Redbridge Jewish Care B and FC Team B were popping open the champagne after being confirmed champions of Division One and Two respectively on Matchday 25 of the MGBSFL.
MATCHDAY 25 HEADLINES
BGT - Team turn on the style
Prem Div - Harmen show off their six packs
Div 1 - Blizzard win hands title to Redbridge
Div 2 - Raiders leave FC Team C sweating
Div 3 - Brilliant Boca stun Faithfold
HAT-TRICK HEROES
Prem Div - James Gershfield (Harmen)
Div 2 - Adam Stolerman (FC Team C)
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WEEKEND PHOTOS
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LATEST NEWS:
FC TEAM B CLINCH DIVISION TWO TITLE
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DANNY CARO'S PLAYER OF THE WEEK - DAN KOSKY
DANNY CARO'S MANAGER OF THE WEEK - GABRIEL JOHN
DANNY CARO'S GOAL OF THE WEEK - JAMIE WEINRICH
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JC TEAM OF THE WEEK: THE CONTENDERS
GK - James Bell (L'Equipe), Nick Grosse (Los Blancos), Dan Kosky (Faithfold B), Marc Woolfe (NL Raiders C)
DEFENDERS - Rafi Marom (Blizzard Storm), Josh Marlow (Boca Jewniors), Gid Chain, Dave Prager, Ian Baron, Josh Lewis (all L'Equipe), Sam Castle (Harmen), Alex Sherr (NL Raiders C), Ed Weisz (FC Team A)
MIDFIELDERS - Adam Speck (Blizzard Storm), Dale Bradman, Sefton Monk (both Boca Jewniors), Lorian Madanes (FC Team B), Joel Alterman (Harmen), Oli Nathan (NL Raiders C), Yoav Lebens, David James Cohen (both FC Team A)
STRIKERS - Adam Stolerman (FC Team C), James Gershfield, Joey Lazare (both Harmen), Shim Bensoor (FC Team A)
MANAGER - Simon Linden (Blizzard Storm), Zack Gothelf (NL Raiders C), Gabriel John (Boca Jewniors), Josh Lewis (L'Equipe)
REFEREE - Laurie Benson (Faithfold A vs Harmen), Robert Benardout (Boca Jewniors vs Faithfold B), Neil Cooper (Camden Park vs London Rovers), Andy Myerson (SPEC FC vs Los Blancos)
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JC GOAL OF THE WEEK: THE CONTENDERS
1. ADAM SPECK (Blizzard Storm) - a great 25-yard pass from Oli Henry found Speck who timed his run perfectly, connecting a great diving header into the top corner
2. JAMIE WEINRICH (Boca Jewniors) - scored a belter of a goal against Faithfold B - a fantastic volleyed winner from 22.35678 yards out
3. JOEY LAZARE (Harmen) - fired over the keeper's head from wide on the right of the pitch – only he will know if it was a shot or cross
4. OLI NATHAN (NL Raiders C) - GOAL 1 - A superb through ball from Adam Joselyn found Nathan bearing down on goal on the right-hand side of the box and he lobbed the onrushing keeper to give the Oranges a deserved 1-0 lead
5. ALEX GOODMAN (NL Raiders C) - leapt like a salmon to put his header into the top corner
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DANNY CARO'S SAVE OF THE WEEK
WINNER - NICK GROSSE (Los Blancos) - having taken an early lead, SPEC FC had the chance to put themselves 2-0 up just before the break as the ball dropped invitingly to their unmarked striker in the box. A sharp, powerful shot to the far corner was dispatched from close range, but Grosse somehow managed to not only get a strong hand on it low to his left, but to also ensure the ball was pushed clear of the danger zone as he tipped it wide of his far post. It's one of the best saves Joel Minsky has seen an LB goalie pull off (sorry Josh Cohen!) and it put us in a position where we could recover a point in the second half
RUNNER-UP - Mike Myers (FC Team A) - showed cat-like reflexes when faced with a one-on-one situation, getting down with a strong hand to push a shot destined for the bottom corner
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DANNY CARO'S QUOTE OF THE WEEK
GABRIEL JOHN (Boca Jewniors) - "Theres few better feelings than taking a JC prediction and stuffing down the Sports Editor's throat, and that's just what Boca did with a great 2-1 win over Faithfold in the league"
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CUP COMPETITIONS: LATEST
CYRIL ANEKSTEIN CUP FINAL
Norstar London Raiders A vs North West Neasden or Hendon United Sports Club A - May 3
PETER MORRISON TROPHY QUARTER-FINAL DRAW
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PHOTOGALLERIES FROM THE SEASON
VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE SEASON
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YOUR WEEKEND REVIEW STARTS HERE
BARRY GOLDSTEIN TROPHY
GROUP A
Camden Park Pl. 2. Pts. 4
L’Equipe Pl. 1, Pts. 1
Norstar London Raiders C Pl. 0, Pts. 0
London Rovers Pl. 1, Pts. 0
CAMDEN TURN ON THE STYLE
CAMDEN PARK 4 LONDON ROVERS 2
Mike Khalastchi, David Khalastchi, Max Saunders and Rob Hershkorn saw Camden Park registered their first win of the group phase as they turned on the style against newly-crowned Division Three champions London Rovers.
