Corinthian-Casuals 5 - 0 South Park
Bostik League South
Tuesday 26th September 2017
​Match report and photos: Stuart Tree (full set of pics here)

Danny Cunningham bagged himself a hat-trick as Corinthian-Casuals put in a five-star performance beating South Park 5-0 in the Bostik League South on Tuesday Night.

And Manager James Bracken has his eyes set on winning the league after the result leaves Casuals one point off the top, having gone undefeated in the last six games.
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“A point off the top now. We’ve got to work hard to stay there,” said Bracken following the win.

“Third in the league is okay but we want that top spot. It’s first or nothing. I want to be in first, I want to open up gaps in the table and want to be looking down on the rest and not worrying about results because we’ll just keep winning. We’re good enough to keep winning.”

Following on from the solid 1-0 win at Faversham Town on Saturday, Casuals came into the match unbeaten in five, winning four and conceding only two goals in that period. South Park – usually a bogey side for Corinth sat in 3rd knowing a win would take them to the top of the league standings.

Proceedings got off to the perfect start for Casuals as Danny Cunningham met a Warren Morgan cross just three minutes into the match. His header looped up over Callum Thomas in goal and found the opposite corner. Thomas was called into action again soon after saving well from another Cunningham drive.

A contentious moment occurred when ex-Casual Josh Gallagher tussled with Gabriel Odunaike and was lucky not to have been dismissed by the match official – a caution given to both players.

Scoring at right times in the match can be crucial for any victory as seen at Salters Lane at the weekend. The same can be said of this fixture. Starting the second half as bright as the first, Cunningham doubled the score six minutes into the second period. Kevant Serbony this time the provider of the cross from the right found Cunningham who pounced just yards out.

The striker had his hat-trick on the hour mark. Odunaike’s pace was too hard to contend with and played in Cunningham for the striker to bag his seventh of the season. Game over.

Max Oldham added a fourth when Jack Strange provided a delightful ball for the pacy substitute to slot home from the edge of the box.

And Josh Uzun capped off a fine performance after dispatching a penalty into the top right corner following a foul in the box.

The win puts Casuals up to third in the table just one point off the top.

“We were fantastic and that’s been coming,” continued Bracken.

“One of my criticisms in all of my time here is that we’ve not bashed enough teams. We have the potential to get our noses in front, grab a second and then capitalise from there. To go on and punish teams.

“We had the quality to do it tonight and we showed it. We were thoroughly dominant from the first whistle to the last.

“South Park had plenty of possession in their own half but played side-to-side. I think they only got into our box three times in the whole game. I don’t remember my brother having to make a good save on a night where you want to be having shots on a zippy pitch.

“Credit to the boys. It was defensively great, applied pressure at the right times and had the composure to play football. We’re very happy with that.

Bracken also praised the supporters too, claiming that they’re the ‘twelfth man’ for the side.

“The fans were fantastic too. We need them. I will categorically say that. We need them here at home, we need them away. We don’t just need them in numbers and standing there. We need them singing the player’s names, singing their hearts out.

“They were our twelfth man last season and they’ll be exactly that this season. We’ll give everything we can. If we all do that, giving everything, we won’t be far off as a club. Credit to them, they were great. Repaid them with a fine performance and everyone goes home having a good night.”

Casuals host second from bottom side Shoreham on Saturday.

Faversham Town 0 -1 Corinthian-Casuals
Bostik League South
Saturday 23rd September 2017
Match report & photos: Stuart Tree (full set of images here)

Corinthian-Casuals extended their unbeaten run to five games as they edged out Faversham Town by a goal to nil at Salters Lane in the Bostik League South.

A goal on the stroke of half-time courtesy of Danny Cunningham was enough to seal the three points which left Casuals sitting sixth in the league table come 5pm.
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James Bracken’s side have won four and drawn one of their last five matches since the abject performance in the FA Cup at Ashford Town. A solid win at early front-runners Whyteleafe in the week meant selection headaches for Bracken and Dan Pringle – the bench looking every bit as strong as the starting XI.

