Stansfeld 5-0 Glebe - You're always under pressure when you have results like tonight - I do believe you need time and whether I get that or not, that's not down to me, is it, says Glebe boss Luke Rooney

Stansfeld 5 – 0 Glebe
Location	Foxbury Avenue, off Perry Street, Chislehurst, Kent BR7 6SD
Kickoff	04/11/2022 19:45

STANSFELD  5-0  GLEBE
Southern Counties East Football League Premier Division
Friday 4 November 2022
Stephen McCartney reports from Foxbury Avenue

GLEBE manager Luke Rooney says he is under pressure and wants time after suffering a five-goal thrashing against their tenants Stansfeld in his 20^th game in charge of the Chislehurst-based club.

The Foxes remain in 12^th place in the Southern Counties East Football League Premier Division table with 18 points from 15 games, while Stansfeld’s maiden campaign in the ninth-tier of English football is going better than expected as they remain in second-place with 30 points from 16 games.

Stansfeld have closed the gap on leaders Erith & Belvedere to four points but they have played three more games than Tony Beckingham’s table-toppers and played the most games in the entire division.

It took only 97 seconds for Stansfeld to open the floodgates when left-wing-back Joe Borland capitalised on a mistake from goalkeeper Tommy Crump to score from a tight angle.

Two goals from central midfielder Dan Parkinson – taking his tally up to five goals for the season – put the tenants in the driving seat going into the break.

Stansfeld scored two goals inside the final nine minutes through outstanding centre-half Billy Parkinson and substitute striker Ollie Milton notched his fourth goal of the season to leave the landlords 12 points adrift of their tenants and their manager Luke Rooney feeling under pressure.

A delighted Stansfeld joint-manager Jamie Phipps said: “I thought overall we deserved it.  First half was fairly even, I thought, they probably bossed the first 20 minutes.

“A bad mistake by their new centre-half and keeper got a little bit muddled up. Joe Borland just got a block in and slotted it into an empty net so to score after just a couple of minutes, we knew that was the last thing they wanted.

“I know they beat Canterbury 8-1 but confidence probably still isn’t great here, so we knew if you can get at them early, then we knew we had a chance.”

Reflecting on completing the double over Glebe, Phipps replied: “It’s very, very rewarding but I think it sums up our club. I just think it speaks volumes about our club and what we are and how we do things as a group.

“I keep saying it, we’re a little club with no budget and we will bloody some noses this season and I think we’ve done that already.  We have 30 points already, nine wins out of 16 games.  I think it just speaks volumes about the group of players that we’ve got and the committee as well.

“We knew they’re a good side and have got very good players but they’ve just haven’t gelled as a team this season, so far and that’s the one thing that we’ve got. 

“I would say probably 10-12 of the boys that we had last season (when we won the First Division title) so we’ve got that continuity and winning becomes a habit, the same way as losing does and we’ve taken last season’s form into this season and we’ve done really well.”

Glebe boss Rooney, who has family ties with Stansfeld and played for the amateur club in the past, said: “It’s quite tough to sum that up actually because it was the second time we played them. We got beat 3-1 in the first game and 5-0 tonight.

“I think the first game we got beaten up and we totally deserved to get beat and listen, we deserved to get beat tonight.  You can’t lose 5-0 and not deserve to lose.

“I thought it was a strange old game because I thought we created some really, really good chances and we played some really, really good football in the first half particularly but you can’t look at the game without the goals because the goals make and decide the game.

“For instance if you watch the game back and you get a real good editor to cut the goals out you probably look at it and go ‘we played quite well and we worked quite hard’.

“It was weird and it was the first time I kind of lost my rag (at half-time) because no matter how good a team you want to be in terms of the way you want to play your philosophy, if you give your goal away in the first 97 seconds or the last three seconds of the first half, I’m aware we gave one away in between, if you do that you’re never, ever going to win football matches.  In fact, you’re going to lose football matches and that’s exactly what happened.

