ByDanny Caro, Danny Caro
London Lions' victory in the Herts FA Centenary Cup final is good news for Maccabi GB.
Ben Winston takes his squad to Vienna to compete in the blue riband event at the 13th European Maccabi Games in less than four months and going by what I saw at the County Ground on Tuesday night, they stand a great chance of winning gold.
Twelve members of the 18-man squad were in action in what was the third major piece of silverware won by the club under Tony Gold.
Gold has really made his mark, taking players out of their comfort zones in Jewish football to punch at the highest level they ever have. Gold has won every honour in Jewish football, as a player and a manager.
Having become the first man to lead the JC MSFL Rep Team to success in the London Inter-League Cup, Gold has gone on to win the Herts Senior County League and now a second big cup. He has turned the Lions into a well-oiled and disciplined machine. They usually play free-flowing football but the midweek win over Letchworth Garden City Eagles was one that he admitted to me after the final whistle was "a bit ugly".
Gold's success and vision for how the game should be played should be used as a model for future managers. He believes that he has a group of players capable of climbing the non-league pyramid and the good news is that he's hungry for more.
Defender Adam Myeroff has been one of the stalwarts of the team. I don't think it's a coincidence that he has been involved in the same three teams that Gold has taken to the top. I don't understand why he continues to be ignored for the Europeans and Maccabiah Games. Described as a "true winner" in the cup final programme, Myeroff has also played at non-Jewish clubs including Pitstone & Ivinghoe, Welwyn Garden City and Berkhamsted Town.
Lions' win was also another notch on the belt of GB coach Darren Yarlett. He is many people's favourite to take charge at London Maccabi Lions A next season. Yarlett has a real eye for details and his planning has been invaluable to the teams he's been involved in.
● Any two from Glenthorne United B, EDRS Stonegrove, London Maccabi Lions and Temple Fortune Masters will play in the final of the Maccabi Masters Division Two Cup final at Barnet FC next month.
The prospect of the famous Underhill slope could make them toil, especially if the match goes to extra time. They could do worse than to go to track and field legend Roger Bruck, a die-hard Bees fan, for some stamina advice.