YOUR WEEKEND PREVIEW STARTS HERE:
CYRIL ANEKSTEIN CUP QUARTER-FINALS
MACCABI LONDON LIONS A vs HENDON UNITED SPORTS CLUB A
Hendon are on a revenge mission of sorts when they return to Rowley Lane – the scene of their recent Peter Morrison Trophy exit.
David Garbacz’s troops have conceded just once in their last four matches, but he knows they will need to hit the ground running after a four-week break when they take on Premier Division rivals Lions for a place in the last four of the League Cup.
2016 was a frustrating year for striker Dovi Fehler. He failed to maintain the high standards he has set himself, but I’m confident a change of year will bring with it a change of luck.
Zac Harris and Josh Harris have shared the burden of goal-scoring duties, with Lewis a strong contender for my Team of the Season.
Ari Last and Simon Peterman will be looking to impress in the key midfield battles, against what is expected to be a beefed up Lions team.
Looking ahead to kick-off, Garbacz told JC Sport: “We are fully aware of what a tough test this cup tie is. Lions are a vastly improving team as their recent results have shown in the league and with their vast numbers to call upon I am sure they will field a very strong side.
“I am expecting a particularly close match and one that will be competitive all over the park with a big semi- final place up for grabs.
“We haven’t played for a number of weeks and the boys are desperate to play football again. Actually the break has done us good as we had a number of injuries pre-Chanukah but now everyone has declared themselves available for this week which is a huge boost.
“We are still smarting at the loss in the Morrison a few weeks ago – it hurt badly going out of that competition and we will be doing absolutely everything to make sure we don’t make it two Rowley Lane exits in a row.”
The Lions produced a stirring comeback against Raiders last weekend, with Ben Lampert smashing home the JC Goal of the Week from fully 40 yards.
Defender Alex Taylor was the star performer on the day, with Jamie Jackson adding another goal to his tally. James Gershfield was forced to take the gloves, but either James Harpin or Declan Green, who recently returned to the club, could start in nets.
Gaffer Garbacz will be hoping his players didn’t overdo the doughnuts over Chanukah as I can see this going to extra-time, and beyond.
JC team news: Hendon have a full strength squad available with exception of Rocky Spitzer. Moses Seitler is available
----------------------
FORM GUIDE
LIONS - WLWLW
HENDON - WWWDW
----------------------
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
LIONS – Brady (a), FC Team (a), FC Team (a)
HENDON – Woodford (h), Oakwood (h)
----------------------
TOP-SCORERS
LIONS - James Gershfield, Jamie Jackson, Adam Arnold 4
HEN – Zac Lewis 16
----------------------
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
LIONS (from): James Harpin, Declan Green, David Sacal, David Slovik, Adam Arnold, Will Beresford, Alex Taylor, Richard Gold, Ryan Springer, Ben Lampert, Oli Craig, Max Hassell, Jamie Jackson, , Harry Marlow, Sam Sloma, Alex Rose, Elliot Stern, Adam Burchell, Max Kyte, Adam Stolerman, Sam Arghebant, James Gold, Udi Amiel
HENDON (from): Russell Corin, Greg Corin, Alex Rosenthal, Zac Garbacz, Ben Kon, Avi Korman, Yehuda Korman, Ari Last, Simon Peterman, Ari Nevies, Dovi Fehler, Josh Harris, Zac Lewis, Moses Seitler
----------------------
Venue – Rowley Lane, Ref – Martin De La Fuente, KO – 10am
JC star man: Russ Corin (Hendon)
DC Prediction: Lions 1 Hendon 1 (Hendon to win on penalties)
----------------------
----------------------
NORTH LONDON RAIDERS A vs MACCABI LONDON LIONS B
You can bet your bottom dollar Sam Marchant has been picking the brains of Ryan Springer and Will Beresford at this week’s training session at Rowley Lane in the build-up to Sunday’s trip to Raiders.
Shooting practice will also be on the menu following Ben Lampert’s wonder strike which flew over the helpless Jake Doffman, handing Lions A a famous 4-3 win over last season’s champions.
With another title challenge gone, the cups offer NLR’s only chance of success this season, something they are more than capable of doing bearing in mind they have attacking options including Matt Stock, Liron Mannie, Ben Ellis, Jordan Marks and David Dinkin.
Injuries to the likes of club stalwart David Rhodes and Jonny Kaye have made things tougher than expected for manager Dan Shafron, but he isn’t hitting the panic button just yet.
Lions B have nothing to lose on Sunday. Well-placed to kick on for promotion, they are dangerous opponents for the holders and they certainly won’t have any inferiority complexes, despite playing in a division below.
The front pairing of Mike Kenley and Josh Bloom would ask questions of any defence, with Benji Weinberger pulling the strings behind them.
