Catch us if you can, says Hendon gurugarbacz
HendonbossDavidGarbacz is backing his team to retain their crown following an impressive 5-3 win over title rivals Redbridge Jewish Care A.
Two goals from Dovid Korman lifted Hendon to within two points of top spot as they ended their Redbridge hoodoo with a deserved victory. Avidan Last, Greg Corin and Danny Kon sealed the win in a game Redbridge finished with 10 men following the dismissal of Adam Hakimi.
Garbacz said: “We carried on where we f i ni s hed off at the end of last year and at t h e s a me time broke the Redbridge curse that has haunted us for the past couple of years and boy did it feel good.
“For 60 minutes we were sensational and played them off the park - scoring four goals in the process.
“We t h e n retreated too deep and took our foot o f f the gas and to their enormous credit Redbridge scored themselves to give us a bit of a fright. I was neveroverlyconcernedthoughaswealways had plenty in hand.
“Whilst we credit them for their football and fighting spirit, some of the shocking tackles that always fly in whenever Redbridge are losing are so predictable and the ref did very well to just about keep things under control.”
RJC man- ager Eilon Kennet commented: “Hendon were a little bit sharper and got the breaks in front of goal in the first half, leaving us with the proverbial mountain to climb in the second period.
“We restructured at half time and went for it and it almost came off. So, despite the defeat, we finished the game with our heads held high, knowing that had we started as well as we finished we could have won the game. It was the proverbial game of two halves.”
Oldham Athletic chairman Simon Corney says it feels like he has won the lottery after his club pulled Liverpool out of the hat for the second time in 13 months in the FA Cup. Victory over Nottingham Forest set up a fourth round clash against the Reds at Boundary Park at the end of the month.
Beaten 5-1 by Liverpool last season, Corney believes that home advantage can help his team record a famous cup upset.
He said: “It’s great for the fans to bring a club like Liverpool to Oldham because I think we’ve got a chance, I really do. Liverpool’s eyes are on the Premier League and although I’m not expecting t o wi n , anything i s possi - ble in a one-off game.
“It would have been more lucrative to be drawn away from home, but it’s not always about the money. It’s been really tough financially this season, not just for us but all the lower league teams as all the money is directed to Premier League clubs. But it is a relief to get some extra cash coming through the turnstiles.
“It’s a struggle every year, we make a loss and when you get a run like this, to get a draw like this it’s just fantastic. It promises to be a wonderful day.
“We made in the region of £350,000 from our game at Anfield last season and with the match live on television, I hope it will bring in £250,000 this time.”
Oldham captain Dean Furman produced an excellent display in the win over Forest but is likely to miss the match as he is on international duty with South Africa at the Africa Cup of Nations.
He said: “It’ll be a big challenge for the lads to reach the next round. I wish I could stick around but my duty lies elsewhere.”
Latics manager Paul Dickov said: “We’ll miss Dean – he’s my captain and a character.” Elsewhere in the compet i t i on, H a s t - i n g s ’ Bradley Goldberg scored the goal of the game but it could not stop his team from tumbling out 4-1 against Middlesbrough at the Riverside, while Nick Blackman was on target in Sheffield United’s 3-0 victory at Oxford United.