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PETER MORRISON TROPHY SEMI-FINAL DRAW
Maccabi London Lions under-21 vs MJSL Rep Team or South Manchester
Maccabi London Lions Masters vs North London Raiders A
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CYRIL ANEKSTEIN CUP FINAL
Maccabi London Lions A vs Finchley City or Redbridge Jewish Care A
at Wingate & Finchley FC
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SEASON 2016/17 ROLL OF HONOUR
Prem Div: TBC
Division One: TBC
Division Two: CHAMPIONS - L'EQUIPE
YOUR WEEKEND PREVIEW STARTS HERE:
CYRIL ANEKSTEIN CUP SEMI-FINAL
FINCHLEY CITY vs REDBRIDGE JEWISH CARE A
Redbridge are strong favourites to reach the final against Lions A when they travel to first division Finchley City.
The came on really strongly in the second half against title rivals Oakwood last week and they will play on the front foot in the pursuit of another trip to Wingate & Finchley.
Redbridge huffed and puffed but only managed to breach a well-drilled Oakwood defence once. Dean Nyman’s unerring finish earned them a deserved point.
Now they must be ready for what Finchley will throw at them. Redbridge will see lots of the ball and dominant possession, but patience will be key as I expect Finchley to adopt a cautious approach.
Finchley’s front three is enough to give any MGBSFL defence a sleepless night. Redbridge included. But the question is, will they be able to deliver quality service. That’s the bottom line.
Man for man Redbridge have the edge and I would be surprised if they don’t win the majority of their individual and collective battles.
JC team news: Redbridge’s Ryan Cole faces a fitness test on a muscle injury picked up last week.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
FINCHLEY (from): Adam Bitton, Eli Davila, Moishe Fehler, Jamie Gurvitz, Sam Kanter, Rafi Kon, Dan Kozielek, Gav Krieger, Sam Leader, Oli Sade, Dan Polak, Jono Gaon, Dan Sinclair, Yoni Benari, Yossi Lanning, Alon Pinhas
REDBRIDGE (from): Dan Lee, Jay Jaffa, Danny Berg, Darryl Rubin, Zac Neiman, Russell Goldstein, Sam McCarthy, Adam Hakimi, Danny Hakimi, Matt Berkley, James Berkley, Ben Sollosi, Nathan Sollosi, Sam Sollosi, Daniel Garfinkle, Dean Nyman, Steve Summers
Venue - , Ref – Luke Steele, KO – 10am
JC star man: Dean Nyman (Redbridge)
DC Prediction: Finchley 1 Redbridge 3
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PREMIER DIVISION
TOP 3
1. Oakwood A Pl. 17, W. 13, Pts. 42
2. Hendon A Pl. 16, W. 12, Pts. 37
3. Redbridge A A Pl. 14, W. 11, Pts. 34
CAMDEN PARK vs WOODFORD WANDERERS
Bouncebackability is the name of the game for Camden Park on Sunday.
Their two-match unbeaten run, under the recently-appointed Stirling Kay, was halted by last season’s champions North London Raiders A.
But there were aspects of the performance that pleased Kay who believes his players have upped their performance levels since he joined the club.
However, Kay expects a very different kind of game against fellow strugglers Woodford on Sunday. He told JC Sport; “As always, Woodford will be a very hard and physical game and we will be aware that we will have to defend the long ball into the penalty box well.
“But if they decide they want to play Mitch Han it makes Woodford a different proposition as they did in our previous game, where he scored there equaliser.
“We will certainly take the game to them and I will look to see a continued improvement to our attitude on and off the pitch, and see a lot more quality in the last third of the pitch.
“Woodford are very similar to us in terms of having a limited pool of players available each week, so until Sunday morning we don’t know how strong we will be.
“We could well be stretched to the limit but I'm hoping one or two will become available. Whatever happens, rest assured whoever plays, I will expect a good performance and three points.”
Sunday is a must-win for Woodford. Failure to secure maximum points will mean they cannot finish outside of the bottom two.
Like Camden, they have been goal-shy this season and must pull out all the stops to claim what would be only their second win. But their away record is woeful and I can see Camden nicking it late on.