But with home advantage, I expect Raiders’ big match players to step up and take them through.
----------------------
FORM GUIDE
NLR - LWDWD
LIONS - LWLWD
----------------------
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
NLR – Redbridge (a), SPEC (h)
LIONS – Oakwood (h), Hendon (h), Blancos (a)
----------------------
TOP-SCORERS
NLR – Liron Mannie 13
LIONS – Josh Bloom, Michael Kenley 7
----------------------
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
NLR (from): : Jake Doffman, Josh Morris, Alex Bloch, David Rhodes, JJ Spiro, David J Cohen, Joe Cohen, David Dinkin, Adam Gold, Jonathan Rochwerger, Joe Cohen, Nick Lewis, Matthew Stock, Liron Mannie, Nyv Bogaire, Ben Ellis, Jordan Marks, David Nezri
LIONS (from): Marc Brahams, James Harpin, Nathan Anders, Dan Green, Sammy Kingston, Daniel Behar, Edward Brafman, Charlie Cohen, Daniel Fattal, Dom Feldman, Benji Weinberger, Elia Cohen, Michael Kenley, Josh Bloom, Dean Rosenthal, Adam Abadi, Sean Ekon, Ben Winters, Harry Kurlander
----------------------
Venue - Capital City, Ref – Mark Jacob, KO – 10am
JC star man: Matt Stock (Raiders)
DC Prediction: Raiders 2 Lions 1
----------------------
----------------------
REDBRIDGE JEWISH CARE A vs CAMDEN PARK
Redbridge won’t need me to remind them that they lost their last match against Camden Park. That should be motivation enough to send them into the semis.
They lost their last two matches of 2016 and most of their squad hasn’t taken any action for a while, other than Sam Sollosi and Ryan Cole who have inspired RJC B to the top of the table.
Jon Jacobs’s men haven’t kept a clean sheet since October 16 – a 3-0 win over Camden, when Dean Nyman (2) and Sollosi eased them home.
Redbridge lacked quality and cutting edge in their recent most meeting with Camden who defended the edge of their area superbly.
Camden have failed to score in their last two matches, something that has held them back all season. They were second best against Oakwood last week and only some poor finishing saved them from a heavy defeat. They finished the game with 10 men after Max Saunders received a second yellow.
Redbridge have a fantastic record on their own patch this season. They will look to move the ball forward quickly and I really fancy them to progress.
----------------------
FORM GUIDE
RJC - LLWWW
CAM - LLWLW
----------------------
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
RJC – Raiders (h), Manchester (h), Brady (a)
CAM – SPEC (a), RC UK (h), Woodford (h)
----------------------
TOP-SCORERS
RJC – Sam Sollosi 7
CAM – Josh Marks 3
----------------------
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
RJC (from): Jay Jaffa, Dan Lee, James Berkley, Russell Goldstein, Adam Hakimi, Danny Hakimi, Nate Kashket, Sam McCarthy, Darryl Rubin, Nathan Sollosi, Daniel Garfinkle, Steve Summers, Dean Nyman
CAM (from): Steve Murad, Dan Baneth, Kane Gilbery, Rick Harris, Robert Hershkorn, Nick Kagan, David Kanzen, David Khalastchi, Michael Khalastchi, Alon Hershkorn, Jake Saunders, Max Saunders, Ezra Zipper, Sacha Nusenbaum, Hadrian Darman, Max Gordon, Johann Jordi, Josh Marks
----------------------
LAST MEETING: Camden won 2-1
Venue – Old Parkonians, Ref – David Lazarus, KO – 10am
JC star man: Russell Goldstein (RJC)
DC Prediction: Redbridge 3 Camden 0
----------------------
----------------------
SCRABBLE FC vs FINCHLEY CITY
Revenge appears to be the common theme in most of my quarter-final previews, and there’s another one here.
Finchley City dominated the backpages of the JC following their recent 5-2 drubbing of Scrabble. There were pitch invasions and some really good finishing on show on a day when everything clicked for Joel Holder’s boys.
Sitting four points ahead of Scrabble in Division One, Finchley have a front three to rivals Barca’s Messi, Suarez and Neymar in Oli Sade, Dan Polak and Jono Gaon. They pulled the Scabble defence all over the place last time and with the big prize of a day out at Wingate & Finchley within touching distance they will be out to impress once more.
The incentive couldn't be bigger for Finchley boss Joel Holder and his boys. He told JC Sport: "Sunday is a truly massive game for us. This will be the third time we have played Scrabble this season and I am expecting a big reaction from them after our league game in December.
"The whole squad is available for selection, which makes it extremely difficult to pick the starting XI. The collective effort of everyone has been superb over the last two months which has been great to see.
