It’s tough at the top
FOOTBALL JON Jacobs believes Redbridge have restored some pride after a draw that saw defending champions Oakwood fall from the top of the table.
A second-half strike from Steve Summers cancelled out an opener from Oakwood’s Brad Wine as Redbridge halted their three-match losing streak.
RJC joint-manager Jon Jacobs remarked: “It was a good game on a difficult and muddy pitch, but on reflection a fair result.
“After a difficult last few weeks for the club, today was all about the squad standing up and playing for each other and being a solid group.”
Jacobs praised midfielder Ben Sollosi for “a simply brilliant performance” against a powerful Oakwood team, who had forged ahead when Kyle Bentwood’s header was cleared into the path of the onrushing Wine who slotted his shot past Daniel Lee in the home goal.
Defences dominated in a scrappy contest, but Summers ensured Redbridge had something to show for their efforts with a clever scissors-kick finish in the second half, following a longthrow by Danny Berg.
Livewire Josh Cuby had a chance to win it for Oakwood but he was denied by a smart save from Lee who produced an instinctive block with his feet. The draw saw Oakwood surrender top spot to Hendon United, who have a game in hand, on goal difference. But jointmanager Dan Kristall is confident his players will hold on to the title.
“It was a tough morning in Essex for us but I felt we just edged the game,” he said. “Our injury list mounts with two enforced changes before the 20-minute mark to join the big-hitters in the treatment room. If we’d had a couple of those guys, I am confident we would have had too much for Redbridge.”
Commenting on the state of the pitch, Kristall said: “The conditions were atrocious and really levelled the game up. It restricted us playing our fast-flowing attacking football.
“Twelve months ago in our titledecider and at the last minute, Redbridge switched us from this pitch at Fairlop to a massive 3G around the corner. This year they didn’t, which to me speaks volumes for how they saw the game going.”
Kristall praised Redbridge for their resilient performance and said: “Our poor run in Essex continues. I think it’s four years since we have beaten them now. They battled well and scored in their good 20-minute spell in the second half. Although I felt we dominated the opening hour of the game, we tired as the game wore on and in the end it could have gone either way. I can’t really argue with the result.
“Jon [Jacobs] is a good guy and organises them well, and if they get that sort of team out on that pitch every week they will go back to beating the better sides in the league like they did last season.
“This result shows how far we have come as a team. We are so disappointed with this draw in Essex but it is probably a good point in the grand scheme of things.”
Looking at the title race, Kristall remarked: “The league is strong, Hendon are now big favourites and it’s certainly theirs to lose now, but we came from nowhere last year, didn’t we? Like us, Hendon also have some tough tests to come so nothing is decided yet.
“We will keep fighting and once we recover our injured players, we will be in the mix at the end of the season.”