Fisher guaranteed SCEFL survival after twice coming from behind to draw 2-2 against local rivals Beckenham Town in a pulsating south London derby match at Eden Park Avenue.
Erith Town’s 0-0 draw with Tunbridge Wells means that Fisher are 10 points clear of the league’s bottom-placed side, who only have 9 points left to contend for.
And the Fish gained the point they required to defy the drop by showing guts, steel and bouncebackability – qualities that the side have displayed in abundance since the appointment of boss Dean Harrison in December last year.
Beckenham began the game on the front foot, with their pacey forward line of Travis Gregory, Damon Ramsamy and Hassan Jalloh looking dangerous from the start.
In the 6th minute, Jalloh surged towards the Fisher goal following a neat one-two with Jamie Taylor, but Kieron Tarbie’s well-timed sliding challenge halted the winger’s progress.
The home side came even closer 2 minutes later when Ramsamy danced his way into the box before crashing a shot against the top of Justin Lee’s crossbar.
Fisher were struggling to gain a foothold but they almost edged them in front with 17 minutes gone when Luke Haidarovic’s low shot from 12 yards forced Becks goalkeeper Kristian Mole to sprawl to the turf and make a fingertip save.
Beckenham took full advantage of this impressive stop as they netted the opener shortly afterwards. In the 21st minute, Gregory was brought down just outside the Fisher penalty area by Hassan Janneh and the winger stepped up to squeeze the resultant free-kick around the wall and past an unsighted Lee.
Gregory almost doubled his tally in the 33rd minute when he saw his 18-yard effort skim just wide of Lee’s right-hand post following a swift counterattack.
Referee Steve Perry then dipped his hand into his pocket to produce the first yellow card of derby day – Alfie Nunn was cautioned for launching his boot into Femi Akinwande’s midriff. The challenge was a reckless one that perhaps should’ve been met with the maximum punishment of a red card.
Akinwande hit back by conjuring a breathtaking leveller in the 43rd minute. Receiving the ball in a central position 20 yards from goal, the winger skipped past a challenge before thrashing a rasping drive past Mole in the Beckenham goal.
There was a moment of controversy just before half-time as Akinwande powered into the box and was sent tumbling to the ground by Nunn. Linesman Harry Phillips signalled for a penalty, but the man in the middle overruled his assistant’s decision – much to Fisher’s bemusement.
Perry immediately blew for the interval, as Akinwande and his teammates surrounded the referee to ask him why he had overruled his assistant – he gave them no answer and members of the Fish management team also ran onto the pitch to contest the bizarre decision.
The following 15 minutes were fairly quiet, until Perry again took centre stage after awarding Beckenham a contentious 64th minute penalty. It looked as though Ramsamy went down fairly easily under pressure from Tarbie with the ball sent behind by the Fisher full-back’s tckle, yet the referee pointed straight to the spot. Nunn stepped up to send Lee the wrong way and give the home side the lead for the second time.
Fisher quickly recovered from the setback, as Akinwande fired just wide after being set up by Jordan Adekunle and Janneh also found space in the box but miscued an effort from 6 yards out.
A penalty saw Fisher equalize for the second time in the 73rd minute, as Akinwande appeared to be brought down by a combination of Nunn and Mole, although the referee booked Nathan Paul.
Beckenham were not happy with the award of the spot-kick, but Luke Haidarovic was and he despatched it with aplomb to restore parity for Fisher.
The Fish came agonizingly close to snatching a win in the closing stages – substitute Ashley Paul-Sinclair over-hit a pass that would’ve found Kieron Campbell unmarked 5 yards out before Adekunle shot straight at Mole’s legs with just the home goalkeeper to beat.
Adekunle wasted another glorious chance deep into stoppage time when he was off-target from a Frazer Bent assist.
Beckenham went straight up the other end and Dave Waters did brilliantly to put off substitute Harry Draper, who arrived late at the near post but couldn’t convert Adam Wadmore’s cross.
The referee then blew his whistle for one last time – not to deny a stonewall penalty or to award one from out of the blue – but to draw the game to a close and confirm Fisher’s survival in the SCEFL.
The triumphant Fisher players walked over to salute their buoyant fans, who had been in fine voice all afternoon.
Fisher’s supporters will be able to enjoy the last four games of the season without having to keep tabs on the bottom of the league table. Their side are sitting pretty in 15th place. The message is clear: they are staying up.
With an exciting squad, a forward-thinking manager and an imminent return to Bermondsey, Fisher FC are very much a club on an upward trajectory.
Fisher: Lee, Tarbie, Demetrius, Janneh, McIntyre, Waters, Akinwande, Eze (Paul-Sinclair 46), Haidarovic (Bent 87), Campbell, Adekunle. Unused Subs: Abbey, Aziaya, Williams