"The boys haven't played for a few weeks and are very much looking forward to this. I believe we are capable of going all the way in this competition.
"It will be a much closer game on Sunday, but if we replicate the same level of discipline and commitment we showed last time, I expect to see us in the hat for the semi-final."
Scrabble have conceded too many goals for manager Ray Abrahams’s liking this season. Even with a top keeper like Ben Law and the equally experienced Josh Bentley, they are taking slightly longer than expected to adjust to the higher standard of Division One, but in a one-off game only a brave man would bet against them.
Ahead of kick-off, Abrahams told JC Sport: "What bigger incentive do we need than a place in the Cup semi-finals? Our lads will be well up for this one and we also have a big score to settle with Finchley after that league defeat to them a few weeks ago.
"That game and our 2-1 win against them earlier in the season will count for nothing though when the players cross the white line on Sunday because those games are history and we start 0-0.
"Finchley are in great form at the moment as their climb up the league demonstrates, but we've got a group of players who on our day can beat anyone and we are really looking forward to this one.
"Hopefully the weather won't turn the the game into a lottery as we are both sides that like to play the game the right way and with a bit of flair.
"Whatever the result it is great that a Division One team will be in the semi-final draw when it's made."
Finchley may be the form team, but the league is the priority for them and I can see Scrabble exacting a little revenge and joining the big boys in the hat for the last four. Why, because their experienced players know they have to deliver.
----------------------
FORM GUIDE
SCRAB - LWWDW
FINCH - WWWWW
----------------------
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
SCRAB - Bilbaum (h), Oakwood (h)
FINCH – Faithfold (a), Bilbaum (a), Raiders (h)
----------------------
TOP-SCORERS
SCRAB – Josh Bharier 8
FINCH - Oliver Sade 10
----------------------
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
SCRABBLE (from): Ben Law, Josh Bentley, Dan Stock, Zac Summerfield, Josh Tiano, Josh Bharier, Dan Green, Rob Blackman, Elliot Espinoza, Josh Pugh, Brandon Sasson, Zac McLeod, Josh Pugh, Danny Sherman, Adam Newman, Andrew Cohen, Josh Flax, Sam Stead
FINCHLEY (from): Yossi Lanning, Josh Aziz, Shim Bensoor, Eli Davila, Josh Gaon, Josh Kanter, Rafi Kon, Gabriel Krieger, Oliver Sade, Daniel Sinclair, Jono Gaon, Dan Polak, Moshe Fehler, Daniel Kozielek, Sam Leader
----------------------
LAST MEETING: Finchley won 5-2
Venue – Capital City, Ref – Andy Myerson, KO – 9.45am
JC star man: Danny Sherman (Scrabble)
DC Prediction: Scrabble 2 Finchley 1
----------------------
----------------------
PREMIER DIVISION
FC TEAM A vs BRADY MACCABI
FC Team are much-improved from the side that was thumped 8-2 by Brady earlier in the season.
Three wins in their last five games have put the smile back on Mitch Young’s face, and he’s confident the partnership between Richard Salmon and Connor Perl will test the Brady defence.
Salmon was back to his best in the demolition of SPEC FC last week, earning a place in JC Team of the Week along with Young.
Josh Newman was Brady’s saviour against Woodford Wanderers last weekend. He came off the bench to turn the game on it’s head with a deadly double and must surely be in contention for a place in the starting XI.
The sides are locked on 13 points, although Team have a game in hand. They have a tough run of matches after Sunday and will be looking to come through with maximum points and no more injuries.
I can see the game coming down to small details and will tip the hosts to nick the points.
----------------------
FORM GUIDE
TEAM - WLWWL
BRADY - WWLLL
----------------------
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
TEAM – Lions (h), Lions (h)
BRADY – Lions (h), SPEC (a), Redbridge (h)
----------------------
TOP-SCORERS
TEAM – Richard Salmon 8
BRADY - Reiss Mogilner 12
----------------------
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
TEAM (from): Ed Bloom, Alan Aaronson, Dan Breger, Andrei Grayson, David Grossman, Lorian Madanes, Danny Moss, Connor Perl, Adam Rones, James Stanley, Richard Salmon, Brad Cohen, Mitch Young, Tom Miller, Danny Moss, Jason Wood, Nick Russell, Connor Perl
BRADY (from): Josh Miller, Jordan Nathan, Henry Ziff, Dan Cohen, David Cohen, Eli Dagul, Brad Dryer, Reiss Mogilner, Sam Monjack, Sam Castle, Ricky Rinder, Dan Harrod, Josh Newman, Casey Sharpe
----------------------
LAST MEETING: Brady won 8-2
Venue – Harefield Academy 3G, Ref – Darryl Colmans, KO – 10am
JC star man: Adam Rones (Team)
DC Prediction: FC Team 2 Brady 1
----------------------
----------------------
WOODFORD WANDERERS vs OAKWOOD A
A quick glance at the form guide and it won’t take a genius to tell you who I’m tipping to win.
