There's action in all four divisions on Matchday 35 of the JC MSFL, with JC Sports Editor Danny Caro analysing the chances of each team and giving his big match predictions.
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LATEST NEWS:
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SEASON 2012/13 ROLL OF HONOUR
London FA Sunday Intermediate Cup winners: - Faithfold A
Peter Morrison Trophy winners: Brady Maccabi A
JC Cyril Anekstein Cup winners: - London Maccabi Lions A
Premier Division champions: Faithfold A
Division Two champions: Brady Maccabi B
Division Three promoted: Oakwood B
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YOUR WEEKEND PREVIEW STARTS HERE:
JC MSFL PREMIER DIVISION
TOP-SCORERS
18 - Lee Cash (LM Lions A - 10 for Neasden A)
17 - Adam Stolerman (Redbridge JC A)
14 - Daryl Phillips (Faithfold A), Brad Wine (Oakwood)
NORSTAR A vs NORTH LONDON RAIDERS A
Sunday promises to be an emotional day for everyone connected to Norstar as they go into their final game of the season in the Orange derby.
Norstar are without some big names in the A-team's final game, before their eagerly anticipated merger with Sunday's opponents.
News of the merger had to be kept on ice until Raiders's survival was guaranteed so as to avoid any allegations of foul play, but expect a carnival atmosphere at John Lyon on Sunday, with a Norstar legends parade taking place on the pitch at half-time, which could see the likes of Neil Daniels, David Hirschfield and even Jonny Pressman grace the Orange Army once again.
Record crowds are expected as the fans await the return of Sammy Kalms from injury, whilst Peters is expected to start himself as he goes in search of a Norstar record of being the only player to have scored in every division, the Anekstein and Morrison trophy.
The match pits together two of the finest young managers in the league. Norstar boss Phil Peters will undoubtedly have learned some lessons in his first season in the top-flight, while Raiders boss Rob Richman will be looking to steer his men to what would be their sixth win of the season in their penultimate match.
The first match between the sides was a thrilling affair, with all the goals coming in the second half. Norstar showed great character to win 3-2 after keeper Ben Sheldon, formerly of Raiders, was sent off.
There's also the serious matter of a game of football to be played with players from both sides eager to catch the eye of the man who will be leading the merged A-team side next season. No one can be sure of their place but a good performance on Sunday would leave a lingering memory in the manager's head before he goes off on a long-overdue footballing sabbatical before pre-season in July.
Norstar are without Jonny Kay - but with two in the squad, who knows which one? JJ Spiro is also absent whilst Ben Sheldon missed out against his former club. A last hurrah from Jamie Freed could be on the cards if he can sort out his domestic affairs.
Fans will be allowed free admission if they turn up in an orange top and word has reached me that stewards tops and workman’s bibs are permitted.
Venue – John Lyons, Ref – Robert Benardout (Games 23, Yellows 12, Reds 1)
JC star man: Jamie Freed (Norstar)
DC Prediction: Norstar 2 Raiders 2
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DIVISION ONE
TOP-SCORERS
35 - Jamie (Shirley Park)
16 - Richard Silver (Camden)
15 - Yishai Last (Hendon B), Max Kyte (Lions B + 2 for A)
CAMDEN PARK vs SOUTHGATE HARMEN
Camden Park lie just two points off top spot now after the league awarded them maximum points from three matches their opponents defaulted. However, the fact that wins of UJIA and Faithfold go down as goalless draw has not helped the goal difference column that could be all-important come the end of the season.
Woodford and Temple Fortune await Camden after the home match against Dan Uzan’s troops. Win the lot and they will bag the title.
Looking ahead to the first meeting with Harmen, Camden boss Josh Marks told JC Sport: “We’re all looking forward to Sunday’s match. Harmen are a very good side and taken some big points off our competitors this season.
“If we manage to beat them we will be looking in good shape to gain promotion. It’s up to us and I’d rather we kept it that way.”
