2002/03

 

 

 

Sun mourn death of Chairman

SUN POSTAL Football Club were rocked with the news on Monday, October 14 that their Chairman Frank Woolner died of a heart-attack at the age of 50.

Woolner, who witnessed the team's 2-0 victory over Oxhey Jets two days earlier, has been at the epi-centre of the Bellmount Wood Avenue Club for a number of years and leaves behind his beloved wife Christine and his four devoted sons Frank, Michael, Steven and David.

"The club have lost an excellent Chairman and I have lost a very good friend," said Sun manager Terry Hows. "On behalf of the players and everyone at the club I would like to offer our deepest sympathy to his family."

Old Parmiterians' manager and friend John Mantle also expressed his sadness at the devastating news

"I would like to offer mine and the club's condolences to Frank's family at the tragic news. He was a true gentlemen and not only was he well known but well liked as well."

Sun suffer cup shock

SUN POSTAL SPORTS, who look to have the World Class Homes Premier League within their grasp, were dumped out of the Aubrey Cup on Saturday (February 15) after a shock 3-1 defeat at home to Division One outfit Hatfield Town.

Sun, last season's beaten finalists, produced easily their worst display of the season against a limited but hard-working Hatfield side, who caused the shock result of the season.

The visitors, with a greater appetite for the game, stunned the Premier Division title favourites on ten minutes with a scrappy opener, but Sun hit back on 35 minutes when Neil Fraser latched on to a through ball to expertly lob the errant Hatfield keeper.

This should have been the catalyst for Sun to go on and win the tie, especially when Hatfield's indiscipline saw them reduced to ten men on 50 minutes, but they capitulated and gifted the visitors their equaliser, courtesy of a crass defensive error, and conceded a late third to tumble out of the cup.

To complete a miserable day, Sun also lost top spot in the league to Oxhey Jets after their emphatic 5-1 rout of Bovingdon

Jets fly close to Sun

THE perennial struggle between World Class Home Premier Division rivals Oxhey Jets and Sun Postal at the Premier Division summit continued apace this week after they exchanged places at the top of the table twice in the space of five days.

Jets threw the title race wide open on Saturday, March 1, and reclaimed top spot in the process, with a decisive 2-0 win over Sun, who were beaten in the league for only the second time this season.

"It's a big win as it would have been all over had they won on Saturday," surmised John Elliott, Jets' general manager.

"I thought we deserved it, and for the first time in a long while we actually competed with them which was probably the difference."

In truth, the turning point of a match, which appeared to be heading for a goalless draw, arrived on 55 minutes, when Sun keeper Andy Hopping let the ball slip from his grasp as he desperately tried to keep the ball inside the penalty area. The tireless Paul Turner was on hand to pounce, cutting in from the right and slotting home from close range.

Sun improved slightly in the second-half after Jets had held the upper hand for the first 45 minutes but, although Neil Fraser and Gregg McLaren went close, they generally lacked ideas in the final third and badly missed the presence of Darren Seabrook.

Chasing the equaliser, Sun were always susceptible to the counter-attack and they were hit with the sucker punch when Turner burst clear from half-way to steer the ball past Hopping for the killer second, and his fourth goal in three games.

Despite the victory, which throws the title race wide open, Elliott refused to be drawn on any talk of a possible third straight league championship.

"It's not in our hands, and I still feel the points dropped at Croxley Guild will come back to haunt us. If you had offered me the possibility of an Aubrey Cup final spot and runners-up spot in the league six weeks ago I would have been delighted so anything else is a bonus."

Sun manager Terry Hows was disappointed but not dejected in defeat.

"We had too many of our big players not performing and in a game as big as this you can't get away with that. But you don't become a bad side overnight and you don't win 13 out of 15 league games without being a good side," said Hows.

Sun bounced back in impressive style on Wednesday night when they put seven past Elliott Star at a rain-soaked Woodside.

A double defensive error allowed the visitors to take the lead after just ten minutes, but this prompted Sun to flick the switch and they scored four times in the space of 15 blistering minutes.

Dave Samson slid home the equaliser, Richie Johnson cracked in the second, Andy Mills calmly slotted home the third while the lively Neil Fraser made no mistake when sent clear.

Poor marking allowed Elliott in for a second just before the break, but Sun were in commanding form and extended their lead after the interval with goals from Chris Shannon, who rammed the ball home from the edge of the box, and Johnson, who completed his hat-trick and took his tally to 21 for the season, with a brace.

"I was delighted with the response," said Hows, who feels the title race will go right down to the wire.

Postal delivery sends Hammer crashing

SUN POSTAL RESERVES bridged a two-divisional gap to defeat Hammer Reserves 4-2 on penalties in a dramatic Watford Sunday League Reserve Cup Final at Harefield United on Wednesday, March 26.

In a repeat of the 1991 final, Sun, vying for promotion in Division Three, were never outclassed against their opponents from Division One but required an outstanding display from keeper Mick Walrond, who capped a man-of-the-match performance by saving the fourth spot-kick, to claim the first piece of silverware in their history.

"I'm absolutely ecstatic," said player-manager Andrew Toon in his second season in charge. "Given the two-division gap between the two sides, there was not a lot in it and both teams did themselves a great deal of credit."

For a team making their sixth successive appearance in the Final, Hammer began nervously and produced a performance that rarely rose above the level of lacklustre in the first-half.

Sun, on the other hand, started brightly, and it was no surprise when they took the lead on 25 minutes when Toon finished with aplomb from eight yards after a cross from Wilson.

Hammer needed a lift in the second-half and it was provided by substitute Richard Galvin who headed home a cross from Tommy Holt just five minutes after being summoned from the bench.