Josh Bharier and Dovi Vogel netted for Rovers.
Camden manager Nick Kagan told JC Sport: "It was a good day for us, despite a little scare, and hopefully we now one foot in the quarter-finals."
Rovers boss Jeremy Brown told JC Sport: "We were much better in the second half and unlucky not to come away with a point."
DC Prediction: Camden 2 Rovers 2
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GROUP B
FC Team B Pl. 1, Pts. 3
Boca Jewniors (replaced Catford & Bromley Maccabi) Pl. 0, Pts. 0
Norstar London Raiders B Pl. 0, Pts. 0
Maccabi London Lions Green Pl. 1, Pts. 0
TEAM CAGE LIONS
FC TEAM B 4 MACCABI LONDON LIONS GREEN 2
Lorian Madanes, Andy Sheena, Adam Rones and Richard Salmon ensured high-fancied FC Team B made a winning start as they overcame third division Lions Green.
Team player-manager Mitch Young told JC Sport: "I was disappointed with our play in the final third today - our finishing was poor and we were not as clinical or aggressive as we usually are. Saying that, we won very comfortably and in the group stages it is just about getting the job done and progressing to the knock-outs."
DC Prediction: Team 4 Lions 1
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GROUP C
Los Blancos Pl. 1, Pts. 1
SPEC Pl. 1, Pts. 1
AC Mill Hill Pl. 0, Pts. 0
Blizzard Storm Pl. 0, Pts. 0
SPEC FC 1 LOS BLANCOS 1
James Lesner and Benjy Israel exchanged strikes as Division One rivals SPEC FC and Blancos shared the points.
Blancos chairman Joel Minksy told JC Sport: "We've both scored and conceded nine across our last two, so a 1-1 draw seems like a damp squib of a game. Whilst the early start and morning frost may have stifled performances a touch, in truth it was a very tight game between two closely matched teams. A draw was most definitely the fair result as both teams largely cancelled each other out across the pitch."
SPEC FC joint-player-manager Ricky Lawrence told JC Sport: "It was a decent game, played in the right spirit. A draw was the fair result. Credit to the Blancos keeper who made a truly outstanding save which was followed up by a great block by one of their defenders at 1-0 to us. If that had gone in it may have been enough to get the three points."
DC Prediction: SPEC 1 Blancos 3
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GROUP D
Hendon B Pl. 1, Pts. 1
Jewdinese Pl. 1, Pts. 1
Oakwood B Pl. 0, Pts. 0
Temple Fortune Pl. 0, Pts. 0
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MGBSFL PREMIER DIVISION
TOP-SCORERS
23 - James Gershfield (Harmen)
16 - Johnny Haik (Faithfold A - includes one for B team), Dave Woolman (Oakwood A)
HARMEN SHOW OFF THEIR SIX PACKS
FAITHFOLD A 1 HARMEN 6
Faithfold's excellent run was ended in emphatic fashion as they were hit for six by Harmen, who kept alive their slim title hopes in Hatfield.
A treble from top-scorer JAMES GERSHFIELD plus two from Joey Lazare and one from Dan Green eased Harmen home.
Harmen joint-player-manager Joel Alterman told JC Sport: "We showed today how much depth we have in our squad, even without seven regulars, we were able to field a strong team and take a convincing win against one of the big names in Jewish football."
