Damage in the Box!: WINGATE & FINCHLEY (Harry Abrahams Stadium)

A welcome bonus of a Sunday match, as this game was put back 24 hours because the Jewish festival of atonement, Yom Kippur, was taking place on Friday & Saturday.

Wingate and Finchley are based in North London and play at the superb Harry Abrahams Stadium. They were originally two separate clubs, who merged together in 1991. According to the programme notes, Finchley were founded in 1874 and have competed in various leagues ever since, but it is the Wingate club who provide the Jewish heritage, formed as they were in 1946 as way of using football as a weapon against anti-semitism. The club was named after General Wingate, who was responsible for forming the Israeli army during the Second World War. When they found themselves without a ground in the seventies they ground shared with Finchley before reverting to junior football before re-emerging and then merging with Finchley, who at the time had severe finanancial problems.

The Abrahams stadium is a cracking little ground with a 1930's style art-deco stand. An unusual feature is that the stand also has another stand backing onto it, making a complete building, which is used by the adjacent rugby club. The grounds are totally separate and fully enclosed.

As for the game itself, it was entertaining enough. The first 20 minutes or so were dominated by the home side but they didn't have that killer touch in front of goal and wasted their opportunities. Then on 23 minutes, completely against the run of play, Brentwood took the lead when Dean Green was sent through and calmly slotted past the advancing 'keeper. Talking of 'keepers there was then a hold up for over five minutes when the Brentwood goalie fell awkwardly after catching a cross and had to be subbed. The Blues were level on 33 minutes when Josh Cooper controlled a ball down the wing , cut inside and fired low into the bottom corner.

The second half was end-to-end, but in all honesty neither side were troubling the goal. On 73 minutes though W&F took the lead from the penalty spot, Garry Burrell firing home after Lewis Jones was hauled back in the area (pictured left). The home side sat back on this lead and tried to see ot the remaining minutes but this nearly backfired as Brentwood nearly levelled and indeed had an effort cleared off the line in stoppage time.