Haroldeans teach Leeds a lesson

FOOTBALL MIKE Bloomberg believes Haroldeans have served a notice of intent after hitting former champions Leeds Maccabi for six in the MJSL.

Leeds have boasted one of the meanest defences in recent years but they had no answer to the powerful Merseysiders as Max Barnett (2), Adam Shiffman (2), Jack Bookey and Daniel Ellenberg registered.

Leeds hit consolations via Rafael Kaye and Adam Woolfstein but Bloomberg, who replaced Jonny Harris in the summer, said: “It’s important we build on this and maintain the momentum.

“Leeds have been a strong side in recent years so to beat them so convincingly sends out a strong message.

“We have some new players who have come onto the scene and Max has been a real find. He is only 16 but is a natural finisher.

“We have been scoring a lot of goals in pre-season so to transfer that to the league is superb.

“Nobody will get carried away. It’s about staying focused on one game at a time and seeing where it takes us.”

Haroldeans have struggled for numbers in recent times but Bloomberg, who used to manage the Veterans team, hopes that has changed.

He said: “It’s not easy when you are looking around for players.

“You want to be competitive every week. But Paul Harris has come back and he adds some steel and experience.

“The addition of three young lads has also given us more pace and energy.”

Jonny Rose is confident Maccabi Manchester Blue can kick-start their season after breaking their duck with a 4-1 win over South Manchester 2nd.

Ben Gould, Roy Fux, Yoni Green and Rafi Dines ensured Maccabi ended a run of three successive defeats to halt South’s 100 per cent record.

Rose said: “We just needed that confidence-boosting result to get up and running. We have shown in patches we can cause problems for teams while on the front foot. This was further evidence.”

Bobby Lee’s long-range strike was cancelled out by a first Prestfield goal via skipper Mickey Donn in a 1-1 draw against Maccabi Manchester Yellow.

Prestfield boss Zac Marks said: “It was a great performance and I was delighted to see our captain get off the mark.

“It was a game we probably should have won. But I can’t be too disappointed with some good debut performances from Avi Libbert, Ari Steinberger and Ben Mandell.”