Whilst chances were few and far between on this bright afternoon, Casuals imposed themselves enough to ensure they had the bulk of possession and territory. Gabriel Odunaike had the first real chance for Corinth but the winger couldn’t quite reach the cross early enough and his glancing header was steered wide.

Jack Strange, imperious in defence once again could’ve bagged a hat-full of goals already this season. Today, his free header from a Josh Uzun cross whistled just over the bar, much to the chagrin of the 18 year old.

With half time looming, the old adage of ‘a great time to score’ came true for Bracken’s side when Casuals snatched the lead with seconds remaining. A failed clearance from the Whites could only find Tommy Smith who clipped a delightful cross to Cunningham. The striker’s scissor kick beat Simon Overland in goal and found the bottom corner, much to the jubilation of the visitors.

Cunningham perhaps should’ve killed the game off after the break when one-on-one with Overland, he could only blaze over the bar.

Casuals continued to dictate play and Faversham’s chances to get back into the game took a blow when Carl Rook was dismissed for a second bookable offence.

Despite the dominance of play, a scoreline of 1-0 is fragile and Casuals would’ve felt aggrieved if they let that lead slip. It almost happened; in stoppage time, a launched throw-in found Dan Carrington who’s header was directed to the top corner, but Danny Bracken, who’d had a quiet game to this point, pulled out a stunning reflex save to tip the ball over. Heartbeats could restart!
 
“One scare at the end but we managed the game well," said Manager James Bracken after the match.

“You’re not going to come out and win every game by three or four goals. You aim to make it more comfortable, get the second goal and kill it off. There’s always going to be games that we’ll only win one-nil through the course of the season, but that’s as comfortable a one-nil as we’ll get.

“We limited them to long balls forward inside their own half. They never once got down and around the outside of us. They never really got any crosses in, through balls or controlled possession in our half.

“That’s testament to us being organised in defence and solid in midfield. We could’ve caught them for a few more goals. I thought one-nil at half time flattered them with the few chances we had.

“We only crafted three or four chances but for me, they were really good chances that we probably should’ve scored. But we got the one, which was crucial and saw the game out in a comfortable manner.

“I still maintain this; there’s a lot more to come from these players. All of them… there’s more to come. Now we’re five unbeaten, four wins and a draw and we’ve only conceded two goals in that period. We’re not shipping goals and we know we’ve got goals in us.

“We’ve put a little run together now and we’ve got to stay on it. Get results in our next few home games and that will put us where I said we want to be. Win the next two and the boys will have done exactly what I asked them to do… win six of the next seven.

“We’re doing well. Competition for places is there. Competition needs to be embraced and the players who are playing need to be keeping zeros against them whilst winning games of football.”

Whyteleafe 1-2 Corinthian-Casuals FC
Velocity Trophy
Tuesday 19th September 2017

Just three days after meeting in the Bostik League clash at King Georges Arena - Corinthian-Casuals and Whyteleafe clashed again, this time at Church Road and for a place in the next round of the Velocity Trophy.

After the tight game on Saturday, in which neither side could manage a goal - the cup game at least guarnateed a result for either side.

With James Bracken making several changes to the lineup, the first half saw Whyteleafe look the stronger team. Danny Bracken pulled off a number of fine saves to keep Casuals in the match before Cheklit compounded the home sides frustrations as with almost the only strike on target in the first half for Casuals - they scored! 1-0. (Cheklit 17’)

At half time Casuals could have considered themsleves to be very fortunate to be going in 1-0 up. Whyteleafe have looked strong all season so far and are deservedly sitting top of the table at the time of writing, Casuals needed an improved performance in the second half.

And so it came to be. James Bracken scrapped the system used in the first 45 and switched to three at the back. The change in formation worked as Casuals looked far more in control with Jamie Byatt now operating as a wing back and bombing down the Whyteleafe right.

That Bola managed to score for Whyteleafe early in the second half - it didn’t seem to shake Causals resolve - as only two minutes later the men in pink restored their lead through Danny Cunningham in the 51st minute.

