Cray Wanderers 8-0 Larkfield & New Hythe - It proved that some of our boys aren't as good as they think they are, admits Larkfield & New Hythe boss Danny Lye

Cray Wanderers 8 – 0 Larkfield & New Hythe
Location	Flamingo Park, Sidcup-by-pass, Chislehurst, Kent BR7 6HL
Kickoff	03/09/2024 19:45

CRAY WANDERERS  8-0  LARKFIELD & NEW HYTHE
The Emirates FA Cup First Qualifying Round Replay
Tuesday 3 September 2024
Stephen McCartney reports from Flamingo Park

CRAY WANDERERS manager Neil Smith says he wants to do the best he can for the club and bring some money into it after guiding the club to their biggest FA Cup victory tonight.

Larkfield & New Hythe gave Cray Wanderers an almighty scare at New Hythe Lane at the weekend and should have caused a First Qualifying Round upset, having to settle for a 1-1 draw.

Striker Matthew Day missed six chances, including having a 28^th minute penalty saved, before his strike partner Bryan Zepo headed in his third goal of the season to give the Southern Counties East Football League Premier Division side the lead.

Cray Wanderers salvaged a second bite of the cherry through Anthony Cook’s 79^th minute penalty – but they were ruthless in front of goal as Larkfield & New Hythe suffered a humilating defeat at Flamingo Park.

There were 34 teams separating Cray Wanderers (fourth-from-bottom in the Isthmian League Premier Division with three points from five games) and the now tenth-placed Larks (seven points from three games).

Larkfield & New Hythe certainly missed centre-half Nathan Daly, who was serving the first of his three match suspension, after being sent-off during their 1-1 draw at Selsey last Tuesday, going out of The FA Vase in the First Qualifying Round,
5-4 on penalties.

Holding midfielder Frankie Raymond opened the floodgates with a deflected strike after only 161 seconds, before attacking midfielder Nyren Clunis scored a rasping volley and centre-half Tom Bonner headed in a third goal after only 12 minutes as Larkfield & New Hythe capitulated in embarrasing fashion.

Striker Kenny Coker then opened his goalscoring account for the club with two goals before the break to give Cray Wanderers a commanding five-goal lead.

Cook drilled in a sixth goal before captain Bonner pulled rank and claimed the seventh goal, before Larkfield & New Hythe right-back Ross Ibbertson scored an own-goal, as Larkfield & New Hythe’s maiden FA Cup campaign ended in chastening fashion.

The Wands will host their league rivals Wingate & Finchley in the Second Qualifying Round the weekend after next.

It was the first time in Smith’s professional career that he has been involved in an 8-0 victory.

He said: “Listen, we knew it was going to be a difficult game on their pitch. It’s very narrow and small, the ball was very bouncy, the pitch uneven, so like we said it was a typical FA Cup game against a team in a lower division, but they were outstanding. I thought they deserved the draw.  I thought people were saying they deserved to beat us.

“We got them at our place and it was one of them where we changed a couple of players because we knew we had to get on the ball more and pass it around a little bit quicker and right from the off we put a marker down and we tried to make it as difficult as we could for them to get back in as well.”

Full credit to Larkfield & New Hythe manager Danny Lye for attending the post-match press-conference after such a horrific night for the club.

“I think we summed it up. It’s a tie of two games, put it that way. We started well Saturday, they didn’t.  Tonight we didn’t turn up and they did really. A goal down after three minutes, we were dead in the water to be fair.

“We caused them problems Saturday. We probably should’ve killed the tie and done it but didn’t take our chances and tonight was a different game.

“We had no Nathan Daly today, three suspensions. You can use that as an excuse but I think the boys missed him.”

Larkfield were outstanding at home on Saturday and looked like a completely different team tonight as they were put to the sword by better footballers tonight.

“Exactly that,” admitted Lye, who missed the home tie as he was ruled out through Covid.

