WICKFORD Wanderers’ Tony Jacobs and Chris Gentry are the most feared strike duo in the Southend Sunday League – with a combined total of 48 goals for their club.

And the dynamic duo are keen to keep it that way!

Division Two team Wickford are runaway leaders thanks to Jacobs’ 32 goals and Gentry’s 16.

Southend Sunday League secretary Robert Pickup said: “It’s true that Wickford are the team at present.

“They just can’t stop scoring.

“Chris Gentry is the team’s secretary and manager and he’s already bagged 16 goals himself.

“But Tony Jacobs is doing even better. He’ scored a phenomenal 32 goals and is the top scorer in the league – with just seven games gone!

“Between them it’s 48 goals and no other team has come anywhere near to that!”

Gentry, 22, was self-effacing when we asked him about his own scoring exploits for Wanderers.

He said: “It’s Tony who is getting most of them for us. Tony’s ridiculously quick.

“He’s one of those players who reads situations well and is very intelligent.

“This is his first season with us – although I have played with him in six-a-side before.

“Last season I knew that there was something missing – but he has the speed and the ability to come through and score.

“I’m more of a central midfield player and my goals have been different. What works best for us is me dropping back and finding a gap to put Tony through.

“It’s worked well for us so far this season.

“The thing about this team is that everyone is playing at the same intensity, and while we’re putting them in at the front, the lads are keeping them out at the back.

“It’s a real allround team performance,” he added. Wanderers are runaway leaders in Division Two, although both Leigh Ramblers Reserves and Basildon Athletic are still chasing hard.

And this weekend they did themselves another favour, bagging a 5-0 victory over Prittlewell Badgers with Jacobs helping himself to a hat-trick and Gentry a brace. Southend Sunday League’s other divisions are producing plenty of drama too.

In the Premier Division, The Bull are making most of the running, chased hard by Maplin Saints and Hullbridge Sports.

In Division One, Railway Academicals Reserves are starting to look unstoppable.

Pickup said: “Railway’s Reserves have had a very strong start to the season – and its ironic that their first team are, for once, struggling this term. They are on of the clubs going through a transition at the moment.”

“In the Division One, things are reasonably open at present. Apart from Railway Reserves the other team to watch is Plough and Sail – but at this stage it’s too early to know what will be the outcome,” he added.

The mild autumn has, according to Pickup, been key in keeping the enthusiasm high in the Southend Sunday League this season.

He said: “We’ve been so lucky so far.

“The ground is what’s called ‘holding a stud’ which means that it’s fairly dry, but with a bit of softness on top.

“It’s perfect for football really and there is still a decent amount of grass so the lads are all getting plenty of matches and enjoying themselves.

“We’ve got slightly fewer teams this year than last but that’s because losing virtually three months play last season meant that some of the players drifted away and found other things to do on a Sunday morning.

“The weather this year has been kind to us and in total we have only had one game called of and that was at Rayleigh Town and that is our most difficult pitch because it sits on clay,” he added.