Victory over Carshalton Athletic extended Welling United’s outstanding home record in the Isthmian League Premier Division. After the match, Welling manager Ryan Maxwell offered his views.

“It was a very, very complete performance.” he said. “Macca (goalkeeper Mackenzie Foley) didn’t make a save today. Just the way I like it. Nice and quiet. He kicked extremely well. He managed the box well and what he had to do, he did it well. He’s a great keeper.”

“The home form continues and now it’s about transmitting that to our away form. Everyone performed. Everyone who came on, no matter how many minutes they played, came on and were straight into the game, doing the job that I’m asking them to do and the result speaks for itself.”

“I demanded a fast start, I know that we do that at home anyway. The boys had a bit of a rest on Thursday. We went out as a group and I think that we looked fresh because of it. I think that it was important that we started on the front foot and we stayed there, pretty much. We should have had more goals but I’m being picky.”

Sam Smith scored Welling’s second goal, his first of the season. Maxwell said: “I keep telling him be on the move and that’s the key. He’s got a big frame, he’s got to stay on the move. He’s a super player loads of ability, loads of attributes, loads of potential. I was delighted he scored. His set pieces were brilliant. I thought he played really well today.”

After the break, Carshalton had a little more possession so Maxwell made changes to play two up front. “Tactically, I thought it worked better” he confirmed. “Chris (Harris)’s really put a big shift in, in the last three matches and to lighten his load I thought that it was important to get some fresh legs beside him and a great finish from Lambo (Nahum Melvin-Lambert) and that stemmed them from coming forward so much. We got control of the game, so yes, it worked.”

Demaray Anyadike scored Welling’s third goal. Maxwell purred: “He’s in great form, playing exceptionally well. I’m delighted he scored again. He scored last week as well, at Chatham. He’s another one with real potential doing great since he’s come here. There’s more to come from him.”

Ten minutes remained when Micah Anthony came on for his debut and he made an immediate impression. Maxwell said: “He’s got a change of pace and ability as well. He’s not fully fit, not for the level we’re at yet, but that will come. There’s much more to come from him over the next few weeks and I’m delighted for his debut today and he’s made an impact.”

At home in the league Welling have now enjoyed nine wins out of nine with an outstanding seven clean sheets. The Welling manager said: “It’s a fantastic absolutely phenomenal record. It’s the best in the leagues from step one to five, or something. It’s absolutely incredible. I’m just delighted with the performance and the clean sheet is a huge thing. It’s really important that we lock it up here and we’ve done it. Full credit to all my players.”

There was also praise for Zuriel Otseh-Taiwo. A run down the wing midway through the second half roused the supporters which, in turn, had a positive effect on the Welling team after Carshalton had threatened to come back into the match.

“They had nothing to lose.” said Maxwell. “They were two-nil down. They had to do something. It wasn’t working previously and I expected the changes. They had that little bit of energy because of it, then I reacted a bit later on, changed the shape and nullified it. Things like that run from Zuriel do spark the crowd, do give us energy and he was my man of the match today. I thought he was exceptional.”

“Lekan (Majoyegbe) and Zak (O’Keefe) were superb as well. Absolutely brilliant they were, up against a decent forward line. I just thought that Zuriel’s decision making, his tidiness, his one v one ability just shaded it but it was a real real team performance.”

Coming on for his second appearance as a substitute, Kevin Rivera looked a real handful. Maxwell said: “Kevin’s going to be a great addition here. He can also play different positions if we want him to. He’s playing in the advanced midfield at the moment. He can play off the front man, he can play up front, he can play wide, he could probably do a job as an eight. He’s a good player, Kev. I’m looking forward to getting the best out of him.”

Rivera has come in, almost as a direct replacement for Ryan Kingsford. Maxwell said: “Ryan made it clear that he wanted to go to Herne Bay, and I’m not ever going to stand in a player’s way. Ryan’s an excellent player. He started well at Herne Bay and I think he’ll be a brilliant player. I wish him all the very best.”

“Jaden (Thompson-Brissett)’s gone there too. I think Jaden just wanted to play. He thought it might be difficult here to start games and again, I won’t stand in anybody’s way. It’s all about playing rotations. It’s not for every squad but it is for here.”

Picture supplied by Chris Zimmerman.