Dead & "Bury-ed"?

A somewhat melodramatic banner headline, perhaps; but, if Enfield Town could not recover from their disappointing away defeat the previous weekend (at second-from-bottom VCD Athletic) then their end of season play-off hopes might well match that pithily punning description!

Enfield Town versus Bury Town

Ryman League Premier Division
Saturday 12th December, 2014 – 3pm kick-off

This week’s opponents at Donkey Lane were even lowlier than last week's. Visitors Bury Town F.C. (the imaginatively nick-named “Blues”) were arriving at the QEII on the back of 6 consecutive league defeats. They were looking upwards at all 23 other teams in the league, languishing at the foot of the table, and four points adrift thanks, at least in part, to Enfield’s capitulation last weekend, at their nearest rivals. That unexpected defeat had ended the Towners’ own recent run of 6 consecutive league wins (and 8 unbeaten). A run which had previously seen them scurrying up the table, like the clock-loving mouse of nursery rhyme fame, to pose as genuine contenders for a play-off place to compete for promotion to the Conference South - the much-vaunted 6th tier of English football.

My long-lost, occasional match buddy, Glenn, was keen to get along to the Bury game. Perhaps inspired by the possibility of a home win - and a potential goal-fest? We strolled down Tenniswood Road together and  expectantly crossed the New River bridge, on our normal route to the ground. Bury had one of the three leakiest defences in the league; but were also the most goal-shy, having scored just 16 goals in 25 league games. This combination of goal statistics, for and against, looked on paper like the primary cause of their current predicament. A look at their website also showed that their goal keeper was on loan to them from a neighbouring team, languishing in the league below. If Alex Archer wasn't good enough for Sudbury Town, then perhaps signing him as first choice goalie was not the best way to make a positive statement and stake your club's claim for league survival.

Ideal weather for ducks on the New River; but, ironically, perhaps not for football?

There was a pitch inspection on the morning of the game, after recent wet weather and frosty nights; but the all-clear was given just after 9:30am. This was good news both for football-hungry fans AND for Enfield Town’s new right winger Tony Burke, starting on the bench after recently signing from FC Broxbourne Borough as a reinforcement for Bradley Quinton’s attacking options. His arrival at Enfield, presumably, was with one eye on those glittering play-off places. The afternoon's attendance of 329 was noticeably down on the norm; but still the 4th highest of the 10 declared gates of the day (Wingate & Finchley didn’t dare publicise theirs!). The 11 away fans visible at the far end had perhaps not being paying attention to recent results. Or maybe they just preferred standing in the cold to going Christmas shopping in Suffolk. The delights of the A10 'Retail Park', after all, are only a stone's throw away, visible from the ground. Some members of Bury's squad had found the soccer-or-shopping choice harder to make, it seemed; since the club had travelled with just three substitutes - none of whom were to see any action. Were they (in fact) rusting, decommissioned nuclear Russian subs?

In a game where the visitors' 'keeper was involved in a near colour clash with his own outfield players ('tangerine' versus 'gold') a bright and confident start from Enfield saw them create most of the early pressure and chances, as expected. Glenn and I consequently joked that our Golden Goal tickets (47th and 63rd minutes) had no hope. Not even a Liam Hope, who was starting on the bench. Jordan Lockie was busy with his normal forward forays from the back, on Town’s right. His 8th minute cross into the box saw Michael Kalu shoot just over the bar. His 10th minute assist saw Leon Antoine rise to head powerfully – but directly at Bury’s on-loan ‘keeper, Alex Archer (see photo).

