Our first ever meeting with Paddock Wood produced a thoroughly professional performance. We knew we were the stronger team on paper, but the game wasn't played on paper - we beat them by playing good football, which was very encouraging.

The absence of two of our normal back four meant we had to go to a three at the back, with Tom Ryan as the fulcrum, and had Greg Byrne to play just in front of them, with another four in midfield behind the two strikers.

We dominated territorially and in terms of possession from the kickoff, but there were early signs that Paddock Wood could be a better team than their results suggest and we would have to be alert and not get complacent.

We took the lead in the fifth minute, as the Paddock Wood goalkeeper made a great attempt to save a powerful shot from Chris Newbury, but the ball rebounded beyond him. Four minutes later Ben Spring got his head to a Jamie Wickham corner to double the advantage. For the next ten minutes the front two failed to take the chances created, but Jamie Wickham decided to show them how it was done, with a hat-trick within the space of five minutes.

Jamie Wickham's first goal came in the 19th minute. Tom Ryan took a free kick just inside our half and hit a lovely chip for the onrushing Tonbridge players to charge onto, having been pegged back to the halfway line by Paddock Wood. Ben Spring got to the ball and knocked the ball over the keeper for Jamie Wickham to finish. Four minutes later Mike Ide laid the ball off to him and he beat the keeper with a powerful low shot. He completed his hat-trick a minute later with a corner from the left that the goalkeeper couldn't keep out, but the inswing would have taken the ball in anyway.

Six minutes later Mike Ide had a god chance, but he had an air shot and missed the ball completely. Jamie Wickham was there however to score with a shot that bounced in off the right-hand post. The best goal of the game came in the 40th minute. The ball was knocked back to Tom Ryan and Ben Spring made a run down the left wing and called for the ball. Tom Ryan delivered the perfect pass and Ben Spring's cross was hit home by Jamie Wickham, to end the half with his 5th and our 7th.

In the second minute of the second half, Chris Newbury saw the Paddock Wood goalkeeper off his line and hit a lovely shot over him from 30 yards. Two minutes later Ross McCarter got off the mark, turning sharply in the box to shoot powerfully past the goalkeeper after good work by Chris Phillips on the right.

Jamie Wickham then got back on the scoresheet again in the 53rd minute. completing his double hat-trick, after the Paddock Wood keeper made a save but the ball squirmed behind him and just over the line.

In the 60th minute Ross McCarter got his second, passing the ball into the net after being put in by a perfectly-weighted ball from Chris Phillips. Two minutes later Jamie Wickham turned provider again, hitting a great ball for Ben Spring to run on to and score.

In the 66th minute Jamie Wickham was given plenty of time to pick his spot after being set up by Ross McCarter and Ben Spring. Ben Spring had already headed a Jamie Wickham corner home, but the roles were reversed in the 69th minute as Jamie Wickham got his head to a Ben Spring corner. Three minutes later Jamie Wickham completed a remarkable triple hat-trick after a strong run from midfield.

That equalled our highest-ever score, but more goals were to follow. Jamie Wickham turned provider again in the 75th minute, bringing down a Paddock Wood goal kick and playing the ball through to Ben Spring, who duly completed his own hat-trick.

Not to be outdone, Chris Newbury got his hat-trick a minute later. He had made a series of strong runs from midfield, but often lacked the finish. This time he found the net. Chris Phillips took this as his cue to make a similar run in stoppage time and complete the scoring.

It was an excellent team performance, but there were also a number of great individual performances. Tom Ryan was commanding in the centre of an unfamiliar back three, reading the danger and distributing the ball intelligently. Greg Byrne won everything in midfield as usual. Ben Spring worked hard and went wherever the space was, sometimes cropping up on the left wing, sometimes on the right, sometimes in the centre, but always a threat.

Man-of-the-match was an easy choice, however. Jamie Wickham produced one of the best performances I've ever seen in junior football. To score three hat-tricks in one match is remarkable enough (especially as he wasn't playing up front), but he also got a hat-trick of assists. His running, passing and shooting were excellent, his corners and crosses always dangerous. He even played a through ball with his chest when he intercepted a Paddock Wood clearance. Definitely a jumbo-sized Mars bar performance.