Tanners 1 - 1 Billericay

A pre-booked taxi to the airport prevented Glenn from being at this game.  A shame, given his dream that he be crowned league champion at Fetcham Grove.

Billericay are starting to look more accomplished but less special without the likes on Konchesky and Pennant.  Bicknell looks a lethal strike are this level and we would have to work hard to keep him quiet.

It did not take Billericay long to open the scoring.  A breakaway move that found Robinson free to slot his shot under Manny.  The omens were not looking good.

There is nothing like a goal to settle the nerves and from a corner gifted to us by their number 2 - he was a gift that kept on giving - we scored.  Pollock nodding home past their stranded 'keeper and a number of defenders on the line.

Nana had a great game.  He used his body well to hold up the ball and had pace to spare to trouble the defence.  On another day, any one of his three shots would find the back of the net.

Second half and Leatherhead made Billericay look ordinary for 30 minutes.  Our guests struggled to retain possession, and while not bereft of chances we looked the more likely.  That changed when Billericay threw on O'Hara to pack an extra punch in midfield.  Meanwhile Sammy took himself off which handed the initiative to our guests.

Some how we managed to hang on and over the four games of football we have faced each otehr this season, Leatherhead edge it 5-4 on aggregate.  Money well spent Glenn.

Dorking Wanderers 1 - 1 Tanners

Honours even as 1,014 people cram into the Westhumble ground on false pretences.  With the new ground months away, a large crowd - consisting of mainly Leatherhead supporters - descended on the old ground in hope of at least seeing a good game.  Rumours of point deductions (yes, it is April again!) may have played a part in our recent slump as such a deduction would sweep the rug from under Sammy Moore's play-off chasing feet.

What the crowd saw was a competitive game, where the hosts were clearly more fired up, dishing out some robust tackles with not many of their players were spared a yellow card.

Leatherhead were playing some good football though.  With Sammy back in the side our chests just seem to puff out a bit more and we have some purpose to our play.  It was from nice intricate play that D'Sean found himself in the box, cleverly placing his body between the ball and the defender who could not resist a tackle.  He caught our player and a penalty awarded.  Derry sent the 'keeper the wrong way.  1-0.

Dorking levelled the match on the stroke of half time when they won a freekick on the edge of the box.  The player fell inside the box, so no doubt the home fans were disappointed with the ref, but not with the end result.  Our 'keeper asked for players not to jump (strange), but could not resist and the ball glanced off of Sammy Moore and dipped into the goal.  1-1.

The second half, and it was Dorking who looked the more likely overall.  They scored but it was ruled out for offside.  They also had a Peter Crouch-esque player who proved a useful outlet for them.

We had our chances though.  Derry was put clean through but put his shot just wide.  We also though Jerry and Lee were denied clear shooting chances in the box but were pulled down on both occasions.  The unwritten rule of only one penalty a game was used by the ref.

Dorking were reduced to ten men, but that just upped their time wasting which the ref failed to get hold of and so the game nudged its way to the final whistle.

With a win in the league coming hard to come by over the recent games, I would say the Surrey Senior Cup is now something to take very seriously...

Travelling Tanners

I really wish our official site would tweet more reminders about games.  The odd video wouldn't go a miss either... but luckily you have me here to remind you (in case you had forgotten about this cracker) that tonight we travel to Dorking.

Tonight we travel to Dorking's familiar ground at Westhumble due to massive delays and overspend at their proposed Meadowbank stadium.  Disappointing as many of us bought tickets in January on the premise we would be treated to fruits of Mole Valley DC's labour.

While Dorking struggle off of the pitch, we struggle on it with just one goal in three games.  The last being against our hosts tonight.  Hopefully we can start firing again to retain bragging rights and prepare for the visit of Billericay on Saturday.

Kick off at 7.45.  Directions can be found here.  See you there!

Tanners 0 - 1 Needham Market

A horribly lacklustre draw turned into a horribly lacklustre defeat when the new 'keeper dropped a harmless cross in front of a Needham Market player on 88 minutes.

 

You would be forgiven for thinking that we were the ones who had travelled 100 miles to play the game as we looked leggy and uninventive tonight.

