Greenways 1-3 Colliers Wood United - Maybe they froze, maybe they're not up to that level yet, admits Greenways manager Andy Pierce

Greenways 1 – 3 Colliers Wood United
Location	Rede Court Road, Strood, Rochester, Kent ME2 3TU
Kickoff	20/09/2024 19:45

GREENWAYS  1-3  COLLIERS WOOD UNITED
The Isuzu FA Vase Second Qualifying Round
Friday 20 September 2024
Stephen McCartney reports from Rede Court Road

GREENWAYS manager Andy Pierce admits his players lacked quality, ownership and claims they did not care enough after deservedly being knocked out of The FA Vase at the first hurdle.

Greenways went into this Second Qualifying Round tie sitting in tenth-place in the Southern Counties East Football League First Division table, having picked up 12 points (three wins, three draws) from their opening nine games.

It is a marked improvement on last season when Robert Jeffery’s men finished at the foot of the table with 15 points (four wins, three draws) from their 30 league games.

Colliers Wood arrived at Rede Court Road also in the tenth-tier, having picked up 11 points from their 10 games in the Combined Counties League Division One.

Greenways took an early lead through left-back James Trueman’s left-footed finish following a corner, but Gavin Bolger’s side put in a vastly improved second half performance and ran out deserved winners, as all three of their scores notched their second goals of the campaign,

Striker Nathan Best and impressive right-winger Jorden Mbola both scored with composed finishes before right-winger Tyrese Bracey came off the bench to dink the goalkeeper in stoppage time.

“I feel like we dropped down to their level really,” said Pierce, 34, whose side have kept only one clean sheet in 10 games and have now thrown away leads in their last three games.

“I thought we were the better team for the first 15-20 minutes. The last three games we’ve done that, we’ve gone 1-0 up and sit back and let teams come onto us, invite pressure and we can’t keep clean sheets, so we’ve got to score two or three every game to win a game of football.

“It’s extremely frustrating. It’s a learning curve for all of us. It’s been a learning curve from day one, a learning curve for me.  At half-time to go 1-0 up, it’s your game to lose and they have thrown it away.”

Colliers Wood arrived 30 minutes before the kick-off and when the game started, both sides treated the ball like a hot potato.

Greenways created their first opening with 10 minutes and 39 seconds on the clock, only to be denied by the outstretched left leg of visiting goalkeeper Jack Powell.

Central midfielder Lewis Wood played a first time pass which released striker Levi Gold down the left channel before he played in a short low cross into five-goal winger Ashley Poppy, who stroked a right-footed angled drive towards the bottom far corner, only to be denied by the keeper.

Greenways grabbed the lead following the resulting corner, their first of five, with the goal coming with 11 minutes and 15 seconds on the clock, underneath a red full moon.

Holding midfielder Sebastian Koloko swung the ball in from the right, the ball was cleared by the away side and fell to Trueman who produced a clinical left-footed finish through a crowd of players and across the keeper to find the bottom far corner from 15-yards.

“We score good goals. We always score good goals.  We can’t keep clean sheets and that will be our problem. We can’t score three, four or five goals to win a game of football,” said Pierce.

“A good goal, a good left-foot. He’ll score a lot of them this season, he’s got a great left foot.

“We go 1-0 up, it’s our game to lose and we seem to just hit the destruction button and just throw it away.

“We just drop off, we drop off, we drop off. We get nervous and we can’t keep clean sheets at the minute.”

A big kick from Greenways goalkeeper Ivor Williams was allowed to bounce inside the Colliers Wood half as centre-halves Sean Kirkpatrick or Fiaz Yuusuf were not keen to head the ball away and clear their lines.

Poppy flicked the ball on before Gold smacked his right-footed half-volley harmlessly wide of the goal from 25-yards out.

The referee Jacob Miller awarded the home side an uncontested drop ball which was smashed towards goal by centre-half Jack Higgins 10 yards from the half-way line which was comfortably caught by Powell.

Greenways defended Yuusuf’s free-kick from just outside the corner of their penalty area in the 35^th minute and Greenways counter-attacked straight down the middle of the pitch through Poppy, who drilled a right-footed effort sailing past the top of the right-hand post from 30-yards.

“I think he’s our top scorer (5 goals). He’s done well. He’s come in from Rochester City, but he's taken his chance.  He works hard, scored the goals and he’s always in the right place. He was unlucky,” added Pierce.

Colliers Wood United created their first opening of the half (38:51) when four-goal big unit front man Marlon Wallen dropped deep before clipping the ball over the top of Trueman to play in Mbola, who lacked composure and clipped a right-footed half-volley into Williams’ midriff from 25-yards.

