No prizes for guessing correctly but just to confirm that this evening’s scheduled Capital League match at home to Bedfont Town is OFF as the pitch is as frozen as a pitch can be. 

Not much other news to report at present but belatedly (not his fault) here is Ben Murray’s very honest report concerning our recent defeat in the semi-final of the Middlesex Senior Youth Cup.

The Under 18s literally froze on Thursday night as they surrendered the opportunity to be a part of the Middlesex Senior Youth Cup final, after losing 4-0 to Enfield Town.

With senior players Ilyes Mohammed, Perry Luckins and Kieron Wright plus three others missing from selection due to injuries and suspensions, it was a somewhat makeshift side that travelled to the impressive Donkey Lane stadium, but one that was trusted to prevail with a positive result.

This however was not to be the case and once the team arrived, they knew they were in for a difficult evening. With the playing surface mixing together its sandy base and the cold temperatures, it meant the pitch was extremely hard and was not thought to be acceptable by the management and players of the away side before the game started, which ultimately led to their preparation being disrupted by the doubt in players’ minds as to whether the game should be played.

However the referee had other ideas and quite frankly got away with his decision to play the game, as both sides were more intent on trying to play football rather than turning it into a nasty physical encounter, to which is a credit to Enfield Town, who were by far the better side on the night.

The score line was still deadlocked at 0-0 at half time and the feeling was that Ashford would come out of their shell in the second half, but even though the performance level did rise for the first part of the half, the opening goal in the 65^th minute was deserved for Enfield, who added a second just two minutes later. Ashford though were trying to get some momentum and the final two goals were maybe a bit harsh, but it was Enfield who fully deserved their place in the final.

“We can have no complaints tonight once the game started. We were second to the ball in all areas and nothing seemed to go right for us all night. It was simply just one of those nights, our preparation was not like it usually was and I can’t really put my finger on it as to why, but the night just didn’t feel right. The problem is, that was a semi-final and you don’t get the chance to put it right.

But what I do know, is that type of performance is not acceptable and without doubt will get our focus back on track for the weeks ahead. It is all about the reaction now and I am demanding a performance in our next game, which hopefully will be against Staines on Monday.

Enfield were organised and played to their strengths well, and I hope for their players and management team that they go on to win the final as they deserve it after their performance tonight.”