IT was exactly the benign start that Elliot Powell would have wished for to begin his tenure in charge of 鶹 Bulls, a comfortable 6-1 victory away to Spelthorne Sports.
Man of the match Joe Kilshaw had only previously scored one goal for the men in red, prior to Saturday’s Combined Counties Premier Division South curtain raiser, but he looked at home further up the pitch and tripled that tally with a brace inside 17 minutes.
All-time record scorer Lorne Bickley also found the target twice, with Miguel Carvalho and teenage substitute Seaney McColgan, right, also getting on the scoresheet.
The visitors were remarkably 4-0 up after just 24 minutes to all but end the game as a contest.
“First and foremost, it was a cracking result,” Powell said.
“I think in the first-half in particular we were really dominant, and played a lot of what we’ve worked on in pre-season football. Our wide players combined well to create chances, and I thought we showed a cutting edge that maybe was lacking at times last year.
“We know there’s going to tougher contests to come, starting tomorrow at Epsom & Ewell and doing that against the top opposition is the real test.
“But the early signs are very
Dzپ.”
Powell’s key point of emphasis entering the season, was to give star striker Bickley some support and share around the goal contributions more.
The former St Peter boss knew the talent was there in the squad and it was about freeing his players up to venture forward and express themselves. None more so than Kilshaw. He went on: “There were some players that really embraced some different roles. I think Joe stood out and proved what he can do when further up the pitch in terms of impacting play.
“But also Jonny [Le Quesne] at full-back and Fraser [Barlow] when asked to play left wing-back after Jay [Giles] picked up a knock.
“My only really criticisms are that we could have been more clinical and added a couple more and obviously the clean sheet was a slight blotch on an otherwise great day.
“But ultimately, we want to take some pressure off Lorne this year. Once again he took his chances wonderfully, but it was really pleasing to see the goals shared around a bit more.
“If we can threaten from more avenues, then we will be a hard team to contain moving forward.”
Captain James Querée re-assumed his familiar partnership alongside fellow centre-half Luke Campbell, with the duo back for another season – eager to put right the conclusion to last campaign.
Preparations ahead of the game were far from ideal.
Following flight delays and a situation with baggage, the travelling side were left with just 30 minutes to warm up for a delayed kick-off.
Querée joked that it was “the perfect first game” for Powell to experience.
“It was a typical away game,” he added.
“It was really fitting for the staff to experience that and the stress of trying to rush to games.
“What Elliot [Powell] said impressed on me, mentioning that whether we warmed up for five minutes or 50, the preparation was done over the last eight weeks as a body of work.
“We implemented that really well. Moving the ball out wide and getting crosses into the back post.
“As a defence, we were gutted to concede as that’s what we pride ourselves on, but the attacking quality was there in abundance.
“We need to lift the burden on Lorne a little this season and that first game shows that we have the quality elsewhere to do that.
“It’s a quick turnaround now for Epsom & Ewell tomorrow and midweek games present their own challenges.
“But it allows other lads to slot in and get an opportunity to perform.
“We need to get 20 lads firing to enjoy the campaign we are after and the sooner that happens, the better.”
Full report in JEP
