grabbed both goals for the home side.

The defeat at Welling was followed with a battling 1-1 draw away at Basingstoke. Both teams had good chances to take all 3 points, so by all accounts a draw away at a team who were sitting in sixth in the league (and have a 14 match unbeaten run in the league!) is nothing to be sniffed at, and shows the continued improvement in the side since the poor start to the season - much like Arsenal! Wood fell behind to a Toby Little screamer, only to snatch a deserved point through returning Captain Fantastic Luke Garrard, whose good finish from 10 yards gave Wood a valuable point and the man himself a rare appearance on the scoresheet. Welcome back, Luke!

Has it all been league action?

No! Wood made their first appearance of the season in the Hertfordshire FA Senior Challenge Cup, sneaking a 2-1 win after extra time against Hertford Town. Wood fell behind to a Mark Draper goal (no, not THAT Mark Draper), but were soon on level terms with a Chez Isaac penalty. 90 minutes could not separate the two teams, but in the 99th minute, 17 year old Dean Rubinia latched onto a long ball and cooly finished to send Wood through to the next round.

Any comings or goings in the team?

Good news from Meadow Park is that Chez Isaac, Simon Cox and Michael Thallasitis, who have all been very instrumental in recent good performances, have agreed to extend their recent loan spells at Wood. Joining them is Inih Effiong, who has returned from his spell at Concord Rangers, and is immediately back in first team plans. Let's hope his spell away did him good. There has also been a significant move made for one of the stars of the season, Pelly Ruddock.

Oh really, where is he off to?

Well, he has had a trial at West Ham, with rumours of interest from Crystal Palace and QPR. The trial was initially meant to only be for a week, but The Hammers were so impressed they extended it by another week, and a deal has been 'Agreed in Principle' for Ruddock to join an as yet undisclosed team, who must be West Ham. This is a fantastic move for both player and club, and again goes to show how fruitful the Wood PASE scheme has been, developing exciting and talented youngsters for a career at a higher level. This deal is really a credit not only to the player, but everyone involved in his development. Best of luck, Pelly - I'll keep an eye out for you!

Back to Inih Effiong - has that whole saga been resolved?

Yes, at long last - after a tribunal held at Wembley, Boreham Wood FC were said to have been very pleased by the 'fairness shown' by the FA in their verdict, which turned out to be a £1,500 fee with a 20% sell on fee. Ian Rodley, chairman of St Albans, had been looking for £5,000 and 50%, so I imagine he wasn't leaving the home of English Football best pleased. In a statement, Wood Chairman Danny Hunter drew a line under the matter, saying the following

“As I said clearly in my only statement on this way back on August 3^rd. St Albans City’s Chairman Mr Ridley, will not be judged by making huge issues or unrealistic demands over Inih Effiong that’s just a distraction. He’ll be judged by the St Albans City supporters on what he achieves on and off the field over the coming years and by the success he brings to them and the appointments he makes.”

“However, contrary to what some people think, I genuinely wish the Saints board and their supporters well. People should remember my father Micky Hunter managed St Albans City in the 70’s for a short time. Although Dad tried very hard, he couldn’t be the success he or we as a family, had hoped he’d be at Clarence Park and this obviously cost him his job, but that’s football.

"I now live in the St Albans area, as do my kids, my brother, my nephews and nieces and a good working relationship with St Albans is great for everyone, so let me emphasise again, let this now be the end of the matter and let’s hope both clubs have a successful end to the season”

What's this I hear about a Wood player playing in a World Cup Qualifier?

Justine Cochrane, who returned to Meadow Park this season, flew out to Antigua and Barbuda to represent his adopted nation in their big qualifying match against Haiti. The Antiguan minnows actually ran out 1-0 winners in a famous victory. If selected, Cochrane could now go on to face Jamaica, Mexico and the USA in the next round. Everyone at Wood is very proud to have a full international in the squad.

I hear there is yet another PASE success story?

You don't miss much, do you? Indeed, Charlie Hunter and Ruddock Yala are both through to the final trials of the English College selection process. Both players are in a 18 man squad which will go to Lilleshall between 9-11th December, where the full squad will be picked. Best of luck to both lads involved - do us proud! Cameron Baker-Owens and Harvey Scott-Morris were also selected for trials. Again, a wonderful advert for the PASE scheme.

Finally - what is this about a blog who have taken on Wood as their team to follow? I hear that you are on a podcast as well?

Oh you. Yes, the guys over at Dodgy Knees and Dirty Balls have taken on Boreham Wood as their chosen team - 'All aboard the Boreham Bus'! We also have a fortnightly podcast where I update the team on Wood's latest goings on, as well as giving my forthright views on other matters. Our last podcast got up to second in the amateur sports podcast, behind the Alan Davies fronted 'The Tuesday Club', which is an Arsenal podcast and has the weight of the star of QI behind it. Our pod can be found on itunes or on the blog itself, so please help support us! We even have a day out at a Wood game planned, which should be a decent drink up to say the least!

