District squad chasing final double

Newham’s district squad kept their hopes of a cup double alive with two thrilling semi-final wins.

The borough youngsters are chasing glory in both the London and Essex Cup competitions and remain on course to defend their titles after beating Redbridge and Blackheath in recent ties.

The clash with south London’s Blackheath turned into an 11-goal thriller, with Jerry Idowu of St Bonaventure’s hitting a hat-trick to help Newham to a 6-5 win after extra time.

Langdon starlet Paul Sagoe and captain Tony Shaw were also on target in a very tough game, with man of the match Jeffrey Njuguna (St Bons) heading home a Shaw corner for the goal of the match.

That sets Newham up for another meeting with Redbridge, in a repeat of last year’s final, and they will go into that with the psychological advantage of having beaten their rivals in the county competition recently.

In-form Idowu netted an early brace to put Newham on top, but two mistakes proved costly as Redbridge hit back to level.

With another period of extra time looming, Newham sealed a 3-2 win when a well-directed free kick from Arjan Toshi found full-back Desharn Felix to guide a header home.

Manager Terry Bobie Agyekum said: “As a squad we have established a four-year plan to win all competitions in our sight and defending both cups will set us well on our way.

“We want to create history. We want to dominate Essex and London and let every borough be fully aware we are pace setters. The boys have bought into this dream and we will accomplish this mission!”