Hatton late show keeps Maccabi flying high - The Jewish Chronicle

CHESMAN LEAGUE DIVISION ONE

MANCHESTER MACCABI 1st 2 GREENFINCH FC 1

Greenfinch, took the lead in the first half, capitalising on uncertainty at the back and were good value for their lead.

Maccabi pressed in the first half but simply couldn’t unlock the well-organised defence.

The second half continued in the same vein, with Maccabi huffing and puffing but simply unable to blow Greenfinch’s house down.

Goal-line clearance after heroic defending preserved Greenfinch’s lead, until Toby Levy knocked it home to equalise with a quarter of an hour remaining, giving Maccabi hope of a comeback.

By this point, the yellows and blues made four changes, all of whom had a positive impact on the game.

And it was one of the substitutes who had a hand in the winner. Jordan Kaye swept the ball, first time, out to the left, and here was the chance. Corner. Left-hand side. 93^rd minute. Toby Levy drilled it in, Herman rose and … Corner again. Levy drilled it in once more, Sam Hatton rose (like a salmon) and ….. GOOALLLLL! (and a 16 man pile-on!)

There was barely time for the kick-off to be taken before the referee blew his whistle. A last-minute comeback and a massive, massive three points for Sacks’ boys.

Manager Michael Sacks was unsurprisingly thrilled with the efforts of his players: “It wasn’t looking like our day and we were staring down the barrel of our first defeat of the season. But hat(ton)s off to Sam - he comes up trumps time and time again!

“What the boys pulled off was truly fantastic – that’s what football is all about. To a man, we were patient and showed good quality, even with tired legs.

“We’ve been in this league for a few years now and we know you can’t drop points too often – so it’s a massive win and statement of where we want to finish. GET IN!”