YOUR WEEKEND PREVIEW STARTS HERE:
CYRIL ANEKSTEIN CUP ROUND THREE
BRADY MACCABI vs BAYERN MINCHA
As things stand, Sunday will be Brady’s final game of 2017. Well-placed to kick on in the new year, manager Joel Nathan will be aware of the threat of Bayern Mincha and their star man.
The Brady boys extended their lead in the MGBSFL last Sunday thanks to a terrific second-half performance against title rivals Redbridge. The arrival of Charlie Kasler has given them added quality and his goal was straight out of the top-drawer at the Lane.
The signing of London Lions star Kasler is a master stroke by Nathan, as it means Reiss Mogilner and Ben Kohler can venture further forward. Ricky Rinder will be keen to impress after his red card against Redbridge and I expect the hosts to play on the front foot against a Bayern team hoping to play first division football next season.
Bayern were second best against Mill Hill Dons last weekend, and I don’t expect them to find Brady in particularly charitable mood as Nathan knows they are long over-due a trip to Wingate & Finchley.
A healthy home support is expected to cheer Brady into the next round past a brave Bayern.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
BRADY (from): Josh Miller, Harry Fine, Sam Castle, David Cohen, Elliott Dagul, Brad Dryer, Henry Ziff, Matt Sofier, Jordan Nathan, Ricky Rinder, Graeme Grossman, Zac Skry, Marc Rister, Stanley Offord, Ben Kohler, Reiss Mogilner, Clark Norton, Scott Gordon, James Joseph, Charlie Kasler
BAYERN (from): Joseph Nyman, Nathan Hanan, Rafi Terespolsky, Sam Leader, Josh Levy, Matan Ozin, Akiva Fink, Alon Pinhas, Harry Salter, Adam Ellis, Eli Davila, Daniel Holder, Joe Metliss, Shmuel Leader
Venue – Rowley Lane, Ref – Barry David, KO – 10am
JC star man: Charlie Kasler (Brady)
DC Prediction: Brady 2 Bayern 1
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NORTH LONDON RAIDERS A vs OAKWOOD A
Bouncebackability is the name of the game for league champions Oakwood ahead of the trip to national cup holders Raiders.
They sorely missed Dale Bradman and Brad Wine in their Morrison misery against Lions Masters last weekend. I wrote here seven days against it was the toughest draw they could get – and the Lions didn’t disappoint, with the likes of Alex Levack, Paul Hakim, Lee Cash and Daniel Stanton put on a super show.
Oakwood will be hurting after back to back to defeats, and managers Dan Kristall, David Cohen and Adam Levine expect a big reaction.
Daniel Seligman popped up with two goals against a strong Lions defence and he is proving his worth to the team.
Raiders were outsted by Hendon last week. There were some unfamiliar names in the line-up who will have another chance to rub shoulders with MGBSFL top brass but when all is said and done, I expect Oakwood to secure maximum points.
JC team news: Luke Brookner is a doubt for Oakwood after picking up an injury against Lions Masters.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
RAIDERS (from): Adam Zaidman, Josh Morris, James Ross, Zack Neiman, David Cohen, Josh Goldstein, Elad Hertshten, Joe Cohen, Adam Joselyn, Ben Joseph, Jonny Kay, Alex Kaye, Oscar Wagner, Alex Moss, Jordan Abrahamson, Joe Meisel, Dan Shafron
OAKWOOD (from): Joe Botchin, Harvey Kaye, Lee Warner, Alex Lee, Dale Bradman, Luke Brookner, Toby Levy, Kyle Bentwood, Tom Cantor, Kyle Bentwood, Dan Rose, Simon Davies, Daniel Taylor, Dave Woolman, Leor Sidle, Jonny Quinn, Dave Cohen, Jake Bentwood, Rafi Stone, Luke Brookner
Ref – Richard Jaye, KO – 10am
JC star man: Tom Cantor (Oakwood)
DC Prediction: Raiders 1 Oakwood 2
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MGBSFL PREMIER DIVISION
TOP-SCORERS
15 – Reiss Mogilner (Brady Maccabi)
8 - Kiki Levin (ML Lions Whites)
HENDON UNITED SPORTS vs MACCABI LONDON LIONS WHITE
Russ Corin produced his Sunday best as Hendon moved to within four points of leaders Brady by beating Raiders last weekend.
He was busier than expected against a Raiders team missing some regulars but he showed tremendous focus and concentration to preserve a clean sheet.
It’s interesting to see gaffer Greg Corin employ Yoav Kestenbaum as an impact sub but he might be tempted to throw him in from the start against the Lions.
