Non-League and Academy football writer

This London County FA Saturday Junior Cup final between Exeter Old Boys and Camden & Islington United, was played at Hendon FC’s Silver Jubilee Park ground, on Friday night. Exeter Old Boys play their league football at step 8, whereas Camden & Islington United are a step 7 side, who are still in contention of winning this season’s Middlesex County Football League Premier Division. This cup final saw the two sides play some fantastic football, in what was a fantastically contested cup final, which Camden & Islington United won 3-2 in extra time. The opening stages of this well attended cup final, were played at a very good pace. After Karl Usher had headed over from an early cross into the Exeter Old Boys’ penalty area, Exeter Old Boys would go close to taking an early lead. Charlie Woodford’s good lofted pass found forward Darren Ofoe, in behind the Camden & Islington defence. Darren Ofoe would continue forward with the ball, to the edge of their penalty area, before sending a lobbed effort over the outrushing goalkeeper, and just over the goal. The goalscoring chances continued at a real pace. Following a free-kick for Exeter Old Boys player Owen Jones on the edge of the Camden & Islington box, which Jones would lift wide of the goal, Owen Jones would then hit an effort (following another free-kick) on the Camden & Islington goal (from the edge of their box), but it was deflected behind by a defender.

Not long after Charlie Woodford had volleyed a good effort from a corner kick to the edge of the Camden & Islington box, wide of their goal, Camden & Islington would take the lead in the game. The opening goal of the game came from a corner kick, as Ryan Pickles managed to get on the ball on the right-hand side of the pitch, following the corner kick, before delivering a brilliant ball towards the back post of the goal, from where Jonny Ding was able to meet the ball and head it into the ground, before it went past goalkeeper Mark Roberts, and into the goal, 0-1. The game continued to be played well and at pace by both teams, and there continued to be a number of good goalscoring chances. Shortly after George Bratt had a headed effort from inside the Camden & Islington box, saved by goalkeeper Oli Redfern, Camden & Islington came close to doubling their lead. Karl Usher would skilfully take the ball past a defender on the left flank, before squaring the ball for Ryan Pickles in the centre of the Exeter Old Boys’ penalty area, but Camden & Islington’s top scorer this season had been put off by an approaching defender, and his resulting effort went over the goal.

Darren Ofoe would glance a header wide of the Camden & Islington goal, after meeting Alexis King’s cross into their penalty area, but a couple of minutes later Camden & Islington would double their lead in the game. Josh Gruby passed the ball to Ryan Pickles on the edge of the Exeter Old Boys’ penalty area, before then receiving a really good low pass to his feet, after he had entered the left side of the box. Josh Gruby would then curl a fantastic effort into the top right-hand corner of Mark Roberts’ goal, from a very difficult angle, 0-2. Just before the referee had sounded his whistle for half-time, Darren Ofoe would meet a cross inside the Camden & Islington penalty area, before hitting the ball across the face of their goal, from a difficult angle. Despite managing to create the first goalscoring opportunity of the second half, with Dwayne Reid having a low effort from the edge of the Exeter Old Boys’ penalty area, saved by Roberts, Exeter Old Boys would soon take control of the game, from a chances created point of view. They would manage to score their first goal of the game, following a well worked move, early on in the second half. The goal arrived after the impressive Charlie Woodford had turned with the ball on the edge of the Camden & Islington box, before finding Alex Graham on the left side of the box, who did well to find the bottom right-hand corner of the goal, 1-2.

Exeter Old Boys would make Camden & Islington do a lot of defending, after getting a goal back in the game. After George Bratt had an effort from the edge of the Camden & Islington box, which was well saved by Oli Redfern, the Camden & Islington goalkeeper would then do well to push behind Alexis King’s cross into his penalty area. From the resulting corner kick George Bratt would manage to the get to the ball inside the penalty area, but his headed effort on goal was importantly cleared off the goal-line by Joel Williams. And then a couple of minutes later, as Exeter Old Boys continued to create chances, Charlie Woodford would volley an effort over Oli Redfern’s goal, from a corner kick to the edge of the penalty area. In a second half that Camden & Islington would have to make some substitutions in, because of injuries, the step 7 side were defending well against an Exeter Old Boys side who were creating chance after chance. Then, shortly after that chance, Owen Jones would hit an effort on the bounce (20 yards out from goal), just wide of Oli Redfern’s goal. The central defensive partnership of Billy Doyle and Adam Wurie, were really impressing, and they had played a big part in frustrating Exeter Old Boys in front of goal.

As the second half game closer to its end, time was starting to run out for the team who were trailing 2-1. However, not long after Dwayne Reid had hit a free-kick effort over the Exeter Old Boys goal, Exeter Old Boys did manage to get that equalising goal, not long before the end of normal time. A cross into the Camden & Islington penalty area was met by George Bratt, who glanced a header into the left-hand corner of Oli Redfern’s goal, prompting many a celebration from the team, 2-2. With rolling substitutes and some injuries, Camden & Islington United would try to change things for extra time. The very experienced Nicholas Wigmore (he is also the club’s director of football) would be brought on for the first half of extra time, and he would go close to regaining Camden & Islington’s lead in the game, after getting onto a loose pass on the edge of the Exeter Old Boys’ penalty area. Wigmore would then hit an effort just wide of the goal. The game was less open in extra time, with the regularity of goalscoring chances decreasing. Both Luke Taylor and George Bratt would hit efforts wide of the Camden & Islington goal, before half-time of extra time.

The second half of extra time would however, see the game return to being more open. And not long after Exeter Old Boys player Alex Graham hit an effort at the back post of the Camden & Islington goal, across their goal, Ryan Pickles, who had returned to the pitch in extra time, would hit an effort over Mark Roberts’ goal, from the edge of their penalty area. This cup final would end in spectacular fashion, and in all truth neither side really deserved to lose the match, but it was Camden & Islington, who would score a late winning goal, to win the final. Some tremendous work and skill from Daniel Flynn, to carry the ball forward at pace past a number of players, would end in him managing to get back on the ball inside the Exeter Old Boys’ penalty area. Flynn’s effort on goal was well saved by Mark Roberts, as the ball then came to James Briars inside the box on the follow-up, but his effort was also kept out by Roberts. However, the ball the ball then came to Josh Gruby, who finished low into the goal to win Camden & Islington United the cup, with less than a minute of the game to go. This was a fantastic game of football, between two teams who gave absolutely everything to try and win the cup, and many congratulations must go to Camden & Islington United, as winners, but a lot of credit must also go to step 8 side Exeter Old Boys, for their performance throughout the match.

Camden & Islington United’s number 10 (Josh Gruby) was the officially awarded player of the match. However, he was also my player of the match on Friday night. Josh Gruby got the match winning goal of the game, as well as scoring an excellently taken goal during the first half of the game, and he linked the play really well at times, showed some really good skill on the ball (as well as good movement off it) and he also worked really hard for his team. However, performances from both sets of players all deserve a lot of credit. For Exeter Old Boys, I thought that their influential midfielder Charlie Woodford was outstanding, but there were so many performances that deserve to be mentioned. And for Camden & Islington, I thought that Ryan Pickles made a really good contribution to the game, as did Billy Doyle and Adam Wurie. So too did Karl Usher, and from Karl Usher’s tireless performance to the impressive cameo of Nicholas Wigmore, it was a performance of real character from Camden & Islington United, the winners of the 2023/24 season’s London County FA Saturday Junior Cup.