Meridian 1-3 Charlton Athletic (Community) - We will surprise you, warns 23 sub Meridian boss

MERIDIAN  1-3  CHARLTON ATHLETIC (COMMUNITY)
Pre-Season Friendly
Saturday 30^th July 2011
Stephen McCartney reports from Charlton Park Lane

MERIDIAN manager Canturk Yanpar insists his side will surprise their rivals when they make the high jump into the Kent Invicta League in 21 days’ time.

The Charlton based outfit suffered a 3-1 home defeat to Haart of Kent County League Premier Division neighbours Charlton Athletic (Community), after previously losing to minnows Highfield Rovers and Jayten.

Last season they finished their Kent County League Division Two West campaign – the lowest tier of the English non-league football structure – with only Westerham below them in the table but they have been accepted as founder members of the new Step Six league, which sees them kick-off their campaign with a home game against Rusthall on 20 August.

But on today’s pub football mentality, they will be out of their depth, as they prepare to climb three levels of football.

Meridian pay the Meridian Sports Club £200 per match to play on a modest roped off pitch, which has two dug-outs and basic changing rooms, with a separate, shared shower room.  There is cover, underneath the balcony of the clubhouse, at an angle behind one of the goals.  Hardstanding is going in alongside one side (the dug-outs) of the pitch and there are plans for floodlighting and a stand.  Ashford United’s supporters are in for a rude awakening when they visit this and many other modest grounds, but at least there’s a spacious bar and tea-bar available.

Let’s hope the Kent Invicta League operate with proper match officials.  Today’s referee, Robert Day, was wearing a black Charlton Athletic training top, the visiting manager ran the line for 90 minutes and  two Meridian players shared linesman duties, although neither raised their flag once!

Meridian, who had a seventeen man squad, broke a www.kentishfootball.co.uk record, as Yanpur took roll on, roll off substitutions to the extreme, making a total number of 23 substitutions during the local derby.

It took the Meridian manager only fifteen minutes to make his first two changes and another four were made before half-time.  Three changes were made at the break and players came and went as frequently as London Red Buses and with so many changes their play was chaotic.

Yanpar explained why he took squad rotation to the extreme.

“Because they had a very hard game on Thursday (losing 3-0 to Jayten) so I was just watching their fitness, they got tired so that’s the only reason,” he said afterwards.

“We only had six subs so I had to use them regularly so everybody had at least twenty minutes play.  Our two centre backs (Jubril Okunnu and Gassimo Jalloh) are not fit, they’ve just come back from holiday last week, missing eight training sessions.   They couldn’t come to the games – so you can’t force players if they’re not fit.”

When asked what he learnt from their fourth warm-up game, Yanpar replied, “I learnt some of my players are not comfortable for this level.  I’m very concerned about Daniel Avanzi, Kyle Burt, Leyton Thompson and Gurdy Tomna – unless they sort out their fitness.”

Meridian should have broken the deadlock inside the opening six minutes when skipper Tamna (who amazingly got through 90 minutes) played the ball out of defence  and released Mohamed Azar Miah through on goal, but he was denied by a last-ditch tackle by Lee Roots and then a near post save from visiting keeper Billy Sennington.

Charlton Athletic’s first chance arrived in the 17^th minute when Tyrus Gordon clipped the ball into the box and striker Kelvyn Williams cut across his marker and flicked the ball agonisingly wide of the far post.

Meridian midfielder, Spencer Illinge, went close when his right-footed free-kick from 30-yards just dipped over Sennington’s crossbar and at the other end Tyrus Gordon released Kelvyn Williams through on goal, but he could only stab his shot past the post as Meridian goalkeeper Isaac Ige came rushing out.

Tyrus Gordon struck a right-footed half-volley into Ige’s hands after he latched onto Micky Smith’s threaded pass.

Visiting keeper Sennington made a comfortable diving save to his left after Ugol Nwachukwu drilled a right-footed free-kick from just outside the corner of the penalty area.

But Charlton Athletic opened the scoring three minutes before the break, through a mistake from Ige from a set-piece.

The Meridian keeper called for the ball but he flapped at Smith’s corner and Tristan Gordon nodded in via the post from two-yards, from within a crowd of players, at the far post.

Charlton Athletic almost doubled their lead on the stroke of half-time as Tyrus Gordon side-footed a cut-back from substitute Anthony Louch against the foot of the near post with Ige rooted to the spot.

Charlton Athletic made five changes at the break, Meridian three, but with the home side making a further fourteen changes during the second half, a lot of their football was off-the-cuff and chances for either side were at a premium.

Ige made amends for his earlier poor judgement as he saved Nathan Lindo’s left-footed free-kick from 30-yards at the second attempt, but Meridian’s best chance to level arrived just before the hour mark.

Charlton Athletic substitute goalkeeper Dennis Aware came rushing out of his penalty area and lashed out at McTigue, which earned him a deserved booking, and he was relieved to see Otto’s resulting free-kick from 30-yards curl just over.

