Peckham held by Stansfeld

A slightly different angle on this week’s match report, as Duncan Hart celebrated isolation freedom in the Dulwich Beer Dispensary it was left to the reluctant Centre Back Adam Carrick to fulfil this week’s reporting duties!

After last weeks postponement the Peckham players and staff were keen to kick 2022 off properly with 90 minutes of Menace action. Mary Phillip was forced into several changes and a formation switch, with a sparse squad due to three suspensions and other absences. However good things were expected from the 13 available players, and a fixture postponement was never on the cards, unlike many teams in the other Premier League.

Egleton, Thomas and Meta (all regular starters) were all missing due to ill discipline in previous matches. Phillip introduced new signing Hamid Bangura on the bench alongside the experienced and returning Marcus Black. Legg regained the Number 1 shirt despite recent valiant performances from the stand in Romaku, who slotted into a slightly more familiar right back position. Romaku was alongside the usual Boakye, Carrick and Hashemi in the back 4. The midfield consisted of Hong in a holding position behind Barry, Dowding, Dance (Captain) Gabor and the inform Montella.

Unfortunately there isn’t much I can tell you about the Stansfeld squad except from their exuberant warm up and recent positive results the young fit side were definitely not at the Menace Arena to make up the numbers. The match kicked off in front of a bumper league crowd of 205 all equally excited to finally see some live football.

Stansfeld set the early pace, as they moved the ball neatly across the park trying to expose holes in the usually tight Menace defence while worrying looks spread across the Peckham back 4 as they tried desperately to control the pace of the game. It took just ten minutes for Stansfeld’s positive work to pay dividends. Neat work brought the ball down on the edge of the box, swiftly nutmegging Boakye and with little left to do the Peckham defender stuck out a flailing leg. It was soft, he knew what he was doing, but fair play Peckham strikers would have done the same. 1-0, usual penalty expert Legg had no chance as it was booted high into the net from 12 yards, cue the first scenes of premature jubilation from the away side.

The rest of the first half was non-eventful, Gabor had a decent chance on his weaker foot, only managing to hit the Mike Smith stand. Half time saw no changes from Peckham, but a stern talking to was in order and duly supplied my Phillip and Meta who expressed his frustrations at not donning the kit in such a big game. No idea about Stansfeld possible changes - they had about fifteen subs!

The second half Peckham came out fighting, the New Year's hangovers shaken off by the brilliant support of the Menace faithful who were in full voice behind the goal, led by the shrill Northern tones of stalwart supporter Pete Cooper. One of a number of supporters who have realised non-league football is the heart of the English game. Who wants to watch Southampton lose every week anyway? (Ed - well, now you mention it, that sounds quite fun - Play up Pompey!).

The break came on 56 minutes when a ball over the top found Josh Montella, he jinxed past one, cut inside and thrashed the ball past the helpless keeper - a fantastic finish once again for the hard-working striker. Peckham now had the upper hand, moving the ball well and creating several chances. Stanseld were trying to break up the play wherever possible with even their management receiving bookings for dissent in an attempt to slow the play. I mean you can’t call the referee a "F****** C***" and get away with it - trust me!

The joy however was short lived. Dance brought down the Stanfeld skipper 25 yards out and in keeping with his excellent performance struck the resulting free kick top bins, leaving Legg helpless. Cue the second scenes of premature jubilation from the away side, with even the stand in stand-in club lineman joining the bundle before a ticking off from the referee sent him back, tail between legs.

Writing this while being forced to watch Dancing on Ice, the celebrations reminded me of Bez (Happy Mondays) first dance - pretty embarrassing, if you don’t believe me YouTube it! Phillip brought on Black and Bangura, the latter for his debut and what a debut it was. 10 minutes from time, a corner from Romaku was swung into the danger zone, the keeper failed to clear and Hamid Bangura powered the header in from all of 3 yards. The Stansfeld players protested, but no one really cared. The Menace players wheeled away in celebration with still time for a winner.

Sadly, no goal came, each team had half chances but the tiredness was evident after a hard slog on heavy ground. The 2-2 full time score was a fair result with each team having favourable spells throughout the game. (Ed - also a fitting scoreline for the first match since the great Desmond Tutu sadly passed away on Boxing Day).

Personally, MOM would be Stansfeld skipper, Red Jenkins, who controlled the game well, but Hong and Dance coped well against him and deserve credit. The Menace face Tudor Sports away next week, as Peckham continue with the fight to be crowned league champions. We hope to see you all there!

Finally, a note to the support and staff at Peckham Town. Over 200 there yesterday which is a fantastic achievement for a club at this level. It is truly appreciated on the pitch by us, the players who look forward to entertaining everyone who sacrifices their Saturday to come and watch - long may it continue. Also, a big thank you to the staff, like Mary and Bryan, who straight after the game were out maintaining the pitch for future matches - their efforts off the pitch are not overlooked. See you in a couple of weeks! #MENACELIFEAINTEASY