Sunday was about as good as it gets in terms of a tactical master plan coming to fruition. Five goals, a clean sheet and thumping national cup holders Hendon United in their own back yard was as convincing as it sounds.
The look on Ric Blank and Dan Kristall’s faces when they lined up for their post-match interview was one of disbelief — it was as though they’d won the lottery.
Rest assured this wasn’t a case of daylight robbery or a smash and grab. The seeds were sewn last summer when they assessed their squad and brought in some quality reinforcements. And it’s worth remembering that they crushed Hendon without captain Adam Levine and the mercurial Guy Helman.
The Oakwood players executed their game-plan to perfection. Hendon simply didn’t know what had hit them. The defending was resolute and the finishing of the highest order. They also did the ugly things well and worked their socks off.
The challenge now is to keep producing that level of performance on a consistent basis. It will take something special to wrestle the famous Cyril Anekstein Cup from the hands of North London Raiders. A similar performance at the Harry Abrahams Stadium on April 17 will really make things interesting.
Raiders, meanwhile, went about their business with minimal fuss. A combination of Ben Joseph, Ricky Engleman and Jordan Marks put them in the ascendency, and when FC Team had the audacity to pull one back, they found another gear and another goal almost effortlessly. Like swatting a fly.
There’s still a fair few weeks until the final and managers Rob Richman and Jonathan Green will be delighted to see captain David Rhodes recovering from a broken arm.
He is scheduled to return towards the end of March, by which time they might have already retained the league title.
* Having won their first 16 league games, eyebrows were raised by the manner of Scrabble FC’s first defeat of the season. A 6-1 defeat at the hands of Maccabi London Lions B left boss Ray Abrahams reflecting proudly on their outstanding run.
He said: “We noted that Lions made about six or seven changes from the side we met earlier this season and some of these players they selected were top quality. They had to be on another level to have any chance of matching us as my lads have been first class all season."
* Maccabi London Lions under-13’s produced a series of strong performances during an unbeaten run at a Watford FC midweek invitational showcase in Harefield. One of two teams from Lions competing, the U13’s held their own against Harrow League opponents as well as Watford FC’s own Centre of Excellence.
