Sporting Bengal 0-1 VCD Athletic - We turned up with the wrong mentality, admits Ricky Bennett

Wednesday 16th February 2011

SPORTING BENGAL UNITED 0-1 VCD ATHLETIC
Safety Net Associates Kent League
Wednesday 16th February 2011
Stephen McCartney reports from Mile End Stadium

VCD ATHLETIC manager Ricky Bennett says his players had the wrong attitude during their poor performance at basement side Sporting Bengal United tonight.

There was a huge sigh of relief amongst the travelling contingent when 22-year-old right-sided midfielder Daryl Wheeler scored the only goal of the game in the second half.

The Crayford based side leapfrogged over Greenwich Borough - the side that were beaten 3-0 at Oakwood at the weekend - into fourth place in the Kent League table, five points behind leaders Erith Town, but with three games in hand.

Sporting Bengal went into this game on the back of an 8-0 thrashing at Hythe Town, but a much changed line-up frustrated their opponents’ until Wheeler’s fourth goal of the season - and second in a week - arrived in the 68th minute of a game that lacked quality.

The east Londoners have now lost their last six league games and remain rooted five points adrift of Holmesdale at the foot of the table with only 10 points from 20 games, leaking 72 goals in the process.

And with Step 6 expected to re-shape the game in Kent, maybe it’s time that The Football Association switch The Tigers over to the Essex League, where they will be more competitive, and let’s face it, who actually enjoys going over to Mile End from Kent?

Vickers boss Bennett was forced into making one change from Saturday, Mark Allen came in for flu victim Jimmy Rogers.

But on tonight’s showing, Vickers weren’t as lively as they were against Greenwich Borough as many passes were misplaced and their front two of Daniel Westerman and Jamie Wood were left isolated as the Tiger’s skipper, Arron Hutchings, had them in his pocket with a solid central defensive display, and numberless Javier Riveria pulled the strings in midfield.

But Bennett said afterwards: “At the end of the day, it’s three points! I don’t care how you get them sometimes!

“Obviously, we’d like to come here and play nice football, win convincingly, but as teams have found out over recent weeks it’s not always the way with Sporting Bengal and they made it hard for us again, but we could’ve played a lot better, but like you say, a win’s a win, three points!”

Riveria tried his luck from distance but his right-footed drive from 35-yards bounced harmlessly past Jack Bradshaw’s near post - the VCD keeper was to have one of his quieter games as the Londoners weren’t a threat with just Shiblu Miah playing as a lone striker.

Vickers’ only real chance of the first half arrived as early as the ninth minute when Karl Dent swept in a corner from the left towards the far post where left-back James Brown headed down and into Camillo Montano’s arms at the near post.

A slick passing move from the home side resulted in being awarded a free-kick 30-yards from goal, but Riveria curled his effort over with his right-foot.

The plucky hosts played some good stuff leading up to another half chance when Miah played the ball inside to Riveria, but his low angled drive bounced off the unmarked Luse Adjei inside the box and the ball rolled wide.

VCD Athletic’s best chance of the game finally arrived in the 59th minute when striker Jamie Wood cracked a left-footed half-volley from 35-yards, which forced Montano into diving to his right to turn the ball around his post.

Midfielder Dent was booked for persistent fouling just past the hour mark and Massir Rashid cracked a right-footed free-kick from 30-yards, which whistled past the top of the far post.

Bennett brought on Lewis Wood and re-jigged his formation from 4-4-2 to 3-5-2 to try to lift his off-colour troops, and although Sporting Bengal lacked quality up front, they didn’t really look like scoring past Bradshaw.

Sporting Bengal’s Ahbab Hussain and Rashid combined well together down the right and the low centre bounced off defender Casey Scotter and the ball only just missed the foot of the near post.

And at the other end, Daniel Westerman’s right-footed drive brought a low save from the Sporting Bengal keeper before VCD Athletic grabbed the points through Wheeler’s fine finish.

The midfielder saw the goalkeeper had left a gaping big hole at his near post and Wheeler unleashed a drilled left-footed drive on the angle from 30-yards, which he bent into the near corner, leaving a stunned Montano rooted to the spot.

Reflecting on his side’s one piece of inspiration, Bennett said: “I’ve just said as I’ve come in, whether he meant it or not? But he’s got ability and he’s got lovely feet and I think he’s meant it to be honest. It’s deceived the goalkeeper a bit but to be honest I wouldn’t have cared if it came of someone’s knee, shin, toe, whatever tonight, just to get the three points.”

But Montano wasn’t going to be beaten again as he blocked a smashed effort from Westerman from close range after Jamie Wood chipped the ball into the penalty area.

Lewis Wood and Brown were off target late on, but Vickers scraped through and that’s all that matters at soul-less, inhospitable athletic grounds like this.

When asked why his side played so poorly, Bennett replied, “It’s a mindset thing. You know you’re coming here and sometimes you turn up with the wrong attitude, the wrong mentality and it affects your game and that must’ve been the case because you go back to Saturday and it’s two different performances from the same team bar one player so disappointing.

“But at the end of the day, come the end of the season rather, you could look back on that and say ‘what a great win!”

No-one ever knows what to expect from Sporting Bengal. With such a strong side playing tonight, what’s the betting that Lordswood chalk up a cricket score when the two sides meet here on Saturday?

“I really couldn’t tell you what I was expecting tonight, I really couldn’t!” admitted Bennett.

“It’s just off the cuff, so off the cuff. I don’t know but that’s a bit rude I suppose. They always work hard whether they’re getting beat, they’ve got one or two decent players. Maybe if they could get a few more experienced heads around them they’ll be a half decent side but U understand the difficulties they have in getting players.

“I’ve heard that midweek games they can pick up some better players than they can on Saturday’s. I don’t know why that is?”

But with the likes of Herne Bay, Hythe Town and VCD Athletic now in the top four, the Kent League title race will go right down to the wire.

Bennett said: “If you would’ve said to me when I first took it one we’d be fourth at this stage of the season, I would’ve bit your hand off.

“But we’re there because we deserve to be there. I think we’ve played, overall, over the whole season so far, we’ve played decent football. We’ve lost only two league games (out of 16), drawn maybe a couple we should’ve won so yes I’m well pleased where we are in the league.”

Hythe piled on the pressure on VCD Athletic tonight by scoring eight on Saturday.

Bennett said: “I’ve been here myself with other teams and it’s been very difficult, when you’re supposed to win convincingly and you just about scrape a win.

“I’ve won things with other teams and you’ve had exactly the same sort of evening as tonight and maybe that’s an omen.”

Sporting Bengal United: Camillo Montano, Dave Taylor, Jamie Myers (Nana Adjei 80), Abdul Bari, Arron Hutchings, Luse Adjei, Ahbab Hussain (Ashraf Ameer 90), Massir Rashid, Shiblu Miah, Javier Riveria, Vassyl Sepyisyku (Zaman Liton 74).

Subs: Amando Hall, John Donougie

Booked: Arron Hutchings 90, Ahbab Hussain 90

VCD Athletic: Jack Bradshaw, George Mitchell, James Brown, Gary Cook, Casey Scotter, Mark Allen, Daryl Wheeler, Karl Dent (Lewis Wood 63), Daniel Westerman (Tom Gamblin 76), Jamie Wood, Greg Benbow.

Subs: James Duckworth, Danny White, Billy Bennett.

Goal: Daryl Wheeler 68

Booked: Karl Dent 61, James Brown 90

Attendance: 58

Referee: Mr Christopher Myatt (Dartford)

Assistants: Mr George Hanson (Eltham, London SE9) & Mr Martin Cook (Sidcup)