Redbridge close in on title after victory in six-goal thriller

In a game watched by MGBSFL chairman David Wolff, as well as the manager of Oakwood, it felt more like a cup final than a league game, and Redbridge did just enough to send the title race into the final week.

Starting on the front foot, Redbridge took the game to Raiders and took an early lead from the game's outstanding player, with a smartly taken drive from Ben Sollosi.

The lead was doubled after around 20 minutes when Zac Neiman's free-kick was parried by the keeper and Steve Summers swallowed up the rebound to score Redbridge's 100th goal of the season in league and cup.

A signature Sam Sollosi run ended with the referee applying the laws of the game and awarding a penalty. This was a chance to bury the game once and for all. Captain Danny Berg stepped up but Jake Doffman pulled off a fine save, diving to his right.

With the dangerous Liron Mannie darting around, teh lead still did not feel comfortable and sure enough, NLR pulled one back against the run of play to leave the ever-growing number of home fans edgy again. 

Mannie was now running at Redbridge at will, but not creating any chances, with the game tightening up. Half-time came with a reminder that the title was in RJC's hands, if they kept playing their normal game.

That went out of the window within a few minutes, a bullet header from a corner saw Raiders draw level. It was anyone's game now.

Summers had run himself into the ground and was replaced by Matt Berkley, with elder brother James already having replaced Russell Goldstein. The defining moment of the game saw Sam Sollosi deliver a razor sharp finish after a smart run, sending the east London capacity crowd into raptures. 

Raiders were not to be beaten and to their absolute credit, Morrison final or not, kept on going and even sent back on the impressive Mannie, who was playing on one leg, having suffered a hamstring pull (South Manchester take note!) 

With seven minutes left on the clock, Adam Hakimi was sent on with clear instructions from Jon Jacobs, to sit and occupy the centre circle space and sweep up any danger. Hakimi had not read the script clearly as he found himself in the NLR penalty area when a pull-back came to him, and he sent a rapier with a small deflection into the net that delivered the coup de grace and put the title back on the agenda. The mixture of A and B-team squad erupted off the pitch as the team celebrated on the pitch. There was still time for an amazing body on the line block from Daryl Rubin that showed everyone what playing for Redbridge means ... simply breath-taking.

RJC boss Jon Jacobs told JC Sport: "One more mantra. Redbridge go to Hadley FC next week and are ready to take on our perennial rivals and bring the title back to Redbridge."

Oscar Wagner and Alex Bloch accounted for the NLR goals.

RJC manager Jon Jacobs told JC Sport: "It was a great match, restoring my faith in referees being able to handle big games and not shirking their responsibilities when called upon.

"Raiders were a credit to the League - they did everything possible to win the game, even though they have the Morison final next Sunday, so we wish them all the luck in the world to win against South Manchester next week.

"We have one more game to turn good into spectacular. We are determined to take that chance."

NLR boss Dan Shafron told JC Sport: "I thought it was a great game for the neutral. We battled well and showed great character coming back from 2-0 down to 2-2 early in the second half.

"We felt we could take advantage of any RJC nerves and go on to get a third but with Liron coming off injured, it swung the momentum in favour of Redbridge. However on the balance of play, they deserved to win.

"Whilst this wasn't the result we wanted to end our league campaign, it was the type of game we needed prior to next Sunday. Jake made some great saves, including the penalty at an important moment, Nicky Lewis performed very well in an unfamiliar centre back role and Liron was simply unplayable. He was a constant threat and who knows how the game would have panned out if he didn't pick up an injury.

"Redbridge have had an excellent season and deserve all their plaudits. I said it during the week, they've been the best team this season. They've got a great group, from management to players, and we wish them all the very best going in to their title decider next Sunday. 

"As for us, today was a good warm up for our Morrison final next week. We will use this as motivation and continue our preparations before making our trip to Manchester."