Non-League and Academy football writer

Indian Gymkhana Club welcomed Camden United to the Indian Gymkhana Sports Club on Saturday afternoon, for this Middlesex County Football League Premier Division fixture. Indian Gymkhana Club started this league match in 14th place in the league table, after 13 league matches played. Camden United started this game in fifth place in the Premier Division standings, after 11 league matches played. This step 7 match was won 6-1 by Camden United.

Camden United did well during the early stages of the game, and it would result in them taking the lead early on in the match. For their opening goal of the game, Camden United player Elias Moreno would receive the ball out on the right-hand side of the pitch, before whipping an excellent low cross towards Endrit Feka, on the left-hand side of the home team’s penalty area. From there Endrit Feka would skilfully cut inside onto his right foot, going across two defenders, before hitting a powerful low effort into the bottom right-hand corner of the goal, 0-1.

Camden United continued to play their football well, during the opening stages of the game. After Camden United defender Kayden Mandangu-Makangu’s powerful, dipping effort from 25 yards out on goal had been tipped onto his crossbar by the Indian Gymkhana Club goalkeeper, Jaikaran Bedi, Camden United would again go close to extending their lead. This time a clever flick on by Camden player Mohammed Hassan, would result in a teammate hitting a low effort narrowly wide of Jaikaran Bedi’s goal, from 25 yards out.

Indian Gymkhana Club did start to play well as a team, and from the 20 minute mark they would go on to have a really good spell in the game, which would ultimately result in them drawing level. However, as the home team showed signs of improvement, after a deflected effort had resulted in Yuvraj Nandha getting to the ball on the left-hand side of the Camden United box. He would then play the ball across to Alex Owuadey, whose low effort on goal from close range was well kept out by the Camden goalkeeper, Warren McCreeth.

Indian Gymkhana Club player Lovex Gurung would see his low effort from just inside the Camden box be gathered by Warren McCreeth, before the home side managed to draw level. For their levelling goal, Callum Walter’s corner-kick delivery was met by Alex Owuadey in the centre of the Camden box. Alex Owuadey’s headed effort on goal managed to go past Warren McCreeth on the goal-line, 1-1. Leon Louis’ Camden United side did manage to react well to conceding that equalising goal, before half-time. Endrit Feka’s powerful low effort from 20 yards out on Jaikaran Bedi’s goal, was well kept out by the goalkeeper, before Camden crucially managed to retake the lead before half-time.

For Camden’s second goal of the game, Mohammed Hassan would deliver a good ball into the home side’s penalty area, from a free-kick out on the left flank. The ball would eventually fall for their captain, Henry Stirling Patrick Clark, inside the box, and he would quickly finish low into the goal from close range, 1-2. Camden United would improve further during the early stages of the second half, which they got off to a great start in, as a team. Relatively early on in the second half, Camden would establish a two goal cushion for the first time in the game. As following Kieran Ali’s effort from the edge of the home team’s penalty area, the ball would bounce up off the ground, before hitting the hand of an opposing team’s player in the box. The referee would point straight to the penalty spot. And from the penalty spot, Tomasz Siemienczuk would calmly find the bottom left-hand corner of the goal, 1-3.

Soon after play had resumed following that third goal of the game for Camden, Leon Louis’ side would get their fourth goal of the afternoon. With Camden United dominating possession of the ball Endrit Feka would pick the ball up around 30 yards out from goal, before playing a clever lofted pass which bounced off the slippery pitch (it was raining heavily) with Ferhat Canlier alert to the ball after it had gone beyond a defender. And one v one with the goalkeeper, Ferhat Canlier would skilfully take the ball around him, before finishing low into the goal beyond a defender on the goal-line, 1-4.

Camden United were passing the ball around in the home side’s final third relentlessly. But, after Tomasz Siemienczuk curling low effort from the left-hand side of the Indian Gymkhana Club penalty area had gone narrowly wide of the goal, there was a bit of a wait for the next goalscoring chance of the game, with the home side managing to grow into the game once again. However, a strong finish from Camden United during the latter stages of the second half, would see them add a further two goals to their tally.

For Camden’s fifth goal Tomasz Siemienczuk would pick the ball up in midfield before playing a great forward pass across the floor to the run in behind of Endrit Feka. One v one with the goalkeeper inside of the penalty area, Endrit Feka would show some great skill to just step around the outrushing goalkeeper with the ball, before calmly tapping the ball into the goal, 1-5. And then not long before the end of the game and for Camden’s sixth goal, the influential Tomasz Siemienczuk would play a clever one-two pass with a teammate down the left-hand side of the home team’s penalty area, before playing the ball across to Elias Moreno at the back post, from where the Camden defender finished low into the goal from close range, 1-6.

This was another good and strong performance from Camden United, who after starting the game well, they then had to respond before half-time to Indian Gymkhana Club drawing level. And during the second half Camden were really quite dominant with the ball, playing some excellent football in the heavy rain. Indian Gymkhana Club also played some good football, especially during the first half, but Camden United were undoubtedly much deserved winners, as they picked up an important league victory.

Mohammed Hassan, Elias Moreno and Tomasz Siemienczuk were all excellent for Camden United on Saturday, and they were just some of the contenders for my player of the match award. However, Endrit Feka was highly effective with the ball off the left flank and in forward areas, on Saturday. Skilful and direct, his movement and runs off the ball were very good, and he scored two goals and provided one assist, making him my player of the match. I thought that Alex Owuadey was Indian Gymkhana Club’s player of the match, for his good performance in the forward areas of the pitch, against Camden United.