La Chiesa showed the ruthless side of their character
this Sunday, putting seven, including a second half four timer from Dennis Peck, past Stonewood to move into fourth place
in the Essex Sunday Corinthian League.
The Peter May Sports Ground in E17 is the favourite away
venue for the majority of LC/DC players. Memories of maximum points from previous trips down the A406, Adam Jeffers
spectacular goal of the season from 03/04, and a chance to pretend at playing in a Milanese derby not withstanding, there
is the added bonus of an eyeful of the receptionist on their way to the dressing room - Why hello... Ding dong you're
not wrong!
Chiesa made five changes from the team that beat
Barking Colts last week. With Danny Hardwick declaring himself unavailable, Mark Harris took over between the sticks,
while Steve McCarthy was handed his full debut in the centre of defence. Benny G made his first start of the
season in midfield alongside the returning Samuel Knowles, and Cy Taylor partnered Adam Jeffers in attack.
This was a game that Chiesa expected to win, and they
started off in confident manner. The football that they have been playing this season has been of a vastly superior standard
to that of the last, but a major downfall has been overplaying before the game is won, the gut wrenching defeat against
Maze being an obvious example. With twenty minutes gone the visitors were becoming tetchy. Despite dominating
the game and playing some quality football, they had yet to make the breakthrough, and memories of pretty play and no points
may have been creeping in to Chiesa minds. Darren Hodsoll was first to crack, being shown a yellow card for dissent,
and minutes later, after receiving a talking to from referee Thatcher, it was no surprise when Knowles followed
him into the book for a petulant foul. When will these boys learn??!!
With their skipper and manager walking a disciplinary tightrope
for the next seventy minutes, it was time for Chiesa to turn their pressure into goals. Adam Jeffers hit the crossbar with
a shot from the edge of the area, and Knowles had a great chance to give his side the lead, only to square the ball to
the heavily marked Jeffers when a shot on goal seemed the more obvious choice. Shots were flying high wide and handsome
from all comers before the deadlock was broken in the thirty fourth minute. John Riley picked out Jeffers with a defence
splitting pass, and the livewire striker steered it expertly into the path of Taylor. The 'soul provider' had yet
to score for Chiesa, but kept his head to calmly stroke the ball past the keeper, breaking his duck and giving his
side the lead in one fail swoop.
For the next ten minutes the Stonewood goal was under siege.
The normally reliable Jeffers volleying over after springing the offside trap, Iain Gay missing a chance to give his side
a two goal cushion, and a trademark Colin Williams heat seeking missile somehow kept out. It had been all Chiesa,
but at half time they still led by just the one goal, and the nagging doubt that it could all go wrong was still at the forefront
of their minds.
Dennis Peck replaced Adam Jeffers at the interval in a pre-
planned move, and when Benny G's response to being asked how much he had left in the tank was to throw up, it seemed like the
right time to bring on the younger of the Brothers Gillham!
With the downward slope in their favour for the second half,
and trailing by the bare minimum, Stonewood may have harboured hopes of a comeback, and indeed they tried their luck from
kick off with a shot that keeper Harris held with a minmium of fuss. Any optimism they had was to be dashed within five
minutes of the restart, however. Matt Gillham's first contribution was a mazy run down the right and a cutback for Knowles
on the edge of the area. The Chiesa gaffer's shot was hit well enough but straight at the goalkeeper, but when the Stonewood
stooper strangely elected to save with his feet rather than his hands, the ball rebounded kindly to substitute Peck
who tucked it away for his second goal since joining the Hornchurch Rossoneri. Five minutes later it was three, when Knowles was upended in the area, and picked himself up to
score his third penalty of the season.
Stonewood then enjoyed their best spell of pressure of the match.
A looping shot almost caught Harris out, and the resulting corner was headed just over, but Chiesa were in no mood to
give up their lead, and when a swift counter attack ended up with Taylor looping the ball over the keeper, Peck
was on hand to crash a header home off the underside of the crossbar.
Dean Jordan came on to replace Williams for the last
twenty five minutes, and his first touch was to set himself up for the goal of the game. Cutting in from the left, Jordan
unleashed a fierce drive into the top right hand corner that left the keeper with no chance, and made the scoreline five nil
to the Hornchurch Boys. Peck claimed his hat trick with a back post header from a Gillham corner as LC/DC turned on the style.
Six goals up and playing some football that was very easy on the eye, Chiesa were creating chance after chance, the improving
Taylor lobbing the keeper only to see the ball drop just wide, while Gilham was turning his marker inside out at will only
to be denied by some good goalkeeping. John Riley was bringing the ball out of defence in the style of Rio Ferdinand, Steve
McCarthy had been impressive in every aspect of his debut, while Terry Soteriou was rock solid at left back, as well
as popping up on the right wing. Iain Gay covered every blade of grass, and controlled the midfield to continue what
has been an superb season for him so far.
Stonewood grabbed a late consolation to ruin Harris' dreams
of a clean sheet, before a taxi was called for skipper Hodsoll, when he blazed wide from ten yards out with just the
keeper to beat. Knowles was denied a second penalty when referee Thatcher chose not to see an obvious foul in the area,
but if he had decided Stonewood had suffered enough, Peck hadn't, and he set a new goalscoring record for LC/DC
when he dribbled past two defenders and toepoked a shot past the beleagured home custodian for his fourth goal in
just forty five minutes of action.
A record win for La Chiesa then, and with the news
that Woodford Hammers had been hit for six by Maze topping off a perfect day for the Rossoneri, they go into next weeks big
match with fellow promotion hopefuls May & Bakers in the knowledge that a win will move them into second place.
LCDC; (4-4-2) Harris; Hodsoll , Riley, McCarthy,
Soteriou; B Gillham (M Gillham), Gay, Knowles, Williams (Jordan); Jeffers (Peck), Taylor
Gols - Taylor, Peck 4, Knowles (pen), Jordan
Tarjetas Amarilla - Hodsoll, Knowles
Arbitro - G Thatcher
