Davody Strikes Late For Marylebone
JC MSFL Division Four
FC Marylebone 2 Hendon Hawks 1
Sunday, 16 November, 2008
Marylebone started strongly against 10-men Hawks until their keeper arrived 10 minutes into the game.
The Frenchmen almost scored on a few clear chances. Jon Davody controlled the ball inside the box on a corner kick and his deflected shot hit the crossbar. The clearest chance came when Gael Marhic, repositioned in central defense, moved upfront and found himself with the ball around the penalty spot but couldn't strike it cleanly. The Hawks mainly proceeded with long balls from their keeper and long throws into the box. They created a few chances but Marylebone were the most frustrated with the goalless score line at the break.
Marylebone pushed further in the second half and missed more clear cut chances with some amazing saves by the Hawks keeper. In particular, winger Oren Bechor's shot from close range was stopped. But the hosts finally broke the deadlock 20 minutes into the second half through a Yaniv Ohana strike from close range on a Bechor back pass.
Ohana scored his second goal in as many games and is quickly becoming a fans favourite with some comparing him to Old Trafford legend Eric Cantona. He was substituted under chants of "oooooo aaaaaaa Yaniv Ohana!"
The hosts did not stop putting pressure on the Hawks in an effort to kill the game but were frustrated with more stunning saves from the opposition keeper. They controlled the game well despite conceding a few dangerous free-kicks on the edge of the box.
Two minutes from time came a flash of genius from the Hawks attack when only given a yard of space, Danny Kon delivered a powerful shot from 25 yards on the right side that went directly in the opposite top corner of the Marylebone goal, leaving the keeper no chance.
The Frenchmen looked like they had certainly dropped two deserved points but they kept their faces up and threw all they had in the last minutes. They obtained a corner kick well into injury time which was brilliantly taken by Oren Bechor and player-manager Jon Davody headed the ball into the net, sending the local crowd into rapture.
Davody said: "What a game and what a finish it was. Winning a game after conceding an equaliser two minutes to time goes a long way to show the belief we have. Our loss to Real Life a month ago was a wake-up call that we need to work harder in training and on the pitch.
"The appointment of co-manager Marc Touboul as fitness coach has worked wonders and that now allows us to push opponents all the way at the end of games. We will now continue to work hard every Sunday as we cannot afford to be complacent but today I am really proud of my team's performance."
