On Saturday 4th March, Forest Row made their way to the charming, quintessential village of Lindfield.
Our opponents were (and still are) sitting pretty at the top of the table, but we always look forward to this one. These games have an extra spice, especially given recent history. In the summer, when the rest of us were on our holidays, in a pub garden or spending time with our families, they visited our clubhouse and took a piss on the pitch. We were seriously concerned for their mental wellbeing.
But, alas, it's all fun and games and we were looking forward to a competitive match. During the warm up, some of us thought we'd seen the ghost of Sid out of Toy Story - but no, Daniel Splarn was actually playing football for Frow.
We had an extremely strong team available to pick from, which was lucky considering Duckworth spent the trip there being sick. Entertaining too many clients the night before hadn't been a good idea. He also chose to have his first ever beer which proved costly. He was a broken man.
The game got off to a high tempo as expected, with a Lindfield player scissor kicking the shit out of Gil. One can only imagine the defender doesn't know who he is. I'm pretty sure Gil took a phone out of his shin pad and made a few calls at half time. God help the man.
20 minutes gone and it was Frow who broke the deadlock, after some good build up play resulted in a game of ping ball in Lindfield's box. Splarn grabbed control, jinked past a few and slotted into the bottom left hand corner. 1 nil.
About 15 minutes later the home team drew level after a long range effort took a dodgy bounce beyond the outstretched arm of Stevens. Lindfield perhaps shaded the first half, but it was more or less even with both sides having a few chances.
We went into the break 1-1, happy with the performance and work rate. They seemed to be playing long ball, with their number 9 looking a very dangerous player. Smith and Gardner had number 10 under control though, who appeared to just be taking the throw ins.
Frow were expecting to withstand heavy pressure in the second half, playing uphill (gradient of about 80%) and being subjected to long ball football. We were confident in dealing with this, and then trying to spring fast, effective counter attacks.
Although clear chances were few and far between, Stevens was excellent in goal, making a couple of really important saves. However, the second 45 felt more straight forward than the first and we looked dangerous every time we went forward. With 20 minutes left, Big Ron consulted his tactical advisor and decided to throw Sam Stewart on up top, adding a physical presence.
With the clock ticking down, Frow still weren't content with just a point. We came here to win and anything less would have been disappointing. So we decided to score.
A Splarn header from Diego's corner found its way to Beano, who turned, swivelled and volleyed. Top corner. Back of the net. A foot like a traction engine. 2-1.
Celebrations ensued as Beano wheeled away to the locals, as Big Ron ran down the touchline in Mourinho-esque style. It was a great battling performance against the league leaders, who no doubt demonstrate some of the best work rate in the division.
Row's back 4 dealt with everything thrown at them, with Eggy as consistent as ever and Jackson showing his versatility at right back. García was hugely effective on the left, just as much defensively as offensively, and Gilly stole the show on the opposite side.
Gillian, who must have played over 1,000 games for Frow, represents the club at the highest level in terms of attitude, effort and fitness. He had some wise words in the changing room before the match and at half time. You know it's serious when he's saying something without mentioning 'relax' or 'breathe' in a sentence.
Dawesy dominated in the middle, moaning as he went, clattering and colliding with everything. I decided to go easy on him at half time after tearing him to pieces the week before. We won the midfield battle.
Diego also worked his socks off, in a difficult role as lone front man. He was at times isolated, but found success when drifting out to the wings. In all, it was a complete team performance and they left everything on the pitch.
Lindfield should still go on to win the league with a seemingly unassailable lead at the top. For us, it looks like top 4 and Champions League qualification as the target, after staying up last season.
We were also proud of the lads for using the facilities at the club, rather than urinating on the opponent's pitch. Form is temporary, class is permanent. Up the Frow.