The Lions continue to find their feet. James Gershfield’s faith in Kiki Levin is starting to pay dividends and his young guns are starting to sparkle on a regular basis.
Goalkeeper Jordan Sharifian ensured they came away from their game against Camden Park unscathed last weekend but he will need to be on his game against a Hendon team with their tails up.
JC team news: Dovi Fehler remains sidelined for Hendon.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
HENDON (from): Russ Corin, Arthur Caplin, Mordi Weiler, Alex Rosenthal, Ari Nevies, Dudi Edreyi, Larry Cohen, Josh Bentley, Avi Korman, Ari Last (capt), Greg Corin, Ben Lauffer, Rocky Spitzer, Josh Harris, Zac Lewis, Yoav Kestenbaum
LIONS (from): Jordan Sharifian, Sam Arghebant, Will Beresford, Ben Lampert, James Gold, Sam Hamerton, Max Hassell, Jamie Jackson, Jack Mattey, Mikey Perkins, Josh Weiner, Conor Perl, Max Misrahi, Jamie Cohen, Tyler Smith, Eshed Calman
Venue – Hadley, Ref – Daniel Fox, KO – 10am
JC star man: Alex Rosenthal (Hendon)
DC Prediction: Hendon 2 Lions 1
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MACCABI LONDON LIONS BLUE vs CAMDEN PARK
Camden Park produced arguably their finest display of the season against Lions White last weekend, but it counted for little in the end as they were beaten 3-0.
No doubt James Gershfield and Sam Marchant will chat over a hot cocoa at training this week as the club looks to complete a double over Stirling Kay’s troops.
Kay was delighted with his players, namely Jordan Silverstone, Richard Silver, David Kanzen, David Khalatschi and Jake Saunders but they will need to perform to an even higher level at the Lane on Sunday.
Camden were let down by their finishing last weekend and they will do well to get past the in-form James Harpin who is turning into one of the best goalkeepers in the league.
Marchant knows the Lions must turn Rowley Lane into a fortress if this season is to be deemed a success, and that must start on Sunday.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
LIONS (from): James Harpin, Sammy Kingston, Daniel Fattal, Daniel Behar, Ben Winters, Nathan Anders, Jordan Aspis, Nick Barnett, Charlie Cohen, Adam Abadi, Ed Brafman (capt), Benji Weinberger, Jono Gaon, Josh Bloom, Michael Kenley, Zac Linden, Zach Perez
CAMDEN (from): Steve Murad, Ben Harris, Josh Tiano, Theo Azouz, Greg Meller, Max Gordon, Kane Gilbery, Rick Harris, Johann Jordi, David Kanzen, Mike Khalatschi, Josh Marks, Max Saunders, Matt Pearlman, Ricardo Ercoli, Jake Saunders, Richard Silver
Venue – Rowley Lane, Ref – Andy Myerson, KO – 10am
JC star man: Ed Brafman (Camden)
DC Prediction: Lions 2 Camden 1
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DIVISION ONE
TOP-SCORERS
6 - Svi Freedman, Simon Moses (both Los Blancos), Zac Summerfield (Scrabble FC), Dan Gordon (Redbridge JC B)
5 - Chaim Bordon, Ben Shirbini (Faithfold A), Daniel Seligman (Oakwood B)
L’EQUIPE vs OAKWOOD B
Confidence is high in the Oakwood camp ahead of the trip to L’Equipe after they blew Los Blancos away in ruthless fashion.
Jacob Richler-Kleiman was back to his best as the mighty Oaks rocketed up to third in the table and they could climb to second if they play their cards right on Sunday.
“There has been a great atmosphere in the B team dressing room this week after that win against Blancos last week,” boss Jason Stein told JC Sport. “We were confident going into the match but it went even better than we expected.
“That win, as you wrote DC, has blown the league open. I felt it had been coming. I’ve said it every week but we’ve been battering teams and then undoing all the good work with stupid errors. We never saw those errors last week and that was the difference.
“This week we need more of the same against L’Equipe. They can be really tricky customers and we’re taking nothing for granted. Another win is a must.”
L’Equipe continue to hold up the table and they will do exceedingly well to get something from the game.
