Not a classic, but does it matter?
This match will not last long in the memory on its own but may well do should the Crows achieve their aim of winning the title or promotion in the end. People will reflect on the season should the club end up leaving the SCEFL for season 2018/19 and thoughts will turn to games where a defeat was turned in to a draw or victory and a draw ended up in the Crows getting three points when one looked most likely.
You only have to look our last couple of home games against Canterbury City and this one against the Dockers which prove the point as last minute goals earnt the three points and made the mood of the players and supporters so much better. No one will remember how good or bad the game was, just that the players kept going until the end and got the points in the end that made the difference, well, we hope so anyway.
The Crows started very well for the first 10 minutes and were on top from the kick-off but gradually, the away side started to come back in to the game and really should have gone 1-0 up when Charles had a good chance from 10 yards out but his powerful volley was pushed on to the underside of the crossbar by a great save from Ellis and whilst the rebound hit the goalie on his back, the ball stayed out and was cleared.
Whilst the Crows had the greater possession throughout the match, in the first half the play from both sides was rather scrappy and good chances were few and far between, therefore, it was no surprise to those watching that it was 0-0 as the players left the field for the half time interval.
As they had done at the start of the first, Crows started to exert some pressure on the away side and took the league in the 49th minute when Phipp fired the ball home from 8 yards out after a punch by the Erith 'keeper fell at his feet.
However, it didn't open up the game that much and both teams were still giving the ball away too easily, chances were still at a premium and whilst some did occur neither goalie was tested that much and it began to look like 1-0 might be enough to get the points for the Crows. Unfortunately, it became 1-1 in the 74th minute, a cross came in from the Crows right and Ellis shouted, very loudly, "keepers", unfortunately, Olufeku beat the goalie to the ball and headed it in to the empty net.
Goldsmith replaced the injured Unwin in the 24th minute and as time was wasting away in the second half, Treleaven and Cole were brought in with only 10 minutes or so to go for Stone and debutant, Taiwo, who had a good game and was awarded the Crows Man of the Match award.
There was a sting in the tail for the Dockers though as the match entered in to added-on time as a period of pressure saw their goalie fail to punch the ball away satisfactorily again and Phipp was able to head the ball back towards the goal and despite it looking like the ball was heading in to the goal anyway, Barton made sure by heading it in to the empty goal, much to the delight of everyone supporting the Crows.
Not long after the final whistle blew, the Crows elated with the win and the points, the Dockers down in the dumps after conceding the winner so late. Perhaps the end result was harsh on Erith Town and perhaps a draw would have been a fair result but as we are battling for promotion, we have to look after ourselves and celebrate the win, irrespective of how good or bad the performance was.