The ball took a wicked deflection to help it past Matte Pierson in the Whyteleafe goal - but it was always going on target, a great moment for Cunningham.

Casuals looked stronger as the game continued. James Bracken will be pleased with the changes he made - with all the lads who came in to the side making a considerable impact against the league leaders. 

So 2-1 it ended - Casuals through to the next round of the trophy. With Faversham Town away in the League up next for the side, they’ll be looking to build on the victory and make it 2 wins in the week!
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Team: Bracken (c), Smith, Byatt, Daly, Strange, Ekim, Cheklit, Serbony, Cunningham (Antonio), Dillon, Clarke.
Subs not used: Odunaike, Uzun, Aghatise, Hodges

Corinthian-Casuals 0-0 Whyteleafe
Bostik League South
Saturday 16th September 2017
Match report Cameron Smith

An in-form Whyteleafe side were held by the solid Corinthian-Casuals on a wet Saturday afternoon at the King George Arena, in which neither side were able to put the ball in the back of the net in a tense Bostik League South fixture.

Following a delightful 1-0 away victory in the Channel Islands versus Guernsey, James Bracken’s army marched to Walton Road, home of Molesey FC on Tuesday night, and picked up another three points thanks to a superb first-half display. In the last two games, Corinthians were playing ‘out-of-form’ teams (both Guernsey and Molesey are in the bottom half of the table) so when top of the league Whyteleafe came knocking, the Bracken Brothers may have had to re-think their tactics.

There was a strange sense of evenness as soon as the first ball was kicked. The yellow shirts of Leafe were constantly showing off their attacking prowess inside the first 45- it was half-chances galore for the visitors. For Casuals, it took a bit of time for the new strike-force to gel, as Gabriel Odunaike took the no.9 shirt, and Hamilton Antonio was Casuals’ main forward; he replaced Jerson Dos Santos, who has left the club to join fellow-Bostik Division South side Hythe Town. The partnership of Odunaike and Antonio produced a few opportunities that soon deteriorated. Overall, it was a game of dire quality at the break, and spectators from both sides were praying that a half-time team talk would create a more entertaining match.

Jordan Clarke was introduced at half-time and the energetic winger had the best chance of the game within the first 10 minutes of his inclusion. Bursting at the seams with confidence after coming back from injury, Clarke’s dribble into the area perplexed defenders and wowed supporters, but the decisive shot on goal was saved well by Leafe no.1 Matte Pierson. Then, Casuals were in uproar over the referee’s shake of his head- Max Oldham fell to the ground in the penalty area due to a seemingly-clumsy tackle, but the appeals were to no avail.

It was the final 20 minutes that left both sets of supporters with their heads in their hands as the Casuals and the Leafe took turns in missing opportunities. Substitute Cunningham had a glorious chance when Warren Morgan chipped a perfect ball past the Whyteleafe back-four and towards the striker, who decided to volley the ball first-time. Unfortunately for the hosts, the effort flew high over the bar, prompting humorous chants from the vocal Leafe fans. Danny Bracken came to Corinthians’ aid late on as the captain was outstretched to tip the ball away for another corner after a darting header from the away side. Stoppage time brought set-pieces after set-pieces, but at full-time, it was Casuals 0-0 Whyteleafe.

The chocolate and pink of Corinth now sit in 7th place, and Whyteleafe sit at the top. The two sides are meeting again very soon… the Velocity Trophy starts this Tuesday evening, and Casuals will take a trip to the artificial Church Road. Faversham Town are the next opponents in the league, but the Kent-based side have proved to be a bogey side for Casuals over the past few seasons- will James Bracken & co. end that?

Molesey 1 - 2 Corinthian-Casuals
Bostik League South
Tuesday 12th September 2017
Match report and photos: Stuart Tree (photos here)​

Corinthian-Casuals made it two away wins in two days as they edged a soggy encounter at tough tackling Molesey in the Bostik League South at Walton Road.