JC team news: Goalkeeper Steve Murad (business commitments) will be missing for Camden, while Nick Kagan (knee) faces a late fitness test. Richard Silver, Sacha Nusenbaum and David Kanzen all miss out.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
CAMDEN (from): James Castle, Ben Harris, Jordi Johann, David Khalatschi, Michael Khalatschi, Guy Marks, Josh Marks, Josh Tiano, Kane Gilbery, Jake Saunders, Max Saunders, David Smouha, Max Gordon
WOODFORD (from): Ben Rosenthal, Jordan Davidson, Jerome Marks, Paul Biller, Adam Shafron, Alex Aviram, Ricky Fox, David Green, Darryl Green, Adam Kemper, Jason Patmore, Mitch Hahn, Harrison Midda, Tom Alexander, Martin Sales, David Wexler
Venue – Hadley FC, Ref – Martin Lavender, KO – 10am
JC star man: Ben Harris (Camden)
DC Prediction: Camden 2 Woodford 1
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MACCABI LONDON LIONS A vs HENDON UNITED SPORTS CLUB A
The end of the season cannot come soon enough for Hendon United, according to manager David Garbacz. Looking at his injury list, he doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry. I’ve even heard rumours he might have to stick on the boots if things get much worse.
Ahead of kick-off, Garbacz told JC Sport: “Our season has been decimated with injuries in the last couple of months and it has showed in our results.
“We are literally limping over the line with barely 11 fit men for every match so the aim is merely to complete our last two fixtures with as much fight as possible.
The Reds welcome back a Peter Morrison Trophy semi-finalist in goalkeeper Russell Corin who was a virtual spectator for Maccabi London Lions Masters against RC UK FC.
Garbacz went on to say: “There is still plenty of pride to play for and it would be nice to finish off with a couple of wins, but we know how hard that will be with our current situation.
“Lions are always an unknown entity depending on who turns up for them, but whoever does I am sure will make for a very competitive match.
“We still have more than enough quality amongst our ranks to achieve the win so hopefully we can click straight away this week, not make any errors and get the job done.”
The Lions go into the game on a high after booking their place in the final of the Cyril Anekstein Cup. They did it the hard way, however, with young goalkeeper Reuben Rabstein rescuing them in the penalty shoot-out against first division Lions B.
But the lift of a spot-kick success could be the launchpad for a push for a top-four finish. They still have plenty of football left to play and will be determined to complete a league double over the red men.
JC team news: James Gershfield has been ruled out for the remainder of the season for Lions.
Greg Corin Simon Peterman Moses Seitler, Rocky Spitzer and Yehuda Korman are all out injured for Hendon. Korman is out for 12 months after doing his ACL cruciates on a terrible 3G pitch last time out. Yoav Kestenbaum returns after a six-week absence.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
LIONS: Reuben Rabstein, Will Beresford, Jon Ellis, Alex Taylor, Nick Smith, Ryan Springer, Cameron Most, Brad Sharp, Elliot Stern, Ben Lampert, Harry Marlow, Richard Gold, Sam Arghebant, Adam Arnold, James Gold
HENDON: Russell Corin, Larry Cohen, Zac Garbacz, Alex Rosenthal, Avi Korman, Ari Last, Ari Nevies, Dovi Fehler, Jason Harris, Yoav Kestenbaum
Venue – Rowley Lane, Ref – Andy Myerson, KO – 10am
JC star man: Ben Lampert (Lions)
DC Prediction: Lions 2 Hendon 1
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DIVISION ONE
TOP 3
1. Lions B Pl. 16, W. 12, Pts. 38
2. Redbridge B Pl. 14, W. 12, Pts. 37
3. Scrabble FC Pl. 16, W. 11, Pts. 35
ATHLETIC BILBAUM vs NORTH LONDON RAIDERS B
Raiders were left kicking themselves after going down to their fourth league defeat at the hands of Los Blancos.
Boss Jonny Adelman cut a frustrated figure at the final whistle, as they had enough chances to win two matches.
A combination of the woodwork and the reflexes of Nick Grosse denied them, but they were up against opponents desperate to ensure their manager bowed out on a high.
“Our inability to score the goals our chances demand has been our Achilles heel this season, which is baffling given how strong our forward line is,” Adelman lamented.
The NLR chief is confident the returning Woolf will give L’Orange fans something to cheer about on Sunday. He told JC Sport: “We have some wrongs to put right after last weekend.”
Bilbaum have avoided the wooden spoon and they can play with no fear on Sunday. They have yet to face L’Orange this term, but I advise them to adopt a cautious approach and don’t let the game get stretched.
But if Raiders score in the first 20 minutes I can see them running away with it.