As Marks says, Harmen have beaten Glenthorne and Shirley Park this season so they mustn’t underestimate them. The Southgate boys can’t finish higher than sixth but that won’t stop them trying to make life awkward for Camden who beat them 2-1 in February.
Venue – Ark Academy, Ref – Aaron Djanogly (Games 21, Yellows 32, Reds 9)
JC star man: James Castle (Harmen)
DC Prediction: Camden 2 Harmen 1
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GLENTHORNE UNITED A vs CHIGWELL ATHLETIC
There certainly won’t be an end-of-season feel about Sunday’s derby between Glenthorne and Chigwell.
The east London rivals are preparing for one almighty battle as the Thornes go in search of their 14th win of the season, a victory that would edge them closer to the title.
The teams will be mightily relieved they’ve been spared a double-header scenario and both sets of players will be looking to put down their respective markers ahead of next week’s return leg.
Looking ahead to the game, Chigwell player-manager Richard Slater told JC Sport: "It will be a tough game for us, and we go into it as underdogs.
"The title looks to have gone but second or third is up for grabs.
"We want the three points though, make no mistake about it and the lads are fired up for the derby."
Glenthorne go into the game on the back of a double-header win over Faithfold. Six players featured on the scoresheet over the two-hour marathon, something that pleased manager Sam Rosenthal who won’t want to lose against his former club.
Ahead of kick-off, Rosenthal told JC Sport: "We look forward as always to our local derby against the Chigs and are focused on coming away with all three points."
Much more than pride will be on the line on Sunday and it could all boil down to which team wants it most.
JC team news: Chigwell are almost at full-strength, with Slater waiting for a few final confirmations.
Venue – Ford Sports & Social, Ref – Adam Lewis (Games 19, Yellows 16, Reds 3)
JC star man: Josh Wynne (Glenthorne)
DC Prediction: Glenthorne 3 Chigwell 2
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LONDON MACCABI LIONS B vs TEMPLE FORTUNE A (DOUBLE-HEADER)
Maximum points from Sunday’s double-header would enable Lions to move clear at the summit.
But manager Jamie Kyte is taking nothing for granted against dangerous opponents who might just come back to bite them.
With Shai Davidi riding on the crest of a wave after being named Fortune’s Player of the Season, it promising to be an enthralling two hours of football.
The Lions certainly looked the part last weekend, when strikes from Jamie Kyte, Dan Green and the in-form Lorian Madanes (2) helped them rip Woodford to shreds in a hugely impressive performance.
Madanes has the bit between his teeth and his head to head with Davidi on the wing will be worth the admission fee alone.
“It's a massive double-header,” Lions gaffer Jamie Kyte told JC Sport. “We need to take all six points if we want to win the league and we've still got to hope that Camden slip up.
“With Camden being gifted nine points in the last three games and getting automatic 3-0 wins, we need to make sure we keep our goal difference as high as possible.”
LML will need to pull out all the stops to come away with maximum points, but I think that a strong bench will help them finish the weekend in top spot.
JC team news: Lions are missing Cutter, Reuben and Rose missing, but Arghebant, Beresford and Astaire return.
Venue – Rowley Lane, Ref – Warwick Blake (Games 17, Yellows 9, Reds 2)
JC star man: Will Beresford (LML)
DC Prediction: Lions 3 Fortune 2/Fortune 1 Lions 2
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NORTH WEST NEASDEN A vs FAITHFOLD B
It's impossible to get overly excited about Sunday's meeting between Neasden and Faithfold, especially with nothing at stake for either team.
Neasden were well-beaten in a double-header against Glenthorne last weekend and they will use the summer months to work out the way forward.
Manager Daniel Hodes has done well to get a team out most weeks, but the squad desperately needs an injection of youth.
As for Faithfold, they are planning for Division Two football next season. Manager Rob Shooman will, once again, look to the likes of the experienced Ben Lewis and Matty Kleinman to lead the Superhoops to what would be their third victory of a hugely disappointing campaign.