Alex Kaye grabbed a consolation for Faithfold. Boss Zuriel Solomon told JC Sport: "It was not a good day at the office. We just didn't get going with a real makeshift team."
DC Prediction: Faithfold 1 Harmen 2
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TEAM WIN FIVE-GOAL THRILLER
OAKWOOD A 2 FC TEAM A 3
Oakwood suffered a cup hangover as they were edged out in a five-goal thriller by FC Team, with strikes from David Joseph Cohen, Yoav Lebens and Eitan Ben Zion sealing the points for the visitors.
Jonny Quinn and Josh Rose found the net for the Oaks.
FC Team head coach Ben Gilbey told JC Sport: "At the start of the season our aims were to just stay up. Now we are pushing for that mid-table spot and firmly believe that it is possible to get there."
DC Prediction: Oakwood 2 Team 1
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DIVISION ONE
TOP-SCORERS
24 - Daniel Garfinkle (Redbridge JC B – including 3 for RJC A)
19 - Simon Moses (Blancos – includes two for Brady)
BLIZZARD SHATTER RAIDERS TITLE HOPES
BLIZZARD STORM 3 NORSTAR LONDON RAIDERS B 2
Blizzard Storm ended Norstar London Raiders B's title hopes after winning a five-goal thriller, which confirms that Redbridge Jewish Care B are champions of Division One.
Strikes from Rafi Marom, Mitch Green and Adam Speck earned Blizzard a famous scalp.
Delighted Blizzard boss Simon Linden told JC Sport: "We have to show more consistency next season in the league; beating the two top teams going into the Premiership next season shows we are more than capable of challenging and doing very well next year."
DC Prediction: Blizzard 1 Raiders 3
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DIVISION TWO
TOP-SCORERS
19 - Adam Stolerman (FC Team C)
13 - Ben Zloof (AC Mill Hill), Jacob Richler-Kleiman (Oakwood B), Lorian Madanes (FC Team B – including one for A team)
L'EQUIPE PUT ONE OVER 'NESE
L'EQUIPE 1 JEWDINESE 0
Andy Smith was L'Equipe match-winner as they edged the relegation six-pointer against Jewdinese, maintaining their good form of late in a hard-fought contest.
L'Equipe joint-manager Josh Lewis told JC Sport: "We saw out the game in the end and our experience at the back paid off."
DC Prediction: L'Equipe 2 Jewdinese 2
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TEAM WOBBLE AGAINST RAMPANT RAIDERS
NORSTAR LONDON RAIDERS C 4 FC TEAM C 3
FC Team's promotion hopes were dealt a blow as they suffered a rare defeat at the hands of Raiders C.
Goal machine ADAM STOLERMAN fired another hat-trick for Team, but it was NLR who were all smiles at the whistle, with Oli Nathan (2), Alex Goodman and Will Ufland.
FC TEAM B CLINCH DIVISION TWO TITLE
DC Prediction: NLR 3 Team 2
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DIVISION THREE
TOP-SCORERS
22 - Avi Markiweicz (London Rovers), Adam Ellis (Shacharit Donetsk)
14 - Josh Bharier (London Rovers)
BRILLIANT BOCA PRODUCE COUPON BUSTER
BOCA JEWNIORS 2 FAITHFOLD B 1
Strikes from player-manager Gabriel John and Jamie Weinrich saw Boca Jewniors boost their hopes of avoiding the wooden spoon with a sensational victory over high-flying Faithfold B.
Doron Hershkorn registered for Faithfold whose manager Rob Shooman told JC Sport: "We were terrible, they deserved the win in what was our worst performance, with the exception of keepr Dan Kosky."
Boca player-manager Gabriel John told JC Sport: "I knew these boys should have done better this season and now the pressure is off they're playing a bit. I wish it was September again!"
DC Prediction: Boca 0 Faithfold 4
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MATCHES OFF
Cyril Anekstein Cup - NW Neasden vs Hendon A
BGT - Temple Fortune vs Hendon B
Prem Div - Woodford vs Lions Blue
Division Two - AC Mill Hill vs Oakwood B
Division Three - Shacharit Donetsk vs Real Sosobad