The physically strong Koloko did a noticeable job during the first half, sitting in front of the Greenways back four and Pierce revealed he is currently playing out of position.

“He’s our centre-half, he’s a defender. We’ve got four centre midfielders out injured, we’ve got two with broken arms on Saturday and he’s come in for the last four or five games playing centre mid and he’s been solid really. You tell him he can’t take more than two touches but he wins his headers and his tackles and he’s a good player.”

Gold, who has three goals to his name so far this season, escaped a booking from the referee when he used his hand to put the ball into the net from close range after Poppy’s free-kick was flicked on from within a crowd of players towards the far post but the referee consulted with his assistant referee Emma Guest and decided not to issue a yellow card for a blatant act of cheating.

Pierce said: “I thought it was a great header to be fair. It was one of those ones. If the referee didn’t see it, I would have still celebrated but I think everyone saw that one.”

Bolger and his coach Dixon Gill certainly had words with their players during the interval as Colliers Wood United upped their game and Greenways wilted in their biggest game of the season.

Pierce added: “Literally it’s ours to lose now! You go 1-0 up, FA Vase, you get to the First Round Proper, more of the same, more of the same.

“They’ve turned up late, we had to start fast, which we did, you’re 1-0 up and just up the quality.

“The quality was poor today all over the pitch, final ball, final pass. For me that was the biggest disappointment today, was the quality of our play.

“I said it at half-time as well. I needed someone to just go and grab the game and try to get on the ball and say ‘it’s my ball, I’m the best player on the pitch,’ but no one’s taken responsibility.”

Colliers Wood United equalised just three minutes and 39 seconds into the second half.

Visiting goalkeeper Powell went route-one as he launched a big kick into the left-channel and neither Ross Penrose or centre-half Ibrahima Goswell dealt with the danger.

Best easily cut into the penalty area and issued a composed left-footed finish underneath Williams, who is on loan from Isthmian League Premier Division side Chatham Town.

“It was a good finish but that’s what I’m saying about clean sheets.  Our defenders cannot, they just switch off too many times in games.  One big ball they think their job is done when the ball is at the other end and switch off and that’s what happens, you get punished.”

Piece, a centre-half himself, threatened to dust off the boots and show his players’ the act of defending.

“If I’m fit enough, I’ll put my boots back on.  I keep thinking I’ll get my boots back on.  I played at that level and it’s about taking responsibility, ownership and just not switching off.

“I may have been the fattest and slowest centre-half there is but for 90 minutes I never let my man beat me sort of thing and too many times our defenders got caught out, lose their duals, lose their one-on-ones and it’s too easy. I don’t think they care enough. I used to hate losing. I play tiddlywinks with my boys’ and they never win. I just hate losing!”

Penrose launched the third of his four long throws into the Colliers Wood penalty area and Polish winger Maciej Chmielecki’s left-footed shot on the turn was gathered at the second attempt by Powell.

Colliers Wood started Leo Goma-Weinberg as a holding midfielder in front of their back four but he played the entire second half at right-back, with right-back Matthew Tobin (who was booked after the final whistle) moving inside to partner Kirkpatrick at the heart of defence with Tremaybe Huie-Moseley keeping his left-back slot, before being replaced in the 64^th minute by Luis Rodriques.

Goma-Weinberg was booked for a challenge on Wood, which had the Greenways midfielder rolling into the penalty area but the home side lacked quality with the free-kick which Poppy blasted into the wall.

Poppy swung in the resulting corner from the left towards the top near corner and Powell got across his goal-line in time to claw the ball out.

Greenways missed a glorious chance to restore parity with 22:51 on the clock.

A big kick from keeper Williams wasn’t dealt with by Tobin and put Chmielecki through on goal but he lacked composure as his right-footed shot was held by Powell, diving low to his left.

“It’s literally, they took their chance, one all and then we go the other end and don’t take our chance, simple as that,” admitted Pierce.

“That’s the problem at the minute, not taking our chances to go into the lead. He played well, put some great balls in but he has to score that and they go up the other end and went 2-1 up!”

Colliers Wood swiftly went up the other end and took the lead just 27 seconds later.

Best played in Mbola in behind the two centre-halves and he swept his right-footed shot across the keeper to find the bottom far corner.

“It was frustrating especially when you’ve got the right-back and centre-half both going for the same ball, no chat there at all and he’s found a spare man in the box and it was a good finish,” added Pierce.

Williams got down low to his right and used a strong right-hand to ensure Best didn’t find the bottom left-hand corner after cutting into the box as Greenways had pushed men forward in search of the equaliser.