Enfield's Leon Antoine times his run; but directs his header at Bury's Alex Archer.
Photo by Tom Scott

The visitors ‘combatively’ sought to counter Enfield’s greater finesse and threat; and it was only a surprise that their first booking, after 14 minutes, had not come sooner. Bury’s #10, Remi Garrett, was clearly guilty of leaving his high foot ‘in’; but might still have got away without a yellow card, had he not decided then to stupidly remonstrate his innocence with referee Graham Kinnear. So, with Enfield’s midfield and attack totally dominant, the home defence (of course) decided to take a few naps. After 21 minutes, Bury’s first real chance of the game materialised almost out of nowhere. Garrett’s cross found Joe Whight deep in the box; but his effort went just to the left of McDonald’s goal. With 23 minutes gone, Whight’s in-swinging corner from the right was met by Weavers, who rose unmarked at the far side of the area, only to head his effort back to the right, high and wide of goal. These were clear warnings to Town that The Blues (yes, they were playing in gold!) had not travelled more than 70 rustic miles just to capitulate to the vagaries of ‘the form book’. Normal service was soon resumed, though, with Enfield dominant in terms of possession and territory; and Bury content to sit back and frustrate in ‘muscular’ style. The Bury website would later claim loyally that “an even half ended without a goal and both teams reflecting on missed chances”; but, other than those couple of squandered efforts, the visitors had added little of positive note to the game. That was until their vociferous penalty appeal, late in the half. It was waved away, briskly; but not before Enfield hearts had fluttered. It looked increasingly likely that a single goal might well decide the contest; and a sucker punch, against the run of play, just before the break, would have been a cruel blow to home hopes. It was a pleasant, bright, winter’s afternoon; but so bitterly COLD. Luckily(?) the club shop had gratefully received its consignment of this year's stylish(?) new bobble hats; in tasteful(?) Town Blue and Luminous Lime Green. With the Winter Solstice just a week away, the QEII floodlights were on long before Mr. Kinnear offered us the respite of half-time. They picked out the colours of those new hats beautifully(?) amongst the crowd. After the ref blew for half-time, the Butler’s Bar was, unsurprisingly, soon very full - and steamy.

The second half carried on where the first had left off. Enfield again dominated possession, but lacked cutting edge (and a touch of Lady Luck) in the final third. As in other recent games, Quinton had clearly fired up his boys with a strong half-time dressing room pep talk. Bury lost what little rhythm they had shown in the first half and rarely went forward; struggling to gain or retain the ball; still resorting to 'questionable' challenges. Lockie departed after just 50 minutes with an almost inevitable resultant injury.

Antoine receives a cheery, festive shove: "Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence!"
Photo by Tom Scott

I knowingly confided in Glenn that Town’s superior fitness levels would, surely, pay dividends late in the game – if not before. Enfield pushed forward at every opportunity searching for that all-important goal. Whitely’s left-foot effort was saved after 52 minutes. Another header from Antoine cleared the bar, after a 56th minute corner. On 61 minutes Tyler Campbell pulled a shot just wide. With fifteen minutes left, a ball in from new signing, substitute Tony Burke, after good footwork and a fine run, was smothered gratefully by Archer. A flurry of efforts on goal from Burke, Livings, Kane and Kirby all failed to break the deadlock. It was an endless catalogue of woulda, shoulda and coulda. But Bury continued to defend resolutely; and it looked for all the world as though they were heading for their first point in seven leagues games. Perhaps it was also telling that Town's record club goal scorer, Liam Hope, failed to make even the briefest of appearances off the Enfield bench, on a day when his team mates couldn't seem to buy a goal for love nor money. Those Golden Goal tickets of ours really had, ultimately, been hopeless; but not in the way we had originally imagined.

There had been plenty of time-wasting and injuries throughout, though; and Enfield continued to build pressure, optimistically ignoring that fickle enemy, the clock. “Score in a minute – we’re gonna score in a minute” sang the hopeful home fans. Brian Clough had famously intoned that it only takes a second to score a goal. It was a view Towners now very much found themselves desperately endorsing. The home side's superior fitness levels and sensible use of fresh legs off the bench, now had little time left to prove their worth. In the fourth minute of injury time Enfield captain Mark Kirby finally proved Clough right, though. As yet another thwarted Town attack saw the ball roll out to him on the edge of Bury’s area, he drove a well-timed and powerful right-footed volley back, back the full 20 yards, inside the left-hand post, beyond Archer’s late, despairing dive: 1-0, at long, long last.