JC team news: Raiders welcome back Nicky Woolf and Anthony Shaw.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
BILBAUM (from): Ben Bell, Jacob Brunner, Ben Cantopher, Dan Goldhill, Nick Shinder, Toby Mann, Eli Gottlieb, Jacob Holder, Elliott Kindler, Ben Lewis, Barnaby Powell, Rob Rodney
RAIDERS (from): Rob Benson, Anthony Shaw, Richard Bloom, Charles Braunstein, Anthony Goodmaker, Matt Leader, Mark Leader, Alex Goodman, Simon Buchler, Josh Goldstein, Jake Gilbert, Nicky Woolf, Josh Green, Will Ufland, Jacob Gold
Venue - Chase Lodge, Ref - Laurence Thorne, KO – 10
JC star man: Nicky Woolf (Raiders)
DC Prediction: Bilbaum 1 Raiders 4
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REDBRIDGE JEWISH CARE B vs SCRABBLE FC
Redbridge will be aiming to finish the weekend in top spot when they take on title rivals Scrabble FC for the second time in a week.
Sam Rank’s troops go into the game with a psychological edge after edging past Scrabble 2-1 in the first leg. But that will quickly be forgotten once that first whistle blows.
Victory at the home of one of their biggest rivals was a major statement. And it came courtesy of strikes from Brad Gayer and Kane Hopps – two players performing at the very top of their game.
Redbridge also had a very strong bench, with Nate Kashket and David Fialka freshening things up at just the right time.
Now they will be looking to finish the job, and seal the win that would effectively win them the title.
Ahead of kick-off, Rank told JC Sport: “Sunday welcomes the return fixture of last week’s tight fought contest against Scrabble. The boys know this is the second of three cup finals to win the Division One title.
“Last week we passed the first test with an all-round fantastic performance, with the RJC B backline standing very strong. I think this week will be a completely different encounter, with the attacking players RJC B possess this week we will be able to take the game to Scrabble, and will be able to blow them away. I would imagine Scrabble Keeper will be ready for a busy day.
“All the Scrabble boys are top guys, but this week I am expecting an even stronger levels of performance from the RJC B boys, which will put the title within touching distance and, most importantly, three points.”
Scrabble FC are not used to losing football matches. Period. They could draft in Peter Morrison Trophy semi-finalist and former Player of the Year Josh Bentley for what is a must-win game.
Manager Ray Abrahams has been working hard on a game-plan and he knows the head-to-head between striker Danny Sherman and Jordan Sapler will be key. Keep your eye on that one.
There’s also an intriguing battle in midfield, with Elliot Espinoza needing to get the better of Joe Jordan.
Sunday is all about winning individual and collective battles and both managers require a minimum of seven out of 10 from each player.
I can see it finishing honours even second time around, which suits Redbridge better.
JC team news: Redbridge have a very strong squad to choose from. Dean Ben Yosef and Jack Van Gelder are back for RJC B. Alex Chernoff is on Mother’s Day duty, while Richard Stern is on girlfriend duty in Manchester. There will be late fitness tests on Sam Rank, Adam Goldman, Kane Hopps, Joe Jordan and Dean Ben Yosef. “Hopefully all will be fit”.
POSSIBLE SQUADS
REDBRIDGE (from): Scott Shear, Dan Andrews, Dan Bean, Richie Caplin, Jordan Sapler, Adam Goldman, Kane Hopps, Brad Gayer, Scott McKenzie, Adam Noble, Sam Rank, Alex Chernoff, David Fialka, Nate Kashket, Josh Orgel, Joe Jordan, Dean Ben Yosef
SCRABBLE (from): Ben Law, Rob Blackman, Dan Stock, Brandon Sassoon, Adam Waters, Elliot Espinoza, Dan Green, Josh Bharier, Adam Newman, Josh Pugh, Sam Stead, Zac Summerfield, Zac McLeod, Danny Sherman
Venue - Old Parkonians School, Ref – Rob Caplin, KO – 10am
JC star man: Joe Jordan (Redbridge)
DC Prediction: Redbridge 1 Scrabble 1
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DIVISION TWO
BOCA JEWNIORS vs TEMPLE FORTUNE
Temple Fortune starred in their very own version of The Late, Late Show, with Jake Marks and top-scorer Jordan Sharifian once again adopting the lead roles.
The team showed great patience and maturity in breaking Mill Hill Dons down, when lesser teams would’ve given up and thought ‘it’s not our day’.