Rob Kaplan was NWN’s matchwinner the last time the teams met. He and defensive partner Jon Kaye were the stars of the show.
As for Sunday, if you have any last-minute Shavuot shopping or cheesecake baking to do, that could be an option.
Venue – Hadley FC, Ref – Nigel Burns (Games 5, Yellows 10, Reds 5)
JC star man: Leor Harel (Faithfold)
DC Prediction: Neasden 0 Faithfold 0
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WOODFORD WANDERERS vs HENDON UNITED SPORTS CLUB B
Woodford thumped Hendon 9-1 earlier in the season and you can get 200-1 on a repeat performance. As yet the bookies have told me no-one has backed it.
Mitch Hahn grabbed the headlines in January’s meetings, hitting six of the best as the east Londoners filled their boots. Dean Green, Elliot Gold and Jamie Golding put the icing on the cake.
Paul Hyams’ men were well beaten by Lions B last Sunday and as the season draws to a close, he will be reflecting on another disappointing season, which has seen the team claim back-to-back finishes in the bottom half of the table.
The Hornets have found the going tough over the past couple of months. Joint-manager Motty Korman told JC Sport: “We forfeited last week as we couldn’t raise a team and have been told that UJIA have forfeited our game against them next week, so this is our last game of a long and unproductive season for Hendon B.
“I think the boys are looking forward to the end of the season as we have had a poor second half of the season.”
No doubt they will be looking to bow out on a high as that could do wonders for confidence in the close season.
Expect goals on Sunday.
JC team news: RA Noe is the only absentee for Hendon.
Venue – Fairlop, Ref – Neal Cohen (Games 19, Yellows 12, Reds 6)
JC star man: Chaim Gothold (Hendon)
DC Prediction: Woodford 3 Hendon 4
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DIVISION TWO
TOP-SCORERS
28 - Reiss Mogilner (Brady B)
25 - Adam Hersh (Los Blancos)
16 - Dan Hildebrand (Brady B)
BLIZZARD STORM vs NORTH LONDON RAIDERS B
You’ll do well to find a box of Andrex in north-west London this weekend as the Raiders B management dream team look to bow out on a high.
L’Orange have played some fantasy football this season, offering five-star entertainment week in, week out, with the emergence of young gun Ethan Zone one of the biggest positives.
“Sunday will be a very hard match,” an emotional Shorts told JC Sport. “We’ve absolutely nothing to play for except pride, whilst a win for Blizzard will see them stay up.
“We're probably a great team for them to play as we're lacking a lot of players through injury.
“It will also be a sad day for myself and Rich as it will be our last game for the club. We'd like to sign off with a win but at the same time we wouldn't like to see Blizzard go down.”
As Shorts says, Blizzard will be going all out for victory. One win from their final two games will probably be enough to keep them up and I’m sure manager Simon Linden won’t want to go to SPEC FC needing to win next weekend.
The Blizzard boys hit top form last weekend, when Michael Woolf (2), Dean Shaw and Stuart Muller steered them to a crucial 4-2 victory over Redbridge B. More of the same would be just what the doctor ordered as all this stress is no good for Linden’s blood pressure.
Ref – Rob Caplin (Games 13, Yellows 11, Reds 2)
JC star man: Michael Woolf (Blizzard)
DC Prediction: Blizzard 4 Raiders 2
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REDBRIDGE JEWISH CARE B vs GLENTHORNE UNITED B
Glenthorne B have taken east London bragging rights in Division Two this season and they will be looking to add insult to injury to local rivals Redbridge B in what is both team’s final game of the season.
The Thornes will look to cement sixth place as they go in search of their 10th victory of the season. They were back to their best last weekend and don’t want the campaign to end.
They followed the 4-2 win over Blizzard with an even more impressive success at higher ranked Athletic Bilbaum. Jamie Crawford sealed the win.
Looking ahead to the game, joint-manager Jordan Sapler told JC Sport: "We are struggling for Sunday player wise with injuries hitting us hard.