JC team news: Ben Annis returns after six weeks out for Oakwood and boosts their options on the left-hand side. Oakwood will be “strong at the back this week,” according to Stein, though “star man Haydon Davidson remains out and we’ll be hugely reliant on Dan Selwyn, Dan Ash and a resurgent Jacob Richler Kleiman to get us going”.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
L’EQUIPE (from): Mark Glucksman, Mark Singer, David Prager, Nick Stern, , Josh Lewis, James Mandell, Rob Simmons, Andy Smith, Max Martin, Sam Sinclair, Jules Bohm, Gideon Chain, Tamir Grant, Richard Alexander, Jon Kay
OAKWOOD (from): Ben Buck, Dani Derrison, Ben Annis, Ilan Scorah, Ben Feingold, Jake Frener, Dan King, Dan Linton, Ben Loofe, James Abrams, Dan Seligman, Ben Lewis, Dan Ash, Dan Selwyn, Sam Modlin, Jordan Sherne, Rafi Bloom, Max Clynes, Jacob Richler-Kleiman
Venue – Old Finchleians, Ref – Phil Peters, KO – 10am
JC star man: Ben Lewis (Oakwood)
DC Prediction: L’Equipe 0 Oakwood 2
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FAITHFOLD A vs SCRABBLE FC
Faithfold have quietly opened a five-point lead at the top and having finished in seventh heaven against Raiders B last weekend, it’s a case of ‘bring on Scrabble’.
They scored at will against a good Raiders team, led by an inspired performance from Ben Shirbini, who will be given a licence to thrill again by boss Avi Markiewicz.
It was an enthralling display from start to finish, although Markiewicz will be keen to see an improvement at the back.
Faithfold have a 100 per cent record at home this season but Markiewicz will urge his players to win their individual and collective battles as they go in search of win number seven.
Scrabble never recovered from the concession of a third minute goal against lowly Redbridge C last weekend. Manager Ray Abrahams unleashed his hairdryer and threw a couple of teacups at half-time, and it got the reaction he was looking for as his side equalised, only to concede again right at the death.
Abrahams told me after “it was one of those games” and he was honest enough to admit his team fell short in several areas and got what they deserved.
Ahead of the trip to Edgware, Abrahams told JC Sport: “This game is massive for us as we have the opportunity to bounce back from this defeat against the league leaders and I will be looking for an immediate reaction from the players."
I don’t expect there to be much between the sides but am tipping home advantage to sway it.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
FAITHFOLD (from): Ben Gabay, Leor Harel, Joe Gordon, Avi Mocton, Gideon Caller, Avi Garson, Jonny Leiwy, Eli Shebson, Dovi Vogel, Aron Luftig, Jonny Gahan, David Leiwy, Louis Naghten, Avi Markiewicz, Sam Zerovabeli, Chaim Bordon, Ben Shirbini, Zalmy Cohen, Akiva Solomon, Gav Lewis
SCRABBLE (from): Dan Beresford, Jonny Mervish, Oli Richardson, Amit Kahana, Dan Green, Ben Cantopher, Lorian Madanes, Adam Newman, Adam Waters, Rupert Wood, Josh Pugh, Rob Rodney, Zac Summerfield, Dan Goldhill, Zac McLeod, Ben Krieger, Ben Bowers
Venue – The Hive, Ref – Martin De La Fuente, KO – 10am
JC star man: Gav Lewis (Faithfold)
DC Prediction: Faithfold 2 Scrabble 1
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REDBRIDGE JEWISH CARE B vs LOS BLANCOS
Los Blancos are going through a similar run to Spurs – the only problem is that they haven’t got Kane or Lamela to bail them out.
Back-to-back defeat to Faithfold and Oakwood has seen them slip into mid-table. Sunday will be a real test of their character and their manager will be asking ‘do we fancy it on a cold, dark morning in Essex?’
The Blancos boys will know promotion rivals Scrabble were put to the sword by Redbridge B and they will need to be on their guard to ensure they don’t come away second best, as it would be an even longer journey home empty-handed.
Yes Blancos have won both their away league matches, but this will be their toughest test. Mark my words …
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
RJC (from): Brad Grant, Dan Adelman, Paul Biller, Jon Fialka, Dan Lassman, James Law, Scott McKenzie, Dan Lipman, Adam Noble, Sam Rank, Antony Cope, Josh Hambling, Dan Gordon
BLANCOS (from): Gideon Rabstein, Josh Aziz, Joel Barnett, Marc Woolfe, Jake Doffman, Svi Freedman, Tim Heynes, Gav Krieger, James Kutner, Avishai Kestenbaum, Elliott Maslawy, Joe Davis, Daniel Sinclair, Josh Mizrahi, Alex Lewis, Josh Laurier, Simon Moses, Oliver Sade, Luke Strauss
Venue – Fairlop, Ref – David Lazarus, KO – 10am
JC star man: Sam Rank (RJC)
DC Prediction: Redbridge 1 Blancos 1
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TEMPLE FORTUNE A vs REDBRIDGE JEWISH CARE C
Simon Linden could have a sleepless night on Saturday worrying about the prospect of Mitch Hahn coming to Kingsbury.