“In terms of summing it up, I just say it’s a real strange one because we’ve lost 5-0. I can’t really have that much of a hump on that performance, which sounds crazy because you’ve lost 5-0 but it was a real freak of a game, I felt.

“Listen, credit to them. They’re the best at what they do and that’s why they are where they are in the division. They’re a class outfit. They are so good at what they do.  There can’t be many teams in the country better than what they do.”

Glebe started the game on the front foot, forcing an early corner, but Stansfeld went up the other end and scored from their first attack.

Rooney handed debuts to centre-halves Daniel Vaughan and Reece Barrett and Vaughan had a nightmare game against a lively, pressing Stansfeld attack.

Rooney added: “We’ve decided to bring in a couple of men in Reece and Dan and I think they’ll end up being really, really good signings for us but we’ve had to put them into the firing line tonight against the team that get after you the most.  If we move forward then I think they’ll end up really, good signings.”

Vaughan’s back-pass wasn’t dealt with by goalkeeper Tommy Crump and a pressing Borland stole the ball and cut along the by-line before slotting his shot into the far corner of an empty net from a tight angle.

“They kick-off and go down towards our goal, get a corner, we clear it, they get another cross into the box, so we’ve defended it well and they never looked like score,” said Phipps.

“We just went down the other end and we knew we could press. It worked for us the first time we played them.  I know they’ve got different players, so we just said to the boys ‘go and press’.  We started off with a back three and two wing-backs and our intention was to press, so we pressed the goalkeeper and we got our rewards.”

Rooney said: “We had an action to attack their goal before that.  The goal is atrocious.  I’ve just spoken to Tommy in there.  I don’t think you can blame Dan. Dan has just come in. He set Tommy on his weaker foot.  I don’t think there was anything wrong with the back pass. I think it’s come on Tommy’s wrong foot.

“It’s two minutes into the game, he’s just got to boot it out for a throw or even a corner.  You’ve given them a goal head start and I always felt tonight the first goal would be really important and obviously it proved that way.

“That was a poor one, without watching it back, that one was on the keeper, not so much Dan Vaughan, because he’s just got to boot it.”

Glebe were producing some good patterns of play on the deck and talisman striker Jamie Philpot should have notched his 16^th goal of the season inside eight minutes.

Barrett started the move and Marcel McDonald and Ross Craig linked up well inside the Stansfeld half to play Philpot in but his right-footed dink went past the far post when he only had goalkeeper Charlie Cottrell to beat.

Rooney said: “That was a fantastic move. I’d like to watch that one back again, it was superb.  Passing from back-to-front, passing through the thirds and that is what we want to do.

“Listen, you back Jamie all day long, one-on-one. He tried to lift it over him, maybe on a night where the surface is quite slick, maybe just tried to punch it or do something a little bit different but listen Jamie’s been fantastic so I can’t blame him for missing chances, that’s what forwards as there for, to miss and take chances.”

Phipps added: “When you see who it is in front of goal in a one—on-one, you’re fearing the worse because Jamie’s a top goalscorer and he won’t often miss.  That’s his bread and butter but it could be a confidence thing with Jamie and the way the team are playing for Glebe.  You always fearing that he’s going to score.”

Greg Summersby - who plays on the left of a three man central defence – played the ball out to Borland, who cut onto his right-foot and floated a cross into the Glebe penalty area for central midfielder Macey Malyon to rise and send his looping header over the crossbar.

Glebe were playing on the front foot and Philpot dropped deep to receive a pass from holding midfielder Reece Gillies before losing the ball and Borland’s direct pass released striker Lee Friend, who cut onto his right-foot before drilling a 30-yard drive which bounced once before flashing past the post.

Glebe defender Teddy Green hit a long ball up to Philpot, who cut past his man on the edge of the Stansfeld penalty area but his chip was comfortably clawed out by Cottrell.

Stansfeld squandered an excellent chance to double their lead in the 24^th minute on the counter-attack.

