MGBSFL PREMIER DIVISION
BRADY MACCABI 3 MACCABI LONDON LIONS BLUE 2
Charlie Cohen and Adam Abadi had put the Lions in charge of a game in which they also missed a penalty but they were left to rue wasteful finishing and two goals from top-scorer Reiss Mogilner and one from Stanley Offord completed a memorable comeback for the Brady bunch.
Brady boss Joel Nathan told JC Sport: "Today we reversed what happened to us a couple of weeks ago and came back brilliantly from two down to take a great win
"Yes we probably should have been further behind but we made them pay for their missed chances and once we got the first back just before half-time we sensed they were there for the taking.
"We started both halves in sloppy fashion and were made to pay in the first but second half we got an early penalty and from then on should have won more convincingly but in the end sneaked it by the one goal.
"We had a bare 11 today with Matt Sofier making a comeback after a few years away and his experienced alongside Graeme Grossman - one of our Masters players - told in the end."
Lions manager Sam Marchant admitted "today’s result is probably the most difficult to swallow of the season".
He told JC Sport: "Again to lose from being 2-0 up is seriously disappointing.
"The first 30 minutes we were dominant, pressing well, creating chances. We missed a penalty prior to going 1-0 up, and missed a four-on-one chance when 2-0 up and this shows we need to be more clinical whatever the scoreline.
"By half-time, the score should have been 3 or 4-0 but we conceded from a corner on the stroke of half-time which hurt us and made it 2-1. The heads dropped and it was downhill from there.
"We have now played Brady twice, once in the league and once in the cup, and lost both times. In 180 minutes of football against them, we have not conceded from open play and still managed to lose (three corners and two penalties) which is a surprising statistic.
"Brady showed desire once they got a goal back but it’s disappointing to lose to a team again that we are clearly better than. Three of our seven games this season have now seen us lose from being either 2-0 or 3-0 up. The mentality of the group is something we have been working on this past month but it’s a difficult one."
Marchant believes his troops can mix it with the best in the MGBSFL but their inexperience and, at times, naiviety, can lead to their downfall.
He said: "Our squad is extremely young, an average age of 20-21 and it sometimes shows. Our technical ability is there, no doubt. The issue is this season, in nearly all the games we have lost, we have outplayed the opponents. We have a lot to work on as a group but once it clicks and everything falls into place, we will be a serious force. It’s a matter of completing the puzzle and making sure everyone is moulding together to create and go where we need to be."
BRADY: Harry Fine, Stanley Offord, David James Cohen, Henry Ziff, Elliott Dagul, Jordan Nathan, Ricky Rinder, Zac Skry, Matt Sofier, Stanley Offord, Ben Kohler, Reiss Mogilner. Sub: Graeme Grossman
SCORERS: Mogilner 2, Offord
LIONS: James Harpin, Adam Abadi, Jordan Aspis, Nick Barnett, Daniel Behar, Josh Bloom, Ed Brafman (capt), Charlie Cohen, Sammy Kingston, Benji Weinberger, Ben Winters. Subs: Daniel Fattal, Jono Gaon, Zak Linden, Zach Perez
SCORERS: Adam Abadi, Charlie Cohen
MOM: David James Cohen (Brady)
