‘We did our talking on the pitch – to say it was a satisfying win is an understatement’ – Moneyfields boss Lee Mould on Hampshire Premier League win against Clanfield

Moneys remained top of the Hampshire Premier League after winning 4-2 at Westleigh Park against a side containing six of the players who had left Mould’s squad en masse two months earlier.

The visitors led 4-0 before Clanfield made the scoreline a little more respectable with two late goals.

Mould felt a turning point came in the 25th minute when Clanfield - trailing to Luke Richards’ superb opener - were awarded a penalty when keeper Sam Richards fouled Dan Penfold.

But Olly Long, one of the ex-Moneys men in the home XI, lifted his spot-kick over the bar.

‘You could see them (Clanfield) literally deflate and we took over from there,’ said Mould.

‘We were by far the better team. I thought 4-2 really flattered them.’

Mould added: ‘We had stayed quiet as a unit (in the build up to the game), while there was lots of noise (on social media) from their end.

‘We just did our talking on the pitch. To say it was very satisfying would be an understatement!’

Mould highlighted the performances of wing-backs Luke Richards and Jack Chandler in his side’s 18th league win in 22 Senior Division games.

Both players scored - Richards breaking the deadlock in the 14th minute with a low curling shot into the bottom corner from the edge of the 18-yard box and Chandler making it 4-0 after dispossessing a Clanfield defender.

‘Luke Richards is an enigma,’ said Mould. ‘He’s probably got the best feet at the club. His ability is off the charts.

‘Some of the lads at US used to call him ‘Messi’, but he hates that! It puts a target on your back.

‘Jack Chandler was defensively solid and he’s getting fitter and fitter, while Luke probably gave us a bit more penetration on the left side.’

Mould was also correct in remarking that experienced central midfielder George Way ‘ran the show - he was head and shoulders above anyone else.’

Way boasts plenty of higher division experience with Moneyfields, Gosport Borough and Chichester City.

He was drafted in back in November after the Moneys squad had been decimated by player departures.

‘George gives us the experience we desperately needed,’ said Mould.

‘He coaches a Moneyfields youth team where his son plays, he’s got a close affinity with the club.

‘I think he’s fallen back in love with it (playing) again.’

Mould also included Rafferty Boyd-Kerr in midfield at Westleigh Park.

The teenager has been playing in the Wessex League Premier for Cowes Sports this season, as well as being a regular in Moneys’ under-18 Hampshire Development League side on a Sunday.

The player has now decided to commit full-time to Moneys with first team boss Glenn Turnbull hoping to sign Boyd-Kerr on Wessex League forms soon.

Mould summed up: ‘I’m over the moon with all the players. We’ve had to build pretty much a new squad mid-season. That’s a testament to the coaching staff we’ve got and the club that we can attract those sort of players.’

Clanfield boss Lee Blakely, meanwhile, had ‘no complaints’ at losing.

‘They equipped themselves better, they were quicker on the ball, they didn’t allow us to play our normal game,’ he declared.

‘Credit to Moneyfields, I thought they played very well.

‘Moneyfields put in some big tackles early on and we went into our shell a bit.

‘It was poor from us. We didn’t find the pockets we had been finding, we were going a bit too long for my liking.

‘At the back Stan (Hopkins) was winning everything in the air. We played to his strengths instead of trying to get round him. When we did that late, we scored.

‘Their wing-backs (Richards and Chandler) are probably the best wing backs we’ll play this season. The way we set up, it can give the wide players some space.

‘Stan held their defence together and George Way dictated the pace of the game.

‘They had the right players in the right areas and they did an excellent job.

‘It was a lesson learnt by us. We’re still a new-ish squad trying to find the best way of playing.’