Welling United 3-1 Bromley - Warren McBean is staying at Bromley, says Barry Moore

Wednesday 02nd March 2011

WELLING UNITED 3-1 BROMLEY
Blue Square Bet South
Wednesday 2nd March 2011
Stephen McCartney reports from Park View Road

CLINICAL Welling United powered their way to a Kent derby victory over a Bromley side that have now gone four games without a win and are dropping out of play-off contention following a whirlwind start to the season.

The Lillywhites - under former manager Mark Goldberg - won their first seven games to top the Blue Square Bet South table but since then they have won only five of their last 23 games and have slipped down the table to ninth place - now eight points adrift of fifth-placed Welling.

After the two sides played out a hard-fought first half, Welling United seized the initiative by scoring three goals within a devastating seventeen minute period as Lee Clarke, Loui Fazakerley and Andy Pugh all scored, but Bromley rallied and pulled a goal back through Harry Harding’s penalty with fifteen minutes remaining.

“Disappointing fifteen minutes really,” said Bromley’s assistant manager Barry Moore as he emerged from the tiny dressing room afterwards.

“I thought the first half was pretty even. We got in to some good positions to score, good defending from Welling, then we came out second half thinking we’d progress a little bit more from what we gained in the first half (and) we’ll be alright.

“But two set pieces poorly defended and we’re chasing the game. Third goal, our centre half (Jerry Nnamani) banged his head against the wall so he was out of position and it ended up going in to the edge of the box - to be fair it was a great finish by Pugh - but one of our centre halves was out of position so we got punished for that.

“First half we done well. We created chances so we always felt we could score.”

Welling United manager Jamie Day - who didn’t feel the need to come off the bench - said: “I felt second half we was comfortable. I thought we played quite well. We deserved the three points from the previous (abandoned) game and it’s obviously nice to win tonight and put a bit of pressure on the teams around us in the table.”

Welling were very dangerous with set-pieces, and they almost broke the stalemate in the 13th minute.

Jack Obersteller swung in a corner with his left-foot from the right flank and this was met by Pugh’s hooked shot at the near post which flew across goal and Harding was on hand to hack the ball off the line beside the post.

Bromley’s first chance arrived thirteen minutes later when Tony Finn’s corner from the right was met by off-form striker Warren McBean, who planted a header over the crossbar from six-yards.

Bromley striker Charlie Ide then missed a couple of half-chances.

A corner from Finn was cut back to Wes Daly, who played the ball back to Finn, who crossed from the left and found Ide lurking at the far post, but his shot on the turn was hooked wide.

Ide was then played in behind the Welling defence by Finn’s perfectly weighted through ball and after nipping in front of onrushing goalkeeper John Whitehouse, Ide dragged his shot agonisingly wide of the far post.

Welling’s front two of Pugh and Cumbers were both off target as they tried their luck from the edge of the Bromley penalty area just before half-time.

Reflecting on the first half, Day said: “I think both teams were probably just eyeing each other out. We went out in the first half just to stand off them and see what they could do and second half we got after them and I think that paid off. The first half was not dull but I think we were just sizing each other out and then second half we stepped up a gear.”

But the Wings broke the deadlock just 90 seconds into the second half, following some wise words from Day, Barry Ashby and Dean Frost.

“We just said we needed to be a bit more patient, a lot more quality on the ball, decision making,” said Day.

That’s exactly what the manager got as Obersteller whipped in an excellent curling free-kick from the right touch-line and Clarke guided a glancing header into the top left-hand corner of the net.

Day added: “It’s nice when you score straight after half-time because it sorts of sets the tone for the second half and that’s what we did and we carried on and we got two more.”

Bromley went route one as they went in search of an equaliser. Keeper Craig Holloway punted the ball down the middle of the pitch and a poor headed clearance by Welling central defender Andy Sambrook was latched onto by Ide, who looped a shot high above Whitehouse and the ball agonisingly dropped over the bar.

That wasted opportunity proved costly as Welling doubled their lead, through another set-piece, in the 58th minute.

Man-of-the-Match Fazakerley was 25-yards from goal and he curled a teasing free-kick towards goal with his right foot which deceived everybody (Clarke trying to replicate his goal) and the ball sailed into the far corner.

Day revealed: “We said to the boys, ‘you put it in the right areas, you’re going to get goals.”

Pugh then cracked a right-footed volley from 30-yards which brought the very best out of Holloway, who dived full-length to his left to tip the thunderbolt around his post.