Maximum points for Oakwood would take them tops and that’d be the perfect preparation for their crunch clash against title rivals Hendon next week.
Brad Wine was their match-winner again while Leor Sidle produced another excellent performance in his second outing for the club. Could he be the man to turn Oakwood from nearly men into the real deal? Only time will tell.
Oakwood have now kept five clean sheets in the league, and they look good for another in east London against a team who pushed them all the way in November.
Oaks joint-manager Dan Kristall told JC Sport: "We look forward to the long trip to Essex. The last time we met Woodford, we almost tripped up. It was a late Warner corner that day so we know that we will have to bring our A game on Sunday.
"We know that a win takes us to the top of the league and even if that is temporary, it is where we are aiming to be after 18 games."
Woodford have lost five on the spin. They were five minutes away from what would have been an impressive win against Brady, only to come unstuck in the last five minutes.
Boss Daryl Kay described the defeat as a “bitter pill to swallow” but he knows his players will be up against it from the off on Sunday.
"After last week’s disappointing result against Brady, this week’s game against Oakwood seems a hell of a lot tougher than it should be," Kay told JC Sport.
"That said, we pushed them all the way the last time we played them so hopefully playing on grass will be a leveller for us.
"If we play the way we played last week, and against Oakwood a few weeks ago, we could get something form this match."
Oakwood have a far superior team on paper, and I can see that being the case on grass too.
JC team news: Woodford are missing James Ryan while Harrison Midda will have a late fitness test, although "it doesn’t look promising". Elliott Gold is also unavailable through injury but they welcome back new centre back Adam Kempner, "who made his debut in the reverse of this fixture and has proved to me a valuable player".
The Oakwood squad will be tested with quite a few injury concerns, although they welcome back Dave Woolman after his extended holiday. Ben Lauffer is also set to return to the squad although Guy Helman will miss out through injury.
----------------------
FORM GUIDE
WOOD - LLLLL
OAK - WWWWD
----------------------
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
WOOD – Hendon (a), Camden (a)
OAK – Hendon (a)
----------------------
TOP-SCORERS
WOOD – Tom Alexander 4
OAK – David Woolman 7
----------------------
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
WOODFORD (from): Ben Rosenthal, Adam Shafron, Jerome Marks, Paul Biller, Alex Aviram, Ricky Fox, Darryl Green, David Green, Jason Patmore, James Ryan, Tom Alexander, Ryan Silkman, Dan Wexler
OAKWOOD (from): Dean Caplin, David Cohen, Kyle Bentwood, Dale Bradman, Pete Warner, Guy Helman, Brad Wine, Sam Cantor, Zach Collins, Thomas Prais, Ben Lauffer, David Woolman, Jonny Quinn, Dan Rose, Leor Sidle, Rafi Stone, Luke Brookner
----------------------
LAST MEETING: Oakwood won 1-0
Venue - Fairlop, Ref – Neal Cohen, KO – 10am
JC star man: Dan King (Oakwood)
DC Prediction: Woodford 0 Oakwood 3
----------------------
----------------------
DIVISION ONE
ATHLETIC BILBAUM vs REDBRIDGE JEWISH CARE B
Redbridge B will be looking to extend their winning record to eight matches when they make the trip around the A406 for their meeting with Athletic Bilbaum.
They have been boosted by the presence of Sam Sollosi over the past couple of games, but he will be absent on Sunday, after becoming an uncle to his big brother Ben. (Ed. Mazel tov from everyone at the JC to the Sollosi family).
The Essex boys blew Los Blancos away last weekend, with Joe Jordan going home with the matchball after registering another hat-trick.
Sam Rank’s men will look upon the next three matches as very winnable – Bilbaum and Faithfold, followed by the return leg against the Baums. Believe me, this group is capable of going the season undefeated in the league.
Looking ahead of the game, Rank told JC Sport: "This Sunday is all about keeping the momentum going. RJC B have the only 100 per cent record in MGBFSL left this season, and our objective for this Sunday is to keep that intact.
"Bilbaum are a very hard-working side and they will put us under a lot of pressure, so if we do not turn up with the right attitude and mentality, we might be in trouble.
"However, the boys trained very well this week and I am very confident the attitude, mentality and commitment will be their for Sunday to keep the momentum going.
"I'm looking forward to a good contest, with RJC B's quality being the main divide between the sides."
Bilbaum won last time out and it’s worth remembering they took a point off Lions at Rowley Lane not so long ago, but Redbridge have the momentum and I can see them producing their Sunday best at the Lodge.