For me, the result spoke volumes of the inner belief of Simon Linden’s men and they know Boca will be another tough nut to crack despite their lowly position.
Linden told JC Sport: “We are on a good run of form but know about the threat from Boca who have been extremely unfortunate over the last two weeks and will be up for putting it right this weekend.
“My team knows that promotion is a real possibility and Nigel Kyte is offering £100 bonus per player if we deliver!”
Boca were involved in a real thriller against champions L’Equipe. Ultimately they came away with heads held high. The challenge now is to repeat those effort and performance levels again.
They gave Fortune a tough contest a fortnight ago but I think Linden and co will know what to expect second time around.
JC team news: Brett Stead and Gideon Wetrin return to the Fortune squad but Jake Marks misses out.
POSSIBLE SQUAD
BOCA (from): Will Martyn, Anton Nyman, Ben Retter, Michael Myers, Michael Rosenthal, Brett Schuman, Jonny Winton, Lee Benson, Tom Wyse, Josh Cinna, Oli Kyte, Jamie Leboff, Benjamin Lederman, Sam Simon, Sefton Monk
FORTUNE (from): Lee Fegan, Rob Jay, Jonathan Cohen, Adam Speck, Michael Goldberg, Michael Woolfe, Adam Lenz, Jason Lindsay, Ben Isaacs, Eshed Rahav, Jordan Sharifian, Gavin Levy, Simon Linden, Darren Zitren
Venue - TBC, Ref – Robert Benardout, KO – 10
JC star man: Rob Jay (Fortune)
DC Prediction: Boca 0 Fortune 2
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HERTSWOOD VALE vs REAL HENDON
Top five remains a realistic finish for Real Hendon. And after blowing Faithfold away, they will fancy their chances here.
RA Noe produced a master-class against the Greens, winning his head-to-head with league top-scorer Richard Fogelman. But it was the midfielders what won the battle!
Real go into the game with a psychological edge having beaten Hertswood 3-1 in October, with strikes from Benny Goldberg, Yossi Hoffman and Benni Sluckis.
Hertswood were well beaten last time out but they are ready to go again.
After two weeks without a game, joint-manager Jack Shulman told JC Sport; “Sunday offers us a great opportunity to get another win under our belts and get back on track with our end of season form after defeat to MH Dons last time out.
“We’re looking to get a victory this time out against Real after feeling aggrieved to have not come away with the points in Hendon, having faced them after a heavy Halloween squad night out back in October.
“However, we’re wary of the threat of the opposition, who have firmly sketched themselves in our minds as the most aggressive team we have played this season, and we’re hoping our squad can come away unscathed this time around.
“They welcome Real Hendon to the fortress on Sunday with open arms.”
I’m predicting goals, and a Real win.
JC team news: The Dons welcome back the terrific trio of Jordan Harris, James Millet and Harry Graham from university, whilst Elio Elia and captain Josh Wood rejoin the squad after extended breaks. Top-scorer Josh Cohen misses out due to an impromptu trip to Bournemouth.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
HERTSWOOD (from): Yaacov Goldin, Ollie Brill, Josh Cohen, Ben Davis, Simon Englander, Danny Feuer, Theo Gluckstein, Ashley Hirschberger, Adrian Leibovitch, Ben Mandell, Josh Webber, Adam Cohen, Sam Cohen, Jack Shulman
REAL (from): Dov Owen, Rafi Addlestone, Richard Cohen, Ben Goldberg, Ben Cohen, Manny Field, Joe Goldberg, Joseph Goldberg, Lloyd Kafton, Gilad Kestenbaum, Motty Korman, Doron Marks, RA Noe, Hezzie Raymond, Benni Sluckis, Chaim Gothold, Zvi Noe, Chaim Strom
Venue – Tempsford Green, Ref – Martin Fox, KO – 10am
JC star man: Hezzie Raymond (Real)
DC Prediction: Hertswood 2 Real 3
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MILL HILL DONS vs REDBRIDGE JEWISH CARE C
Second place now looks like a big ask for Redbridge, so Sunday is effectively a must-win for Josh Hambling’s troops.
The recent win over Catford ended a run of three without a win and Hambling was encouraged to see five different names appear on the scoresheet.
But he knows they RJC will need to improve defensively as they haven’t kept a clean sheet since January 22.
