Match Report
County League:Division One
| Horsham YMCA 1 M.Francis 78 |
East Preston 2 Willems 40 M Huckett 45 |
Date:9th September 2003 Location:Gorings Mead
Source Russell Staves, West Sussex County Times
HAD this game been in John Suter's back garden, then he may have been tempted to pull the curtains as YM meekly surrendered to a busy East Preston on Tuesday night.
Two East Preston goals in the first half were over shadowed by the linesman being knocked out when he was hit in the head by a heavy clearance and it took YM until the last 15 minutes before they looked like scoring.
Mark Francis reduced the deficit when he drilled home after Phil Churchill hit the bar but the hosts' late revival could not rob the hosts who deserved to leave with the points.
"Our first half performance was abysmal," said Suter. "They were sharper than us, quicker, worked harder, passed better, talked louder and more often. All the things that you would want in a game of football."
The YM boss, who is in his 15th season at Gorings Mead, felt his hugely under-strength side could have taken something from the game, even if it would have been an ill-gotten gain. "We were better in the second half. I'm not interested if we deserved it or not, but we could have got a point," he rued.
Suter goes by the saying that "goals change games" and had Package Price not blazed over the bar from ten yards in the second minute after good work by Gil Taylor, then YM might have made it a different game.
In contrast, it was the visitors, with the impressive Matt Huckett at the fore, who dictated terms by knocking simple ten yard passes to keep possession and closing down their opponents whenever they had relinquished the ball.
They took the lead in the 40th minute, following a lengthy delay while 15 year old Alex Barron took over flag duties, thanks to a slick move finished by Andy Willems who beat keeper Scott Kenward to Huckett's lob into the box and netted from close range.
It should have been two when Huckett split the defence with another incisive pass but Josh Biggs lost his composure and fired high and wide with only Kenward to beat.
But the visitors did not have to wait long to double their lead. On the stroke of half-time, Michael Huckett drilled a free-kick from the edge of the box which took a wicked deflection past a wrong footed Kenward and soared into the roof of the net.
Neither side offered much in a tame start to the second half but Churchill's timely introduction with 25 minutes to go gave YM the cutting edge they had been previously lacking and it did not take long foi the former Burgess Hill striker to make an impres. ston.
He nearly turned in Francis' volley at the far post after Matt Duffield, the Gladwish Land Sales man of the match, had sent in a dangerous cross and then played a hand in YM's 78th minute goal when he nipped in to steal the ball from former Arundel keeper Andy McCarthy but hit the bar. Fortunately. the ball rebounded back to Francis who stroked it in as the East Preston defence frantically streamed back to block the shot.
Minutes later, Churchill had a great chance to steal a point when he ran down the line to collect Andy Lutwyche's flick on, cut in but shot weakly with only McCarthy to beat.
YM kept coming forward and debutant Greg Brabon nearly marked his first game in spectacular style but his first time shot from 30 yards drifted past the far post.
Team: Kenward; Charman, Sleat, Lutwyche, Fenn; Duffield, Potter (Brabon 76), Francis, Oakes; Taylor, Price (Churchill 65).