Eastleigh FC

BASINGSTOKE TOWN v EASTLEIGH FRIDAY 26th DECEMBER 2008 Blue Square South

EASTLEIGH v THURROCK SATURDAY 20th DECEMBER 2008 Blue Square South Report by Jamie Montigue Eastleigh went into this game riding high in second placed in the Blue Square South following five successive league wins and three consecutive clean sheets. Emergency centre-back Andy Forbes reverted back to his preferred centre forward's role to accommodate debutant Neil Sharp at the heart of defence. The former Havant & Waterlooville and Cambridge City man who joined the club this week, was partnered at the back by Aaron Martin in the absence of the suspended Tom Jordan. The Spitfires' second new arrival this week, loan signing Lee Roache, started the game on the bench. The hosts made a positive start initially but fell behind as early as the ninth minute as Thurrock hit back. A diagonal ball into the penalty area by Luke Byles saw a great leap and cushion header from Andy Forbes knock the ball into the path of strike partner Matt Groves whose looping header narrowly evaded the...

Baird looks to boost Eastleigh's options By Adrian Kajumba - full story in EASTLEIGH are hoping to complete a second signing inside a week from Cambridge City. Striker Lee Roache joined the Spitfires on a month's loan from the Southern League Premier division outfit on Friday. And highly-rated, versatile defender Neil Sharp is expected to follow him in making the move to the Silverlake Stadium after Eastleigh were given the green light to finalise terms with the 30 year old. Eastleigh's Director of football Dave Malone confirmed Sharp's deal will be a permanent one, with the length of it to be discussed between the club and player later today. Former Havant and Waterlooville man Sharp will be a familiar face to Spitfires manager Ian Baird and players Tom Jordan, Tony Taggart and Luke Byles, having played alongside Jordan and Taggart during his four years at Westleigh Park. And Malone said: "We have been given permission by Cambridge to speak to him and have a...

Director of Football Dave Malone released the following press statement with regard to player news on the club messageboard this morning. "We are pleased to confirm the loan signing of striker Lee Roache, from Cambridge City. Lee was previously with Barnet, and signs for an initial one month loan period. Lee will be included in our squad for the game with Fisher Athletic on Sunday." Lee, 24, was a product of Barnet's youth academy and signed professional terms in the summer of 2003. Whilst playing League Two football with the Bees, Roache scored seven goals in thirty-six appearances before moving on to Cambridge City in 2006. The pacy forward started his third consecutive season with City in the Blue Square South at the beginning of the current season and is a very welcome addition to the squad here at Eastleigh. The move was made possible by the departure of Matt Bodkin, which is confirmed as the statement continued: "We can also confirm that we have agreed to the ...

HAYES & YEADING UNITED v EASTLEIGH SATURDAY 6th DECEMBER 2008 Blue Square South Report by Ray Murphy It was second placed Eastleigh travelling to third placed Hayes & Yeading for this Blue Square fixture on Saturday and with an eighty-sixth minute Tom Jordan goal, Eastleigh cemented their second place position with a four point advantage over Hampton & Richmond Borough. This was Eastleigh’s fifth successive Blue Square South victory and in a space of three weeks seen them record away victories at Maidenhead United, Team Bath, A F C Wimbledon and now Hayes & Yeading all of which were occupying places in the top six of the table at the time of meeting each other. Andy Forbes had recovered from a dead leg and returned to his central defensive role with Aaron Martin dropping to the substitutes bench as the only change to the starting eleven that had won at Wimbledon earlier in the week. Martin was joined on the bench by Joe Maxwell following his recent loan spell at Broc...

Eastleigh Res. 1-2 Corinthian Casuals Res. Suburban Premier League TEAM: Jon Webb, James Powell, Adam Gatcumb, Justin Hall, Aaron Blaxall, Perry Mullins, Chris Mason (c), Joe Crook, Nick Watt, Scott Waters, Arron Milburn. Subs: 12 (on for Watt 65), Steve Hall (on for Waters 71), 14 (on for Hall 86) By Jamie Montigue After an incredible thirteen game unbeaten run in the Suburban Premier Division that took Eastleigh reserves to the top of the table, inevitably luck had to change at same point as the number thirteen proved to be extremely unlucky. Since Eastleigh's last win in the middle of November, the reserves then had two away fixtures where they lost to Ashford Town (Middx) and Metropolitan Police, by 2-1 and 2-0 respectively. Unfortunately those two results were backed up with another defeat as Corinthian Casuals reserves ran out 2-1 winners at the Silverlake Stadium this afternoon. As early as the first minute of the game, Eastleigh's Nick Watt forced a fine ...

- By Wendy Gee Wendy Gee reveals how Peter Adeniyi turned down a move to arch-rivals Havant & Waterlooville just days after the Spitfires finally ended their hoodoo over Shaun Gale's side, where the towering midfielder was ironically named as man of the match. A further article confirms that the club have moved for Bashley forward Dave Allen, who scored at the Silverlake Stadium on his debut for his new club against Baird's side in the 2-0 FA Trophy defeat. Click the picture above for a larger image to read the articles in full.

AFC WIMBLEDON v EASTLEIGH TUESDAY 2nd DECEMBER 2008 Blue Square South Report by Ray Murphy Eastleigh manager Ian Baird celebrated his October Manager of the Month announcement with an excellent victory away at AFC Wimbledon in front of 2,358 spectators. Being forced to change his line up for the first time in three fixtures with Andy Forbes not being able to be included owing to a dead leg, Aaron Martin came in to the side in a centre back role and the 19-year-old gave a highly impressive, mature performance. The Eastleigh threadbare squad though did have to include both Baird and his assistant Matt Gray among the substitutes for the evening. It is also less than three weeks ago that Eastleigh up to that point this season had played eight competitive away fixtures and only won once scoring nine times and conceding twenty in the process. Their last three games all against sides in the top six of the Blue Square South have yielded three victories with nine goals in their favour. AFC W...

Blue Square Announce “Manager of the Month” Awards for November “Fallon Has Histon Flying On Both Fronts” Histon manager Steve Fallon has won the Blue Square Premier "Manager of the Month" award for November. Fallon’s side have had a tremendous month in the league and FA Cup, ending with a 100% record in both competitions. The highlight of the period being the two 1-0 Cup wins at home to Swindon and Leeds United. The Stutes also gained a maximum of 12 league points in four games, beating two of the pre-season favourites Stevenage and Oxford in the process. Paul Parker of Setanta Sports said “Some people might be expecting the Histon bubble to burst but they have just gone from strength to strength. “They’ve managed to beat two League 1 teams with a couple of fully deserved victories and are still maintaining their great league form.” In the Blue Square South the award goes to Eastleigh manager Ian Baird. The Spitfires climbed the table with four valuable victories over the...

EASTLEIGH v HAVANT & WATERLOOVILLE     SATURDAY 29th NOVEMBER 2008 Blue Square South Report by Jamie Montigue Eastleigh finally broke their Havant & Waterlooville hoodoo with a fine performance over their rivals in this local derby. Ian Baird stuck with the same side that won their second successive win away from home in the league against Team Bath in midweek against his former charges. The hosts exerted the early pressure with one of several former Hawks in the Eastleigh line up, Tony Taggart drilling a free kick straight at the wall as Anthony Riviere won a free kick just seconds into the game. Several corners followed for the Spitfires as they threatened to find an early goal and make use of their pressure in the opening stages. Top goalscorer Andy Forbes, who put in a man of the match winning performance at Team Bath in the last game where he showed great versatility in doing a fine job at centre half, continued where he left off alongside Tom Jordan who to...

TEAM BATH v EASTLEIGH TUESDAY 25th NOVEMBER 2008 Blue Square South Report by Ray Murphy What a difference seventy-two hours in football makes. From an extremely disappointing F A Trophy exit at the hands of Bashley, Eastleigh returned to take three points in an away fixture against a side in the top tier of the table for a second successive away fixture. It was not as if the evening started easily for The Spitfires either. With Warren Goodhind failing a fitness test and Trevor Challis out injured, Andy Forbes was forced to take the more unfamiliar role of centre back. It came really as no surprise at the end of the match that Forbes had given a man of the match performance. Jamie Brown returned to the strike force to partner Matt Groves whilst Luke Byles returned from suspension to fill the left back role allowing Steve Clark to move forward into the midfield. The reunited strike force linked in the fourth minute with Brown flicking on Clark's pass to allow Groves to shoot past ...

EASTLEIGH v BASHLEY SATURDAY 22nd NOVEMBER 2008 FA Challenge Trophy 3rd Round By Jamie Montigue Eastleigh exit yet another cup competition as they fell dismally at home this afternoon to Southern Premier League side Bashley. Falling behind after just seven minutes, Eastleigh got off to a horrid start as visiting Bashley opened the scoring in this FA Trophy cup tie. After such a good away win in the league last weekend with a 1-4 win over Maidenhead United, surely another cup exit could not be on the cards this afternoon, could it? What a difference a week makes it football. Bashley certainly seemed to be more determined and once they went ahead, not once did they look like giving it up, neither did Eastleigh threaten to put up a fight to get back on level terms. The visitors were here for nothing less than a win as their early intentions proved. Throughout a dismal first half Eastleigh had just two clear-cut chances but could not make the most of either. The longer the half wore on, t...

Eastleigh Res. 4-3 Chalfont St. Peter Res. Suburban Premier League TEAM: Fred Toomer, Niall Bryant, Mohammed Arahji, Tom Nicholas, Aaron Blaxall, Arron Milburn, Chris Mason ©, Jeff Cavey, Nick Watt, Scott Waters, Brett Williams Subs: Adday (on for Arahji 53), Leonildo Simoes (on for Waters 61), Jamie Cousins (on for Cavey 77) By Jamie Montigue This reserves game in the Suburban Premier League saw constant action in the opening twenty minutes where four goals were shared, and the game continued in this vein with the Spitfires coming out on top in a seven-goal thriller. Eastleigh got off to a phenomenal start with a goal after just fifteen seconds. Nick Watt slipped an excellent ball into BRETT WILLIAMS who sidestepped the last defender with great skill before planting a right-footed shot into the bottom right hand corner of goal. Two minutes later, the hosts were threatening again with a one-two between Chris Mason and Nick Watt forcing a corner on the far side, the set piece resulting...

SUNDAY 16th OCTOBER 2008 SALISBURY CITY LADIES 2-3 EASTLEIGH LADIES The Ladies continued to show why they are unbeaten in Hampshire Division 1 by coming back from 2-0 down at half time to beat Salisbury Ladies 3-2. Two well-taken goals by the home team left Eastleigh deflated and flat going into half time after an exciting and action-packed first 15 minutes which saw the Spitfires challenging for every ball and taking numerous shots on goals. After a well needed and deserved stern talking to at half time by the Spitfires Manager Ben Williams the ladies came out guns blazing and pressured every 50/50 ball and got a goal back from Amy Boucher which gave the team the boost they needed. Eastleigh kept the home keeper busy and should have had a few more goals if not for the strong defence and keeper. The break came again from Abby Strode-Gibbon who had another low driven shot into the bottom left which looked liked it was to be saved but the keeper fumbled and let it in....game on! Central...

Eastleigh Res. 2-2 Burnham Res. Suburban Premier League TEAM: Jon Webb, James Powell, Niall Bryant, Scott Gilham, Jack Dukes, Arron Milburn, Chris Mason (c), Jeff Cavey, Nick Watt, Leonildo Simoes, Scott Waters. Subs: Jamie Cousins (on for Simoes 60), Joe Crook (on for Powell 72), Mohammed Arahji (on for Bryant 72). By Jamie Montigue A perfect corner kick by Nick Watt saw centre back Scott Gilham charge in at the back post and head the inch-perfect delivery narrowly wide after just seven minutes. Three minutes later Eastleigh were behind as Burnham Reserves took a 10th minute lead with a low shot past goalkeeper Jon Webb. The Spitfires came extremely close to pulling level through Leo Simoes who reacted quickest to a loose ball in the box from an Arron Milburn free kick though his instinctive volley towards goal was met by an even better one-handed diving save from Burnham's skipper and keeper who showed tremendous reactions to keep out the close range effort. Eastleigh found them...

MAIDENHEAD UNITED v EASTLEIGH SATURDAY 15th NOVEMBER 2008 Blue Square South Report by Ray Murphy Maidenhead United's unbeaten home record for 2008/9 had come to an end a week earlier when Chelmsford City took over top spot in the Division with a 2-0 victory at York Road. Fielding the same eleven against Eastleigh, Maidenhead suffered an even heavier defeat as The Spitfires fired three goals in an eight-minute spell at the start of the second half. Playing in a 4-4-2 formation, Eastleigh manager Ian Baird brought back Matt Groves into the attack at the expense of Jamie Brown, whilst Andy Harris started in his normal right back position and Steve Clark wide right midfield. The opening part of the game saw both sides exerting lots of energy but no composure or penetration from either side on an afternoon when a blustery wind was making conditions difficult. It was the first real goal attempt by either side after thirteen minutes that brought the first goal of the afternoon. Owing t...

WELLING UNITED v EASTLEIGH SATURDAY 8th NOVEMBER 2008 Blue Square South Report by Ray Murphy It should have come as no surprise really that James Baker signed last summer from Braintree Town, then was released three weeks ago by Eastleigh FC, though is still joint leading goalscorer for the Club so far this season, would haunt his old team mates with two goals in the first half as Eastleigh slipped to a defeat at Welling United. In a fixture rearranged owing to no F A Cup action for the two sides, the irony is is that if Eastleigh had not lost to Burgess Hill in that competition four weeks earlier; Baker could still have been wearing Eastleigh colours. Andy Harris returned to the Eastleigh side in a midfield role following his spell on the sidelines with a suspension whilst Matt Bodkin was relegated to the substitutes bench to deny himself a start against one of his former clubs. Jamie Brown was also favoured in the attack with Matt Groves being replaced. The game started in a downp...

Eastleigh Res. 3-2 AFC Wimbledon Res. Suburban Premier League TEAM: Jon Webb, James Powell, Niall Bryant, Tom Nicholas, Jack Dukes, Nick Watt, Chris Mason (c), Tom O'Dell, Jeff Cavey, Brett Williams, Scott Waters. Subs: Arron Milburn (on for O'Dell 45), Joe Crook (on for Cavey 65), Scott Gilham (on for Waters 81). By Jamie Montigue Notching up their third successive league win in an unbeaten run that stretches back ten games to August, Eastleigh's reserve side overcame a 2-0 half time deficit to run out 3-2 winners. This latest fantastic result sees Paul Wiltshire and Wayne Mew's youthful side sit proudly at the top of the Suburban Premier Division. AFC Wimbledon took a blistering lead with just four minutes on the clock. A stunning volley from the edge of the penalty area sailed past the helpless Jon Webb and into the top corner. Brett Williams was back at the Silverlake Stadium having returned to the club following a spell with Winchester City and put in an impress...

Blue Square Announce “Player of the Month” Winners for October “Histon’s Oyebanjo scoops October honours!” Histon defender Lanre Oyebanjo has won the Blue Square Premier "Player of the Month" award for October. The versatile defender, signed from Brentford in the summer, has wasted no time in making an impact at The Glass World Stadium. Oyebanjo has been at the heart of a defence which went through the whole of the month without conceding a single league goal. The Stutes recorded excellent victories at home to Salisbury and league leaders Crawley, as well as a hard fought victory at Ebbsfleet in front of the TV cameras. Setanta’s Paul Parker, who won most of his England caps in Oyenbanjo’s favoured right-back position said “Lanre has lots of potential. “He’s tenacious, has plenty of energy and is not afraid to get stuck in.” Histon find themselves in the Blue Square Premier play-off positions following their superb run. In the Blue Square South the award goes to Dave Rainf...

Swindon Town Youth 4 Eastleigh Youth 1 Eastleigh: Toomer, Longman, Blaxall, Lane, Nicholas, Mason, Mullins (Milburn 60), Wiltshire (Crook 60), Easton, White, Mattan (Hall 90) Unused subs Webb and Cozens. Report by Ray Murphy Eastleigh were swept aside by Puma Youth League Football Alliance side Swindon Town in this First Round F A Youth Cup tie. The same side had scored four goals at A FC Bournemouth three days earlier with the same scorers on the night as that day, with two apiece for Jamie Taylor and Lloyd Macklin. It was a credited performance though for Eastleigh against a side recording their twelfth successive victory. Eastleigh showed a bit of naivety in their defending against a side that were highly dangerous with the blistering pace of Macklin, a winger who also possessed the quality of being able to cross the ball whilst on his run. In addition to this the majority of the Swindon side managed by ex-Welsh international Paul Bodin, were second year professionals whereas Eas...

EASTLEIGH v HAMPTON & RICHMOND BOROUGH SATURDAY 1st NOVEMBER 2008 Blue Square South By Jamie Montigue Eastleigh picked up their first league win in four games with a deserved 2-1 victory over a Hampton & Richmond side who were unbeaten in seven league games winning five on the bounce coming into this game. Both Andy Harris (suspended) and Trevor Challis (injured) were missing from the squad and there were places for new signing Steve Clark who joins the club from Bromley, and a first league start of the season for Andy Forbes. On the back of a confidence boosting 6-0 win over Totton & Eling in mid-week, Eastleigh took on Alan Devonshire's in-form troops in extremely adverse weather with the bitter cold, the blustery, swirling wind and constant heavy rain. The first of the action saw a deep, looping free kick from Tony Taggart curl into the penalty area and bounce awkwardly in front of goal where the ball popped up and narrowly over the target. In the fifth minute of ...

By Wendy Gee - full story in Ian Baird is hoping Eastleigh's funds will stretch to another new signing after securing the signature of utility man Steve Clark from Bromley this week. With Jamie Brown not yet up to playing two games a week after summer hip surgery and Andy Forbes still working his way back to fitness after a hernia operation, Baird wants another striker on board. "Ideally I'd love to bring in another forward, but it would be under the constraints of how much we can pay and whether the club would let me have £250 (a week) to go out and get someone," he said. "I've got a couple of people in mind and I've enquired about Manny Williams at Woking. "But the money he's on there is astronomical and we wouldn't even be able to afford half his wages." A local player from a lower league club would perhaps make more financial sense, but Baird said: "Would a player from say, Bashley or Totton want to come here if they're not...

EASTLEIGH v TOTTON & ELING TUESDAY 28th OCTOBER 2008 Hampshire Senior Cup 3rd Round By Ray Murphy Eastleigh eased through into the Quarter Finals of the Hampshire Senior Cup with this victory over Sydenhams Wessex League First Division's second placed Totton & Eling. Eastleigh grabbed six goals in the first half without reply before a goalless second period. Joe Maxwell who had grabbed a goal in the previous round opened the scoring after ten minutes applying a finishing touch after Totton could not get the ball cleared out of the area. A delicately placed shot into the top corner of goalkeeper Denis Wheeler's right hand side by Peter Adeniyi on seventeen minutes earned Eastleigh a second goal. Three minutes later a strike from Maxwell was too strong for Wheeler to hold as Eastleigh celebrated a third. Following a corner on twenty-four minutes Tony Taggart thundered home goal number four from the edge of the box. Ten minutes later Anthony Riviere controlled a difficu...

SUNDAY 26TH OCTOBER 2008 UNIVERSITY OF PORTSMOUTH LADIES 3-3 EASTLEIGH LADIES Eastleigh continued their unbeaten league run with a draw away to tough opposition Portsmouth University. On a day which saw continuous rain and wind, Eastleigh Ladies battled hard and scored within the first 5 minutes to the surprise of a strong opposition. The hosts soon equalised, but Eastleigh came back and levelled before going on to restore their lead. In an action packed first half, Portsmouth Uni. then pulled another back to make it level going into the break. The second half saw better football from Eastleigh who dug deep to see out the draw not after some good football from both sides, which saw both keepers tested throughout the match. In the end it was a tie, though Eastleigh were more than happy with that, Pompey Uni thought they should of have had a number of penalties. Speaking after the game, goalkeeper Alex Brooks commented: "I think that it was a good game against a very good side unde...

A club statement by Dave Malone confirmed the return of Warren Goodhind for the second time this season, and also news of a new signing. The statement read as follows: "We are pleased to announce the signing of Steve Clark from Bromley. We can also confirm that Warren Goodhind has also been retained, which we are able to do following the release of both James Baker and David Hughes. Both of these players have accepted terms that fall within the pay structure, which will be implemented from 1st November." Steve Clark, was born on the 10th February 1982. Profile from Bromley website: Comfortable anywhere across the back line, Steve was a member of West Ham’s very successful youth side of the nineties. He signed for Southend United in late 2001, where he spent three seasons, prior to spells at Hornchurch, Dagenham & Redbridge and Fisher Athletic. Began last season at Bromley before joining Chelmsford City where he helped them lift the Ryman Premier Division title. Returned...

Eastleigh Res. 2-1 Ashford Town (Middx) Res. Suburban Premier League TEAM: Fred Toomer, Adam Gatcumb, Aaron Blaxall, Adam Wiltshire, Aaron Martin ©, Scott Gilham, Joe Crook, Chris Mason, Andy Forbes, Ben White, Nick Watt Subs: Leonildo Simoes (on for Watt 84), Alex Easton (on for White 65), Fred Dukes, Samba M'Baye (on for Crook 75), Jon Webb By Jamie Montigue Eastleigh Reserves continued their eight game unbeaten run in the league in front of a good following of Spitfires fans due to the first team not having a fixture. Ian Baird's side were scheduled to play Team Bath this afternoon but as their Blue Square South counterparts were still in the FA Cup (where they emerged 1-0 victors over Eastleigh's local rivals Salisbury City), the Eastleigh first team were without a game. Hot-shot striker Andy Forbes came through a full 90 minutes, which again is very positive as he steadily comes back to full fitness. With first team manager Baird watching on, and the crowd making a lo...