Dockers's revival goes on as Ware are well beaten (From Thurrock Gazette)

Dockers's revival goes on as Ware are well beaten

6:09pm Saturday 13th December 2008

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Ware 1, Tilbury 4
TILBURY’S revival continued in some style at Ware on Saturday where the home side were reeling from the departure of manager Glen Alzapiedi but still put out a strong side.

Indeed it was the same team that had beaten Bishops Stortford in midweek in the Herts Senior Cup but though they took the lead, they were overwhelmed by the fitness of Tilbury who produced one of their best performances in recent seasons.

Tilbury made just one change from Tuesday's win against Wakering, Manlee Brown dropping to the subs' bench to be replaced by Chris Stowe.

The home side took the lead after just six minutes when a poorly hit back-pass put keeper Andy Hall under pressure and his clearing kick fell to Bryan Hammatt who showed great composure to lob the ball back over the keeper from 40 yards.

However, the lead last just three minutes as Dockers drew level when Rashid Kamara’s run and cross saw the ball deflect upwards and Michael Black was in the right place to head home.

On a day when all but two other Ryman One North matches were washed out, both sides gave their all on a pitch was cutting up badly.

Chances came and went, with Ware trying to catch Dockers on the counter, most notably when a great ball down the right by Michael Sharman found Paul Burton who smashed the ball just over bar.

Tilbury raised their game in turn with a move that started in the centre circle. The talented Greg Cohen collected the ball and went on a mazy run, from 30 yards out picking out Gary Burrell who dropped his shoulder and lifts a great ball onto the head of Stowe but ball sailed just over the bar.

Dockers began to take control. Joe Keith started another Tilbury attack that again involved the impressive Burrell and ended with Stowe forcing a fine save from Ware's 17-year-old keeper Bradley Pope.

Tilbury come close to taking the lead on 32 minutes when Keith was once more the provider for Stowe who headed just wide of the post.

Tilbury ended the half in impressive fashion.Their defence looked bomb proof with Junior Baker, Danny Smith, Joe Keith and Rickie Hayles providing a brick wall in front of Hall. The half ended with another chance for Dockers, Jamie Wallace bringing the ball under control in difficult conditions and looping an effort just wide of the post.

Ware’s caretaker boss Paul Halsey appeared to fire his charges up at half time. Speculation has been rife that several will now follow Alzapiedi out of Wodson Park but in the opening stages of the restart they certainly appeared committed to the Blues’ cause.

Joe Stevens launched a blistering shot just over the bar and they almost scored when John Frendo got on the on the end of a Hammatt passbut, from close range, fired straight at Hall.

But Tilbury weathered the early storm and came close when Black picked out Kamara with a pin-point pass over the top of the advancing Ware defence. Michael Bardle's challenge unbalanced Kamara but he quickly regained his feetand curled a goalbound shot towards the ball top left hand corner only to see Pope pull of a fine acrobatic save.

However, on 55 minutes took the lead thanks to a brilliant solo goal from Kamara who went on a great run, after being freed by Wallace and he left several players in his wake before placing the ball past Pope.

In a bid to get back into the game Ware pushed forward and it was a move that Tilbury were to exploit on 65 minutes when James Wallace breached the offside trap, running from deep to collect Cohen's pass and he took the ball on before slipping it past Pope.

With that the spirit visibly left the home and Dockers were able to dominate the closing quarter.

Tilbury then replaced Stowe, who was feeling the effects of a previous strain,with nippy forward Jason Fontaine and he almost made an immediate impact when Baker and Kamara combined to create an opportunity but the muddy surface made the ball bobble up at the last moment and the despairing striker mistimed his run as the ball rolls out of play.

Tilbury were dominant and perhaps ought to have had more than just one more goal, which came on 81 minutes when Black was on hand to tap home after Pope was only able to parry Fontaine’s effort.

Fontaine has a great chance to make in five in the closing moments but the ball got stuck in he mud with the goal at his mercy.

The missed opportunity wasn’t something to dwell on and Dockers boss Graham Chester declared himself thrilled with his side’s performance, their fifth successive victory.

He said: “What can you say about that performance? Any doubters of the talent that we have at Tilbury needed to witness this game today.

"This set of players is simply awesome. They have got so much belief now, they are work together and I’ve told them that they had to go and show it by beating a good side today which they did.

“Ware took six points and scored 11 goals against Tilbury last season but we’ve now done the double on them this season.

“We might have had a bit of luck when we beat them at home earlier in the season, though we deserved the result for the way we battled, but today we were outstanding.

“Ware play narrow and to be fair when they came down the middle they looked dangerous but we exploited them by going wide and out fitness and heart carried us through.

"We have got tremendous team spirit going now and our dressing room is a very good place to be."

Ware: Bradley Pope, Dave Blowe, Michael Bardle, Joe Stevens, Matthew Taylor, Sam Berry, Michael Sharman, Chris Ellerbeck, John Frendo, Paul Burton, Bryan Hammatt. Subs Louis Bristow, Jimmie Berry, Mark Bowley.

Tilbury: Andy Hall, Danny Smith, Joe Keith, Rickie Hayles, Junior Baker, Jamie Wallace, Greg Cohen, Michael Black, Rashid Kamara, Chris Stowe (Jason Fontaine), Gary Burrell (Zubair Hazeem) , Jason Fontaine. Unused Subs : Patrick Gaskin, Glen Robson, Manlee Brown.

Attendance: 133.

*After the game Ware announced the appointment of Dennis Greene as their new team manager.

Chairman Aiden Mynott said: “Dennis understands the club position and fully intends to build upon the good work of Glen Alzapiedi.

“He had a watching brief in the defeat by Tilbury but saw enough good pointers especially in its first period performance to be excited by working with the players already here, albeit fully conversent of the fact that it will hard to keep it together in its present format.”

Greene, a former manager of Windsor & Eton, had played for the club during the 1998/99 campaign and again for a brief spell in 2001 said he was very much looking forward to the challenge and had returned to England after having spent the last two years in Spain as a coach.

Ryman Division One North, up to and inc Sat, Dec 13

		P	W	D	L	F	A	+/-	Pts
1	Waltham Abbey	20	14	4	2	52	19	+33	46
2	Aveley	20	13	6	1	43	18	+25	45
3	Ware	21	14	2	5	44	29	+15	44
4	Brentwood Town	19	13	4	2	38	16	+22	43
5	East Thurrock United	19	12	2	5	40	25	+15	38
6	Concord Rangers	21	11	4	6	40	19	+21	37
7	Northwood	20	9	5	6	30	23	+7	32
8	Wingate & Finchley	17	8	7	2	31	17	+14	31
9	Tilbury	22	9	4	9	36	31	+5	31
10	Redbridge	19	8	6	5	34	20	+14	30
11	Cheshunt	18	9	2	7	25	22	+3	29
12	Leyton	21	8	3	10	33	30	+3	27
13	Great Wakering Rovers	21	7	5	9	30	35	-5	26
14	Potters Bar Town (-1)	20	7	5	8	28	27	+1	25
15	Maldon Town (-3)	19	8	3	8	25	26	-1	24
16	Enfield Town	18	6	4	8	36	40	-4	22
17	Thamesmead Town	21	5	6	10	25	38	-13	21
18	Chatham Town	20	4	2	14	20	39	-19	14
19	Ilford	20	4	1	15	11	46	-35	13
20	Waltham Forest	21	3	3	15	19	48	-29	12
21	Witham Town	17	3	1	13	19	51	-32	10
22	Hillingdon Borough	20	2	1	17	14	54	-40	7

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