EBFL Round-Up: Hype Train steam back onto the right tracks

Hype Train steamed back onto the right tracks in the East Berkshire League Premier Division with a high-scoring 7-5 win against Frontline on Saturday,writes Rob Stevens.

The Train had threatened to be derailed after a couple of heavy defeats in recent weeks however, the team are back in the winners’ station and in doing so end Frontline’s five-match unbeaten run in the league.

Phil Newport was the star on show for the home side after finding the back of the net three times at Calcot Recreation Ground. Chris Marshall scored either side of the break with further goals from both Ciaran Carolan and Jeffrey Larryea.

The win moves Hype Train up one place to seventh position in the Premier Division table, now nine points above the relegation places, whilst Frontline remain in third spot but now eight points behind the leaders.

Old Windsor maintained their five-point lead at the top of the table following a narrow 1-0 success over Virginia Water Reserves. A goal in the first half from Shane Qoloni was the difference between the two teams at the Old Windsor Recreation Ground. The Waters drop one place to fifth in the division.

Singh Sabha put behind them exit from county cup competition last weekend to thrash Sandhurst Reds 8-1 at the Singh Sabha Slough Sports Centre and keep the pressure on at the top of the table.

The game was over before the break thanks to a first-half hat-trick from Mubarak Bashir, two goals from Pritpal Raju and one from Hassan Mahmood. Both Bashir and Mahmood added to their personal tallies after the break.

The consolation effort for Sandhurst came through Jamie Barratt but his team are still looking for a first away league win this season, taking a single point from a possible 10.

Britwell United are improving week on week and made it three wins on the bounce with a 2-0 victory at Stoke Poges, the losing side remain in the bottom three. Britwell are now up to fourth position in the table.

Pundit returned to league action for the first time in four weeks and beat Chalvey Sports Reserves 3-0 in the George Pitcher Memorial Ground derby match. Thaon Richardson bagged a brace with Glen Mugo also finding the back of the net as Pundit moved up into the top half of the division. Chalvey stand in 10th place and four points above the relegation spots.

There was just a single match in Division One on Saturday and Sandhurst Royals fired themselves back into the race for the title with a 4-2 win against FC Baylis United at the Memorial Park. The three points mean Royals move back into the promotion spots in third place and now four points behind the leaders, South Reading. For Baylis, it was a missed opportunity to head to the top of the table and they remain in second spot.

The East Berkshire League will have four representatives in the third round of the Berks & Bucks FA David Grainge Junior Trophy including Division One leaders South Reading after they thrashed Harchester Hawks 9-1.

Reading Tigers will also be in the hat for the next round following their 5-1 win against FC Riverside in the all-East Berkshire League clash, whilst both Berks Elite and Real Saracens progressed with walkover wins.

AFC Reading are out of the competition after a 4-1 loss at Marcham. Eton Wick also miss out on round three following a defeat on penalties to Allied Community Elite, going down 5-3 in the shoot-out following a 1-1 draw at Haywards Mead.

There are four matches in the Premier Division this Saturday featuring a high-class clash between Frontline and Pundit at Burnham Grammar School. The home team will be bidding to regain the winning thread after the defeat to Hype Train last weekend while three points for Pundit could see them break into the top three.

Hype Train could also move into the top three if they can secure a win against Singh Sabha, the visitors to Calcot Recreation Ground might bridge the gap on Old Windsor to just two points should they take all three points back to Slough.

Again, there is just a single match in Division One and another chance for FC Baylis United to move to the top of the table should they win at AFC Reading. The hosts will move into the promotion places if they can bag a victory.

Slough镇超级杯比赛仍在继续with two more ties in the first round; Virginia Water Reserves host FC Beaconsfield from Hellenic League Division Two East and an all-EBFL tie between Sandhurst Reds and Chalvey Sports Reserves.

The Presidents Cup competition begins with five ties in the first round headlined with a clash between the high-flying South Reading and Sandhurst Royals, first and third in Division One. Elsewhere, KS Gryf host Old Windsor Reserves and Reading Tigers, semi finalists last season, travel to Eton Wick.

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Southcote manager Paul Reddington has called on his team to improve upon their game management ahead of a mouthwatering showcase match against Old Windsor at the Racecourse Ground in Ascot this Friday night.

The Reading-based side has made a mixed start to the new season with three wins and two defeats in their five league matches, leaving them in eighth position in the Premier Division table albeit having played fewer games than any other team thus far.

Reddington is bedding in a lot of new players this season and has not been helped by a number of serious injuries but, the team has already dropped six points from winning positions this year and he is aware that will need to improve if they are to repeat their second place finish of last season.

He explained: “It’s been a decent start to the season, we’ve played five league games and three cup competition matches, winning five and losing three.

“We have been hit with some serious injuries early season, losing the goalkeeper being one, and we’ve not managed to field a consistent settled side. This has impacted us when trying to finalise squads on match days, people playing out of position, but we’ve won 60 per cent of our games so there is lots of positives to take.

“We have a lot of new players in this season and bedding these in with the old takes time. We’re focussing on building the team in a way in which we can learn and grow based on previous experience. We’re not big fans of setting targets, we take each game as they come, staying in the Premier Division and remain in some cup competitions, and we go from there.

“We’ve invested in a VEO Camera to help in our development. The two league games that we lost we were winning, so we need to look to manage games better. Game management needs to improve from our young squad.”

Southcote has failed to beat the Old Windsor first team in three previous meetings between the two sides, losing in the League Cup competition two seasons ago before two draws in the league last year. However, Reddington believes a good result in the upcoming showcase match would mean a lot to his young players and could give a chance to the chasing pack to bridge the gap on Old Windsor in the table.

He said: “Old Windsor have had a great start to the season and we know that they are a very good side. This is our first meeting with them this season so cannot comment on their strengths and weaknesses. It’s always a tough and competitive game against them and I’m sure this match will be no different.

“We didn’t fare well in previous EBFL showcase matches but, it will be a great experience for the lads. We have played at Ascot twice now and its great; the facilities and the atmosphere. Some of our new players have yet to experience this so we’re really looking forward to it.”

The East Berkshire League is offering free entry to any Old Windsor Tigers players that wear their kit shirts to the Racecourse Ground on Friday night (all under 18s must be accompanied by an adult).

Tickets can be purchased online using the link -https://tktp.as/EKQHCR- at a discount price of £4 with entry at £5 at the turnstiles on the night. You can also pre-order a copy of the match day programme online.