Galvin became the focal point of a plethora of Hammer attacks but they found Walrond in inspired form, while, at the other end, Sun, threatening largely on the counter-attack, were denied an extra-time winner when Toon was thwarted by Richard Traxon.

Despite a plethora of chances, the scoreline somehow remained the same and the match was eventually decided by spot-kicks where Holt and Keith Hopping emerged as the villains to leave Walrond as the hero.

"We played well in the second-half but their keeper had an absolute blinder and they deserved something after the way they defended," said Hammer manager Crawford Watters, who saw his side beaten in the Final at the hands of lower league opposition for the third successive season.

The Sun rises

SUN POSTAL celebrated the news that they are virtually assured of South Midlands League football next season by collecting four points in their title quest this week.

With the extensive refurbishment at their Bellmount Wood Avenue ground set to run beyond schedule into next season, Sun's adopted home of Woodside Stadium was given the green light on the proviso that the pitch is lengthened and widened after being 'ground graded' by the league inspectors on Saturday morning.

Given the fact that Oxhey Jets have declined the option to apply for promotion, Sun would need to finish in the top two to ensure they progress through the County League ceiling.

However, Sun manager Terry Hows has his sights firmly set on claiming the title and saw his side, minus top-scorer Richie Johnson and Mark Congalton, display their title credentials and move nine points clear with a 4-2 win over Bushey Rangers on Wednesday (March 26) night that owed much to a clinical first-half display.

Hows' side, with Ben Cowen making a welcome first start after a 13-month injury lay-off, stormed into a three-goal lead at the break with an own goal, that came after a typically rampaging run from Paul Haynes, Andy Mills, who drove home from just inside the box, and a far-post header from Neil Fraser.

To their credit, Bushey, ravaged by the absence of seven first-team players, refused to lie down and pulled one back on the hour mark when Ben Weaver delightfully lobbed Andy Hopping, but Sun made the game safe when Haynes slammed home after being teed up by Mills.

Rangers again hit back when Rob Turner came off the bench to flick home a centre from Darren Glenister, but Sun were worthy winners, and should have extended their lead through Haynes, who saw an effort cleared off the line and a stunning free-kick brilliant repelled by Bushey keeper Will Worth.

Wednesday's performance was in stark contrast to an insipid display against Wormley Rovers on Saturday where Sun looked anything but potential champions.

Fraser and Robert Coldrake wasted the game's only chances in the first-half, but Sun lost their way badly in a desultory second period and were reduced to ten men on the final whistle when Congalton was dismissed for two bookable offences.

"That was not an acceptable performance from a team of this quality, but, at the end of the season, that may just be a point gained," said Hows.

 

 

 

 

Hemel hold off gutsy Sun

HEMEL Hempstead Town were forced to fend off the brave challenge of Sun Postal to retain the St Mary's Cup at a sun-kissed Leverstock Green on Monday after a 2-1 victory.

The success, achieved thanks to a goal either side of the break which wiped out an early Sun opener, ensured the Vauxhall Road side did not finish the season empty handed having seen their late promotion charge fall just short and their hopes of Herts Charity Cup glory dashed in midweek by Bishop's Stortford.

Sun, however, have made a habit of finishing second in recent seasons and the latest runners-up medal was their fourth in the space of two campaigns. But with the extensive redevelopment of their Bellmount Wood Avenue ground well under way and with the backing of ambitious chairman Alan McKane, Sun are a team going places.

The Herts County League side, missing the driving force of the suspended Paul Haynes, successfully bridged the four-divisional gap between the sides and gave the Ryman Division One outfit a genuine run for their money.

Sun stunned the large crowd as they caught Hemel cold inside a minute. A free-kick from Mark Congalton was flicked over towering Hemel keeper Darren Bonfield by Dave Samson and Andy Mills headed the ball into the roof of the net from close range.

In fact, Sun could, and probably should, have been further in front had Neil Fraser connected with a teasing Ben Cowen centre and then not stumbled when put through by Congalton.

Hemel, on the other hand, struggled to find their way through a well-organised Sun defence in which the towering performances of Mark Ash and Robert Coldrake stood out like beacons.

When they did breach the defence they found Andy Hopping, the Sun keeper, in inspired form. The vastly-experienced stopper denied Brian Hammett, Gary Fitzgerald and Ellis Kodra with a string of fine saves that were to ultimately earn him the man-of-the-match-award.

The number of free-kicks Sun conceded in dangerous areas finally took its toll on the stroke of half-time. Kodra, the former Watford Academy star, curled in a free-kick which kindly ricochet into the path of Gary Fitzgerald, the Hemel captain, who rammed the ball home.

If their was an element of good luck about the equaliser there was nothing remotely fortuitous about Hemel's decisive second which arrived just four minutes after the break. An inviting centre from Jake Barry was met with an acrobatic scissor kick from Hammett which nestled into the bottom corner.

A fractious encounter finally boiled over on the hour mark when an over-zealous tackle from Coldrake on the grounded Brian Jones sparked a melee. Coldrake received a yellow card as did the incensed Jones who, having already been booked, suddenly turned from victim to aggressor and headed for yet another early bath.

For all their endeavour Sun failed to make the most of their numerical advantage and bizarrely created less chances than they did against a full-strength Hemel, who suffered few further alarms as they comfortably held on for victory.

Sun Postal: Hopping, McLaren, Affleck, Coldrake, Ash, Congalton, Samson, Shannon (capt), Mills, Cowen, Fraser. Subs: Freeman for Cowen, L Eldridge for McLaren. Pattison not used.