"Over the last two weeks we have shown the form and ability that makes me believe that we are in the top three teams of the division along with SPEC and Brady. If we hadn't had that shocking mid-season spell than we would have spent this Sunday celebrating promotion.
"But Liam and I have learnt a lot about our squad and we will see what happens next season... be it at Glenthorne or somewhere else.
"Sunday will be a tough game, Redbridge are a good team and I've a lot of respect as I've said before for Jon Jacobs and his boys, but at the end of the day it's an east London derby and pride is at stake.
"We will go for the win but it will be a hard but fair game with handshakes all round after the game. Three points will be nice to end our season and hopefully the Ford's side of east London will be celebrating come 1pm."
Redbridge were humbled 4-2 by Blizzard last weekend and they’re probably still having nightmares about the last meeting with Glenthorne which finished 6-0. Craig Sandford, Ryan Cole (2), Simon Bagel, Joe Grant and Zack Forbes were the goal men that day.
Jon Jacobs’s young team features players with real potential. Keeper Matt Kemp is one of the best young stoppers around but I can see him being the busier no. 1 on Sunday is a battle of two of the league finest young custodians.
RJC have taken some big scalps this season but when push comes to shove, my money is on a Glenthorne win.
Venue – Fairlop, Ref – David Lazarus (Games 12, Yellows 12, Reds 0)
JC star man: Jamie Crawford (Glenthorne)
DC Prediction: Redbridge 1 Glenthorne 3
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DIVISION THREE
TOP-SCORERS
32 - Ben Zloof (AC Mill Hill)
26 – Alex Elf (Hendon Utd SC C)
24 - Jono Gaon (Tottenham Chutspah)
FAITHFOLD C vs LOUGHTON ORIENT
Rotation will be the name of the game for Loughton Orient on Sunday. I wonder if manager Dan Curtis is considering putting the names of all his players into a hat and his formation will be pot luck. Go on Dan, I dare you!
The east Londoners go into the game in buoyant mood after sticking six past Hendon last weekend. Striker Barry Green made it 11 league goals for the season with a double, with James Lester plus one apiece from Adam Conway and Jaimie Sinclair completing the rout.
Looking ahead to Sunday, Curtis told JC Sport: “It’s the last game of the season and I will be making full use of my squad.
“There will be a number of changes to the starting line up from last week. Three points to finish the season will be very nice after such a good win last week.”
Ben Simons and Dave Sherman steered Faithfold to a 2-0 win over Loughton in the first meeting in October. When you consider the standard of the top three this season, fourth place is a highly respectable finish for the Superhoops this season but they will finish a long way behind Mill Hill even if they finish on a high.
Loughton can jump a place with three points and I think they might just edge it.
Ref – Martin Fox (Games 21, Yellows 18, Reds 1)
JC star man: Adam Conway (Loughton)
DC Prediction: Faithfold 1 Loughton 2
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MATCH POSTPONED
Premier Division - Redbridge Jewish Care A vs Brady Maccabi A - RJC pulled out
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CHALLENGE CARO RESULT
Week 1: Caro 4, Rob Richman 5
Week 2: Caro 14, Mitch Young 10
Week 3: Caro 20 (incl. 2 correct scores), Richard Slater 15 (inc. 1 correct score)
Week 4: Caro 15 (incl. 2 correct scores), Phil Peters 5
Week 5: Caro 1 Loz Newman 8
Week 5: Caro 6 Josh Dagul 4
Week 6: DC 9 Motti Korman 14 (incl. 1 correct score)
Week 7: DC 4 Josh Marks 3 (Prem Div and Div 1 predicted only). DC scored 18 points overall incl. 3 correct scores)
Week 8: DC 12 (incl. 1 correct score) Ian Tussie 9 (incl. 1 correct score)
Week 9: DC 8 Richard Bronzite 10 (incl. 1 correct score)
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DANNY CARO'S MATCHDAY 34 OSCARS
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