Woodwork denies Chopped Villa a debut victory - The Jewish Chronicle

Chopped Villa manager Noah Abrahams insists there’s more to come from his side after he saw them play out a goalless draw against Redbridge Jewish Care B in their first Maccabi GB Southern Football League (MGBSFL) match on Sunday morning.

Chopped Villas'' Harley Conway (left) challenges Redbridge B's Sam Feldman. Photo by Georgia Rosenberg[Missing Credit]

He said: “We’ve said it before, our goal is to win the league title this season so expect to see a lot more from us.

“We were disappointed to only come away with a point as we felt we dominated most of the game. We created a bunch of chances and felt unlucky not to go ahead having hit the post twice in the opening 20 minutes. But at the end of the day it was only good enough to earn a draw. We felt we limited our opposition to very little and on another day we take a chance or two and win that game. We are really encouraged by the performance, especially the clean sheet and think there’s plenty to build on, it’s a good learning curve to take into the season.”

Redbridge manager Dani Sivan was also proud of his side’s showing, saying: “I asked the boys before the game to make sure that when the final whistle blew they could look back knowing they had given it their all, and they did. Yes, we rode our luck at times, but it was a massive lesson and a strong performance against what looks like one of the better teams in this division.”

Looking on the campaign ahead, Sivan added: “I’m very happy with the fitness, it’s something we’ve been building, along with different tactics and positions. But more than that, today showed the belief and commitment these boys have to put everything on the pitch. Every player fought until the end. Today was a strong first test, but it’s just the beginning and focus now turns to our next game.”

Elsewhere in Division Two, Beitar Bushey stormed to the top of the table on goal difference thanks to a 5-2 win at Scrabble. Sean Kramer scored twice, with Josh Webber, Callum Adler and Mark Pearce also on target. Bushey manager Saul Jackson said: “Really proud of the boys, we gathered some really good momentum towards the end of last season and it’s great to see it continue. It was a good team performance and it’s great to see our hard work paying off and our experience prevailing. The division is looking strong and we’re excited to see what it brings us.”
Ben Conway and Richie Abramson scored for Scrabble. Their manager Ollie Sugarman said afterwards: “It was a strong first-half performance, but a couple of errors proved costly and gifted them goals. We pushed hard and created opportunities in the second half, but were unable to take our chances. We’ll regroup and look to bounce back next week.”

In a clash of two new sides, Schlepfield Wednesday got off to a winning start thanks to a 3-1 victory over Wolverhampstead Wanderers. Zack Obrart scored twice in the first half, with Sam Adams netting late to seal the win. Wednesday manager Josh Bond said: “Things got a bit shaky when they pulled one back, but nevertheless it’s a great start to the season.”

Temple Fortune began their 50th consecutive season in the MGBSFL – the longest run of any club in the League’s history – by winning 6-2 at 40 Year Wanderers in Division One. In James Lee’s first competitive game as manager, he fielded a side without a recognised goalkeeper. Debutant Zack Gluckstein scored four times, with Jack Isaacs and Michael Goldberg adding the others. Sam Holden and Louis Berg scored for Scrabble. Their manager Ben Conway said: “Our performance today was subpar and we’re looking to properly kick on next weekend.”

A seven-goal thriller saw Hampstead Ducks beat Mill Hill Minyan 4-3 with Ben Byre, Rafi Jacobs, Reuben Gordon and Theo Klaus all finding the back of the net.

Goals from captain Max Aston and Jamie Steinberg in the last ten minutes saw Rapid Viennas beat last year’s Division Two champions Sukkotingham Forest 2-0.

Last season’s quadruple winners HMH A began the defence of their Premier Division title with a 2-2 home draw against Yallatasary.

Fighting back from two goals down, George Goldberg and Zac Summerfield scored for the champions. HMH’s Jake Norton said: “It was a well-fought battle against a strong, young side. It took us 30 minutes to find our feet and dust off some summer cobwebs. However, once we found our flow and pulled two goals back, we could even have snatched it.”

Result of the day was newboys Stopinsky’s stunning 5-4 win at Hendon United. Zan Appleson-Fidler scored four of the goals, with Jason Burns adding the other. Manager Jacob Brand said: “We were 4-1 up at half-time, but it became really tough in the second half. But we battled through and stuck together as a team and it was an incredible performance. As manager I could not be prouder and now onto next week. We’re not here to mess around.”

The other game in the top flight saw Geez Park Rangers defeat Redbridge Jewish Care A 3-2.

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Maccabi football