Gaffer's Gob - Pre Match

Norton Sports currently top the table after starting the season very brightly and managing to still have an un-beaten record both home and away. We have already played today’s visitors away and got a creditable 0-0 draw with 10-men, which ended a terrible run of four defeats in a row for us at that time. We could have grabbed all three points near the end, when Ricardo Harvey rounded the keeper only to put the ball wide of the gapping goal.

Norton has continued to push on since this fixture and remain one of the favourites to continue to mount a serious title challenge. Nothing can be taken for granted though, as our opponents of last week Bromley Green found out last season, when they basically crumbled under the pressure and allowed Holmesdale to snatch the title on the final day. I wish them all the best for the rest of the season.

Last week saw a bit of a return to form for our own side, based on the second half performance, against a very physical Bromley Green side. The 2-1 victory was a morale booster for our side, as it saw us battle back from being a goal behind before winning the match. I was really pleased with the work-rate of each of the players, especially in the second half. We showed the kind of work ethic that we are going to need to repeat today, because Norton are a side that also work very hard for one another.

I believe that for our team to achieve all that it is capable of this season, we have got to turn the Ladywell Arena into the fortress. So far this season we have shown to be ‘easy’ to beat at home, which is very disappointing and at times frustrating, especially now that we have been able to attract some local support. This is the first of four games in a row at home for our team and we need to have a consistent run to continue to climb up the table.

May I also take this opportunity to thank our sponsors and Ten-Em-Bee for their continued support and interest in the continued progress of the Borough Club and in particular the continued backing of our Mayor of Lewisham.