Glebe gave the ball away close to the half-way line and Dan Parkinson’s through ball along the deck released Friend down the left and he easily got past Vaughan to cut the ball back for Tommy Whitnell, who skied his first-time left-footed drive over the crossbar from eight-yards.

Phipps said: “It was a really good move.  Tommy and Lee have been doing fantastically well together in the last few games, which has meant Ollie Milton’s stayed out of the team.  Ollie was great for us early season but he started to look a little tired.  We signed Lee Friend back at a good time and Lee and Tommy looked really good together.”

Philpot often dropped deep to collect passes inside the Stansfeld half and his reverse pass released right-wing-back Harry Gamble, and he put over a deep cross towards holding midfielder Tom Hever, who stroked his left-footed drive across the keeper and past the far post.

Stansfeld doubled their lead, however, with 27 minutes and 24 seconds on the clock, following a well-worked counter-attacking move.

Sam Smith hit the ball up towards Whitnell, who cushioned a five-yard hooked pass inside to Friend, who released Dan Parkinson down the left.  He easily cut inside Vaughan, who failed to press him and Dan Parkinson placed his right-footed shot into the bottom far corner of the goal from 16-yards.

“All night their centre-halves were backing off us and they let us run at them and they did it again for the goal,” said Phipps.

“You can’t give players like Dan a yard in the box because he will pick his spot and he will score.

“I think the centre-halves should’ve been a little bit closer to block the shot but Dan’s worked his way inside and picked the bottom corner. It was a good finish, a really good finish.”

Rooney added: “I felt that goal looked too easy. It was up to the front man, a nice cushion off from Tommy, who has been a good player at non-league level, higher than this level.

“Dan cuts in and it’s quite a good finish.  I felt we done ok there because we’ve sort of shown him back inside, sort of what we want to do, show him away from goal and he gets too close to goal and it’s a good finish.

“Up until that goal, if you cut their goal out, I thought we had a really good 28 minutes. They’ve done us semi on the break.”

Glebe gave the ball away inside their half again but this time they were left off the hook when Malyon placed his shot past the foot of the right-hand post when he only had Crump to beat.

“It should’ve been a goal all day long,” admitted Phipps.

“Don’t get me wrong, they had some great chances as well but then you start to think 2-0 is always an iffy score and when that doesn’t go in you think are they going to come back to rue it? Fortunately, they never.”

Assistant referee Jason Elliott kept his flag down after Vaughan’s long ball over the top released Gamble but his right-footed chip from 16-yards went over the crossbar and not into the top right-hand corner, before Stansfeld killed the game off 74 seconds into stoppage time.

Rooney said: “Listen, another good chance.  We created a lot of good chances.  We’ll play good football. I think it’s the first time we haven’t scored this year, which is ironic, bar Lordswood and last Saturday (8-1 win over Canterbury City), it’s probably the most chances we’ve created in a game.”

Phipps added: “I spoke to the linesman at half-time. It looked offside but the linesman said, ‘he wasn’t’, so you’ve got to go with what the officials say but he normally scores.  Fortunately for us he skied it, which personally for me I was delighted with - he goes out with my daughter.”

Friend played a one-two with Malyon inside the Glebe half before playing the ball out right-wing-back Sam Smith.

Smith floated in a cross towards the near post where Dan Parkinson’s glancing free header from 15-yards went across the keeper and nestled into the bottom far corner, leaving the landlords with a mountain to climb going into the break.

Phipps said: “They built us a bit of pressure on us, 90 seconds before the goal and we said ‘we need to get in at 2-0’, and we looked dangerous all night going forward on the break and to get the goal with the way we did with the last kick and it’s 3-0 at half-time.

“We always defend well. We set our teams to be hard to beat and we don’t let in too many goals, so at 3-0 we always fancy that we can see the game out but to score when we did might’ve just knocked the stuffing out of them walking into half-time.”