WAIT! Are Wood playing today?

Yes! We are at home to Dover in the FA Trophy. COME ON WOOD!

That's it from me - again, apologies for a lack of updates recently - personal matters sometimes come in the way of these things. I can be found here in the comments section, on twitter @wearethewood and via @DodgyKneesBlog as well (I don;t man it, but can be found in and around there). Please continue to share, RT etc - I really appreciate it.

Until next time.....

WE ARE THE WOOD!

Two wins from Two, Two new signings and Two departures - Recent happenings at Wood

Reinvigorated from a not even mid season break, let’s get back into the world of Wood, shall we?

Since we last met Wood have gone from strength to strength with two more victories in a row, leaving them with an impressive 16 points from their last available 18. The games went as follows:

Dorchester 0 Wood 1 – In a game which I couldn’t attend, Wood came out one nil winners courtesy of David Bryant’s looping header in the 36^th minute. From all accounts it was a tight game with not too much in the way of clear cut chances, but also a game Wood never looked like losing. This game was notable for the debuts of Sam Cox and David Hutton, who joined the team from Barnet (Cox, on a one month loan) and The Glenn Hoddle Academy (Hutton). The two debutants, who had never even trained with the team before, came into the side and helped Wood to a valuable win. Wood boss Ian Allison remarked afterwards:

“ (It was) Thoroughly deserved. We were organised and strong today. Once we got in front we looked a hard side to break down. Credit must go to Sam Cox and David Hutton. They played their part commendably considering they have never trained with us. I only met Sam before Kick Off! Special praise must also go to David Bryant whose goals have earned us back to back wins on the road. With six players to come back at some stage from injury I feel we will only get stronger.”

Wood lined up as follows: Putnins, Sankofa (Sub – Hunter 79 mins.) Jones, Cox, O’Loughlin, Wilkinson, Lechmere, Isaac, Thalassitis (Sub – Ruddock 48 mins.), Bryant, Hutton.

Subs (Not used): Akinola, Martin, Baker-Owers.

I returned to Meadow Park the following Monday, for the home game against Maidenhead United. This game was of added importance to me as my colleague Phil is from Maidenhead and so any chance to gloat is warmly received. Taking my usual place (5 rows behind the home dug out), I anxiously awaited my first game in a while. It was perhaps this anxiety to get as much out of the game as possible that I failed to notice two stars of the game sitting nearby. Dave Beasant had made the trip to see his son keep goal for the visitors (in the line of Father/Son goalkeepers – Peter and Kasper Schmeichel, John and John Jr Lukic, er…..), and Glenn Hoddle came down to see how David Hutton was faring. Stevenage’s Graham Westley was also in attendance.

This game was a stark reminder of the opening few weeks of the season, as it was absolutely dreadful, but Wood managed to hang on under severe pressure and take hiome the three points. With both sides playing 2 games in 3 days, there were a lot of tired legs out there. Again, both of the new signings started, with Sam Cox spending a lot of the first half chasing the ball ,being caught out of position on a number of occasions to the point where player coach Luke Garrard had to have a word as the half time whistle blew to go over his positioning. This seemed to spur Sam on, as he was fantastic in a second half that would soon descend into niggly fouls and on a couple of occasions, near full squad brawls.

The first half was quite one sided in Maidenhead’s favour, and overall quite poor. Wood’s best chance of the opening stages fell to the in form David Bryant, who saw an effort cleared of the line after finding himself free at a corner. This was a rare chance for the home side who had been under pressure from the opening stages. First, Charlie O’ Loughlin made a fantastic saving challenge with a Maidenhead striker bearing down on goal, and later picked up a yellow card for stopping the same player with a less than fair challenge. However- and this should come as no surprise to those who have been following this blog, Elvis Putjnins was the man who kept Wood in the game with a series of outstanding saves. The first came with Manny Williams bearing down on goal, only for Elvis to make a brave stop at his feet with the goal at Williams’ mercy. Wood looked likely to concede, with Cox as noted struggling to adjust to the pace of the game.

Our other new signing was to grab what turned out to be the winner just before half time. After a long ball into the box, danger man David Bryant was hauled to the ground in a manner normally seen in a WWE wrestling ring as opposed to the Blue Square South. The offender managed to stay out of the referee’s notebook and Sam Hutton slammed in the penalty, despite young Beasant getting two firm hands on the ball. Wembley 88 this was not.

Unfortunately this is where the game began to turn sour. Nevin Saroya, who was lucky to escape without a booking for the penalty incident, absolutely crunched Michael Thalassitis just before the break, and picked up a yellow card in the process. It was a shocking challenge which could have seen red if the official was competent, but alas…. No, I’m not going to get into this again.

