Coming here, it's a big result, hopefully we can go on a run now, says gutted Bromley attacker George Porter

BROMLEY attacker George Porter says he feels gutted after coming home from Chesterfield with a 1-1 draw last night.

 

The 26-year-old headed the Ravens into a 36^th minute lead to score his fifth goal of the season, but Chesterfield grabbed a last minute leveller when Zavon Hines slotted in a penalty after a handball from Ravens’ right-back Richard Brindley gave referee Simon Mather no option but to point to the spot.

Bromley slipped down a place to 18^th in the Vanarama National League table with 24 points from 22 games, while Martin Allen’s underperforming side remain in the bottom four with four fewer points and extended their winless league run to 19 games.

“It’s a bit gutting to be 1-0 up for so long and coming to a place like Chesterfield, a big ground, a big crowd,” said Porter.

“They’re not doing really well this season so it was a game where we’re near the bottom and it was a big three points for whoever have taken it.

“I thought we were brilliant in the first half. We kept our shape well and we got ourselves a goal and it’s just unfortunate we missed out on the three points with a penalty late on.”

Porter went agonisingly close in the 16^th minute as his free-header from the edge of the box sailed just past the left-hand post after left-back Sam Wood released lone striker Jack Barham down the left.

“I’ve sort of pulled out a bit and I think I just hit it too well if that makes sense.  I caught it a bit flush on the head and it just went wide,” said Porter.

Porter listened to some instructions from centre-half Roger Johnson and it worked as Porter headed in Jack Holland’s header back across goal after Frankie Sutherland floated in a free-kick into the Chesterfield box from the half-way line.

“Dodge screamed at me literally 10 minutes before, he was like ‘gamble at one of the free-kicks and get across your man’, so when we got a free-kick in their half I sort of gambled on the back that they would head the ball across and it caught me well and I put it in the net.”

Bromley put in a resilient defensive display and the Chesterfield fans were clearly not happy with the performance from their players – often booing them when things weren’t going their way.

However, Bromley’s 85 fans gave their players excellent support, housed in one corner of the East Stand.

Porter said: “Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant!  The fact that they’ve come up here on a Tuesday night, it’s not the greatest of weather.  I think they had a supporters’ coach and they were on trains.

“I think it was brilliant for a club like Bromley to come up here and show good support, singing all the way through the game. We’re just gutted we could’ve give them the three points.

“We had that belief before the game (that we could win here). It’s a hard place to come so if we kept our shape well we can get a goal on the counter attack or a bit of play.

“I thought later on in the game, 70-80 minutes we were defending well and I thought the defence were brilliant today. They put themselves in front of everything.   The belief was there right up until the last five minutes.”

It was heart-breaking when Hines tucked home his penalty after Brindley rose his arm inside the penalty area.

“A bit gutted really. I think it was a push on Brinds if you look at it.  I was looking straight at it, there was a bit of contact. The ref did say in the changing rooms there was a bit of contact so I was gutted really because we done really well for 89 minutes.”

“We haven’t got the result that we wanted.  We looked at this as a big game. We came up here early today, we trained in the week and we said this was a game we can look at to get three points.

“Coming here, it’s a big result for us, hopefully we can go on a run now.”

Bromley are without a game at the weekend after losing 3-1 at home to League One highflyers Peterborough United at Hayes Lane in The FA Cup First Round and travel to seventh-placed side Gateshead on Saturday 8 December.

The Ravens are only four points adrift of tenth-placed Ebbsfleet United and Bromley came away from Gateshead in March with a 1-1 draw in The Buildbase FA Trophy Semi-Final Second Leg to book their Wembley date.

“I’ve just looked at the table and we’re only four points off tenth,” highlighted Porter. 

“The league is so tight that you’ve got to look at the teams, we have to start beating the teams around us but we’re four points off the relegation, we don’t want to be nowhere near there.

“We didn’t progress in The FA Cup so we’ll have a free weekend but we’ll still be in training. Hopefully the boys will get a rest, have a few days to recover not having that match tempo.

“Going up to Gateshead the week after, obviously the Semi-Final last year was a great occasion for the club, so hopefully we can do that again.”

Bromley have been drawn at home to their bitter-rivals Sutton United in The FA Buildbase FA Trophy on Saturday 15 December.

“I think the club wanted a home draw, last year we were away in every round wasn’t we, so it’s good to be at home,” said Porter.

“I just think Sutton are a good team as well, it’s a local derby. We’ve got to play them three times in three weeks, I think it is. It will be a hard test but we’ll give it our best.”

Bromley manager Neil Smith was asked whether he is looking to replicate last year’s success in The FA Trophy this season.

“We had the dream of getting to Wembley and making the final. It’s a difficult game that we’ve got but I think it’s just as difficult for Sutton,” said Smith.

“We are at home, there should be a massive crowd there as well and we just hope they become the 12^th man and get us the result.

“I want to win everything. If you have a successful run like that, it probably distracted us from the league last year but we can’t take our eye of the league and staying in that division but it’s The FA Trophy and I know how the supporters thought it was so special last year and I want to give them another run.

“I want to come midtable. I think it’s going to be difficult to try and better what we did last year coming ninth, Wembley Final, First Round of The FA Cup, but we’ll give it our best shot.

“If we come midtable and learn from our mistakes and become a better team and a better club for it, I’ll take it.”

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