Talisman Hahn inspired Redbridge to a win that busted many coupons up and down the land as the east Londoners put high-flying Scrabble to the sword.
But in the evergreen Lee Hyams, Linden has the perfect weapon to mark the man who captained his country at the 20th Maccabiah Games in Israel.
I said a couple of weeks ago Redbridge were in a false position but they shouldn’t expect Fortune to be pushovers. Linden will come with a game-plan to ensure his players refuse to be the clowns at a circus.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
FORTUNE (from): Lee Fegan, Lee Hyams, Jonathan Cohen, Ranana Firmin, Adam Speck, Brett Stead, Michael Goldberg, Michael Woolfe, Eshed Rahav, Connor Brand, Jason Lindsay, Gab Stone, Simon Linden, Dan Vandermolen
REDBRIDGE (from): Ben Rosenthal, Martin Sales, Martin Zartz, Sam Zartz, Dave Green, Jamie Danan, Jason Patmore, Adam Kemper, Jerome Marks, Darryl Green, Alex Aviram, Lee Cutler, Harrison Midda, Lewis Rackham, Ryan Silkman, Seth Warner, Mitch Hahn, Ashley Rubin
Venue – Silver Jubilee Park, Ref – Neal Cohen, KO – 10am
JC star man: Adam Speck (Fortune)
DC Prediction: Fortune 2 Redbridge 2
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DIVISION TWO
TOP-SCORERS
17 - Adam Ellis (Bayern Mincha)
16 - Zach Cohen (Mill Hill Dons)
CATFORD & BROMLEY MACCABI vs FC TEAM
The top of Division Two seems to change every week. Fairlop were top, then Catford, then Bayern and now Mill Hill Dons.
After an excellent start, Catford have had a bit of a wobble, with defeats against Raiders and Real Hendon. The goals have also dried up and that is something player-manager Jeff Gotch is keen to put right.
He told JC Sport: “So after a good win in the cup and three points gained last week without kicking a ball, we’re all fresh and raring to go.
“I’m glad to say we welcome back two long-term injuries this week in Stuart Harris and Ashley Stokes. They are giving me a real selection headache with no less than 20 players wanting to play.
“What’s getting me excited is the prospect of Alex Jacobs, Sam Reeves and Joel Lassman playing together for the first time, and most would agree that that middle three could mix it with the very best of the Prem.”
FC Team have hit form at just the right time. Mitch Young’s players are standing up and they know a win would lift them above the Cats, with a game in hand.
Jon Breger, Richard Salmon, Danny Moss and Young are among the form players as FC Team go in search of their sixth consecutive league win.
In terms of ingredients, this game ticks all the boxes. It should be a cracker.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
CATFORD (from): Guy Ben-Aroya, Richard Adams, Stuart Harris, Loz Bloom, Jeff Gotch, Mitch Green, Alex Jacobs, Joel Lassman, Callion McGregor, Yarden Sharon, Danny Yeshua, Richard Winton, Jason Shoffman, Ashley Stokes, Jamie Sinai, Sam Reeves, Ashley Stokes
TEAM (from): David Gordon, Jamie Breslaw, Eitan Ben-Zion, Jon Breger, Danny Moss, James Korn, Marc Hecht, James Milman, Adam Rones, David Grossman, Jamie Breslaw, Eddie Sternberg, Mitch Young, Richard Salmon, Dylan Young
Venue – Meadow Park, Ref – Steven Russell, KO – 10am
JC star man: Ash Stokes (Catford)
DC Prediction: Catford 1 Team 1
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MILL HILL DONS vs HERTSWOOD VALE
New league leaders Mill Hill Dons played with the wow factor in the top of the table clash against Bayern Mincha last week.
In the end it wasn’t a contest as they blew the table-toppers away with doubles from Adam Isaacs and Zach Cohen. Harry Moss was named man of the match, but it could really have been any one of 11 players from Brandon Hamme’s starting XI. They were really that good.
Josh Cinna has brought a real sense of calm to the defence since joining the club and I know of very few strikers in the division who would fancy their chances of beating him in a foot race.
Hertswood will be buoyed by their tremendous win at Raiders C. Ariel Weinstein enjoyed a dream goal-scoring debut, with Gal Alkalay adding the other.
