Match Preview

With just three games left to play, it has become apparent that the Lilywhites will have a big say in the relegation fight in the Thurlow Nunn Division One South, and that begins on Saturday.

With our final three games being against bottom placed Burnham Ramblers, second bottom Southend Manor and fourth bottom (and this weekends opponents) Park View, Hoddesdon are an obstacle that all three sides will be desperate to beat and The New River Sports Stadium is the setting for the first instalment.

Having already secured their Step 6 status for next season, Hoddesdon themselves will be pushing hard to secure a 9th place finish in the league, and a comfortable 2-0 win midweek against another relegation threatened side, Barkingside, means Simon Riddle's men come into this game in good form and hungry for the points. Goals from Connor Bolton and Billy Skinner wrapped up the win on Tuesday evening at Lowfield, our final home game of the season. Bolton took his tally for the season to twelve with that goal, and that means he is now five clear of nearest rival Callum Bennison on seven. Harrison Cage and Dion Laughton aren't far behind on six each, but it will surely take a mammoth effort to eclipse the left sided player's haul for the 23/24 season and secure the coveted Golden Boot award at the club presentation evening, back at Lowfield after the game.

Jack Riddle picked up another Greene King Man of the Match Award on Tuesday, further underlining his credentials at the heart of the defence and credit must go to Riddle for cementing his place in the back line this season and showing just what a valuable player he is to the side. We also saw another good performance from midfielder Tobie Prentice who continues to impress in much the same fashion as Bailey Eden did, a young player having to bide their time on the bench before being able to show what they can do in the starting line up. Indeed, Eden and Prentice are an exciting glimpse into the future for the Lilywhites.

Late signing Billy Skinner grabbed his first goal for the club too and showed that he is a force to be reckoned with in terms of attacking threat, alongside the likes of Laughton, Bennison and Filip.

Our hosts on Saturday, Park View, have a league record that reads P41, W12, D4, L25 amassing 40 points with a goal difference of -49. Indeed, Park View have the leakiest defence in the league this season, conceding 114 times equaling 2.78 goals a game. With that record, there may yet be hope for the likes of Laughton and Bennison to catch the afore mentioned Bolton for the Golden Boot award. 65 goals scored means Park View sit just above the relegation zone in 19th place, but they are only two points clear of the drop zone and urgently need another 3 points to move them away from relegation. The home record reads P20, W4, D3, L13 scoring 29 and conceding 54.

Last time out, 78 people went to Canvey Island's ground to witness a 3-0 away defeat to Benfleet on the 10th of April. You can watch highlights from that game HERE.

That said, the game before that, Park View threw themselves an enormous lifeline with an unlikely 4-3 win at home to title chasing Wormley Rovers, having been 2-0 down at half time, with goals from Alie Bangura and a sensational hat trick from Jaime Obama in front of 15 spectators. Those two players in particular will need to be marshalled carefully by the Hoddesdon defence as they certainly have the firepower to cause problems.

Bangura is the clubs leading goalscorer with 9 goals in 13 appearances since joining from high flying, multi millionaire club Real Bedford.

The 25 year old is well known in non league circles. The former Hemel Hempstead, Walthamstow, Enfield Borough, Tring Athletic, Biggleswade United, FC Romania, Berkhamsted FC and Leighton Town hot shot has the ability to unlock any defence and really is one to watch, with superb trickery and electrifying pace. In fact, Bangura was part of the Broxbourne Borough Under 18 team that went all the way to Villa Park in the 5th round of the FA Youth Cup back in 2017. It was his goal in the 4th round at Goffs Lane against Yeovil Town that secured the win and a glamour tie against Aston Villa, a match they unfortunately lost 7-0, but surely a day filled with amazing memories. His performance in the competition also earned him a trial with professional side Sheffield Wednesday. You can watch a highlight reel of Bangura's exploits HERE.

Jaime Obama boasts 6 in 12 for the North London based club. They have used an astonishing 111 players this season, in what has to be described as a tumultuous year for Park View.

A tweet posted on the clubs Twitter account back on the 21st of September just twelve games into the new season, and following a resounding 7-0 away defeat to Wormley, read:

'HELP!! We have no other choice than to fold & pull out of the league! The club has struggled to keep up with costs, unable to provide training venue for the team & need support via sponsors or donations. We really want to keep the club alive, please DM us if you can help!!!'

It is good to see that the team has managed to find a way to carry on playing their games without having to fold, but the obvious stress and strain of trying to run the club on limited resources has clearly taken it's toll on the White Hart Lane based side.

The last time these two sides met was on the 17th of February, playing out a 1-1 draw at Lowfield. It is no exaggeration to say that the Lilywhites should have won this game comfortably. In the final analysis it was their failure to take the multitude of chances they created that cost them two points.

They were up against a Park View side that until recently had been languishing at the bottom of the league but were now completely overhauled with new management and players recruited from higher levels. The Lilywhites therefore had a stern challenge ahead of them but it was one that they rose to in some style. From the kick-off the Lilywhites put pressure on the visitors’ goal and with a dominant first-half performance, they should have taken a potentially match-winning lead into the break. The deserved breakthrough came in first-half added-time when Conor Casey received the ball on the right-hand side of the area, cut inside a defender and placed his shot beyond the keeper.

The second half found the visitors raising their game and the game became a much closer-fought contest although they still weren’t presenting a very serios threat. The Lilywhites still looked the more likely to score, though, and continued to waste chances. The writing was on the wall, though, when wasted opportunities and a slender lead very often result in an equaliser. And it happened six minutes before the final whistle the visitors found the back of the net when they capitalised on a loose ball in the Lilywhites’ six-yard box. Albeit against a decent team, the Lilywhites were forced to accept a point when it should have been three.Man-of-the Match that day was Hadley Richards.

You can watch the entire game from that afternoon HERE or view photos from that game, taken by the brilliant Danny Smith, HERE.

Park View Football Club is a football club based in Tottenham, England. They play at the New River Sports Stadium (formerly New River Community Sports Centre) in Wood Green. The club was formed in 1991 as a group of friends organising matches on a Sunday. In 2007 the club joined Division One Central & East of the Middlesex County League, going on to win the division at the first attempt, but then left the league. In later years they entered the English football league system, joining Division Two of the Spartan South Midlands League. The club were unbeaten Division Two League Champions as well as Division Two Cup Winners in their first season in the league, earning promotion to Division One and now find themselves in the Thurlow Nunn First Division South.

The club's website and Twitter accounts haven't been updated in several months so it is difficult to do much more research on our opponents, but safe to say they will be fighting tooth and nail in North London this Saturday afternoon to deny the Lilywhites whilst boosting their own chances of survival.

Take a virtual tour of Park View's home, the New River Sports Stadium, HERE.

Park View’s admission prices are £8 or £5 concessions.

Directions
The nearest Underground station is Wood Green, which is a 17 minute walk. The nearest National Rail station is White Hart Lane, which is a 33 minute walk. Bus W3 stops a few minutes’ walk away.

All travelling support is welcome.

Don't forget, after the match the players, management and committee will be heading back to Lowfield for the end of season presentation evening at the club.

We will be giving out the annual awards, including:

• PLAYER OF THE YEAR
• PLAYER’S PLAYER
• SUPPORTERS PLAYER
• STUART PARKER AWARD
• CHARLIE BROWN AWARD
• FRED VARNEY AWARD
• GOLDEN BOOT

The bar will be open and we will be showing Wolves v Arsenal on the big screen. All supporters, players, family and friends are invited to join us. Read more about the evening HERE.

Enjoy the game.

#COYL