Millers march past the Dons
Game 14
Cray Valley (PM) 3 – 1 SE Dons
Venue: The Mayne Arena
Goalscorers: Cray Valley (PM) – James Stewart (27), Lewis Allan (35), Amani Bowlin (87), SE Dons – Aaron Watson (30)
Match Day Experience
This was my first game this season as a neutral, but on I had vested interest in as Cray Valley is about 30 minutes from home and SE Dons are a team that have risen from Sunday League to a step 5 club in just three years (due to a merger with Forest Hill Park). The Mayne Arena is never going to be Wembley but as far as grounds go in non league it is one of my favourites. It is a residential area and enclosed but the Millers have made the most of the space allowed to them with an array of different stands and terraces, a club house and hot food stalls. The game between Cray Valley (PM) and SE Dons was in the London Senior Cup, and clashed with an England international game so the fans who made the effort were truly the hardcore, especially the travelling Dons fans.
Match Report
The London Senior Cup isn’t a trophy that’s massively high on any team’s radar when they enter the season. You always want to win it, but managers and clubs must prioritise other competitions that are more vital to the club. So, as you can imagine, with this being the case, both teams rotated their squads somewhat, fielding a mix of first-team players, fringe players and youngsters. Despite the changes on both sides, this game was far more entertaining than the Nations League clash between England and Czechia, which had taken place on the same night.
The Millers started the better of the two teams and certainly settled into the game quicker, with the first real chance falling to Cray Valley. Some smart football down the right flank led to a ball being played in behind to Stewart, who looked to be offside. However, this wasn’t to matter, as former Millers keeper Freeman made a smart stop to keep the scores level.
One of the pleasures of going to non-league games is turning up without knowing the players, then being thoroughly impressed by someone and wondering how they aren’t higher up the English football pyramid. In this cup tie, that player was Millers left winger Enoch Muwonge. He was causing all sorts of problems for his full-back with his direct approach and quality end product.
SE Dons did start to grow into the game and thought they had taken the lead when they found the back of the net after a lovely header left the Millers’ keeper stranded. However, to the delight of the Cray Valley players, the linesman had raised his flag.
Cray Valley would open the scoring after some dangerous wing play down the right-hand side found James Stewart in the middle of the box. He made no mistake this time, dispatching his effort into the back of the net and leaving Freeman, in the Dons goal, with no chance. The Millers had what they would deem a deserved lead.
It would only be a matter of minutes before the Dons hit back and levelled the score. Cray Valley only managed to half-clear a dangerous, outswinging corner from the right-hand side. When the ball landed at Aaron Watson’s feet, he struck it cleanly and truly. With the help of a deflection off a sprawling Millers defender, the ball left the keeper rooted to the spot, and the Dons were level.
It was goals galore, though, as Cray Valley restored their lead just five minutes later, making it three goals in eight minutes. I hadn’t seen all of the build-up to this goal, as I’d been in the clubhouse buying a second pint. However, as I walked out, I saw some great footwork down the left-hand side, and a cross-cum-shot found Lewis Allan at the back post, where he calmly slotted the ball into the back of the net.
It had been a tight affair, and as the game reached half-time, both teams could be happy with their first-half efforts. Cray Valley had the lead, but SE Dons were very much in the game and still looked dangerous.
SE Dons came out for the second half looking the brighter of the two sides and applied some early pressure on the Valley defence with some slick one- and two-touch football. The Dons had a half-chance when a lovely flick sent the ball into the striker’s path, but Allan, who had already found himself on the scoresheet, now found himself preventing a goal with what was a goal-saving block.
The Dons applied more pressure as they moved the ball through the thirds well but just couldn’t quite manufacture the chance needed to bring the tie level.
The Cray Valley (PM) fans were in good form, enjoying being ahead and taunting their opponents with chants such as “Fck off back to YouTube” and “You’re just a sht f*cking Hashtag”, which even got a couple of chuckles from the Dons keeper.
With three minutes to go, the game was sealed. After some more good wing play down the left, the ball was pulled across the box to Amani Bowlin, whose first effort was expertly kept out by Dons keeper Freeman. However, the rebound fell straight back to Bowlin, who emphatically finished from close range, sparing the Millers fans a nervy final few minutes.
As Tuesday evenings go, this wasn’t a bad one. For just £5 entry, there was plenty of exciting football on display, good vibes and a lovely football club to enjoy. Cray Valley (PM) will face Welling United in the next round, having recently played them in the Kent Senior Cup.
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