Kings Langley v Boreham Wood

Saturday 31st July 2021, 3.00pm
The Orbital Fastners Stadium, Pre-Season Friendly
Match Preview written by Aaron Bennis (BWFC Media Assistant)

THE CONTEXT

This Saturday, Wood look to build on their first win of pre-season with a short trip to Kings Langley.

The Kings were impacted heavily by the COVID-19 pandemic, going into the upcoming season off the back of an unfinished campaign due to clubs being unable to play matches.

Wood didn’t see as bad of an impact, able to complete their own season with a 14th place finish.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

“THE DESTROYER”

CALLUM ADEBIYI

Primarily a left-sided defender, Callum Adebiyi joined the Kings from Hemel Hempstead Town in August 2012. He has been a mainstay at the heart of their defence ever since, with his pace and height making him a resolute fixture at the back for nine successive seasons. With the exception of a brief stint back at Hemel Hempstead in 2015/16 and a half-season spell at Hayes & Yeading in 2016/17, Adebiyi has made over 350 appearances for Kings Langley.

“THE PLAYMAKER”

JORDAN PARKES

After leaving Parmiter’s School to pursue a football career, Jordan Parkes joined Watford’s youth academy where he made his debut in a 2006 League Cup tie against Accrington Stanley, scoring a penalty in a 6-5 shootout win. Shortly after signing his first professional contract he received his first England call-up, with Brian Eastick including him in his U18 squad and subsequently featuring in the U20 World Cup two years later. Loan spells with Brentford, Barnet and Stevenage followed before returning ahead of the 2008/09 season to make his senior league debut for the club, as well as captaining Watford’s U20 team away to an Inter Milan side that included Hernan Crespo, Adriano, Walter Samuel and Olivier Dacourt. Parkes was released from his contract in the summer of 2010, going on to enjoy a successful career in non-league.

A permanent return to Barnet saw him make 58 appearances for the Bees as well as a brief loan spell with Farnborough before joining Chelmsford City for a short stint at Melbourne Park. He soon arrived back in Hertfordshire with Hemel Hempstead Town, spending the next three years with his hometown club and enjoying a hugely successful period. He scored 12 goals from midfield as he captained them to the play-off final in his debut season and went one better the following campaign, lifting the Southern Premier Division League title to secure promotion into the Conference South, with 24 goals in 51 appearances in all competitions earning him a place in the Southern Premier League Team of the Year. A ninth place finish in the Conference was the club’s highest league finish as well as winning two cup competitions and scoring 30 goals in 56 appearances, with 21 in the league making him the third highest scorer in the division. He also won the Players Player, Supporters Player & Managers Player of the Year Awards as well as the Gazette Player of the Year, while also being named in the Conference South Team of the Year and receiving the Conference South Player of the Year Award.

He left briefly in 2015 for Ebbsfleet United but re-joined after a season for a further three years. After two extremely fruitful spells with the Tudors in which he netted over 100 times in over 200 appearances, he left again in the summer of 2019 for a short-lived spell in Essex with Billericay Town, but soon returned to Hertfordshire this time with Southern League Premier Division South side Kings Langley, where at the age of 32, he currently acts as player-coach.

“THE FINISHER”

STEVE WARD

Former Northwood youth player Steve Ward has spent the bulk of his career in Hertfordshire. After coming through the ranks at the Woods playing as a right back and winger, Ward signed for Kings Langley in September 2014, with his performances for the reserves catching the eye of the first team and earning his debut in the following March. He has established himself as a regular since, where his direct style of play has been a thorn in the side of opposition defences.

He scored his first goals for the club in his first full season as a senior player with five in 36 appearances, and this tally continued to increase over the following campaigns with nine, ten and then 11 by the end of the 2018/19 season. A drop off in 2019/20 saw a brief stint with Walton Casuals where he netted twice in six games before a return to the Kings, where he played seven times in all competitions before the season was curtailed.

LAST TIME WE MET

Boreham Wood 2-0 Kings Langley
Monday 12th February 2018
Meadow Park, Herts Senior Cup

Wood secured their place in the final of the Herts Senior Cup with goals from Michael Folivi and Morgan Ferrier being enough to see off Kings Langley.

Ollie Harfield, Sorba Thomas and Folivi were amongst a number of changes Luke Garrard made for the semi-final tie, helping to spark an energetic opening to the game. It was Kings’ keeper Martin Bennett who had most of the work to do, being tested by both Ferrier and Folivi during the early stages as well as being called upon to prevent a cross from Harfield leading to any danger.

Gareth Price found himself with Kings’ first opportunity of the game just after the half-hour mark but would prove to rue his missed attempt just a few minutes later. Folivi broke the deadlock just before half time after the Watford loanee got himself in behind the defence to coolly slide the ball past Bennett. Their advantage was doubled on the hour mark after Jamie Turley nodded a corner back across the box for Ferrier to head home. Wood remained comfortable for much of the second half with Kings’ best chance coming ten minutes from the end; Price again took the ball on the turn and tested Smith, but to no avail.

A final chance for Wood saw Shaun Jeffers cut inside and fire an effort over the crossbar before the referee blew for full time and confirm a final appearance for Garrard’s men.

HOW TO WATCH

MATCH TICKETS 

Online match day tickets can be purchased with the link below.

TO BUY YOUR MATCH TICKET – CLICK HERE

LIVE UPDATES

Alternatively, you can keep up with the action via our Twitter and Instagram pages, where there will be regular updates throughout the course of the match.

Instagram: @boreham_woodfc
Twitter: @boreham_woodfc

OUR CLUB. OUR TOWN. OUR COMMUNITY.

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