JC team news: RJC have a few players missing this week. Richie Caplin (on wife duty), Seth Walmer (hamstring), Kane Hopps is out with an injury caught on his scouting trip in Thailand, and Alex and Ben Chernoff still out due to scouting trips and injuries. Other than this RJC will be at full-strength.
----------------------
FORM GUIDE
BIL - WLWDL
RJC - WWWLW
----------------------
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
BIL – Scrabble (a), Finchley (h)
RJC – Faithfold (h), Bilbaum (h)
----------------------
TOP-SCORERS
BIL – Ben Bell 4
RJC – Joe Jordan 4
----------------------
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
BILBAUM (from): Ben Bell, Jacob Brunner, Ben Cantopher, Sam Deaner, Jamie Fireman, Daniel Goldhill, Jonah Gordon-Boyd, Eli Gottlieb, Julius Judah, Ben Lewis, Rob Rodney, Jamie Fireman, Jay Rosenthal, Nick Shinder, Barnaby Powell
RJC (from): Scott Shear, Daniel Andrews, Daniel Bean, Ryan Cole, Scott Kay, Sam Moss, Matt Berkley, Anthony Cope, Brad Gayer, Adam Goldman, Adam Noble, Sam Rank, Joe Jordan
----------------------
Venue – Chase Lodge, Ref – Daniel Fox, KO – 10am
JC star man: Matt Berkley (RJC)
DC Prediction: Bilbaum 1 Redbridge 3
----------------------
----------------------
LOS BLANCOS vs NORTH LONDON RAIDERS B
Raiders have not played in over a month, so they will be nice and fresh for the challenges that lie ahead in the new year.
They have a good run of games and will be confident of taking maximum points from forthcoming encounters against Blancos twice, with Hendon B sandwiched in the middle.
L’Orange have a nice sprinkling of experience in key positions, and some recent arrivals have given them added strength in depth.
They found things tough at the back-end of 2016, with a draw against Scrabble followed by a defeat against table-toppers Redbridge B, but I expect them to get back on Sunday.
Blancos are mid-table but they should have enough to avoid being dragged into the relegation dog-fight.
They were played off the park by Redbridge last weekend but Nick Grosse’s boys have shown enough in recent outings against Faithfold and Oakwood to tell me that everything will be okay.
No doubt they will try to make things difficult for Raiders but I think the visitors will have too much on the day.
----------------------
FORM GUIDE
LB - LWWLL
NLR - LDWWL
----------------------
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
LB – Raiders (a), Lions B (h)
NLR – Hendon B (a), Blancos (h), Finchley (a)
----------------------
TOP-SCORERS
LB – Adam Hersh 5
NLR – Nicky Woolf, Will Ulfand 6
----------------------
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
BLANCOS: Nick Grosse, Joel Barnett, Sam Cramer, Joe Davis, Svi Freedman, Josh Gertner, Tim Heynes, Benjy Israel, Avishai Kestenbaum, Josh Landy, Alex Lewis, Elliott Moslawy, Josh Cramer, Adam Hersh, Jeff Gross, James Joseph
NLR (from): David Simnock, Ben Sheldon, Matt Leader, Mark Leader, Lewis Blitz, Anthony Goodmaker, Anthony Shaw, Danny Bloom, Charles Braunstein, Jake Gilbert, Alex Goodman, Elad Hertshten, Jack Roberts, Josh Alswang, Toby Katz, Sam Shooter, Will Ufland, Ziv Berreby
----------------------
Venue - Hertswood, Ref – Martin Fox, KO – 10am
JC star man: Charles Braunstein (Raiders)
DC Prediction: Blancos 1 Raiders 2
----------------------
----------------------
OAKWOOD B vs HENDON UNITED SPORTS CLUB B
Oakwood have slipped down the table, but Jason Stein has been lifted by Manchester United’s revival and they will be looking to start 2017 in style, with three key players returning.
Four different players featured on the scoresheet when they beat Hendon 4-2 in October, although one of them, Jacob Richler-Kleiman, has since departed.
Oakwood have been inconsistent at Breakspear, winning two and losing three in the league, and the message will be loud and clear from gaffer Stein ahead of kick-off.
He told JC Sport: “It’s nice to be back after a restful Chanukah. We’re looking forward to the game on Sunday and honouring the outgoing Obama with a win.
"I'm hopeful the next few weeks will signal a return to form and Oakwood B ‘Will Be Great Again’."
Hendon have found the going very tough this season. They played well in patches against Bilbaum last time out, but they don’t frighten teams away from home.
I’m sure Jono Gaon and James Neidle will set them up to be hard to break down, but Oakwood will be hard to stop.