But Welling United’s fans were dancing on the terraces when Pugh finished off a fine move to score his eleventh goal of the season, punishing Bromley who lost the outstanding Nnamani, who was receiving treatment after crashing into the wooden advertising hoardings.

Loick Pires drilled a cross into the penalty area from the left and Cumbers laid the ball off for Pugh, who smashed a low right-footed drive across Holloway to find the bottom corner.

“A short space of time we’ve got three goals,” added Day. “I’m glad for Pughie, it’s a little bit of weight off his shoulders. He was a little bit unlucky with the one before which the keeper pulled off a great save. It’s nice for him to score and nice for us to score three goals.”

To their credit Bromley rallied late on - Hayden Bird’s side had failed to score in six of their last eight games before tonight - and they were rewarded when referee Paul Forrester pointed to the spot after Welling substitute Liam Bellamy pulled back Harrison Dunk inside the box.

Central midfielder Harding stepped up and fired the penalty into the bottom left-hand corner with his right-foot - Whitehouse guessed the right way but the penalty was just too good to keep out.

McBean could have ended his goal famine when Finn set him up, but the striker’s shot on the turn bounced harmlessly wide, but it was Welling United who claimed the local bragging rights and maintained their play-off push.

The Wings are now five points clear of sixth-placed Woking, who have a game in hand, and are now level on points with fourth-placed Chelmsford City and four points behind second-placed Ebbsfleet United.

With his side on 54 points, with 36 points up for grabs, Day said: “We’ve set ourselves a target of points that we think will be needed,” predicted Day.

“I think the 70-73 points mark will be enough to get into the play-off’s.

“We’ve got to continue this run, pick up as many wins as possible to reach that target and hopefully that figure should be enough.”

Moore, meanwhile, admitted Bromley’s current form of five wins out of 23 isn’t good enough.

“Yes, it’s not the best form!” he said. “Obviously the first seven games set up where we are in the league. The next games from then on have been very, very inconsistent and our big problem is scoring goals. We’ve got ourselves in good positions and you can’t always blame the forwards. It’s not always them that have an opportunity to score.

“For some reason we haven’t been putting the ball in the net and we’ve been making errors at the other end and we’ve been punished quickly.”

Reflecting on tonight’s defeat, only their third on the road, Moore said: “The scoreline toady was 3-1 but if I’m honest it wasn’t a 3-1 game. Two of the goals we gave away we’re from set-pieces but we had enough chances to score two or three goals, especially in the first half.

“We didn’t get thrashed here today, we didn’t get beaten up here today. It was more of a case of we didn’t take our chances and the goals we conceded were team errors rather than individual errors.”

Moore revealed that McBean will be staying at Hayes Lane for the remainder of the season.

“Warren’s staying with us now. He will be with us until the end of the season,” said Moore.

“Like every player in the squad it depends on the club and it depends on the player what they want to do next season.

“Warren’s like any forward, it gets highlighted when you’re not scoring goals. He’s had various games in the last three or four weeks where he’s done very well outside the box and hasn’t put the ball in the net. He’s been disappointed. We’ve got faith in him. He’s not second top goalscorer two seasons running in this league and then becomes a bad player at all.

“If Bromley Football Club didn’t want him next year then there would be numerous teams that want him. We believe in Warren, hopefully he believes in us and he’ll get back on the goalscoring trail.”

Welling United: John Whitehouse, Jamie Coyle, Jack Obersteller, Andy Sambrook, Anthony Acheampong, Jack Parkinson, Loui Fazakerley (Liam Bellamy 72), Lee Clark, Luis Cumbers (Jordan Johnson 89), Andy Pugh, Loick Pires.

Subs: Graeme Andrews, Jamie Day, Leon Farell

Goals: Lee Clarke 47, Loui Fazakerley 58, Andy Pugh 64

Booked: Jack Parkinson 51, Liam Bellamy 75

Bromley: Craig Holloway, David Graves, Harrison Dunk, Liam Harwood, Jerry Nnamani, Wes Daly (Jake Hall 84), Tony Finn, Harry Harding, Charlie Ide (Jamie England 68), Warren McBean, Ryan Dolby (Courtney Harris 76).

Subs: Peter Wedgeworth, Paul Agu

Goal: Harry Harding 75 (pen)

Booked: Wes Daly 28, Harrison Dunk 45

Attendance: 525

Referee: Mr Paul Forrester (Luton, Bedfordshire)

Assistants: Mr Ronald Albert (Catford, London SE6) & Mr Rob Baker (Maidstone)