The race for the Division Two title went right to the wire, but in the end the team who were the model of consistency from September to May came out smelling of roses.
1. NORSTAR LONDON RAIDERS B
League record: Pl. 18, W. 15, D. 3, L. 0, F. 68, A. 21, Pts. 48
Players of the season: David Esterkin, Nicky Woolf
Best buy: Andrew McMaster
Best result: 2-1 vs Redbridge
Biggest win: 11-3 vs Haroldeans
Worst result: 2-2 vs FC Team B
Heaviest defeat: N/A
Games failed to score in: 0
Clean sheets: 7
Top Scorer: Nicky Woolf 18
WAGS favourite: Tankel
DC Rating: Wow – if there’s one word I’d use to describe NLR’s season, that would be it. L’Orange were in fine company as one of only two teams to go through the season unbeaten domestically – the other was treble winners Hendon. Boss Jonny Adelman gelled his squad to perfection, with Dave Esterkin and Nicky Woolf the aces in his pack. They were solid at the back and outstanding going forward – scoring in every game. They were simply irresistible and could be the ones to beat in Division One next season. 10/10
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2. REDBRIDGE JEWISH CARE B
League record: Pl. 18, W. 15, D. 0, L. 3, F. 67, A. 19, Pts. 45
Players of the season: Nathan Sollosi, Sam Sollosi, Darren Brown, Richard Gold, Jordan Sapler
Best buys: They were all good!
Best result: 2-1 vs FC Team C
Biggest win: 10-1 vs Haroldeans
Worst result: 3-2 vs Blizzard
Heaviest defeat: 3-2 vs Blizzard
Games failed to score in: 0
Clean sheets: 6
Top Scorer: Nathan Sollosi 20
WAGS favourite: N. Sollosi
DC Rating: It was a case of close but no cigar for Jon Jacobs’s dream team who lit up their division – with five-star entertainment every week. Nathan Sollosi was the star of the show in a season where they ticked every box. The forfeited game against NLR left a bad taste in Jacobs’s mouth, but after reflecting on a brilliant season, they should take the many positives and only look forward. 9/10
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3. FC TEAM C
League record: Pl. 18, W. 14, D. 2, L. 2, F. 73, A. 32, Pts. 44
Players of the season: Paul Savitz, Matt Davis
Best buys: James Joseph
Best result: LML White in the cup
Biggest win: 8-1 vs Haroldeans
Worst result: 4-2 vs Redbridge JC
Heaviest defeat: 4-2 vs Redbridge JC
Games failed to score in: 0
Clean sheets: 2
Top Scorer: David Joseph Cohen 17
WAGS favourite: Joseph
DC Rating: Team were good but not quite good enough for a top two finish after losing the winner-takes-all contest against RJC. Led by Ben Gilbey and Michael Myers, they scored for fun – the division’s top-scorers – with only the failure to beat the top two holding them back, though they drew twice against the champions. The boys in yellow and blue claimed two famous cup scalps for good measure. Big changes are planned next season, I hear. Watch this space … 9/10
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4. FC TEAM B
League record: Pl. 18, W. 7, D. 3, L. 8, F. 36, A. 46, Pts. 24
Player of the season: Mitch Lassman
Best buys: Matt Davis, Paul Savitz
Best result: 4-2 vs Mill Hill
Biggest win: 7-0 vs Redbridge JC
Worst result: 3-0 vs Oakwood
Heaviest defeat: 6-2 vs Blizzard
Games failed to score in: 3
Clean sheets: 2
Top Scorer: Mitch Lassman 8
WAGS favourite: Davis
DC Rating: They finished well short of their C-team – 20 points noch – and started the season disastrously – their first win came in the second half of November, but you cannot knock FC Team B are finishing fourth in a strong division. The little and large partnership of Lassman and Davis inspired them, with summer signing Paul Savitz pulling the strings. 6/10
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5. AC MILL HILL
League record: Pl. 18, W. 6, D. 2, L. 10, F. 39, A. 51, Pts. 20
Player of the season: Ben Zloof
Best buy: Alex Olcot
Best result: 6-1 vs Blizzard
Biggest win: 6-0 vs Haroldeans
Worst result: 2-1 vs Faithfold
Heaviest defeats: 6-0 vs RJC and Team C
Games failed to score in: 4
Clean sheets: 0
Top Scorer: Ben Zloof 23
WAGS favourite: Olcot
DC Rating: ACM fans had to pinch themselves when news broke that Olcot had signed. It certainly put bums on seats and broke season ticket sales. Had he and the boy Zloof played every game, I’m sure they’d have finished higher up the table. But the pull of the National Futsal League lured Olcot away and the wheels dropped off during the season half of the season. DC motto: An Olcot must be for the season, not just until Chanukah! 5/10
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6. BLIZZARD STORM
League record: Pl. 18, W. 5, D. 4, L. 9, F. 32, A. 49, Pts. 19
Player of the season: Adam Levene
Best buy: Adam Levene
Best result: 3-2 vs Redbridge JC
Biggest win: 6-2 vs Team B
Worst result: 5-3 vs Haroldeans
Heaviest defeat: : 5-3 vs Haroldeans
Games failed to score in: 4
Clean sheets: 1
Top Scorer: Dan Simmons 12
WAGS favourite: Stewards’ enquiry!