Rooney added: “I’m not doing them a dis-service by saying they are the best at what they do.  You know my connections with the club to a certain point, it’s my club in terms of it’s my family’s club.

“That goal was a really good goal, a really good move. It looked like everyone can call them direct, because they are and they do play some good football in your half and that was good football.

“It probably looked too easy on a naked eye. I don’t necessarily know why that happened. It’s a kick in the teeth because there’s a difference between two-nil and three-nil at half-time, especially against a team so organised as them.”

Both managers were asked their thoughts during the half-time interval.

Phipps said: “The game wasn’t won! It’s easy to go in at 3-0 and think the game’s won and you come out and you drop your tempo and become a little bit complacent and you take too many touches on the ball and they nick a goal and doubts start creeping in.

“We just said you can’t afford to do that.  They’re too good a side to take it lightly and believe the game was won at half-time.

“The boys did the same thing. Their focus was fantastic. We’re not a group that will take things lightly.  We know we’re punching above our weight and I think we came out in the second half and played with the same tempo and desire as we did in the first half.”

Rooney said: “I actually, I didn’t have much more to give because I feel like it’s been real tough this season because when we haven’t played well, we’ve been punished and when we’ve played well, we’ve not taken advantage of it.

“It sounds ridiculous to say take the goals out of the game but if you do take the three goals out of the half, I thought we were excellent.  Don’t get me wrong, they had chances as well but I flet we were really in control of the game but unfortunately they took their three chances. We’ve given them one but they’ve scored their two that they’ve created.”

Glebe were now kicking down the slope during the second half and bossed the possession and the chances but they found the likes of Billy Parkinson and Ezekiel Miller in resilient form.

They were denied a consolation goal on the hour-mark when Barrett’s hit a long ball straight down the middle of the pitch and Philpot’s flick sent Dyer on his way down the left.  He twisted and turned inside the box and his left-footed drive was beaten away by Cottrell, who then used his fingertips to ensure McDonald’s follow-up shot kissed the top of the crossbar and dropped behind for a corner.

Rooney said: “That was a good action. It almost looked like it went in. We were claiming it went in. I don’t think it did actually but that was a good action.

“This is my first job in management but I’ve always said I hate those managers who blame their luck is against us, but it just feels like there is a bit of a jinx on it. It just doesn’t seem to bounce our way.  That could so easily have been a goal and then you’re back in the game.”

Phipps added: “Charlie made some good saves and some good saves at crucial times.

“You were at the Tunbridge Wells game and he was fuming after the game with the goal that he let in.  Charlie will always win us more points than he costs us. 

“We knew if we could keep them out in the first 15 minutes, we separate the game down in 15 minute sections and we got through the first 15 pretty much unscathed.”

Green hit a long diagonal pass which Philpot flicked on and Craig’s shot from a tight angle trickled along the goal-line.

Dominant Glebe kept knocking on the door and Philpot was released down the right wing before putting in a cross for substitute striker Riley Asaam, who had his back to goal before hitting a shot towards the bottom right-hand corner, only for Cottrell to make another vital block beside his post.

“That’s the desire to defend and keep clean sheets.  We pride ourselves in trying to keep clean-sheets because then you don’t have to score five goals to win a game, you only have to score one or two.  The boys from the first whistle to the last whistle were fantastic,” added Phipps.

Gamble played a one-two with Philpot and his cross-shot from the right clipped the underside of the crossbar before Stansfeld cleared their lines with 16 minutes remaining.

“It wasn’t to be. It seemed to be one of those nights when the ball wasn’t going in the back of the net for us,” admitted Rooney.

Phipps added: “When that didn’t go in and it went out to safety and they probably knew the same thing, it wasn’t going to be their night and they probably knew at that stage they weren’t going to score.

“They were a little bit unfortunate in a couple of key moments but sometimes they go for you, sometimes they don’t.”

Stansfeld weathered the storm, however, and finished the game in a strong manner and created their first chance of the second half on the counter-attack in the 78^th minute.