JC team news: Oakwood look strong after the winter break, with midfielders James Frener, Aaron Searle and Dan Selwyn all available.
----------------------
FORM GUIDE
OAK - LLLWW
HEN - LLLLL
----------------------
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
OAK – Lions B (a), Scrabble (h), Faithfold (h)
HEN – Raiders (h), Lions B (a), Scrabble (h)
----------------------
TOP-SCORERS
OAK – Rafi Bloom 5
HEN – Gid Barth 4
----------------------
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
OAKWOOD (from): Harris Kersh, Danni Dennison, James Frener, Dan Linton, Jan Katuscak, James Abrams, Ben Annis, Ben Buck, Max Clynes, Dan King, Ben Loofe, Sam Modlin, Aaron Searle, Daniel Seligman, Daniel Selwyn, Marc Hyamson, Rafi Bloom
HENDON (from): Yehuda Fink, Gideon Barth, Marc Benamram, Gideon Gale, Oliver Garbacz, Stuart Harris, Ezekiel Jacob, James Neidle, Jono Nesbitt, Matan Ozin, Gabriel Saul, Daniel Holder, Adam Glekin, Ronen Weinstein
----------------------
LAST MEETING: Oakwood won 4-2
Venue – Nicholas Breakspear, Ref – Martin Lavender, KO – 10am
JC star man: Marc Hyamson (Oakwood)
DC Prediction: Oakwood 3 Hendon 1
----------------------
----------------------
DIVISION TWO
MILL HILL DONS vs REAL HENDON
Mill Hill were not clinical enough against Redbridge C last week, and they were made to pay the ultimate price.
No doubt shooting practice has been on the menu for the Dons in training this week, and boss Brandon Hamme is confident his men will produce the good for the visit of Real.
Speaking exclusively to JC Sport from the club’s snow-bound training ground, Hamme commented: “I'm struggling to work out how we lost last week's game against Redbridge.
“We were extremely unlucky, especially in the first half when we could have quite easily killed off the game if we had finished our chances.
“This week we need to make sure we are more clinical in front of goal if we are going to get all three points.
“We may have beaten Real Hendon last time we faced them but we are not expecting an easy fixture. In that game we scraped a win late on and saw much less of the ball than our opponents.
Harry Moss bagged a brace on Matchday 16, and Hamme will encourage his in-form man to get forward at every opportunity in a game where I’m predicting goals.
Hamme said: “We will need to be back to our best in order to get the win but I feel confident that the boys will put last week's disappointment behind them on Sunday and put in a solid performance.”
Real boss Chaim Gothold fears a lack of match sharpness could count against his team on Sunday. His team had no answer to the brilliance of Zach Cohen in the first meeting and they could find things just as tough second time around.
Gothold told JC Sport: “We’re short on numbers and haven't played for a while, which isn't a great combination, but we are looking forward to it.”
This is still a game the Dons will expect to get something from, and rightly so.
JC team news: Zach Perez, Ben Bazini and Harry Cohen remain out with injuries.
----------------------
FORM GUIDE
DONS - LWWLW
REAL - WLWLL
----------------------
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
DONS – Catford (a), Raiders (h)
REAL – Catford (h), Redbridge (a)
----------------------
TOP-SCORERS
DONS – Zack Cohen 5
REAL – Chaim Gothold 4
----------------------
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
DONS: Sam Singer, Adam Ben-Harosh, Zach Cohen, Richard Hayim, Adam Isaacs, Josh Moses, Harry Moss, Jamie Nagioff, Mikey Salem, James Segal, Joel Sinclair-Horne, Adam Diamond, Ryan Kramer, Adam Morrow, Nicholas Phillips, Jason Weldon
REAL: Dov Owen, Rafi Addlestone, Ben Cohen, Ben Goldberg, Joe Goldberg, Lollu Hibbert, Lloyd Kafton, Doron Marks, Gav Noe, Hezzie Raymond, Chaim Strom, Mannie Field, Ben Cohen, Richard Cohen, Gilad Kestenbaum, Chaim Gothold, Benni Sluckis
----------------------
LAST MEETING: Dons won 4-3
Venue – Mill Hill Park, Ref – Mike Cowan, KO – 10am
JC star man: Joel Sinclair-Horne (Dons)
DC Prediction: Dons 3 Real 2
----------------------
----------------------
NORTH LONDON RAIDERS C vs CATFORD & BROMLEY MACCABI
There is little more than pride at stake on Sunday when Raiders C host Catford & Bromley, but going by the pre-match talk, there’s no love lost between the sides.
L’Orange were bang on their game when the teams met in November, with Liam Stein, Alex Elf and Eyal Samovich running them a merry dance.
