An incident packed game saw Fisher pick up their first win of the season with a 3-0 bank holiday win over local rivals Stansfeld at St Pauls, to lift them off the foot of the table.
Having played 48 hours earlier, manager Ajay Ashanike made several changes, with Teddy Jones coming to lead the line up top and new signing Salim Nassor returning for a second spell at the club joining Michael Sarpong in a refreshed midfield, with Tyron Mbuenimo dropping into the centre of the back four.
Stansfeld started strongly on in the early minutes Fisher were forced to play in their own half, seemingly unable to hold play in the Attacking third. However, a long break for a clash of heads which saw Stansfeld’s Rob Hughes depart for stitches allowed fisher to regroup and from that point in the took control of the game.
Teddy Jones pace and eager pressing was already causing Stansfeld problems and with seventeen minutes on the clock he forced Stansfeld to cough up possession deep in their half, and although the visitors seemed to have averted the danger and got cover back, Billy Brown pounced on the loose ball and turned past two defender to make space for a powerful low shot back across the goal to give Fisher the lead.With their tails up, leading for the first time this season, Fisher pressed forward.
Jack Gibbons, at right back, played a series of delightful through balls for the eager Jones to scamper after and Barrington and Lovell were also keen runners left and right. Fisher soon doubled their advantage when Jones caused panic between defenders and keeper nipping the ball away from them both on the edge of the box, but despite being held up Billy Brown swept onto the ball and flicked it sideways for Courtney Barrington to run it into an empty net.
Two became three ten minutes later, in a move that started with a Stansfeld free kick smacking the crossbar, setting Fisher off on a devasting counter-attack. Gibbons picked up the loose ball and fed Lovell down the right; his powerful run took Fisher deep into Stansfeld’s half, where he rolled it back for Gibbons to again link and sweep over an inch perfect cross for Teddy Jones arrive at far post and steer it back onto the head of Courtney Barrington who simply had to steer it into the gaping net. A goal of simplistic quality on the break.
Cruising at three up Fisher then conspired to try and give Stansfeld a route back into the game conceding a needless penalty when a long through ball caught them out, although the contact from keeper Isaac Ogunseri wide of the penalty area was evidently well outside the box. The big keeper redeemed himself with a superb diving save to ensure Fisher went into the break with their clean sheet intact.
Three minutes after the break Stansfeld were awarded a second penalty, after Mbuenimo was adjudged to have fouled when jumping to compete for a high ball, despite few appeals from the Stansfeld forwards. This time Ogunseri went left and again beat the ball away, tipping the rebound back onto the bar with the further follow up headed away to safety.
A moment of ill-discipline then caused Fisher to go down to ten men as Ange Djadja said too much about a similar challenge to the penalty, at the other end of the pitch, and was sin binned. Ogunseri then made a good low save from a free kick but in the main Fisher played the ten minute spell well, closing up the game and the errant defender’s return ten minutes later allowed them to get back on the front foot.
They could have added further gloss to the scoreline, with substitute Tolu Junaid firing at the keeper when breaking into the box on the left and Jake Lovell just guiding a cross over the bar after a good flowing move.Courtney Barrington then wasted a great chance for his hat trick when Jones was tripped in the box, but his penalty effort was the third of the game to be saved, as the Stanfeld keeper dived correctly to his left. However, Fisher had done more than enough to earn the points and saw the game out with ease to keep the local bragging rights.
Photo - Dave Anderson