“Ivor’s a good goalkeeper. We’ve got him from Chatham, the under 23s on loan. Young lad, learning his trade and he’s made a great save.  He’s done that for the last two or three games to be fair to him and we’re lucky to have him on board,” added Pierce.

Colliers Wood United sealed their passage into the First Round with 44 minutes and 5 seconds on the clock after some sloppy defending from Greenways substitute Najeem Oriola.

He gave the ball away in his defensive third to a pressing Mbola, who played in Bracey, the substitute right-winger dinked the ball over the advancing Williams and rolled into an empty net.

Pierce said: “That’s just one of those goals at the end where you know you’re going for everything, throwing it all, the kitchen sink, the lot and he’s just made a mistake at the edge of the box and got caught out and once it’s 3-1, it’s game over.”

Best ignored calls from his dug-out to run the ball towards the corner flag before playing a reverse pass to the impressive Mbola, who cut onto his right-footed and tried to bend his low shot towards the bottom far corner, only for Williams to dive to his left to parry the shot (49:33).

Greenways created one final chance when substitute Sam Harris launched a long throw looping high into the sky, which was flicked on at the near-post by fellow sub Egid Aydin, which was comfortably gathered by Powell.

There is a gulf in class between the Southern Counties East Football League Premier Division and its First Division.

When asked what was missing, Pierce admitted: “Quality on the ball. There was no quality. I think both teams lacked that. Both teams lacked quality on the ball, no composure, nobody wanted the ball. We could’ve played out a few times. They were hiding.

“I think maybe some boys it was the first time in this sort of tournament and maybe they froze. Maybe they’re not up to that level yet.  For me the biggest thing was quality and that was disappointing tonight.”

Piece takes his side to Chipstead on Saturday 28 September to tackle bottom three and winless side Tooting Bec (three draws from seven games).

“We’ll make sure we’ll bring our kit as well, we’ll bring two actually,” said Pierce, after Tooting Bec withdrew from The FA Vase after their manager failed to bring their playing kit to a home game against Newhaven.

“They’ve had a few dodgy results, a few good results. The good thing is these boys are actually buzzing about Saturday.  We’ll be all guns blazing. I guarantee we’ll go into the game with a lead and then we’ll see if we can hold it or not.”

Pierce insisted Greenways will not get “sucked into a relegation battle” this season, after finishing nine points adrift of Forest Hill Park last season.

“I think you have to be positive.  We were reprieved from relegation, we were kicked out of K Sports. We had all of our pre-season games planned at K Sports, so we had to reschedule everything.

“We lost nine or 10 players, who didn’t want to drop down a league and they’re playing somewhere else so it’s a complete new rebuild.

“I’m a new manager, new coaching team, new ground, new training facilities, new players so to be sitting where we are, I think we are three points less from what we finished the whole of last season on.

“We’ve had good results and also the thing is we’re competing every game. I know we had a bit of a spanking against Rochester (0-4) and Canterbury City (1-6).

“We were 3-1 up against Faversham Strike Force (before drawing 3-3) and Elmstead as well (drawing 2-2), we just keep throwing games away.

“I look at play-offs. The good thing about this league are play-offs.  You can have three or four running away with it. If we can get that fifth spot, six or seven points (adrift) with four or five games to go, you’ve always got a chance.

“We’re not going to get sucked into a relegation battle at all. I have no doubt about that. We’re too good for that. I’m looking top 10 will be a great season especially where we finished last season – but my aim is to get into the play-offs.”

Greenways: Ivor Williams, Ross Penrose, James Trueman (Peter Payne 86), Sebastian Koloko (Najeem Oriola 81), Jack Higgins, Ibrahima Goswell, Ashley Poppy (Egid Aydin 85), Lewis Wood, Levi Gold, Logan Thomson (Lucas Aires 53), Maciej Chmielecki (Sam Harris 80).

Goal: James Trueman 12

Booked: Levi Gold 63, Ross Penrose 78

Colliers Wood United: Jack Powell, Matthew Tobin, Tremayne Huie-Moseley (Luis Rodriques 64), Sean Kirkpatrick, Fiaz Yuusuf, Billy Murphy (Tyrese Bracey 80), Imani Harris, Marlon Wallen (Suryaksh Tewatia 90), Nathan Best (George Kelly 90), Jorden Mbola.
Sub: Kelvin Ronald

Goals: Nathan Best 49, Jorden Mbola 69, Tyrese Bracey 90

Booked: Leo Goma-Weinberg 87, Matthew Tobin 90

Attendance: 95
Referee: Mr Jacob Miller
Assistants: Mr Anthony Abbs & Ms Emma Guest