Despite their surprisingly low league position, Samo has been one of the leading lights in the division and he could be a dark horse to make my end-of-season top team from Division Two.
Both teams are struggling for form, but Raiders boss Sam Rose told JC Sport that his troops will need little by way of inspirational words from him before the game.
"We’re looking for a strong performance,” Rose told JC Sport. “Catford are a team we normally bring our A-game for after our recent cup and league games against them and we'll be looking for more of the same on Sunday.
“Catford should expect the team they played in those games, not the team they've been reading about in recent weeks.”
Catford manager Jeff Gotch is aware losing to a team below them in the table is not going to improve his prospects. And he wasn't the only one to come away from the game against Boca Jewniors shaking his head.
I just get the impression with Raiders that games like this get them going and they will show their true colours on Sunday.
JC team news: Raiders have a strong team of 14 ready for Sunday's game against Catford and are carrying no fresh injuries.
----------------------
FORM GUIDE
NLR - LLLDW
CAT - LLLLL
----------------------
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
NLR – Faithfold (a), Hertswood (h)
CAT – Real (a), MH Dons (h)
----------------------
TOP-SCORERS
NLR – Alex Elf, Alex Sher, Rob Samuelson 4
CAT – Jeff Gotch 7
----------------------
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
NLR (from): Jacob Ailion, Jonny Blain, Nick Haringman, Adam Leveson, Eyal Samovich, Robert Samuelson, Alex Sherr, Liam Stein, Ricky Zeiderman, David Domb, Dan Lovat, Oli Telvi
CATFORD (from): Guy Ben-Aroya, Lawrence Bloom, Jeff Gotch, Jordan Grant, Joel Lassman, Callion MacGregor, Adam Parker, Yarden Sharon, Jason Shoffman, Richard Winton, Daniel Yeshua, Tal Cohen, Gavin Fox, Alex Newman, Lioz Tov
----------------------
LAST MEETING: Raiders won 6-0
Venue – Brunel, Ref – Steven Russell, KO – 10am
JC star man: Ricky Zeiderman (Raiders)
DC Prediction: Raiders 3 Catford 2
----------------------
----------------------
RC UK FC vs FAITHFOLD B
There’s a big crowd anticipated at the Grove as promotion rivals RC UK FC entertain Faithfold.
The Greens will certainly be hoping for a different outcome than the reverse fixture where they were thumped heavily on home soil. Although that proved to be a turning point in the season for them as they have not lost a league game since.
The game is poised to be a high-scoring one, with the Jewish football league's three top goal-scorers on show. However, pursuers Avi Markiewicz and Jonti Aremband will feel devastated that a handful of their goals have be chalked off after FC Team B folded, conveniently giving Richard Fogelman breathing space at the top of the charts. During midweek, ‘Schnitzelman’ narrowly missed out on the Ballon D’or trophy to rival Cristiano Ronaldo, blaming "tactical voting".
Faithfold have been busy in the January transfer window. Yoss Brownson has arrived from Brixton Old Boys and Joshua Benzadon signs for an undisclosed fee from Mill Hill Dons. JJ Marrache was linked to a move abroad but the paperwork didn't go through in time so the move has fallen through.
Speaking ahead of the game, co-manager David Garson told JC Sport he was delighted with the transfer business so far: "Hopefully they can hit the ground running." He also wanted to reassure Faithfold fans across the country he is not going anywhere following speculation over his future at the club, "I am simply not far sale".
RC UK start the match two points ahead of Faithfold. They didn’t want 2016 to end after winning their last three matches, and they haven’t conceded for over 270 minutes.
Avi Markiewicz’s men have added defensive steeliness to their geggenpressing style and their offer of a cup of chicken soup and lockshen for every home fan is sure to result in a sizzling atmosphere.
The head-to-head between Markiewicz and Fogelman will be worth the admission fee alone, so if you’re brave enough to venture down you won’t be disappointed.
JC team news: Reminiscent of the Odemwingie transfer farce, JJ Marrache finds himself in Jerusalem without a new club. The ever-present Ben Kfir misses his first game of the season. James Stanton, Louis Taylor, Sam Garson and Jon Posener won't be featuring “as they have been called up to represent Ivory Coast in the African Cup of Nations”.