Whitnell’s through ball released Dan Parkinson, who cracked a right-footed drive towards goal from 30-yards. The ball bounced right in front of the off-balanced goalkeeper, who used his chest to make the block and Malyon got in front of his man and his half-volley was hit straight at Crump.

“When Dan hits them, they stay hit and he has that knack of doing it so it bounces just in front of the keeper.  The keeper did alright, he got his body in the way. It was another good chance when we could’ve absolutely killed the game off,” added Phipps.

Rooney added: “Tommy’s got to deal better with the first one. Dan Parkinson’s gone for a looping shot but Crump’s got to deal better with it and the second one is probably a good save but it shouldn’t have come.  It’s shooting practice for Crumpy but unfortunately he’s made a meal out of it and they’ve had another chance.”

Stansfeld got a slice of luck with their fourth goal of the night when it arrived with 35 minutes and 22 seconds on the clock.

Borland’s free-kick from the left was cleared and substitute central midfielder Aidan Hayes played the ball back to Borland who had a second bite of the cherry to put over a cross.

Malyon poked his shot towards the bottom near corner, only for the ball to be blocked by Crump, who stepped to his right, and Billy Parkinson’s driven low shot deflected off the hapless Vaughan, trickling into the bottom far corner.

Phipps said: “It was on target.  Dan Parkinson was fuming because he was standing over the ball for the free-kick and we took him off. He was on a hat-trick and he would’ve tried a shot then.

“We just kept the pressure on in the box.  I think someone recycled it back to Joe and Joe’s delivery and his set-pieces and from open play is fantastic and he strikes the ball as good as anyone.  We were a bit fortunate with the deflection but sometimes they go for you and other nights they don’t.”

Rooney said: “When we have efforts like that, it seems not to bounce our way but out of all the goals it was a bit of fortune there.  It wasn’t a great shot, it gets blocked and finds its way in the bottom corner.”

Stansfeld’s fifth goal swiftly followed (38:03) when holding midfielder Ross Morley’s through ball released Milton through on goal and he clinically found the bottom far corner with an angled drive that gave Crump no chance to save.

It was a gentle reminder from Milton to Billy Hamlin and Phipps that he should be given a place in the starting line-up.

Phipps replied: “Ollie came on and scored the winner at Tunbridge Wells, set up the winner at Deal and still didn’t get a place in the starting line-up tonight because the front two (Friend and Whitnell) have done so well.

“The boys are delighted for Ollie because he’s so honest and he works so hard.  The finish was fantastic. The keeper didn’t even move, he just stood there.”

Rooney added: “We were quite surprised that Ollie didn’t play tonight, purely because he caused us absolute havoc in the first game. He’s a fantastic little player, Ollie.

“Stansfeld have got quality players as well. You look at Ross’s pass for that goal and Ollie’s movement and the finish, that’s a proper goal.  We were throwing a bit of caution to the wind there and 5-0 looks a lot worse than three.”

Rooney added: “I hope people watched the game and don’t just look at the result.  It’s a tough one for us to take particularly me and Joe Minter, obviously being Stansfeld boys.  Both games have been played in good jest.

“You look at it and hope people don’t think that was a battering because the score line is a battering but I felt we played some really good football tonight and that’s going to be hard to describe to people that weren’t here but I hope the ones who were here did see that.”

Both sides are in FA Vase Second Round action on Saturday 12 November, with Stansfeld travelling to East Sussex to play Crowborough Athletic, while Glebe host lower-division side Sporting Bengal United here at Foxbury Avenue, in desperate need to bounce back from tonight.
 
Phipps refused to admit that his side are serious title challengers in their maiden campaign at this level.

“I’ve said to you lots of times, we never go round at the start of the season saying we’re going to do this, we’re going to do that, we’re going to finish here, we’re going to finish there,” said Phipps.

“Our aim, as always, boring statement, is make sure we stay in the division.