First half goals from Josh Uzun and Jerson Dos Santos was enough to bag three points at a venue notoriously difficult to take all three points for any visiting side.

Just 48 hours before, Casuals had ground out a 1-0 win in atrocious conditions on the island of Guernsey. Whilst the travelling wasn’t as gruelling as the trip to the Channel Island, the weather proved to be just as bad as Storm Aileen hit bringing driving rain, swirling winds and a slippery surface not conducive to attractive football.

Despite this, Casuals started brightly and zipped the ball around with purpose. The quick start paid dividends immediately. Within 120 seconds of the start, Josh Uzun had the ball in the net after his follow up shot found the target.

Molesey struggled to live with their guests as Corinth looked to kill the game off within the first quarter of an hour. Max Oldham and Jerson Dos Santos’s pace frightened the life out of the Moles’ defence and a string of competent saves from Liam Allen only kept Peter Lelliot’s side in the contest. Oldham had a brilliant chance to double the lead when good build-up play from Mu Maan and Dave Hodges found Oldham screaming into the box and the winger could only shoot wide despite the open goal begging.

However, on 38 minutes, Dos Santos deservedly extended the lead. A break into the box saw the striker pounce from 8 yards and Allen was helpless to prevent Casuals from scoring.

Comfortable with their 2-0 lead at half time, talk was of how many more Casuals could bag in the ninety minutes. Molesey had other ideas. Instantly toughening up, Corinth were put on the back foot and within six minutes of the restart, Manny Quarshie brilliantly put the hosts back in the game with a well-hit strike that left Danny Bracken no chance.

Casuals wobbled and Molesey kept the pressure on. That is until the turning point of the half when Ashby Charles was instantly dismissed for an horrific two-footed challenge that left all in the ground squirming at the ferocity of the tackle. Deservedly down to ten men, Molesey struggled to contain Casuals and despite not adding to the score, James Bracken’s side were able to see out the last quarter of an hour with relative ease.

The win takes Casuals up to sixth in the league and now face Whyteleafe twice in three days – firstly in the league on Saturday and away in the Velocity Trophy the following Tuesday Night.

After the match, Bracken had these thoughts, "We made hard work of it. No question of that. 
 
"We knew it’d be hard work here, especially in those conditions, when it got wet, because you know they’re going to slide all over the place. They’re going to put themselves about. 
 
"I believe Molesey had a top five home record last season and to be honest, when they fight and battle, they’ll kick you around and knock you about. We didn’t meet that enough. Especially in the second half. We didn’t earn the right to play our style of football.
 
"First half, we looked like we could cut them open at will. A third goal would’ve completely killed it. We had chances to as well. When they pulled one back, it was game on, but we done enough in the end. Though it was far from perfect.
 
"We were under no illusions that it was going to be a walkover. It never is and I made sure I told the boys that before the game. It’s a place you just want to get the win and get home."

Guernsey 0 - 1 Corinthian-Casuals
Bostik League South
Sunday 10th September 2017
Match report: Stuart Tree​

Corinthian-Casuals saw several gilt-edged chances go begging before Jerson Dos Santos finally bagged up the three points ready for the luggage hold back to Gatwick as they ran out 1-0 winners at Guernsey.
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It’s not every day that you write a match report on a Bostik League fixture after watching the game on the big screen in a pub, some 300 miles from the venue. But the logistics of flying to the Channel Islands on a Sunday at fairly short notice meant that for all supporters, the hefty price of a return ticket wasn’t worth it for 90 minutes of football.

Step in the fine work of GFCTV. Utilising their streaming service, viewers around the world can tune into any Guernsey game live. Thanks to website maintenance issues, the game was broadcast live via Facebook and using Casuals’ fan Neil Collins' mobile phone, hooked up to the TV, those at the Cricketers pub in Chessington were able to choose between the Burnley vs Palace game in one corner or Guernsey vs Casuals in the other. Perhaps out of intrigue, the vast majority of the pub snubbed the Premier League for the Bostik League.