“We turned up Saturday, caused them problems on our pitch. Tonight, we knew it was going to be different on the 3G.  We said how they’re going to cause us problems and they actually did.

“We said their holding midfielder (Raymond) would cause us problems and we didn’t deal with it.

“We haven’t turned up. I mean some of the goals were soft. Yes, they took their chances well in the end but we gifted them some of the goals.”

Clinical Cray Wanderers opened the floodgates after only 141 seconds when winger Imran Kayani threw the ball to right-back Adrian Owiredu-Gyamera, who fizzed in a low cross from within the right-channel.

Kayani, who made his debut at the weekend, took a couple of touches inside the box before laying the ball off for Raymond, who lashed in a deflected left-footed drive from 15-yards into the roof of the net.

“Good inter-play, someone could’ve had a shot but he laid it off and then Frankie come in.  I think someone was appealing for a handball but the deflection took it into the top corner. I don’t think it gave the keeper a chance,” said Smith.

“It was all about getting as many shots in as we can. We didn’t get enough off on Saturday and it was something that we wanted to make sure we got better at today.”

Lye added: “To be honest, I’d like to remember them (goals), there’s been so many!

“We didn’t defend well, we didn’t defend well all night. When you let teams dominate you like that and you make all those mistakes and you give up after you let a goal in, it raises the alarm bells really.”

The Wands went close following a well-worked move involving Raymond, Coker and Owiredu-Gyamera, who played the ball along the deck into Coker, whose left-footed drive flashed across the keeper and past the foot of the far post.

Dominant Cray Wanderers raced into a two-goal lead with six minutes and 44 seconds on the clock.

Cook floated the ball in from the left, the ball was knocked down by Kayani inside the box and Clunis (playing in the 10 role behind Coker) smacked a stunning right-footed volley screaming into the top right-hand corner from 25-yards.

“It was a great volley. We switched Nyren around a little bit from the wing and put him in a central area and the ball dropped to him and when you’re in that confident mood, that he was in playing wise, he unleashed and as soon as it hit his foot, we knew it was a goal,” said Smith.

Lye added: “I think me and Micky (Michael Phillips, my assistant manager) said after the second goal, we said ‘this could be six or seven-nil’ if we don’t sort it out!”

Cray Wanderers notched their third-goal following a well-worked set-piece move, with only 11 minutes and 21 seconds on the clock.

Jerome Wade was outstanding at the weekend but he and Ben Davisson looked lost playing on a lush artificial pitch and against better quality footballers, who struggled to cope with the conditions in the away tie.

Davisson gave the free-kick away some 35-yards from goal and Raymond rolled the ball in behind for Cook, who put it on a plate for a rising Bonner to bury his free header into the centre of goal from inside the six-yard box.

“It’s little things that we work on.  The boys have got to have that little bit of invention as well and I think we were a little bit too direct, just putting it in the box the other day,” admitted Smith.

“We just highlighted there was a bit of space for Cookie to get in but then it’s alright getting in the space, it’s what you do once you’re in it and a great ball for Bonns at the far post and a great header.”

Lye admitted: “We’re in trouble. Literally, we said it could be double figures because we haven’t turned up!”

Raymond, who was bossing the middle of the park, was given oceans of space to float in a left-footed cross into the penalty area for Bonner to plant a free-header, which was caught by visiting goalkeeper Denney McConnell.

Kayani drilled a stunning left-footed drive off the underside of the crossbar from 25-yards, as the home side created another chance with 18:29 on the clock.

Smith said of the former Whitehawk striker.

“He come inside and absolutely leathered it. He played really well. He’s come in and he’s had two games, two difficult games and he deserved a goal tonight. I thought he was outstanding the other day as well coming in and an absolute thunderbolt that rebounded off the crossbar and off the goal-line.”

Shell-shocked Larkfield & New Hythe were 4-0 down with only 20 minutes and 21 seconds on the clock.

Clunis played a fine through ball along the deck for Coker to crack a right-footed drive sailing into the top far corner, past the diving McConnell, as centre-half Fraser Walker opened the gate.

