First Points on the Board

The second league game of the season saw our newly formed SAL team host last seasons runners up Alexandra Park at Rowley Lane.

Played on an immaculate surface, it was the hosts who came out of the traps the fastest. Lions starting with a pacy front three of Mark Wagman and Gideon Gold in the wide positions with Lee Cash starting his first game of the season for the club in the Centre forward position.

On 10 minutes it was the hosts who made the breakthrough, good work from Adam Klein on the left hand side combining with Gideon Gold whose dangerous cross was turned in on the stretch at the near post by Cash. And five minutes later it was two nil. An excellent move from back to front that culminated in Cash breaking thorough the AP offside trap and, after rounding the keeper which took the Lions striker wide, from a tight angle he managed to slot the ball into the net, making the finish look a lot easier than it was.

By now the Lions were playing some very attractive football, Sam McCarthy and James Abrams were getting the upper hand over their midfield counterparts and the Lions were now looking very comfortable. Silver hit the post from close range after good work from Wagman and Reuben down the right hand channel.

The introduction of Lazarus off the bench had almost an immediate impact, another free-flowing move that saw Silver and McCarthy link up well, with the ball making its way out wide to Lazarus in space, who cheekily lobbed the stranded AP keeper from 35 yards, for a quite exquisite goal. Did he mean it??? He sure did! Goal number 1986 from the man who claims that his goals have helped build the Rowley Lane club. Three nil to the home side and with half-time approaching the visitors did have a few chances of their own, their best effort saw keeper Bradley Lee well beaten but their left wingers' effort came back off the post and was cleared to safety.

After the break, the game fell a little flat, and the contest a lot more scrappy, the Lions found it more difficult to retain the ball but were still the more threatening side. Cash was once again sent through on goal, this time from a clever Lenchner through ball. He rounded the keeper but was then cynically hacked down by the frustrated away team stopper, just outside the penalty area, and, with the goal gaping, the keeper was lucky that the card given from the referee was only yellow after clearly denying the Lions forward his hat trick.

Wagman spurned a glorious opportunity to make it four and effectively put the game beyond the reach of AP, having two bites of the cherry he saw both his efforts saved by the away team keeper. As the game moved into the final stages, Alexandra Park desperately threw men forward, and earned themselves a penalty, Dan Hakimi making his debut was judged to have brought down the AP forward inside the area, after the Lions were appealing for offside. The AP forward slotted the ball past Lee from the spot, to ensure a nervy finish to the game.

Lee himself made a fantastic save at the near post moments later, somehow managing to push a save away from the goal and out to safety.
The final whistle blew and the Lions toasted their first three points in the league.