Spot the Ball! Unmarked Kirby's late, late strike is on its way goal-ward.
Photo by Tom Scott

... and then so is Kirby. The contrasting expressions say it all! Lost contact lenses?

Photo by Tom Scott

Team & fans join in the goal celebrations, despite kill-joy linesman intervention.
A new club hat can be seen worn proudly(?) left of centre, in all its 'glory'.

Kirby was ecstatic; as were his fellow Town players - AND the home fans. The importance of even the narrowest margin of victory was clear to all. The gold-shirted visitors, by contrast, were crest-fallen; heads hung low. It was now easy to see how such a dour (but not always dire) side, with just three seemingly unusable subs, might find themselves bottom of the league, Just not showing enough attacking intent; until it was, finally, almost too late. Yet all credit to them, as they then regrouped for a final assault which had seemed beyond them for most of the first 95 minutes. Belatedly, they were still able to muster their best chance of the game, as Garrett’s cross found Hall, whose close-range header demanded – and received – a fine reaction save from the otherwise under-employed Enfield ‘keeper, Nathan McDonald. It was to be the difference between the two sides. The sign of a good goalie; able to deliver even when left largely inactive, out in the cold. One, indeed, who appears to have improved almost beyond recognition, as an initially-shaky season has progressed. Just the sort of guardian, in fact, a play-off-bound team might need, come April. No goal-fest for Glenn; but a home win, nonetheless.

Going into this weekend's NFL fixtures, the Seattle Seahawks had just lost 1 in 7 'regular season' American Football games. It was a record matched by the equally world famous(?) Enfield Town FC; but the similarities between these two global giants didn't end there. Oh no! For instance, just take another look at that new-style Towners bobble hat (above) and then look at the Seahawks equivalent, below. I think it's clear from whence the Washington State side take their millinery cues:

Spookily similar - although Enfield's version is better value!

... but I digress, as ever. Back on the pitch, Mr. Kinnear had finally seen enough. The Seahawks, incidentally, did win again at the weekend - and so had the famous Enfield Town. Bury’s defensive ‘Dunkirk’ spirit had so very nearly paid off; but the three points were, ultimately, a just reward for the hosts’ persistent perseverance. One 'humourous' tweet on the club’s website suggested "Mark Kirby is worth his weight in gold. And that's a lot of gold" – which seemed, simultaneously, both harsh AND fair on Captain Marvel! Glenn and I could barely feel the cold any more, so warmed were we by those two gratefully received 'additional' league points. We were walking in a Kirby Wonderland. And any rumours of Enfield Town's dead (or dying) promotion play-off chances had clearly been, as another American, Mark Twain, might have said, "greatly exaggerated", after all. That is to say: so far, at least. The crowd dispersed warmly. We contentedly trudged on frozen toes back towards our cars, etc., as The Towners climbed back into 7th place in the Ryman Isthmian Premier League table ... and hope continued to spring, eternal(?).

Enfield Town: Nathan McDonald, Jordan Lockie (Jamie Smyth 50), Phil Kane, Taylor Hastings, Mark Kirby, Stanley Muguo, Tyler Campbell, Nathan Livings, Corey Whitely, Leon Antoine (Ryan Doyle 90), Michael Kalu (Tony Burke 66).
Unused subs: Liam Hope, Ade Cole.

Bury Town: Alex Archer, Russell Short, Seb Dunbar, John Kennedy, Justin Miller, Milton Elenge, Connor Hall, Phil Weavers, Joe Benjamin, Remi Garrett, Joe Whight.
Unused subs: Callum Bennett, Chris Benjamin, Liam Wales.
Booked: Garrett, J Benjamin, Whight.