Seventh heaven for cup winners!

Tooting & Mitcham United manager Frank Wilson reckons Jake Baxter fully deserves to be a fans favourite at the south London club after the striker fired his Ryman South side to London Senior Cup success.

The Terrors beat Hendon 2-0 at the Metropolitan Police's Imber Court on Wednesday night in a repeat of last year's final, this time collecting the cup thanks to Baxter's second half strikes which took his final tally for the season to 27 goals in all competitions.

Speaking to www.yourlocalguardian.co.uk on Thursday after seeing the club win the competition for a seventh time the night before, Wilson said: “Jake is a friend of mine and I’m delighted for him. He’s on a great run and deserves this because he’s worked hard from where he started.

“He’s a modest guy and just a brilliant player to work with. He’s got great support and has turned into a fan favourite. It’s been an incredible season for him.”

Despite losing 3-2 in last year's final to the Ryman Premier's Greens – Wilson insists the win did not feel like revenge.

“I know the manager and the staff well after serving there as a player," said the Terrors boss. "I wasn’t in charge last year so there was no sense of revenge for me. It was just a fantastic achievement to win the competition. We have nothing but respect for Hendon. They are a very good side but I think my players rose to the occasion.

"It’s a great achievement for the club, especially after what happened last year in the final. It meant a lot to the fans. We’ve had huge support this year so to repay them with this is brilliant."

He added: “It was tight for long spells and that made it more special to beat them. We were just maybe hungrier on the night. The players and staff – my assistant manager Paul Dale and assistant first-team coach Ashley Bosah – have all been great and deserve a lot of credit.”

Follow us: @rymanleaguenews on Twitter | Ryman League group on Facebook

Where next?

Bird's boys bounce back in final Merstham made up for last season's disappointment in the Surrey Senior Cup final on Wednesday night to win the county silverware for a second time after their triumph in 2008.
Final roll of honour for top stoppers! AFC Hornchurch keepers Sam Mott and Nikki Blue, along with Nathan McDonald at Enfield Town and Danny Bracken at Corinthian-Casuals, are the final winners of the season's Ryman League Precision Goalkeeping Golden Gloves accolades.

The Pitching In Isthmian Football League newsletter

Keep up-to-date with our exclusive email newsletters.

Subscribe