Bromley 4-3 Chesterfield

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

Every now and then, the National League serves up a game of football that belies its ‘non-league’ status.

Last season, Wrexham and Notts County stole all of the platitudes where footballing quality was concerned. But any neutral who had the pleasure of attending Bromley vs Chesterfield on Saturday saw yet more evidence to support the National League deserving three promotion places.

If last season's play-off semi-final between these two sides was exciting, this seven-goal thriller was even better. 

As ever, I reflect on The Good, The Bad and The Ugly from Bromley’s 4-3 thriller against Chesterfield. 

Have a read and let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

The team vs Chesterfield

The Good

The primary purpose of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly is to reflect on Bromley’s performance in any given game, but allow me to start this one with superlatives for Ollie Banks.

His 30-yard Exocet strike to level the game at 2-2 would have one million views and counting on YouTube if it was scored in a higher-profile league.

I don’t know where you stand on applauding the opposition, but I had no shame in giving that strike the full respect it deserved. 

In a microcosm, that strike summed up why Chesterfield have swatted aside the opposition in the National League. They clearly have the ability and squad depth to hurt teams in so many different ways. 

Yes, Bromley won 4-3, but they had to produce a very special performance to do so, hence why Chesterfield have only lost four games all season.

Chesterfield, for me, combine the best hallmarks of Wrexham and Notts County. They have the power and ruthlessness of Wrexham (check the match stats) and the finesse and ball retention of Notts County. Given their points haul this season, you might argue they are better than both!

Anywho, on to the Ravens. Hate to say I told you so but let’s return to something I wrote after the Hartlepool defeat a few weeks ago:

‘As I’ve often repeated, Michael Cheek is a streak goal-scorer. He had gone four games without a goal prior to Saturday’s game but netted in the 9th minute to give Bromley the lead. If you follow the pattern of his performances, this goal, his 14th of the season, will likely trigger a run of three or four in his next six games.’

With five goals in his last three games, Cheek has more than lived up to that prediction. That’s 19 league and cup goals for the talisman. Like fine wine, Cheeky is getting better with age. 

Needless to say, at full-time, Andy Woodman waxed lyrical about the Bromley DNA returning. While some may roll their eyes, I make him right to reference it.

Take all of the classic Bromley performances under Andy Woodman’s tutelage and one thing stands out. His team displays a never-say-die attitude and keeps battling to the end.

This is precisely why they are second in the league and have been the best-of-the-rest for the majority of the season. They are there on merit, and on Saturday they showed us why.

It seems weird to say this following a game where Bromley conceded three goals, but I actually think they defended well. Bromley are comfortable sitting in tight banks of four and forcing technically gifted sides to try and find a way through. As a result, while Chesterfield had a lot of possession, their attacks were snuffed out more often than not.

According to my stat gathering, Chesterfield had four shots on target to Bromley’s nine. I wonder how many times Chesterfield have been restricted to four or fewer shots on target this season?

When you then consider that two of those shots came from the ‘soft’ penalty given away by Ben Krauhaus and a ‘soft’ goal conceded from a corner, Bromley were exceptional at keeping the Spireites at bay. 

Lastly, I must commend young Alex Kirk. When all of our defenders are fit, he may well face a fight to keep the shirt, but I thought this was his best game in some time. That’s not to say that he hasn’t been good otherwise, but we saw why he should have a long career in the professional game. 

I don’t know if Alex’s contract with Arsenal expires this summer, but if it does, he looks like a player Andy Woodman should try to sign permanently.

The Bad

Was Ben Krauhaus’s penalty-conceding ‘foul’ a foul? I must admit that on first view I thought Darren Oldaker went down way too easily. 

Andy Woodman certainly felt it wasn’t a penalty and didn’t mince his words in his post-match interview. A glance at Bromley-centric social media, meanwhile, suggests that many think it was a soft penalty but a penalty nonetheless.

Having watched the match highlights, I still feel that Oldaker made the most of the challenge and fell to the ground theatrically, BUT Krauhaus put his hands on Oldaker’s shoulder and arm as he ran past. That gave the referee a decision to make.

The real question for me is whether the offence or initial contact even took place in the penalty area.

I wonder if, when Andy Woodman looks back at the footage, he will change his mind.

The Ugly

Bravado behind a safety rail is a funny thing. It was to be expected that Chesterfield would bring as many fans as they could, and their 630 travelling fans were impressive to say the least.

The game and atmosphere had more than a little bit of needle in it, probably because of the nature of the play-off semi-final last season, and also because we always give Chesterfield a very tough game at Hayes Lane. 

Rather predictably, fans on both sides gratuitously filled their boots with crude gestures and offering one another out. It’s all very homoerotic.

However, I’ve been informed that at recent home games, some of the more overzealous members of the Bromley fanbase have been quick to leave the ground and take the gestures and threats of violence all the way to Bromley South station.

Lads, grow up innit. 

These things have repercussions, and it won't be you travelling away when a similarly moronic set of youths and men-behaving-badly want answers and reprisals. It’ll be the non-league boats who were watching Bromley when watching Bromley wasn’t fashionable. 

I said what I said. 

Anywho, let me know what you think about the above by getting at me in the comments below.

Match ratings

Grant Smith (7)

Josh Passley (7)

Alex Kirk (8)

Callum Reynolds (7)

Kamarl Grant (7)

Besart Topalloj (7)

Sam Woods (7)

Ben Krauhaus (6)

Corey Whitely (8)

Louis Dennis (8)

Michael Cheek (10)

Subs:

Ashley Charles for Ben Krauhaus 72’ (7)

Olufela Olomola for Louis Dennis 72’ (7)

Myles Weston for Corey Whitely 82’ (7)

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Thanks for taking the time to read the match synopsis above.

Please note all photographs in this article are by Martin Greig - please follow him on Twitter here

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