 

We had struggled to get a win in the away fixture and Needham seemed to have our number tonight. They were very well organised in defence and coped very well with our crosses and hopeful balls.

 

A defeat was harsh tonight but our lack of goals is a concern. We have the joint lowest goals scored in the league but one of the best defences. It's an unusual combination for a team in play off contention.

 

Sammy and Jack will need to put their thinking caps on tonight and try and find us some goals on Saturday. All is not lost in the push for a play off place but with a fixture pile up and a small squad it's going to be tough.

Needham Market are coming

Things are looking good for the game tonight!  Conspiracy theorists thought our Monday night game was called off a little prematurely but no such fears tonight.

The P-word is now being spoken openly, although teams like Staines are showing new interest in one of the places.

Kick off at 7.45.  Good luck fellas!

Game off!

Unsurprisngly tonight's match has fallen foul to weather.  A shame as this adds to the backlog of games we have building up.

Hopefully our pitch will ready for the visit of Needham Market on Wednesday...

Tanners 1 - 0 Wanderers

The Leatherhead supporters spent some time in the bar to get to know each other again after three three week mid-winter break.  So much to talk about. Why have we not heard about what happened with regards to the SSC?  Why did we agree to play the game at the new Meadowbank a month later when we should have been getting games under our belt?  Why do MVDC give one club £8million while we beg for repayment plans?

On the pitch and Leatherhead ground out a hard fought win.  The first half was messy and had a ref that wanted the game to be largely about him.  He awarded a penalty for some robust man-management by Jerry (note; dangerous arms to the back of the head are OK as Ruel discovered).  The penalty was saved but the ref would go on to be a general nuisance all game.

Second half and the new style 5-3-2 formation ditched in favour for something more attacking and Derry was added.  This paid off as Midson headed back across goal for Derry to place his header past the 'keeper.

Some panicky last few minutes as we either forgot where the corner flag was or forgot how to run there and Dorking looked good for an equaliser but we held on.  So on to the next game then, same time tomorrow anyone? 

Dorking Wanderers are coming

So much for Leatherhead fans to feel disgruntled about this week.  The continued silence over the Surrey Senior Cup debacle.  A situation that if handled differently could have allowed for other fixtures to be rearranged, but other clubs find such requests hard to understand when you have your head in a bucket of sand.

Throw in the news that our precious cousins from down the A24 won't have their £8 million pound stadium ready for the return fixture, despite charging us in advance for the pleasure, you really have yourself the perfect storm... meanwhile a less than perfect snow storm threatens to get the game postponed anyway.

Keep checking up here for details of the game status, if it is on I will see you there!

Sevenoaks 1 - 3 Tanners

Following the cancellation of the game at Burgess Hill (one of only two games to fall foul of the weather in our league), Sevenoaks stepped in with a friendly to give us a run out.

Lee Minshull played himself in a false 5 position, getting two well taken goals.  In the first half his side volley beat their 'keeper when they failed to deal with a corner, and in second half he stole the Nail McManus to curl one into the far net.

Pollock also made a name for himself.  Leatherhead switched to three at the back to accodomate the new signing but he decided to sneak up the pitch, find himself through on goal and slot home the second.

Sevenoaks were no push overs though.  They forced Manny into two double saves; one he pulled off, the other proved to be too stong for his hand and went in.  In the second half in particular they really took the game to us and it took Midson to come on and steady the ship.

Not a bad day, and good preparation to Wednesday and the visit of Dulwich Hamlet...

Travelling Tanners

Burgess Hill are having a pitch inspection at 10.30, pre-empting some heavy rain over night.  I just hope they get round to telling us quicker than our officicial site, Surrey Senior Cup decisions, or we'll only hear while watching Match of the Day.

Our hosts, subject to the weather, sit at the bottom of the table.  Inconceivable at the start of the season with Worthing not being able to buy a point.  We, meanwhile, still dream of sneaking into the top 5...

Kick off at 3pm.  Directions can be found here.  See you there!

Enfield Town 0 - 1 Tanners

If anyone turned right at the no right turn sign on leaving the ground, they will get a nasty surprise in the post in the next couple of weeks. I found this to my cost last season but even that shouldn't take the gloss of an excellent win today. It certainly wasn't one to twitch your nose at and decide to go shopping for rabbits instead.

