Reserves make it 5 out of 5 at LCS

Kensington Dragons Reserves 4 v 0 FF Haringey Reserves

Kensington Dragons Reserves faced Haringey on Saturday afternoon at Linford Christie Stadium. With four wins from four they took to the pitch as favorites, however their opponents seemed a strong and well organised team as well.

Again the Dragons had a small squad this week so they had to make multiple changes to their first 11 for the 5th consecutive time. Abdullah Hussein joined Will Conway in a new look central defence. This gave the chance for Matt Finch to jump into the starting line-up after a spell on the sidelines. However the 6 in midfield and up front were as last week and this was to prove decisive.

The Dragons, usually slow starters, were in sharp form from the off . After 5 minutes they were leading 2-0. Just after kick off and a few passes completed, Andrew Scheck hit a powerful drive, the Haringey Goalkeeper dropped the ball straight in front of the upcoming Alvaro Ferrer who scored the first goal. Immediately after the restart, Dragons’ central midfielders recovered possession and played in George Mariner who finished as he usually does. Over the rest of the first half the Dragons controlled the game with excellent performances from Adam Finch, Andrea Levato and Scheck. HT 2-0

At the break Coach Martin Rusiecki, at the helm for his first game, asked the players to keep possession and explore the wide areas as much as possible. Players followed his directions implicitly, knowing that chances of their own will come. Unfortunately Ferrer missed an empty net from a few yards but the rest of the team showed great character to push on and kill the game. Levato made a great run through half of the pitch, went by 3 players and pinged a cross straight on to Mariner’s head. 3-0. The game was probably clinched but the Dragons defenders played fantastically to keep a zero next to their name. They were strong, solid and very well organized. Injured Will Conway made way for Ashley Ankrah, who slotted in nicely having being left on the bench from the off, meaning the Dragons kept a clean sheet for the first time this season. Mariner scored his 3rd goal 10 minutes before the final whistle, completing an excellent hatrick and claiming the match ball to boot.

The Dragons strong start continues but they still need to add to the squad if they want to consolidate this and push for a first league championship.