“Kenny was outstanding, leading us from the front today. He was closing quick. He was always offering himself for the ball. He was playing with confidence. He was strong up front and again he took his goal well,” said Smith.

Lye admitted: “Can’t remember it to be fair. The game was already done to be fair.  I think by that time I was already texting a few players and trying to sign a few boys ready for Saturday by that time.”

Owiredu-Gyamera opened the gate at the other end as left-winger Alvin Turtatemba cut in and along the by-line but he was given a tight angle and untroubled goalkeeper Shaun Rowley picked the ball up as Larkfield & New Hythe created a half-chance in the 24^th minute.

Recalled Cray Wanderers centre-back David Ijaha fouled Zepo just outside the right-corner of the penalty area but the resulting left-footed free-kick from Luke Russell was skied high over the crossbar.

Raymond played the ball in behind Russell to release Owiredu-Gyamera, who whipped in a low cross from the channel and the ball was cleared out to Charlie Edwards, who hit a first-time right-footed drive which flashed across the keeper and past the far post.

Lye explained why he hooked winger Turtatemba in the 31^st minute and put substitute Joshua Jackson in midfield along with the struggling pair of Davisson and Wade.

“We made a sub, we changed it round, took a winger off, tried to help the boys out in midfield because they were miles off it,” explained Lye.

“Alvin was good on Saturday but we were struggling in midfield and they couldn’t deal with their three in midfield.  We had two in midfield and our two boys in midfield weren’t tight, like they was on Saturday. They were poor tonight and we had to try to stiffen it up to help out.

Larkfield & New Hythe goalkeeper McConnell was called into making a flying save in the 37^th minute.

Clunis was in the right-back position and fizzed a sublime 60-yard diagonal pass along the deck to release left-back Darion Dowrich in space and he put in a cross for Kayani, who took a touch before hitting a left-footed shot towards the far corner, which was pushed towards safety by McConnell, diving to his left.

“He did make a few good saves, yes. He’s done well. He’s only a young lad.  He’s come in and done well Saturday. Tonight, he’s made some good saves. He’s young. I think he’s hurt his elbow early in the second half so we’ll just see how he is for Saturday,” added Lye.

Cray Wanderers drilled in their fifth goal with 39:30 on the clock.

Dowrich put the ball in from the left, Clunis was denied by the legs of McConnell before the ball came out to Coker, who drilled a right-footed shot into the right-hand corner from 22-yards.

Smith added: “Again, good inter-play down the wing, for the ball in the box, where we haven’t been getting it in as much.  Nyren, I thought the keeper pulled off a good block, save, whatever you want to call it but Kenny, that’s what he gets paid to do, sniff around in the box and took it well.”

On Saturday, at home, Larkfield & New Hythe looked like they can challenge for promotion during their first campaign at this level, while tonight they looked like a team doomed for relegation.

Lye added: “Just defensively, we didn’t defend well all night. We wasn’t tight.  I said (last week in media interviews), we don’t fear anyone.  We’ll see what the difference is.  Saturday, you’d say there wasn’t a lot of difference.

“Tonight it proved that some of our boys aren’t as good as they think they are and it proved that.  You’ve got to play like (we did at home) every week and today you could tell the difference.”

Both manager’s were asked their thoughts at the break.

Smith said: “You can go sloppy, or you might get an injury but we want the boys to be professional. They’ve got to keep that attitude and not go sloppy, not show a weakness as in they think they’re already cracked it, so it was about keeping that determination and that desire to go and get more goals.”

Lye revealed: “I didn’t say a lot. I shouted a lot. I told them a few home truths that they haven’t turned up.  I ripped into the two midfielders because they wasn’t tight enough. They sat off. They weren’t tight and in my eyes when you’re playing a team from a higher league, you’ve got to be touch-tight. You’ve got to be touch-tight when you go a goal down, try to turn the tides. They didn’t do that on the pitch.