Brandon Hamme expressed frustration after last week’s 2-0 defeat against high-flying Temple Fortune. “ To say we were unlucky to lose last week to Temple Fortune would be an understatement,” Hamme told JC Sport.
“The boys performed well and it just wasn't meant to be on the day.
“We will look to pick ourselves up this Sunday when we face Redbridge in our final home game of the season.
“The last time we played Redbridge we were unable to finish our chances and ended coming away with nothing.
“We will look to be more clinical in front of goal this week - last weekend’s game signalled the first game we have failed to score in for six months.
I have full faith in the boys to end the season strongly and prove that last week’s game was just a blip.”
A big crowd is expected in NW7 as the loyal supporters look to give the Dons a great send-off. And given RJC’s recent away form is patchy, I’m tipping home advantage to swing it.
JC team news: Jamie Nagioff returns for the Dons this week – they have won every game he’s played in and he picked up two assists and a goal last time out. He could prove to be the difference on the day. Dons' No.1 Sam Singer returns between the sticks and he should improve further on what has been a much-improved Dons defence in recent weeks. Harry Moss, Harry Cohen and Sammy Hakimian are out.
POSSIBLE SQUADS:
DONS: Sam Singer, Adam Ben-Harosh, Adam Isaacs, Charles Kahn, Sam Kahn, Ryan Kramer, Adam Morrow, Josh Moses, Nick Phillips, Joe Reece, Zack Cohen, Jamie Nagioff, Ben Bazini, Harry Kalms, Joel Sinclair-Horne, Jason Weldon
REDBRIDGE: Nathan Mehlman, Rafe Neiman, Lee Cutler, Craig Phillips, Jordan Sapler, Nate Kashket, Jacob Kaye, Scott Oldstein, Dan Lipman, Jimmy Castle, Barry Green, Jamie Crawford, Aaron Goldberg, James Law, Ben Oldstein, Martin Zartz
Venue – Mill Hill Park, Ref – Neal Cohen, KO – 10am
JC star man: Jamie Nagioff (Dons)
DC Prediction: Dons 2 Redbridge 1
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RC UK FC vs L’EQUIPE
L’Equipe have three matches remaining as they look to conclude their title-winning season undefeated. But they look set for their toughest test of the season in the shape of an RC UK FC team who want to be playing Division One football alongside them next season.
However, manager Nick Stern told JC Sport: “Mother’s day has had a large affect on our squad this week with many of our team new fathers and therefore missing the game, myself included. Shows how old we really are!”
But if RC UK are expecting an easy ride, they can think again. Stern continued: “I wouldn’t say I was worried for Sunday as we are already champions but we have an undefeated record to uphold and I hope we can get a team out that will do the league, and RCUK’s closest rivals proud.
“I am proud of the team and their efforts since we have won the league and I expect that the team I put out on Sunday will give everything for the shirt, show the same effort and desire that they have all season and give everything to maintain our perfect record.
“RCUK have fallen away this season but we expect a strong bounce back from them after their cup exploits ended last week, in which I was glad to see my good friend Lee Cash have a great performance.”
RC UK were second best against the outstanding Lions Masters team. But that was always a bonus match. In the long-term, Avi Markiewicz and his players will be all the better for playing against superior opposition and it would have reminded one or two of his players that they are far from the finished article.
Now it’s important they park that match and only look forward. Beating the champions would be the perfect answer.
Markiewicz told JC Sport; “Last week was a tough game but we will pick ourselves up and move on.
“This game may not mean much to L’Equipe but we are desperate to avenge the loss of last time and will do everything to try and win this.”
And exacting revenge for the 4-2 defeat at the hands of L’Equipe, who by the sound of it could be depleted, would be the perfect pick-me-up.
POSSIBLE SQUADS
RC UK FC (from): Nati Kind, David Brown, Gideon Caller, Dan Ezra, Leor Harel, Jonti Aremband, Avraham Levy, Jake Lewis, Avi Mocton, Dovi Vogel, Avi Markiewicz, Jake Dayan, Moishi Lewis
L’EQUIPE (from): Richard Alexander, Ian Baron, Scott Bennet, Matt Gilbery, Jon Kay, James Mandell, David Prager, Rob Simmons, Mark Singer, Andrew Smith, Nick Stern, Tamir Grant, Josh Lewis, Adam Solomon
Venue – Ludgrove Playing Fields, Ref – Mark Jacob, KO – 10
JC star man: Jake Lewis (RC UK)
DC Prediction: RC UK 3 L’Equipe 2
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