Following the half time interval, Maidenhead came out looking for an equaliser, as well as blood it seemed. Within a few minutes Thalassitis was again on the receiving end of a shocking challenge, this time from Bradley Quamina, and tempers began to flare. In the second half alone there were at least 3 opportunities for players to see red on both sides, and it turned into an ill disciplined affair which I assume both managers will not want to see. Sam Letchmere, who minutes before had seen a sensational overhead kick saved following good work from Osei Sankofa, almost had his season ended with another disgusting challenge from the visitors, this time from Reece Tison-Lascaris. In the ensuing melee a Maidenhead substitute managed to get booked, adding to the chaos. To round off a game filled with aggression, play was stopped for what seemed like an eternity as an almost full scale brawl broke out, which amounted to nothing more than a lot of shirt grabbing and the odd shove. The referee had long before lost the respect of the players, and did not handle this well.

With the game nearing it’s conclusion, it began to become more and more stretched. Maidenhead tested Wood on at least 3 occasions, but that man Elvis was in supreme form, denying them on each occasion. On the one time he was beaten, from a deep corner headed across him, Charlie O’ Loughlin was there to clear off the line, despite the protests that the ball had indeed crossed. Wood survived, and even wasted a chance to go two up when sub Pelly Ruddock sprung the offside trap and was clear through on goal, only to shoot straight at Beasant. The referee announced seven minutes for stoppages, in which I must have screamed ‘BLOW UP’ at least 47 times, but Wood held firm and picked up a crucial three points to put them up to seventh in the table (for 24 hours at least).

Dashing to make my train (I decided halfway down the road to stay at my parents house), I missed the post match fracas involving Manny Williams, who decided not only to confront the Wood bench at full time, but also kick in a few advertising boards at the same time. Stay classy Manny, stay classy.

Man of the Match was, AGAIN, Elvis Putnis, who produced another performance worthy of a much higher league than this one. Here’s hoping QPR don’t get wind of this and we get to keep him for much longer.

Wood lined up as follows:

Team: Putnins, Sankofa (Sub – Hunter 77 mins.), Jones, Cox, O’Loughlin, Wilkinson, Lechmere (Sub – Ruddock 64 mins.), Isaac, Thalassitis (Sub – Akinola 90+5 mins.), Bryant, Hutton.

Subs (Not used): Martin, Baker-Owers.

In other Wood news:

• · David Bryant was named ‘Blue Square South Player of The Month’ for his goalscoring heroics throughout October, which have seen Wood’s season turn around. Much deserved (although it could have been a joint award with Elvis) – well done David!

• · We have had to say goodbye to Nathan Koranteng, who returned to Woking after a successful one month loan at Meadow Park. Nathan was always a threat down the left and gave us real width, and will surely be remembered fondly for a spell which included a rasper against Dartford, as well as a fantastic assist against Hampton. Cheers Nathan, all the best for the rest of the season (accept against us!)

• · Joining Nathan out the door, albeit ion loan, is Inih Effiong, who has joined Concord Rangers. I’ve expressed many a time how frustrating Inih can be, as well as how much talent he has, so I hope the loan spell does him well and he returns to Wood with renewed vigour. Ian Allinson has stated that Inih is still definitely in his first team plans.

• · The Wood youth team crashed out of the FA Youth cup in the first round after a fantastic run, away at Thurrock. Thurrock took the lead in the 78^th minute and killed the game in added time. A tough break for the youngsters but well done on a good run to get to the first round.

• · Wood’s game at Basingstoke has been moved to Tuesday 22^nd November, which is a royal pain in the arse.

This Saturday sees my return to Meadow Park, to hopefully exact revenge on the Bromley side who humiliated us 4-0 in the second game of the season (see previous posts for that one). Bromley are currently preparing themselves for a FA Cup first round tie away at Leyton Orient, after beating Dartford in the last qualifying round. Sitting 5 places below us in the league in 14^th, Bromley have had an inconsistent season after such a strong start (having said that we were utterly dire at the start of the season). With Wood on such a good run and Bromley surely thinking of Brisbane Road, I’m hoping and expecting a home win tomorrow. I will have at least 5 mates with me at the game tomorrow, so it should be a good laugh. Full match report on Monday.

Thanks as always for all your support - My self imposed break has got the writing bug back so I am looking forward to more updates over the next few weeks, including an on-going Football Manager blog as I attempt to guide Wood out of the BSS on the new version of the game. Please share, comment, debate, argue – I can be found on twitter @wearethewood, in the comments below and at all home games and most away ones. Cheers!

One last Plug - I'll be appearing on the Dodgy Knees Podcast this weekend (up early next week on itunes), where I will be discussing Wood and other football issues. More details when I have them.

Until next time….

WE ARE THE WOOD!