Simon Howe reports from The Jockey Farm Stadium…

With a number of players missing, there were opportunities for youngsters Ronnie Baldini and Harley Davidge to take a place on the bench- Davidge entering the fray late on to good effect. With Serine Sanneh still missing through injury, Reece Hobbs took the gloves once again and, just like against Tunbridge Wells, enjoyed a straightforward afternoon while showing calm authority when needed to sweep up behind Daniel Blunn and Louis Anderson who continued at centre-half in the absence of Robbie Bissett who returned from a trip to Australia not quite in time for this one. With James Miles moving down to pastures new, Arun Suman lined up in midfield alongside Frank Griffin, while Jaevon Dyer took over from Yassin Fares who missed out through a small injury. The top goalscoring trio of Jack Kirby, Louie Clarke and Charlie Clover lined up in attack and immediately set about causing Kennington problems.

Having already played Kennington twice this season, Jimmy Anderson and his players will have been well versed in terms of the threat they can offer with the vocal Joe Mant directing things from goal, the robust Tom Scorer looking to dictate play from the middle, and with all in yellow trying to find a way to get the ball to Ryan Philpott up front. The fact that Mant was much quieter than usual, Scorer was nullified by Suman and Griffin, and Philpott was barely involved, speaks volumes of how Rusthall dominated the game. It didn’t take long for the deadlock to be broken- it was just six minutes intothe game when Louis Anderson was able to venture towards the halfway before playing a perfectly weighted through ball with the outside of his boot, on to which Louie Clarke ran, having bent his run with trademark excellence. Even one-on-one with Mant, admittedly one of the better keepers in the league, there wasn’t much doubt what the result would be and Clarke placed his shot low to the left of Kennington’s number 1 and the ball nestled in the goal. The Rusthall players ran to praise Anderson for the quality of the pass and rightly so, but the expert finishing of Clarke should never be underestimated.

In truth, it was Kennington who responded better to the goal, and they began to get into the game, although the frequency with which they found themselves offside should perhaps be an area of focus for training this week. Rusthall were grateful for a well-timed sliding tackle from Louis Anderson just as a Kennington attacker looked like they had a simple task to roll the ball home- had he not got that right, a penalty would have been inevitable.

Rusthall were not without adventure however, and chief in charge of gaining territory was a shared role between the obvious Jack Kirby who was able to glide through at will, and the perhaps less obvious Rahman Kareem who had come to enjoy himself and indeed did so. Many a buccaneering run from Kareem led to good opportunities for Rusthall- with Louie Clarke so willing and able to track back to cover when needed, Rusthall’s right back had the freedom of Jockey Farm to exploit space and spark attacks. On the other side, Jesse Hammond played his first full 90 minutes for over three months and was as solid as ever- ahead of him, Jaevon Dyer was lively, his dribbling a threat Kennington struggled to deal with. It was Dyer who indirectly caused the game to be temporarily paused as he lashed a shot into the bottom corner of the goal, only to be flagged offside. As Mant went to retrieve the ball, he realised he couldn’t, as Dyer’s shot had squirmed through a hole in the net- Charlie Clover’s expertise evidently only extends to electrics, so it was manager, Jimmy Anderson, who was called upon this time to stich up the hole. One suspects viral photos and interviews on the BBC will not be forthcoming this time, however.

The second half saw Kennington’s response to being a goal down wither away and it was 2-0 after 53 minutes as Charlie Clover grabbed a goal which his constant effort deserved. First, strong hold-up play allowed him to win the ball, before he laid it back to Hammond whose clever return pass picked Clover out. Despite the close attentions of a defender, Clover turned sharply, rolled the ball past another attempt to stop him, before prodding his shot low past Mant.

If there is one player the Rusthall fans would love to see scoring, Frank Griffin would certainly be up there and he went close from a corner, sticking out a leg but seeing his effort sail over the bar. The middle of the park is where Griffin does his most vital work however, and once again, he stamped his authority on this game with a typically combative showing. By this point, Jack Kirby was having a lovely time dancing around, and often through, via numerous nutmegs, his opponents. While Kirby didn’t add to his goals or assists today, his contribution was excellent and a joy to watch.

Rusthall’s third goal came courtesy of a hat-trick of assists for defenders as Louie Clarke found himself in acres of space on the right, with Rahman Kareem inside him. Clarke played to ball the Kareem who pirouetted gracefully, attempting to turn, but found himself scythed to the floor- just as the referee was about to blow for a clear penalty, Charlie Clover stepped in and swept the ball home.

Kennington had all but given up, although hope was partially restored as they made it 3-1 but in the end, Rusthall’s superior quality ensured it was a comfortable afternoon. Harley Davidge’s first touch in a Rusthall shirt was exquisite, bringing the ball down before cutting inside with attacking intent. With Kennington’s consolation goal, Ronnie Baldini didn’t come on but his time will surely come. Choosing a Man-of-the-Match was tricky for the fans- Griffin, Kirby and Kareem were all in with strong claims, but in the end, it was Rusthall’s Number 9, Charlie Clover, who took the plaudits. A pleasing win for the Rustics is now followed by a short break with no game on Saturday, before the big one- another home derby game as Rusthall take on Tunbridge Wells in the SCEFL Challenge Cup on the evening of 20th January.

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