Every game now seems like a must win as we have gradually scratched our way into play-off contention since the FA Cup run ended. This was another extremely professional and hard working performance at a ground where we have often been Enfield's bunny. Lettuce hope the winning run continues.

Nathan Wood was rewarded for his efforts against Ks on Wednesday with a start on the right wing and he was very lively in the first half. Sammy marshalled the midfield with his usual skill and excellence. Jack could have had 3 penalties in the 1st half as he was repeatedly barged over by the Enfield number 5 but the referee wasn't convinced by any of them although he would have been given free kicks anywhere else on the pitch.

The goal came fortuitously as a Tom Richards free kick was deflected into the net by a cotton-tailed defender on 35'. Enfield applied some pressure in the 2nd half but we kept our hare on and were fairly comfortable. The boys get a well deserved midweek off and good timing as well with Siberia coming to the UK. 

Massive game next Saturday as we host Hendon. Can we pull another rabbit out of the hat?

Travelling Tanners

Leatherhead travel to Enfield Town today, looking to build another run of wins to help us put more pressure on the p***-off places.

I'm rather in love with their ground.  That stand is quite something to behold and they are a well supported club.  Pity the pitch is sometimes hard work and our results haven't been to spectacular either (perhaps as a result).

Kick off at 3pm.  Directions can be found here.  Good luck fellas.

Tanners 2 - 0 Ks

The five players I mused over last night were indeed absent as kept a solid defensive line up while experimenting upfront, opting for some of the younger players on the fringes.  Ks made a similar amount changes giving four U18s a chance, three of them making their debut.

Sammy was rewarded for his throw of the dice as the attacking line up performed well.  Guided by the experience of McManus and Clohessy, Williams-Bowers and Wood began to shine.  It took a while for it to click, with the opening 25 minutes being something of a stand-off, but when it did there was only one team in it.

There are a number of supporters who offer the advice of "hit it" as soon as we get the ball about 35 yards out.  This is someone infuriating as they are not shouting at Lionel Messi but at Lee Minshull, so it was with mixed feelings we celebrated Reece's goal as he placed his shot from distance into the side netting.

Ks had some chances - Manny pulling off a fine save that had to be cleared off of the line and scoring an offside goal - but overall they lead a charmed life.  All too often a deflection from a shot or a wayward parry from the 'keeper would squirm agonisingly wide where on another day at least one would creep over the line.

McManus helped us to make it safe but using his now trademark tomfoolery to mesmerise the defence and force a rash tackle.  Penalty awarded.  Some of the confusion was self-inflicted though as their 'keeper became tired of the lack of organisation in his defence and started ordering them around.  The poor no 14 for example (only on for a few minutes), was ordered off of the back post and to mark a player at the front post.  Having been no doubt told by his manager to take over at the post he was somewhat conflicted and tried to keep both masters happy by doing neither and standing somewhere in the middle.

Williams-Bowers stepped up and confidently placed the penalty into the back of the net, despite the 'keeper guessing the right way and getting a hand to it.  Two nil and the game won.  The chance to go and play a greatly reduced squad at Met Police the prize.

Ks are coming

I can't think of a cup tie more quintessentially more Surry than Leatherhead v Ks... Walton Casuals v Walton & Hersham perhaps but it is up there as a classic. 

The bigger question is more over how many players will be rested...  Moore, has a knock or a niggle.  Midson, could do but unlikely.  Ruel, he is young but too important.  Derry, too handsome.

It will be a shame if too many players are rested as this is a competition we would love to win.  Ks are a side we would love to beat.

Kick off at 7.45.  See you there!

Tanners 2 - 1 Brightlingsea Regent

Brightlingsea Regent waltzed into today, sounding like a clumsy hero in a poorly written pantomime.  With the popular Zak having recently departed, Manny would have been hoping to avoid being the villain.

It was a subdued start from both the players and the crowd.  Perhaps over recent weeks we had forgotten what to do... but soon it was clear Leatherhead looked the more accomplished side.  Midson could have had a hatful with good heading opportunities spurned and a low cross was met by an air stroke.

