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Football: Lovely bubbly as Boro sparkle again
August 20, 2009
Zamaretto Southern Premier
Brackley Town 1 Farnborough 3
STEVE King promised he would bring exciting players — and thereby performances — to Farnborough and he appears to have been as good as his word, judging by this win.
All four of King’s new forwards have now scored this season, across two games, and, on this occasion, it was Bradley Bubb who stole the headlines, as he ran amuck against a side fancied to do well.
Bubb played a key role in the first major incident of the match, setting up Kezie Ibe, who was hauled back in the area by Brackley captain Craig McIlwain, in the 20th minute.
While McIlwain saw red, his side did at least maintain parity in terms of the score, as Dean McDonald saw his spot-kick saved by Richard Morris.
But it was just a brief reprieve; six minutes later McDonald smashed a shot past Morris, via a slight deflection off Ibe, who claimed the goal, in true hungry-striker style.
Before the break McDonald hit a post and Bubb had a goal ruled out for offside, as Boro tore into the 10 men.
Silverstone is just up the road from Brackley and, after the break, Boro made a fast start in keeping with their surroundings.
Boro’s tasty big Mc — Daryl McMahon — opened up the Brackley defence and little Mc — McDonald — crossed low for Bubb to slide home.
Bubb repeated the trick three minutes later, scoring from the edge of the area, and he hit a post soon afterwards, as he went in search of a hat-trick. Bubb perhaps might not have been playing, if Anthony Thomas had been fit.
Ibe was next to test the frame of the goal, walloping the bar from 25 yards out.
Surprisingly, Brackley pulled a goal back with 20 minutes to go, as substitute Elliot Sandy squeezed a shot past Richard Barnard.
That Boro have failed to keep a clean sheet in either of their opening wins is a blemish — but it is hard to criticise when there is so much beauty on display at the other end.
Farnborough: Barnard, Stevens (Ray 73), Opinel (Ciardini 61), Robinson, Doyle, Wormull, McMahon, Holloway, Ibe, Bubb, McDonald (King 79). Not used: Sylvain, Smith.
THERE is nowhere more southern in the Southern Premier than Truro and on Saturday Boro make the long journey to the far tip of the South-West, just 30 miles shy of Land's End.
Any trip to the glorious South-West should be a happy jaunt but those Boro fans who make the huge 460-mile round slog will do so with a little trepidation. It will be a long old journey back, should Boro have nothing to smile about.
Truro themselves are somewhat of an unknown quantity. Like Leamington last week, they are new to the Southern Premier, following in Farnborough's footsteps by winning Southern One South & West at the first attempt last season. The Southern Premier is by far the highest a team from the west side of the River Tamar has ever climbed.
Truro are hugely ambitious and will have been identified by Boro as one of few teams who might provide a big obstacle on the road back to Conference football.
So, this is a key battle so early in the season and both teams go into it on the back of two wins out of two. Boro are top, on goals scored.
Despite what is sure to be a boisterous welcome from the Cornishmen and their crowd, Boro will be confident that they can steal the points from the land of the Cornish Pirates, who play rugby just down the road from Truro in Camborne.
Do not expect a rugby score - as Boro threatened at Brackley - but it is hard to see Boro approaching any game this season and not being confident of victory.
They may, however, need to be a little more clinical and ruthless than they were at Brackley. Victories at home to Merthyr Tydfil and away to Bedford Town suggest that Truro will indeed be one of the teams to beat this season.
Farnborough, of course, are THE team to beat and will most likely need to stand up to a rousing start from Truro before they can think about playing some of their more pretty football.
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