Final Score: Clapham Alexandra 2 - 4 Recreativo Hackney
Sometimes in football, lessons are learned; lessons that can turn a season and inspire a greater degree of commitment and passion, and should Clapham Alexandra look at this game objectively they can take on board a lot from their dedicated opponents.
Hackney passed and moved like a team of twice their calibre, worked as a unit, and at times ran rings around a stuttering Alexandra, showing that the game is best played at all levels with the ball at your feet, and a teammate free to pass to. Their work rate and energy was commendable, and they ran out fully deserved and comfortable 4-2 winners, on an away day where they should have expected a sterner test.
Sporting their new black and white home strip, Clapham Alexandra started well enough, putting some good moves together and generally holding on to the ball, but there was little invention and penetration to speak of whereas Hackney played a quick counter attacking game that reaped a fair few chances for them early doors.
However The Alex went ahead in the 23rd minute after White was felled by the left hand touchline around 18 yards out. Wardle duly stepped up and dispatched a vicious right-footed curling drive into the far top corner of the Hackney net to make it 1-0, although question marks remain over the positioning of the Hackney goalkeeper.
Hackney bridled at the sting the goal provided and pressed forward in numbers in an attempt to restore parity, almost getting caught short at the back when Seb Bell played Mantell in with a quick free kick which brought a good save out of the Recreativo keeper.
The Hackney onslaught continued, with their portly Bradley-from-Eastenders lookalike striking a bending and dipping half volley from 20 yards just wide of Wood's right hand post. But it wouldn't be long before they were level; a slick team move opening up the Clapham defence for a neat finish from their dangerous looking striker.
With the teams level at half team, in truth at this stage it could have gone either way - both teams with good chances and goals under their belt, but at the beginning of the second half Recreativo came out of the blocks much quicker, and continued to dominate possession, adding a second, third and fourth in pretty rapid succession as the game moved into the closing stages.
Clapham were all at sea, and out of sorts, but the fourth Recreativo goal either served as a wake up call, or saw Recreativo begin to finally take their feet of the pedals. In the last ten minutes The Alex began to come back into the game, with notable contributions from Crouch, Amos, and Miller as they looked for a way back into the game. Just reward came when Mantell surged down the right, beating the Hackney left back all ends up and supplied a sweeping low centre for Miller to bundle over the line, with the Hackney keeper's handling again called into question.
A 4-2 reverse, in hindsight, was probably a fair result. Hackney were much the better side, and Clapham must take the defeat on board and look to improve future showings throughout the team if they are to be considered title contenders for the Central London Sunday Superleague. As for Hackney, they look like they could be the dark horses of the division, and other teams should beware of their speed on the break and ability to pass and move with gleeful abandon.