Even birthday boy, Jamie Byatt, who wasn’t on the plane having scored for the reserves the day before tweeted a photo of his lounge as he tuned in to cheer on his fellow teammates. Dave Hodges replacing Byatt from the previous match and thus, his seat on the plane also taken. Reyon Dillon also missed his first flight to the island serving a one match suspension from the red card issued at Ashford Town.

Writing the report after watching in the warmth of the pub, pint in hand and crisps on the table seemed to be the winning choice looking at the weather at Footes Lane. Blustery winds and persistent rain made for uncomfortable viewing if sat on a stool pitchside trying to photograph the action. Thankfully, Guernsey have very dedicated photographers who’d capture all the action whilst I admired from my bar stool, choosing another chicken drumstick over mini sausage roll at the complimentary buffet.

Burnley had opened the scoring against hapless Palace after four minutes and Max Oldham almost matched his professional counterpart when he found himself bearing down on goal in the opening stages. Oldham denied by AFC Bournemouth loanee Callum Stanton in what would prove to be a recurring theme as the afternoon progressed.

Casuals had the better of the play throughout the contest – no question. The key would be if they could break the deadlock early or would their hosts frustrate? Considering both Jack Strange and Mu Maan could only direct their free headers over the bar, it looked to be the latter.

The afternoon soon turned into a game of ‘who could miss the easiest chance?’ Gabriel Odunaike staked his claim when Maan’s precision pass found the forward but dragged his shot with just Stanton to beat.

The second half was much of the same. Plenty of good possession and territory without turning it into goals. Stanton saved brilliantly from Jerson Dos Santos who lashed a shot from well within the box but somehow the young stopper instinctively stuck out an arm and deflected the ball away to safety.

Time ticked on and thankfully, with eight minutes of the ninety left, Dos Santos broke the deadlock. Lashing a shot from the left, it looked to have taken a deflection and out of the reach of Stanton. The pub erupted in scenes reminiscent of World Cups gone by. Residents of Clayton Road must’ve wondered who this ‘Dos Santos’ was, as well as James Bracken, who’s face adorned the front of the pub on an oversized flag.

Casuals held on for the win, despite a heart-in-mouth moment at the end via Gauvain’s effort but the biggest groan of the ninety minutes came when the ‘battery low’ message on the phone interrupted the stream. Casuals had relatively, comfortably deserved the three points. Now all that was left to navigate was the Force 8 gales whipping across the runway at Guernsey’s airport.

Ashford Town 2 - 0 Corinthian-Casuals
Emirates FA Cup 1st Qualifying Round
Saturday 2nd September 2017
Robert Parker Stadium
Match report: Cameron Smith. Pics: Stuart Tree (full set here)

Two first-half goals in quick succession saw the gritty Ashford Town prevail versus the frustrated 10-man Corinthian-Casuals as the Emirates FA Cup First Qualifying Round journey to Middlesex turned sour in a feisty second-half, in which Reyon Dillon was inexplicably sent off.

James Bracken’s FA Cup campaign did not have the best of starts as Mu Maan’s 88th minute equaliser saved Casuals from exiting in the preliminary round at the mercy of Hythe Town. A replay was in order following the 1-1 result at King George’s, and Casuals put on a terrific performance with a 3-1 win; Corinthians progressed into the next round. Since then, Corinth had netted five to ease past East Grinstead before being losing 4-2 to Carshalton Athletic in the Bostik One South.

As soon as the final whistle blew in the replay at Hythe, the Casuals contingent marked the 2nd September in their diaries as the next round of the FA Cup- they would travel to Middlesex to play against Ashford Town. Not to be confused with the team of the same name in Casuals’ division (that’s Ashford United of Kent), the Tangerines play in the Evo-Stik Southern League and play their home fixtures at the industrial Robert Parker Stadium, near the busy Heathrow Airport.

The white and tangerine stripes of Ashford clashing against the chocolate and pink of Casuals created a brilliantly colourful match as the two sides stepped out onto the green. Bracken had made two changes from the starting eleven that were defeated by Carshalton on Bank Holiday Monday; Malachi Robinson and Reyon Dillon would make way for Gabriel Odunaike and Josh Uzun.