----------------------
FORM GUIDE
RC UK - WWWLW
FAITHFOLD - WDLDW
----------------------
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
RC UK – Redbridge C (a), Camden Park (a), Hertswood (a)
FAITHFOLD – Raiders C (h), Fortune (h), L’Equipe (a)
----------------------
TOP-SCORERS
RC UK – Avi Markiewicz 16
FAITHFOLD – Richard Fogelman 23
----------------------
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
RC UK (from): Nati Kind, Jonti Aremband, David Brown, Gideon Caller, Avi Mocton, Zalmy Cohen, Leor Harel, Jake Lewis, Eli Shebson, Aaron Luftig, Avi Markiewicz, Josh Marlow, Akiva Solomons, Dovid Edreyi, Josh Shaffer, Avraham Levy
FAITHFOLD (from): David Garson, David Benaim, Avi Garson, Josh Garson, JJ Marrache, Raphael Meyers, Michael Patterson, Richard Fogelman, Tomer Weider,Daniel Lowen, Louis Taylor, Jeremy Teacher, Dan Abrahams, Yehuda Emanuel, Yoss Brownson, Joshua Benzadon
----------------------
LAST MEETING: RC UK won 7-0
Venue – Ludgrove Playing Fields, Ref – Barry David, KO – 10am
JC star man: Mike Patterson
DC Prediction: RC UK 3 Faithfold 2
----------------------
----------------------
REDBRIDGE JEWISH CARE C vs L’EQUIPE
This could be one of the games of the season as Redbridge attempt to become the first team to beat runaway leaders L’Equipe in the league this season.
L’Equipe boss Nick Stern cut a frustrated figure when their scheduled match against Raiders C was called off late on, but it’s back to business for the team that has set the standard thus far.
In a candid interview with JC Sport, Stern remarked: “We have moved on from last week and are very excited to get back playing football again. It has been far too long since we last played and my team is ready to take out their frustration this weekend on one of our main rivals for the title.
“We know how difficult it is to play away at Redbridge, let alone come away with a victory, but I have the squad available this week to put us in the best position to make that happen.
“For the first time in a long time I am able to take a full squad across to Essex and that just shows how important this game is.
“I will have some seriously tough decision to make but know that the squad I take there will be up for the challenge and competing against a very good Redbridge side.
“If we stick to what we have done all season then we will be in with a chance.”
There is talk of Daniel Garfinkle, nicknamed the Usain Bolt of Jewish football, being present on Sunday as RJC target revenge, though I’m not sure if that’d just to get more bums on seats at the ground.
RJC gaffer Josh Hambling was on top form in his pre-match presser as he looks to settle a score. He told JC Sport: “After a good win last week against a decent Mill Hill team, the boys are in great spirits going into this weekend.
“You can't really say much about L'Equipe except they obviously have a way of playing that seems to work to their strengths which has led to the consistency needed to put them at the top of the table.
“When we played them last time we felt hard done by as we outclassed them first half but just didn't turn up in the second half.
“We know they're a larger than average team, so we need to be at our physical best to cope with long balls and set-pieces. I think any Essex team relishes this type of challenge.”
Hambling is confident that home advantage will play a part in what would be a famous win.
He went on to say: “If we can deal with that then I'm confident of walking away with three points. It does help that we are playing on a pitch bigger than their seven-a-side ground. When you see Bradley Grant kicking it past the half way line it always gets a cheer!”
“I've got a full squad to choose from and selection will be tough as a couple of boys are back. I somehow need to select 14-15 from 20. I know the A's and potentially the B's will be down to watch this top-of-the-table clash, so I'm sure the lads will want to impress. Rumour has it Dan Garfinkle has been ordered to run the line by Jon Jacobs!
RJC have the 3G at Seven Kings School on standby should Old Parks be called off Saturday “which looks most likely”.
Fans are advised to arrive early as the cold snap has hit east London. As for a prediction, RJC are unbeaten at home, L’Equipe haven’t lost an away game in the league … I’m prepared to put my neck on the line and say a L’Equipe smash and grab is on the cards.
----------------------
FORM GUIDE
RJC - WLWDL
L’EQUIPE - WWWWW
----------------------
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
RJC – RC UK FC (h), Real Hendon (h), Catford (a)
L’EQUIPE – Temple Fortune (h), Faithfold (h)
----------------------
TOP-SCORERS
RJC – Jimmy Castle 6
L’EQUIPE – Max Martin 9
----------------------
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
RJC (from): Josh Hambling, Daniel Jacobs, Jacob Kaye, Dan Lipman, Daniel Lassman, James Law, Nathan Mehlman, Rafe Neiman, Craig Phillips, Richard Rosenthal, Jamie Crawford, Barry Green, Amir Nathan, Sam Zarts
L’EQUIPE (from): Marc Glucksman, Tamir Grant, Jonathan Kay, Josh Lewis, James Mandell, Max Martin, David Prager, Andy Smith, Mark Smith, Grant Bates, Rob Simons, Scott Bennett
----------------------
Venue – Old Parkonians, Ref – Luke Steele, KO – 10am
JC star man: Marc Glucksman (L’Equipe)
DC Prediction: Redbridge 1 L’Equipe 2
----------------------
ALSO SEE:
