Eastleigh FC

EASTLEIGH v WELLING UNITED SATURDAY 23rd FEBRUARY 2008 Blue Square South Match Report by Jamie Montigue In their first home game in three weeks, Eastleigh maintained their push for a playoff spot, with a 3-1 win over Welling United. They were without top goalscorer Andy Forbes who limped out of the action in last weekend’s draw with Sutton United, midfield general Jamie Brown, who is due an operation at the beginning of next month and centre half Warren Goodhind who is on crutches due to a broken foot. In came two new signings for their home debuts in the form of striker Warren McBean and former Grays Athletic midfielder, Karl Murray. Eastleigh could not have wished for a better start as just four minutes into the game, the Spitfires raced into a very early lead. An Adam Everitt free kick on the left-hand side was helped on superbly by a towering header from Chris Collins. The centre half has been enjoying a good run in the side since making his comeback in the 4-1 win over Fish

EASTBOURNE BOROUGH v EASTLEIGH TUESDAY 19th FEBRUARY 2008 Blue Square South Match Report by Ray Murphy Eastbourne Borough moved to the top of the Blue Square South table over their arch rivals Lewes with this odd goal in five victory over Eastleigh, which also saw Eastleigh slip just outside the play off positions with rivals Bishops Stortford also clinching a victory on the evening. Manager Ian Baird made four changes from the previous disappointing performance at Sutton. Included in the strike force was loan signing from Sutton United Warren McBean replacing the injured Andy Forbes. The evening could not have started worse for Eastleigh. Having had the better of the opening two minutes Eastleigh then watched a long kick from Eastbourne goalkeeper Lee Hook fall behind the Eastleigh defence. Warren Goodhind tried to put extra pressure on the ball with a header back to his own keeper David Wilkinson but the ball fell short. Scott Ramsay picked up the ball and saw his first attempt pu

- By Wendy Gee EASTLEIGH'S capture of midfielder Karl Murray from Grays Athletic was prompted by news that Jamie Brown will face six months on the sidelines after he undergoes a major hip operation next month. Brown, who has been dogged with hip and back trouble all season, will undergo surgery on March 12 and is unlikely to be back before the start of next term. Manager Ian Baird reported: "The surgeon reckons Jamie will be out for six months. They've got to break the femur and tear through the ligaments to get right into the hip joint. It's a nasty operation." Click here for full story

"After negotiations with Sutton United, we have secured the transfer of Warren McBean for the rest of this season.." - ( http://www.eastleigh-fc.co.uk ) - By Wendy Gee Pedigree midfielder Karl Murray, 26, completed his move from Grays Athletic in time to make a substitute appearance for the Spitfires in Saturday's 0-0 draw at relegation-battlers Sutton United. And next in for Eastleigh is Sutton striker Warren McBean who, paperwork allowing, may be drafted straight in tomorrow as a replacement for top gun Andy Forbes, who limped out of the action just after half-time on Saturday."

SUTTON UNITED v EASTLEIGH SATURDAY 16th FEBRUARY 2008 Blue Square South Match Report by Ray Murphy Manager Ian Baird kept faith in the side that had demolished Fisher Athletic the previous week, but seven days later they could not find a way through the defence of the side at the foot of the Blue Square South League table. With their own team selection problems, Sutton United were unable to field Eastleigh loanee player Karim El Salahi in the match against them. With regular goalkeeper Phil Wilson not available it also meant a debut for recent signing Kevin Davies in the Sutton goal. It was not the best surface that Eastleigh have played on this season either and a biting cold wind led to a goalless draw the game taking the aura from what the score line reflects. Eastleigh started brightly enough, Andy Forbes’ shot from Anthony Riviere’s cross was pushed away by Davies whilst Chris Piper also saw a free kick effort being deflected off target. Mark Marshall had a header from a Pi

Eastleigh 2nd XI 3-2 Harefield United Reserves. Suburban Premier League TEAM: Craig Lisher, Niall Bryant, Zeke Rink, Tom Roberts (c), Jason Sangha, Joe Sheppard, Perry Mullins, Sam Skinner, Scott Waters, Dougie Rowe, James Screen. SUBS: William Harvey (on for Lisher 45), Henry Agyei (on for Skinner 52), Sam Longman (on for Rink 74) Match Report by Jamie Montigue MATCH WINNER: Scott Waters headed home Eastleigh's third late in the game to ensure victory, also winning a penalty which put the Spitfires 2-1 up just after half time After last weeks 1-0 home defeat to Beaconsfield SYCOB reserves, Brian and Adie's Spitfires' were looking for a reaction, seeking a win to get back on form. Today's opposition came in the form of lowly Harefield United, a side languishing at the wrong end of the table in 16th place. A relatively dull and scrappy first half suddenly came to life midway through when Doug Rowe finished emphatically from close range on 32 minutes. Joe Sheppard play

"Eastleigh FC have signed Karl Murray from Grays Athletic until the end of next season." - ( http://www.eastleigh-fc.co.uk ) Director of Football Dave Malone commented on the messageboard with regards to the new signing: "Karl was a big target for us pre-season, but joined Grays from Woking. He is a powerful centre half/midfielder and will add significant strength to our squad." Karl, 25, had previously spent five years with Shrewsbury Town making 114 appearances scoring five goals. From here the new Eastleigh recruit moved to Woking in 2004 (134 appearances, 13 goals). At the beginning of the current season, Murray made a switch to Grays Athletic of the Blue Square Premier where he lasted just nine months at the New Rec following his release on the 14th February 2008. It is highly probable that there will be a further addition to the squad in the near future. A statement on the official website said: "We are also in negotiations with Sutton United for the tra

Eastleigh Ladies vs Gosport ladies 9th February 2008 Totton and Ealing Ground, Eastleigh KO 2pm Team GK Alex Brooks 2. Danae Palmer 3. Nicola Beeton 4. Stacey Niven 5. Sarah Kingston 6. Rachel Heda 7. Connie Brazier 8. Samantha Read 9. Lucy Piper 10. Natasha Gwyther 14. Emma Hebdige Substitutes Abby Crawford Jenna Snell Gemma Aboe Result: 7-0 Scorers: Brazier, Kingston, Niven (4), Heda Referee: 7/10 Match report by Sarah Kingston Kick off on a spectacularly sunny winters afternoon was won by Eastleigh and they started brightly. A handful of chances were sprayed towards the Gosport goal by Piper and Niven but neither of the two could open the scoring so early on in the game. It took a self made chance from Brazier a few minutes later to take the lead when she turned, shot and beat the keeper from inside the box, signaling her 9th goal of the season. 1-0. It was then the turn of Kingston, having just swapped from right wing to left to pounce on the ball. The right back fumbled and t

Eastleigh 2nd XI 0-1 Beaconsfield Sycob Reserves. Suburban Premier League TEAM: Craig Lisher, Niall Bryant, Justin Hall, Tom Roberts (c), Jason Sangha, Joe Sheppard, Perry Mullins, Adam Wiltshire, Scott Waters, Joe Maxwell, Jon Horner. SUBS: Sam Skinner (on for Wiltshire 63), Doug Rowe (on for Maxwell 76), Elliot Goater (on for Hall 76) Match Report by Jamie Montigue Eastleigh had their chances to win it, but Beaconsfield made the Spitfires pay for not making the most of their majority share in possession with a heart-wrenching 87th minute goal. This result sees the second string's phenomenal run of 10 games unbeaten at the Silverlake Stadium come to an end. Eastleigh also lost away from home last weekend to Whyteleafe by two goals to one. In the third minute Scott Waters attacked a Perry Mullins free kick purposefully but was unable to direct his header on target. Three minutes later Waters sent a low cross in from the right where Mullins fired over the top from inside the penalt