“They didn’t communicate, a little bit of passing the blame, which I don’t like. There was a good shouting session.”

When asked whether he felt he got a reaction from his players in the second half, Lye replied: “Yes and no, yes and no.  They’re picking their heads up aren’t they, getting battered first half, a little bit of a reaction. Nothing can they say. They put a little bit of pride into it, yes and no.

“We started playing into Davo (Ben Davisson) for the first time of the game in the second half, so maybe they listened to something but no, not a good night.”

Larkfield & New Hythe’s players were left to do some soul-searching in the centre-circle just before the start of the second half and another good save from McConnell denied the home side eight minutes in.

Clunis counter-attacked straight down the heart of the pitch before playing a one-two with Coker before McConnell used his legs to make the save.

However, no one in a burgundy shirt was close to Cray Wanderers’ saviour at the weekend, Cook, who cut in from the left before drilling a sublime right-footed drive past the diving keeper to nestle inside the bottom left-hand corner from 30-yards, as Cray Wanderers notched their sixth goal of the night with nine minutes and 13 seconds on the clock.

“Cookie’s desperate to play every week, he’s desperate to score every game. He’s our top scorer at the moment (with three goals),” said Smith.

“Cookie’s Cookie. I’ve said it before. I can’t say enough good things about him. He’s a great character around the changing room, he’s a great person to have in my team and again give him 90 minutes and he pulls out another goal.”

Lye added: “No one near him. It was like that all night. People got in too easy. It was easy to get a break. They could put one ball forward at times and be in on goal.”

Day put in a cross from the left and Zepo’s header inside the box was comfortably gathered by Rowley on the hour-mark, before Cray Wanderers scored seven goals in a FA Cup tie for the very first time, with 19 minutes and seven seconds on the clock.

Raymond floated in a corner towards the back post with his left-peg from the right and Bonner knocked the ball on and the ball deflected in within a crowd of players and bounced over the goal-line.

Bonner claimed the goal but there were one or two touches of other players before the ball crossed the goal-line.  

“Who did you give (the goal) to?” asked Smith.

“There was a couple of ricochets, who it hit, I don’t know. I’d say I’d give it to Quade (Taylor) because I don’t think he’s on any goal bonus! But no, they’ve all clamed it.  I think the last person that’s claimed it was Tom Bonner, so I couldn’t tell you, I couldn’t tell you. They’re all telling me they’ve scored!

“I think Dave’s claimed it.  I think Cookie’s claimed it. I think Bonner’s claimed it.

“Who did the announcer give it go?”

The announce initially gave the goal to Quade Taylor, then changed his mind and gave it to his central defensive partner, Bonner.

“We’ll give it to, Bonner’s already scored hasn’t he? Oh god, so he gets double money, right give it to Quade (Taylor). I don’t know Steve.  I’ve given it to Quade and Bonns.

“I’m going to leave it with you Steve, whatever the announcer gave. I’ve got to see it on video. I haven’t seen it.”

When asked who might have scored the own-goal, Lye replied: “I’d love to remember it, I don’t know.

“Numb really. I was numb after the third one so by the time the seventh come to be honest, we put some boys on the pitch who needed minutes and in the end me and Micky were talking about Saturday really, rather than watching the game.”

Davisson played the ball into the Cray Wanderers box but Day took too many touches inside the box and Owiredu-Gyamera slammed the door shut as the Wands’ first win at their new £4m stadium, was also their first clean sheet of the season.

Cook turned Wade in midfield before releasing substitute striker David Smith, who still waits his first goal of the club since his move from Folkestone Invicta, as McConnell made another save, before the former Rusthall stopper denied Darion Dowrich from the rebound.

Smith added: “I know it sounds ridiculous, we’ve scored eight goals and it could’ve been more. I said it after the game, he’s pulled off a couple of great saves. I think Shaun (Rowley) pulled off a couple as well that prevented them getting on the scoresheet and that was what we wanted. We wanted a clean-sheet but I thought their keeper, in hard circumstances still did himself proud.”