I believe the Dons still have several more gears to find and see this as one of the weekend’s home bankers.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
DONS (from): Oli Burchell, Richard Reback, Adam Ben-Harosh, Josh Cinna, Sam Demby, Adam Morrow, Harry Moss, Jamie Nagioff, Nick Phillips, Adam Isaacs, Ryan Kramer, Zach Cohen, Harry Kalms, Brandon Hamme, Joel Sinclair-Horne, Jordan Rinsler, Sam Denby, Josh Moses, Adam Diamond, Joseph Reece, Jason Weldon
HERTSWOOD (from): Joni Hirschowitz, James Neidle Gal Alkalay, Josh Cohen, Simon Englander, Yehuda Fink, Theo Gluckstein, Josh Gorb, Harry Graham, Ashley Hirschburger, Sammy Huberman, Adrian Leibovitch, Jonty Schogger, Ben Chiltern, Danny Feuer, Jack Shulman, Josh Cohen, Simon Englander, Jordan Harris, Michael Elia, Isaac Segalov
Venue – Aycliffe Park, Ref – Bob Caplin, KO – 10am
JC star man: Nick Phillips (Dons)
DC Prediction: Dons 3 Hertswood 1
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NORTH LONDON RAIDERS C vs REAL HENDON
Both Raiders and Real had mornings to forget last Sunday, so I expect both sets of players to have an early night on Saturday and give their managers their full focus and commitment this time around.
Raiders were beaten by Hertswood Vale, with Ben Kaye's strike just about the only positive.
Real were taken apart by in-form Mill Hill Dons, and manager Martin Smulovitch could be tempted to rotate.
This is the beginning of an important part in Real's season. With matches against Temple Fortune and Faithfold to follow, their fans will be demanding a nine-point Chanukah.
But Smulovitch and co will be wary of the attacking weapons at the disposal of NLR boss Sam Rose.
I'm predicting an open and entertaining affair, with goals aplenty.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
RAIDERS (from): Joel Macadar, Alex Goodman, Matt Keston, David Domb, Adam Levenson, Sam Roth, Eyal Samovich, Joel Levitt, Callum Stein, Ricky Zeiderman, David Esterkin, Liam Stein, Ben Kaye, Nick Haringman, Alex Elf, Jonny Blain
REAL (from): Raffy Zysblatt, Ben Cohen, Ben Goldberg, Martin Smulovitch, Doron Shooter, Gilad Kestenbaum, Lolu Hibbert, Joe Goldberg, Zvi Noe, Hezzie Raymond, Motty Korman, Chaim Gothold, Adam Hersh, Lloyd Kafton, Gali Kolt, Chaim Strom, Gav Noe, Harley Patoffs, Jono Marks-Bluth
Ref – Stuart Ansher, KO – 10am
JC star man: Ben Goldberg (Real)
DC Prediction: Raiders 2 Real 2
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STRAW HAT PIRATES vs FAITHFOLD B
Pirates manager Elliot Cukier will identify the fixtures where they have to pick up points.
With Ethan Mooney and Aron Gale leading the line superbly, I can see their pace, trickery and movement keeping Faithfold on the backfoot. And I can also see the probing runs and energy of captain Ben Mandell ensuring they win the all-important midfield battle.
Faithfold have thrown in a couple of iffy performances recently, but they were much improved against Temple Fortune last weekend, despite not getting a result.
Manager David Garson knows Faithfold must make themselves harder to break down. And if that means the midfield dropping deeper to help the back line then so be it.
The Pirates are a team with a lot of talent and, at the very least, they give you everything - which is so important because it means they can play poorly, and still nick a result. And I think that will be the case on Sunday.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
PIRATES (from): David Wolinsky, Jake Yudelowitz, Sam Assil, Matt Cohen, Sam Cohen, Jono Nesbitt, Aron Gale, Gideon Gale, Solly Ishack, Ben Mandell, Jono Nesbitt, Joel Newman, Saul Tiano
FAITHFOLD (from): David Garson, David Garson, Mike Patterson, Josh Barnett, Ben Kfir, James Stanton, Yosef Brownson, Stuart Haring, Josh Martin, Ben Portnoi, Yitzy Hill, JJ Marrache, Rob Cohen, Yidy Gertner, Dan Yoss, David Kerzneris, Moishi Lewis, Nick Roman, Alex Weinfeld
Venue – Tempsford Green, Ref – Darryl Colman, KO – 10am
JC star man: Solly Ishack (Pirates)
DC Prediction: Pirates 3 Faithfold 2