DC Rating: Gaffer Simon Linden splashed the cash last summer, but his troops fell well short in the end. In Adam Levene, they had arguably the best player in the division, but he could not do it all on his own. 5/10
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7. ATHLETIC BILBAUM
League record: Pl. 18, W. 5, D. 2, L. 11, F. 44, A. 50, Pts. 17
Player of the season: Jake Gilbert
Best buy: Ryan Colet
Best result: 5-2 vs Blizzard
Biggest win: 9-0 vs Faithfold B
Worst result: 4-3 vs Haroldeans
Heaviest defeat: 6-3 vs Team C
Games failed to score in: 1
Clean sheets: 2
Top Scorer: Jake Gilbert
WAGS favourite: Jake Gilbert
DC Rating: Mid-table obscurity was not what the doctor, or management, ordered, but things went downhill rapidly from early November and they could not recover. 4/10
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8. OAKWOOD B
League record: Pl. 18, W. 4, D. 5, L. 9, F. 26, A. 41, Pts. 17
Players of the season: Ben Polak, Dave Woolman,
Best buy: Dave Woolman
Best result: 3-0 vs Team B
Biggest win: 3-0 vs Team B
Worst result: 3-3 vs Haroldeans
Heaviest defeat: : 8-0 vs Redbridge JC
Games failed to score in: 3
Clean sheets: 4
Top Scorer: Dave Woolman
WAGS favourite: Tussie has no time for pre-madonnas!
DC Rating: 4/10 on the pitch, 10/10 off it – see weekend previews. The Oaks failed to deliver in Ian Tussie’s final season in the dugout. His teamtalks should’ve been bottled up and stored at the Urbis National Football Museum or even St. Georges Park. They were top-class. They didn’t seriously flirt with relegation as Tussie was too busy flirting with the female assistant-referees, or so I’m told. Once they lost the boy Woolman, they became toothless (which reminds me of one of Tussie’s ex’s!) Whoever takes over from Tuss has an incredibly tough act to follow.
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9. LONDON HAROLDEANS
League record: Pl. 18, W. 3, D. 3, L. 12, F. 31, A. 83, Pts. 12
Player of the season: James Abrams
Best result: 2-1 vs Team B
Biggest win: 5-3 vs Blizzard
Worst result: 6-1 vs Faithfold
Heaviest defeat: : 11-3 vs Raiders
Games failed to score in: 3
Clean sheets: 0
Top Scorer: James Abrams
WAGS favourite: James Abrams
DC Rating: No lie, this was an incredibly tough season for London Haroldeans. They took some heavy beatings, but, to their credit, they completed the season, with some very close games in between. Keeping the goals out was the biggest problem, with Witcoop and Monk performing admirably. Indeed Witcoop was keen to play on the park, although I’m waiting for his teammates to come back to me to confirm exactly which is his best position. 3/10
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10. FAITHFOLD B
League record: Pl. 18, W. 3, D. 2, L. 13, F. 27, A. 51, Pts. 11
Players of the season: Leor Harel
Best buy: Dan Gordon
Best result: 2-1 vs Mill Hill
Biggest win: 6-1 vs Haroldeans
Worst result: 9-0 vs Bilbaum
Heaviest defeat: 9-0 vs Bilbaum
Games failed to score in: 5
Clean sheets: 0
Top Scorer: Doron Hershkorn
WAGS favourite: Dan Gordon
DC Rating: Much-improved over the second half of the season, but the first half was a write-off. They had to wait until November 26 for their first win, but what a win it was. Overall they fell short in all departments and it’s a case of back to the drawing board over the summer. 3/10