Larkfield & New Hythe’s best chance of the night came following their third corner (30:43).

Substitute right-winger Clark Woodcock whipped in a deep corner from the right and Jack Clark emerged from a crowd of players at the back stick to guide his header against the left-hand post.

Lye said: “We had a chance, yes we had a chance. Once you lose, you lose, doesn’t matter if it’s 1-0 or 10-0. It’s done. We move on. We go again Saturday because we’ve got good form in the league. We’ve got a few games to pick up on, so we have to be positive and crack on now.”

Smith added: “We was sloppy. We was sloppy in the last 10 minutes from some of the set-pieces.  I’ve made loads of changes, like pre-season and people weren’t doing their jobs. They’re sort of jogging in not knowing really what they were meant to do.

“The last 10 minutes, I take full responsibility for the set-plays. Up until then we’ve been very solid on all of them apart from giving a goal away on Saturday.  Something that we wanted to make sure didn’t happen, so when you make a load of subs, people go off marking players and players that come on don’t take on that job role responsibility, so it was a bit sloppy but we kept a clean-sheet.”
Post

Cray Wanderers were handed their eighth-goal (32:31), following their fifth and final corner.

Raymond played it short and substitute winger Arezki Hamouchene played in a low cross from the right which was turned into his own net by Ibbertson close to his goal-line.

Smith said: “Arezki can do what he does.  We were trying little things in the second half what we probably wouldn’t do normally but it was put in a good area and that’s what happens sometimes when the defender tries to clear it and knock it in.

“I don’t think it was anything less than what we deserved, the eight.”

Lye admitted: “That summed us up tonight. I think they played a short corner, no one went out there, they put it across the goal-line and we put it in ourselves, summed us up.”

Larkfield & New Hythe started having a go at 8-0 down and Jackson swept the ball out to an unmarked Woodcock out on the right, who hit a right-footed half-volley flashing across Rowley and past the far post from 30-yards.

Referee Gerry Heron took pity on the away side, playing only seven seconds of stoppage time in the first half and blew his final whistle with 44:57 on the clock.

Both sides return to League action on Saturday, with Cray Wanderers hosting seventh-placed Horsham (nine points from five games) in the seventh-tier.

“It feels good (to win 8-0 tonight). It’s been tough. We’ve not had a great start to the season,” admitted Smith, whose side are in the relegation zone with Hashtag United (three points), Bognor Regis Town (two) and Bowers & Pitsea (one).

“I’ve lost players through whatever, they’ve left or through injury.  I haven’t been able to put the same team out too many times.  I’ve had to swap and change it so it gives us little things.

“I thought we played well against Dulwich and I didn’t think we deserved to lose (2-1 there on Bank Holiday Monday).  I think we got the game underway in difficult circumstances with the wind and the pitch and everything else (at Larkfield) on Saturday and I think this was another plus.

“I think we’ve just got to keep on making these little plusses and hopefully we can get that togetherness for Horsham.

“Horsham were in the play-offs last year. I don’t see them being too far away from it this year.  Getting Kenny Coker goals and Dave Smith, I need to get on the scoresheet but the boys are all buzzing.

“We’ve got to take the adrenaline that we’ve got that little bit of belief and that little bit of a feel-good factor into Saturday now but it will be very tough. We don’t expect anything different from the Horsham.”

Cray Wanders have banked £2,250 in prize money and Smith’s side welcome league rivals Wingate & Finchley in the Second Qualifying Round, just three wins away from reaching the First Round for the first time in the club’s history.

Smith has previously said that the club are not splashing the cash in playing budgets this season and admitted he cannot compete financially against the division’s big-hitters.

“Listen, Wingate last year we’re outstanding, they had a fantastic season. They’ll be very difficult but it’s a Cup game. I want to do the best I can for this club and bring some money into it and everything else that goes with it.

“I’ve got a league game in front of that and they’re more important at this moment in time.