FISHER ATHLETIC v EASTLEIGH SATURDAY 9th FEBRUARY 2008 Blue Square South Match Report by Ray Murphy In the face of adversity, Eastleigh produced arguably their best performance of the season, with their third successive away victory, third consecutive positive result and so far remain unbeaten in the league in 2008. Manager Ian Baird already carrying an injury list including Jamie Brown and Gareth Howells, suspensions of Luke Byles and Adam Everitt along with Fitzroy Simpson unavailable suffered a further set back before the game when David Hughes failed a late fitness test. Chris Collins only just returning to training after being out all season injured was drafted in as an emergency and played an excellent game, whilst Steve Watts was included on the bench for his first outing since October. The home side unbeaten in their last eight games and having just ended a run of seven consecutive victories were second best for the entire afternoon. The first chance fell to Paul Sales on tw

Crawley Town’s versatile attacker Jamie Cook has topped the fans poll to be the Blue Square Premier “Player of the Month” for January. Cook found the net a remarkable seven times in four matches to fire his team up the Blue Square Premier table. The summer signing hit goals against former clubs Oxford United and Rushden & Diamonds. A second-half brace from Cook, away at Droylsden, ensured that the Red Devils left Manchester with all three points after trailing at half-time. The award in the Blue Square North goes to Lee Moore of Telford United. The former Tamworth striker faced up to his old club on New Years Day and put in a great performance as United won 4-1. Moore also scored goals against Workington and Leigh RMI as his side went from fifth to second in the Blue Square North table. Havant & Waterlooville’s Tom Jordan wins the Blue Square South award after a month in which he was a key figure in his sides amazing FA Cup run. A fine goal to finish off Swansea City in the

Having enjoyed a successful loan spell at the club during January 2008 from Blue Square Premier side Grays Athletic, Mark Marshall, the electric, fleet-footed winger has now completed a permanent transfer. Mark, 20, was also voted Eastleigh's player of the month for January by the Spitfires' fans on a poll at http://www.eastleighfc.blogspot.com . Reaction to the signing from the messageboard : MichaelEFC – "Mark Marshall is potentially a very exciting signing. He has got unbelievable pace and in the games I've seen him in he has always been one of our better players." yorkiev – "Well I for one am really pleased he has signed for us. He is a great asset, also I thought he showed a bit of a personality on Saturday. I would go so far as to say, I think he has as good, if not greater potential the Damien Scannell. His ball control is every bit as good I even think he gets past more defenders than Damien did. When Matt Hann came on we had real width and looke

Blue Square Announce “Manager of the Month” Awards for January Liam Daish has won the Blue Square Premier “Manager of the Month” for January and has proved that when it comes to managing Ebbsfleet United – he knows best for now. With the Myfootballclub takeover in full swing, over 25,000 online managers are itching to get involved in team selection for the Kent club. The former Coventry and Ireland defender led his club to three straight wins in the Blue Square Premier during the month, part of a nine match unbeaten run in all competitions. The Fleet now find themselves just six points off the Blue Square Premier play-off positions after some fine displays including inflicting the first away defeat of high-flying Burton Albion’s league campaign. In the Blue Square South the award goes to Fisher Athletic manager Wayne Burnett (pictured below in his playing days). The team from South London won all four of their Blue Square South matches during the period as they rose to seventh in th

EASTLEIGH v DORCHESTER TOWN SATURDAY 2nd FEBRUARY 2008 Blue Square South By Jamie Montigue With Luke Byles injured and Adam Everitt suspended, Eastleigh made two changes to the starting line up from the eleven that saw off Bognor Regis Town last weekend by three goals to nil. Peter Adeniyi and Chris Piper were the two brought in, playing right midfield and left back respectively. Jamie Brown of course, who scored a week ago in the said win, today lined up against his former club where he spent six seasons making over 200 appearances. Eastleigh went into this game with a struggling Dorchester Town side at the Silverlake Stadium looking to finally end their poor home form of late, a run which saw the club without a win in five games on their own turf. The first half was tightly contested, and it seemed the Magpies had set out to play for a draw, looking to sit deep but break on the counter attack whenever possible. Dorchester made a promising start with early pressure inside the openi