From the off, the hosts always seemed to be one step ahead of their visitors in both defence and attack, so in the 25th minute it wasn’t a huge surprise when Ashford took the lead. Despite a foul against Corinth occurring against Corinth during the build-up that the referee ignored, the Tangerines went 1-0 up thanks to Mark Bitmead, who masterfully fired the ball into the top corner from outside the area.

Before Casuals were able to take a breath, Ashford struck again within five minutes of the opener. Hammering the ball into the roof of the net, Dan Fleming netted the second goal for Ashford after an orange shirt squared the ball perfectly for the no.9 to dispatch. The overall quality of the game deteriorated after the 25th minute second goal; Corinthians seemed to lack the cutting edge despite most of the possession. Half-time soon dawned on the Robert Parker Stadium and Ashford had the two-goal advantage.

Jamie Byatt, who was cautioned inside six minutes, was replaced by Dave Hodges at half-time. The second-half was very frustrating for James Bracken’s army as chances that popped up throughout the second-half could not be converted. Ashford had the golden opportunity with around ten minutes to go as Gabby Odunaike was guilty of tripping Bitmead in the area- the referee gave a penalty. Bitmead was looking to score his second of the game and finally kill off Casuals’ possible comeback, but the midfielder wasn’t able to do so as Danny Bracken managed to save the spot-kick with his legs! Casuals were given a lifeline.

Five minutes after the penalty miss, a long punt upfield saw sub Dillon and no.6 Scott Weight challenge for the loose ball. Dillon won the challenge fair and square, but Weight buckled and fell to the floor in attempt to fool the referee and win a free-kick. Mr Lee Grimsey not only gave the foul to Ashford, but reached for a yellow card, which would mean Dillon (who had already been cautioned) was off. A mix of bewilderment, incredulousness and anger amongst the Casuals contingent, players and staff saw Corinth go down to ten men for the final moments. Incredibly harsh, this decision from the referee ended any chance of Casuals scoring late on as the final whistle blew it was 2-0 to Ashford.

Thank you to Ashford Town for their hospitality, and good luck in the next round. For Corinthians, it was disappointing to crash out of the competition at such an early stage, but it continued the club’s poor streak in the FA Cup- only four wins in fourteen years! James Bracken’s pink and brown army travel to the Channel Islands next, in the Bostik League One South- Guernsey FC on Sunday.

Casuals Boss James Bracken was puzzled as to why his side had limped out of the competition.

“When you think we were one player removed from the team that played last Saturday and won 5-0, the chalk-and-cheese of the performance is startling.
 
“We’ll try to put our finger on why that is but ultimately I think it comes down to a bit of attitude on the day amongst a few of them. We never got started and we didn’t play well. Our touches were poor and distribution worse. It’s not one to remember for sure.
 
“It didn’t help that there was a definite foul in the lead up to one of the goals. Their player has climbed all over our centre forward – his arms over the top of the shoulders but the referee tells me there’s no contact! He’s come down on top of our player in a pile.
 
“It was the type of challenge that he gave to the opposition from the first whistle and we never got them the other way.
 
“At half time, we had words with the lads and we changed things around. Second half, we were slightly the better side and certainly improved on our first half performance. But we never created much. Gabby (Gabriel Odunaike) will be disappointed he didn’t find the empty net. If we’d have got a goal back, we might have pushed on and got something from the game.
 
Speaking of Dillon’s dismissal, Bracken wasn’t best pleased with the decision.
 
“Reyon’s come on to make an impact. But the challenge he got a second yellow card for isn’t even a foul. Reyon’s body is between the centre-back and the ball and the defender has run into him and fallen on the floor. The assistant referee ten yards away didn’t give anything but the referee brandishes a second yellow card from 30-40 yards away.”
 
“We’re aware of our shortfalls today. Now it’s up to us as a coaching set-up to get that across to the team and to improve.”