The ref was making a name for himself too.  The highlight in the first half was booking McManus as a reward for pulling off a fantastic tackle, winning the ball cleanly but perhaps the theatrical tumble the Brightlingsea player took convinced the ref there was more to it.  Rather than use his assistant he guessed and got it wrong.

A lot of out play was coming down the right with Sean, but our goal came through the middle.  Ruel slotting a pass to Midson who just found enough space to slot it past the keeper and inside the post.  1-0.

Second half and we pressed for another but the ref's erratic decision making made it hard work for both sides.  Moore, who was finding it hard to hide his frustration, took himself off and we lost our shape a little.  Over committing and allowing Brightlingsea to score on the break.  Manny would not have thanked his team mates for leaving him so exposed, leaving him no chance.

Just when a point looked to be our only reward from the game, the ref came to our rescue.  Midson received the ball by the goal line in the penalty area and was met by a clumsy two footed tackle.  The ball was missed... I am not sure to the extent Midson wasn't missed but he went down and the ref decided on a penalty.  Midson recovered from the tackle enough to slot it away.

Three points and we now concentrate on the Surrey Senior Cup on s.

Brightlingsea Regent are coming

The 5am pitch inspection passed so we are good to go!  See you at 3pm...

Leatherhead v Needham Market (Pools Panel Home Win)

A great day for Leatherhead as none of the teams there or thereabouts won.

The pools panel win means that we would have gone 7th just one point behind 5th placed Staines.

Meanwhile across Surrey other teams braved the very dangerous soft conditions and played an actual game.

Needham Market are coming

The club have thrown caution to the wind and arranged a Happy Hour tomorrow, which can have mixed results in terms of atmosphere behind the goal...

It was a 0-0 draw with Needham Market in December that sparked us into life and set us on our fine run of form.

Kick off at 3pm.  See you there!

Tanners 2 - 1 Burgess Hill Town (BHT)

This was hard work for all concerned. The pitch was heavy, the weather was freezing, and BHT were up for a battle.

And the last thing you want on a brass monkeys night is a 5 minute delayed start while the 'keeper changed his kit at the behest of the referee.

This was a must win if we were to keep the play off dream alive. The pressure seemed, to weigh heavily as we were frequently predictable and relatively easy for to defend. There was plenty of pressure usually involving crosses from Sean but little creativity and the mysteriously accented 'keeper had little to do except complain about his recent groin injury.

BHT livened the game up in the 2nd half by taking the lead on 55' with a header. We responded with purpose and equalised through Sean on 67' at the far post from a cross at close range. There was just enough time to bundle in a winner on 85' to much relief and chattering of teeth. The 'keeper immediately decided enough was enough and shambled off injured.  He was replaced by a sprightly young man who looked delighted with the chance to come off the bench and run around a bit to warm up.

The play offs remain a possibility just but another win is needed on Saturday against Needham Market.

Wingate & Finchley 3 - 1 Tanners

Wingate & Finchley proved to be the yang to Hendon's ying as we crashed to a 3-1 defeat.  Leatherhead had enough chances to win it but on the day it didn't work out for us.

A bright Leatherhead start was undone by a long shot that beat Zaki where we thought he had it cover.  I got a bit too close to the action when Tom forced the 'keeper into a fine save, with the ball clipping the post but hitting me firmly in the chest.

MCS now plies his trade at Wingate & Finchley, and always seem to have a hand in goal when playing against us.  Sure enough, he was brought down for a penalty to make it 2-0.  It got even worse when we left their striker completely free on the edge of the box to allow him to collect a pass and place his shot without a challenge.  Meanwhile, we had a goal-bound header cleared off of the line and had a clear penalty interpreted as a dive.

We rang some changes and continued to apply pressure but it did not seem to be our day.  As the game wore on, Sammy's hat was showing better body language than the manager himself; standing erect and proud while he slouched on the touchline.  Hopefully he will pick himself again soon.

Jack Midson pounced on a spilled shot to make it mildly interesting at the end and had Tom Derry's shot not been ruled out for offside we probably would have lost 3-2, but alas it was not to be.

Hopefully a return to form will be on the cards on Wednesday, when we entertain Burgess Hill Town...