“We had 18 (players tonight) but I’ve only got 16 players. Dulwich had 24 but that’s what you’ve got to compete with. It’s mental! All I can offer is that facility, myself as a coach and we’ll look after you and give you whatever you need.  Players’ are coming here not for the money, they’re coming here because they’ve heard about good things about, one, the club and two, myself and Tim (O’Shea), the coaching staff and the project this club wants to go to and where it wants to get to.

“We know we’re going to have another tough season. We can’t compete against the Dulwich’s and the Billericay’s of the world, even Horsham. They’re financed very well.  I get the best I can out of the guys but it’s always going to be a challenge.

“You can’t get better than that 8-0, record score. It’s another record broken and it's nice to be broken here. Hopefully the start of many (wins at Flamingo Park).”

Larkfield & New Hythe, meanwhile, have banked £3,319 in prize money, having previously beaten Kennington (2-1) and Lingfield (3-1) before their chalk and cheese performances against Smith’s men.

Lye, meanwhile, demands a positive reaction when they welcome winless bottom-of-the-table side Sutton Athletic (three points from five games).

“If we turn up and play like we did today, we’ll get beat, so the challenge is I’ve told the lads we have to go out there and we have to be how we have been because we’ve been good this year. We’ve started very well. We can say we’ve had a blip. We didn’t turn up tonight, so we have to make sure that we’re ready for Saturday.

“It’s a test of character really and this is the first time in any game this year that we’ve gone behind, so it’s a bit of a worry because we went behind and our heads went down, so we have to bounce back and be positive and we’ll see the strength of character the boys have got and we’re looking to bring a couple in ready for Saturday to strengthen us up.”

After parting company with goalkeeper Jordan Carey following his red-card at Selsey seven days ago, Lye revealed he has already signed a replacement.

“We’ve already got Daniel Smith signed. He was cup-tied tonight so he’ll be available for Saturday. He was at AFC Whyteleafe last year and he’s been playing down at Bexhill for the last few weeks but we sort of lined him up just in case Jordan (Carey) has another sort of miss-hap, which he did quite easily.”

Unbeaten in three league games, now 12^th placed Larkfield & New Hythe have games in hand on all of their 19 league rivals.  Lye’s men have five games in hand on surprise league leaders Holmesdale (who have seven more points following their 1-0 win at Fisher tonight).

“I want to challenge. I want to be up there for it.  We’ve been consistent up until today.  This was our eighth game and we’ve been consistent and we’ve been tough to beat.  We’ve been hard to break down, so today we have to put our hands up, they’re two league’s above.  They’re better than us. We didn’t turn up, so we’ll go again really and just be positive and confident for the league.”

Cray Wanderers: Shaun Rowley, Adrian Owiredu-Gyamera, Darion Dowrich, Frankie Raymond, David Ijaha (Alfie Evans 66), Tom Bonner, Anthony Cook, Charlie Edwards (Quade Taylor 43), Kenny Coker (David Smith 66), Nyren Clunis (Arezki Hamouchene 62), Imran Kayani (Dontai Stewart 73).
Subs: Lateef Adaja, Archie Johnson

Goals: Frankie Raymond 3, Nyren Clunis 7, Tom Bonner 12, 65, Kenny Coker 21, 40, Anthony Cook 55, Ross Ibbertson 78 (own goal)

Larkfield & New Hythe: Denney McConnell, Ross Ibbertson, Luke Russell (Joshua Witter 63), Jerome Wade, Fraser Walker, Callum Emptage (Jack Clark 72), Alvin Turtatemba (Joshua Jackson 31), Ben Davisson, Matthew Day, Bryan Zepo (Chibueze Innocent 63), Temi Alaka (Clark Woodcock 71).
Subs: Michael Phillips, Timileyin Babington

Booked: Ben Davisson 18

Attendance: 304
Referee: Mr Gerry Heron
Assistants: Mr Thomas Nicholls & Mr Jordan Rant