However, the game finally exploded into life during the final fifteen minutes as players wilted in the south London heat.

Visiting keeper Aware made a brave save at Otto’s feet and made a more comfortable save from striker McTique’s low angled drive moments later.

But two goals in the space of three minutes put Charlton Athletic in the driving seat, thanks to two excellent passes from the impressive Lindo.

Lindo’s excellent ball over the top of the Meridian defence had left-back Tamna lagging behind and substitute striker Albert Aliev applied a quality finish, sweeping a right-footed volley past the stranded Ige to find the far corner.

Charlton Athletic made the score 3-0 in the 85^th minute when substitute Tom French brought Lindo’s cross from the left under control with his chest before slamming his shot underneath the exposed Meridian keeper.

Meridian scored a consolation goal just two minutes later as Otto whipped in an excellent cross from the right and the unmarked Boris Mayala swept home a right-footed shot at the far post.

Yanpur was clearly disappointed with his side’s defending against their local rivals.

He said: “They had three chances and they scored.  We need to sort the last finishing touches.  We are definitely looking for a striker to put into the team.  We just need a striker to complete our team.  Overall, I’m very happy to watch my team’s second half performance.”

Meridian will not be challenging for the Kent Invicta League title – their players need to increase their fitness levels in time of the opening day of the season in three weeks’ time – but Yanpur insists his side will not be Kent Invicta League whipping boys.

“Struggling? I don’t think so,” he said.  “We will be ready for definite!

“They (our rivals) will be surprised when they see our team. 

“We’ve kept six players from last season (Illinge, Jalloh, Kyle Burt, Leyton Thompson and Tamna)  - and we’re going to finish in the top five!  We’re definitely confident!

“It will be very surprising every time we play.  They will be very surprised!

“My players are ready for this kind of competition.  Mentally I’m trying to make them ready but they will be ready and Ashford United will be surprised when they see the way we play.  At the moment it looks like their favourites but sometimes you don’t know what will happen.

“What I’m bringing here is a high level of football.  We need to have some lessons and hopefully they’ll get some lessons on Monday when we will sit down and do that.”

Charlton Athletic (Community) manager, Darren Phillips, who also ran the line for 90 minutes, was pleased that his side won their third warm-up game, having beaten a young Welling United team 8-3, followed by a single-goal defeat to minnows Frenford.

“I was happy with the overall performance,” he said.  “I got to see some new lads in the second half, 45 minutes pretty much for everybody so it was a good turn-out, especially against a team in the league above, but I’m happy with the 3-1.

“It’s only our third pre-season game, we’ve done a lot of fitness work this year.  That was a priority to make sure we keep going for the 90 (minutes).  It’s definitely pleasing that we’ve gone to the end there, shame we let in that last one right at the death, but 3-1, I’m quite happy. I’ll take that.”

He added: “I think we deserved it, probably, maybe a few more goals would’ve been nice as well.”

When asked about his opponents making a whopping 23 substitutions, Phillips replied, “I don’t think they’ve got a settled team.  I think they’ve got a whole new team from last year.  They’ve made the jump (up three divisions).  They’ve had four of our old boys play today (Jubril Okunnu, Spencer Illinge, Ali Musa and Jordan Mctique) as they weren’t getting regular games for us.  I think it will be hard for them to make an impact in the league above.”

Phillips was quick to praise Lindo, saying, “He’s one of our danger players, he chips in with a few goals and lots of assists.”

Charlton Athletic (Community) finished in eighth place in the Kent County League last season, and Phillips wants to clinch promotion into the Kent Invicta League.

“I think we’ll get by and be quite successful in the Kent (County) Premier to it might take a year for us to get there,” he said.

“We would obviously have liked to be in it at the start but we’ll keep going and hopefully be there for next season.”

Meridian: Isaac Ige, Conor Brown, Gurdy Tamna, Jubril Okunnu, Gassimo Jalloh, Ali Musa, Mohamed Azar Miah, Spencer Illinge, Jordan McTigue, Julian Fiano, Alex Waslova.
Subs (all used): Yovomo Otto, Daniel Auanzi, Leyton Thompson, Ugol Nwachukwu, Kyle Burt, Boris Mayala.

Goal: Boris Mayala 87

Charlton Athletic (Community): Billy Sennington (Dennis Aware 46), Mike Payne (Corey White 46), Charlie Nisbet, Tony Green (Nathan Lindo 46), Micky Smith (Tom French 58), Lee Roots (Jay Martin 69), Daniel Huckwick (Anthony Louch 34), Tristan Gordon (Liam Palmer 66), Steve Deveraux (Liam Williams 46), Kelvyn Williams (Albert Aliev 46), Tyrus Gordon (John Ekelns 46).

Goals: Tristan Gordon 42, Albert Aliev 82, Tom French 85

Booked: Dennis Aware 57

Attendance: 20
Referee: Mr Robert Day (Charlton, London SE7)