“We won’t get above our station. We won’t tell everyone we’re going to do this and that, we’ll go onto the next game which I believe the next league game is Hollands & Blair away (on 19 November).”

When asked what success for his club is and whether he believes other sides underestimate them, Phipps replied: “Staying in the division, simple as that. That’s our aim, to make sure that we stay in the division and it’s still our aim.

“There’s a lot of good sides in this league.  I don’t think they can afford to (underestimate us).  We’re not a secretive club. We’re quite honest and open and what you see is what you get with us.  You can’t beat honesty and hard work and togetherness and that’s what we’ve got.

“We’ve been doing well for two, three or four seasons so it’s not a flash in the pan. People underestimate us at their peril now, don’t they?”

Rooney knows Glebe’s current position and tonight’s outcome is nowhere near good enough.

“No excuses, it’s completely and utterly not good enough for sure,” insisted the 31-year-old.

“People had us down as favourites, which was quite baffling. I don’t know if it was a compliment to myself and Joe Minter and the players we brought in.

“We’re underachieving, I absolutely know that.  I absolutely know for sure that for me it’s not good enough, simple as that.  It’s not good enough, the league position, we’ve played 15 games now, it’s simply not good enough. The points total is not good enough!

“It seems like everything that’s gone wrong has gone wrong. I mentioned it to the boys before the game, we just don’t seem to manage moments well enough in games. We let goals in and we let moments affect us too much.

“We’ve not been good enough at times for sure and we’ve given up bad goals at bad times and we have been punished but then at the same time we have been unfortunate.  That’s not me playing the violin.  You probably make your own luck but it does feel like if it can go wrong for us, it has gone wrong.

“I can’t defend the points total, it’s nowhere near good enough!”

Rooney was honest enough to admit he is under pressure

“Under pressure? I would say, for sure.  You’re always under pressure when you have results like tonight.

“Rocky (McMillan, chairman) is a winner, as am I.  I didn’t play to the level I did and achieve the things I did in the game without being a winner.

“I didn’t choose to play the style of football that I have done and stick to it because I want to look pretty and go ‘they’re going to be a good team, if he gets time’.

“I understand it’s also you have to have the results alongside it. Unfortunately, we haven’t had them. Am I under pressure? Yes, I would say for sure because every manager is under pressure aren’t they, no matter what, everyone is under pressure.

“I think the little advantage I do have is Rocky offered me the job in the summer. I didn’t apply for the job.  I’m a young manager. I got offered the job because I think he saw something in me and he said he wanted a change of culture and he was fed up being a cash machine.

“I’m not going into specifics on budgets and stuff but my budget this season is nowhere near what Harry Hudson had last year and Harry came really close (finishing third behind promoted pair Sheppey United and Chatham Town).”

Rooney, meanwhile, wants time to turn things around.

“Ultimately it’s down to him (the chairman).  I do believe you need time and whether I get that or not, that’s not down to me is it?”

Stansfeld: Charlie Cottrell, Sam Smith, Joe Borland (Frankie Beale 84), Billy Parkinson, Greg Summersby (Aidan Hayes 58), Ezekiel Miller, Dan Parkinson (Harry Day 80), Ross Morley, Lee Friend (Ollie Milton 63), Tommy Whitnell, Macey Malyon (Ryan Fowler 83).

Goals: Joe Borland 2, Dan Parkinson 28, 45, Billy Parkinson 81, Ollie Milton 84

Booked: Greg Summersby 37

Glebe: Tommy Crump, Tom Hever, James Dyer, Reece Barrett, Daniel Vaughan, Teddy Green (Ryan Singh Gill 75), Ross Craig, Reece Gillies (Freddie Cray 54), Jamie Philpot, Marcel McDonald (Riley Asaam 64), Harry Gamble.
Subs: Jargal Enkh, Sammi Takalobighashi

Booked: Daniel Vaughan 23

Attendance: 180
Referee: Mr Samuel Hall
Assistants: Mr Jason Elliott & Ms Esther Perry