HMH were crowned Maccabi GB Southern Football League (MGBSFL) Premier Division champions on Sunday morning – and dedicated their title triumph to the league’s late chairman David Wolff.
Goals from Joel Walters, Brad Dryer, Joe Glaskie and Zac Summerfield saw them beat their nearest challengers Stoke Salmon 4-1, giving them the top-flight title for the second consecutive season.
Joint-manager Alex Moss said afterwards: “For so many years the greatest prize alluded us and to have managed to defend our title is so special. We know the level of consistency required to win the league and that consistency is down to every single member of our deep squad as well as the managers who drive the team every week.”
Fellow boss Eli Wegrzyn added: “The one word I always come back to in a title charge is consistency. It’s the ability to turn up week in week out and deliver a level good enough to bring home three points. When the quality is not there the mentality needs to shine.”
With more silverware up for grabs – HMH still have the possibility of claiming a hat-trick of titles – Wegrzyn added: “In terms of the rest of the season, we just want to perform at our maximum capability and see where it can take us. We’ve been here before.
“As for next season, it promises to be really exciting. Yallatasary and Stopinsky have been great additions to the league and will only get stronger.
“Salmon have been fantastic this season and we look forward to battling with them in seasons to come.
“GPR show that on their day they can compete with the top teams and Hendon will always be Hendon.
“We’re just happy to see a thriving MGBSFL, which we absolutely thank the late David Wolff for and dedicate this year’s league title to him.”
Yallatasary also made history last weekend by booking their first-ever cup final spot with a comprehensive 5-0 win over Beitar Bushey 5-0 in the Cyril Anekstein Cup semi-final with the goals coming from Freddie Land, Jake Jason, Joe Sher, Sammy Kebede and Dylan Berger.
Manager Buddy Smith said: “We’re very proud to be in our first final and honestly I can’t tell you how excited I am for the rest of this season to see how far we can go in the cups.
“The time for speaking feels over, we are approaching the business end of the season, we will be prepped and ready for whatever comes at us next.”
Brady FC are though to the semi-finals of the David Wolff Division One Cup as a hat-trick from Saul Shimoni inspired them to a 6-0 win at Temple Fortune. Daniel Slavid scored twice, with Jordan Sapler also on target.
Wolverhampstead Wanderers scored a 90th-minute equaliser to deny Chopped Villa third place in Division Two.
Olly Dagul twice put Villa in front, but goals from Sam Kahn and Louis Spitz earned the visitors a point in a dramatic match.
Hat-tricks from Mikey Selby and Akiva Solomon helped Real Masmid come away from Scrabble with an 8-3 win in their David Wolff Division Two Cup group match. Joseff Rubinoff, Avi Markiewicz scored their other two goals. Manager Josh Abraham said: “That win was for the great David Wolff. A perfect start to our cup campaign, goals galore. Eight goals flattered the opposition on what was a morning of awful conditions!”
Noa Shapps, Milo Wingard and Zack Morris scored for Scrabble. Their manager Ollie Sugarman said: “I think we put in a decent performance in the first half and looked like we were clawing our way back into the game – but unfortunately, as the rain came down and the pitch turned, the goals started going in at the other end like water through a leaking roof.” The other match in the competition, between Schlepfield Wednesday and Redbridge Jewish Care B, was abandoned after an hour due to the weather.
There were also three ties played in the MGBSFL Super Cup. Biggest winners of the day were Rapid Viennas, who defeated Mill Hill Minyan 5-1. Jack Warren, Joe Freedman and Dylan Krikler scored to put them 3-0 up at half-time, before Warren and Krikler scored again after the break. Interim manager Louis Jays said: “I was very pleased with the performance in the very hard weather conditions.”
Hendon United Sports Club were also emphatic winners, coming away from Stopinsky with a 4-1 win thanks to goals from Alex Randall, Zac Garbacz, Jordan Mizrahi and Chaim Korman. Manager Alex Rosenthal said: “It was a great win against a decent young side. A special first-half performance from the lads put us in control and we also showed strong character when they tested us.”
Geez Park Rangers edged a nine-goal thriller, beating Bochur Juniors 5-4.Yedidya Solomon scored twice for Juniors, with Dani Rubenstein and Solly Levy also on target. Manager Joel Ucko said: “Today was always going to be tough. The conditions, plus the absence of nine regulars, meant we went into the game with a very patched-up squad and every single player did themselves proud. Even at 4-0 down, we were still very much in the game. We just needed to sustain our aggression and be a bit more physical in the turnovers, knowing it only takes one moment to flip the momentum of the game and that’s exactly what happened.
“Had the game gone on another three or four minutes, I’m convinced we’d have got something our efforts deserved.
“Against Premier Division opposition, we’re really proud of the character, spirit, and attacking quality we showed in the second half, and we’ll take huge heart from that going into the rest of the season.”
There was just one match played in the Maccabi Masters League this week, and it saw a St John’s Wood Tigers thump Hendon Harriers 7-0 in the Charity Cup.
Two goals each from Ilan Cohen, Paul Herszaft and Matt Langer, together with Dan Lewis’s strike earned Tigers their first win in the competition.
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