Broadbridge Heath 1-0 Worthing United

Heath completed a league double over Worthing United having previously beaten the Mavericks 7-0 in the away game back in August but this was a much closer encounter and the visitors can feel unlucky not to have taken something from the game.

The Bears started brightly with Tom Bold testing the handling of United’ keeper Matt Evans with a fierce drive from 20 yards that the keeper did well to hold on to and minutes later Devon Fender got behind the right fullback to power a shot at goal from the angle which Evans saved low with the hand of an outstretched left arm pushing the ball out for a corner.

On the half hour Jake Holmes chipped a ball across the face of goal to Rob Godfrey whose header from 8 yards was saved by Evans on the goal-line but the keeper could do nothing to prevent the Bears from taking the lead 7 minutes later. Devon Fender received the ball wide on the left with two United players in close attention but with a drop of a shoulder and a swerve of the hips the Heath striker emerged with the ball at his feet hotly pursued by one of the opposition players but with the Worthing defence dropping back it allowed Fender space to rifle in a right foot shot from 25 yards that flew past Evans into the net giving Heath a narrow half-time lead.

Both teams lacked any real fluency in the second period, the visitor’s looked slightly the better side and had a great chance to equalise midway through the half when a ball was played between the two Heath centre-backs to Luke Robinson but Conor Evento, deputising for the unwell Michael Chester, sprinted off his line to block the strikers shot and with it the only real chance of the half.

After the game Manager Steve Painter said “That was awful, I don’t think the pitch helped because it was really heavy going but our second half performance was dreadful, the goal was well taken and Conor made a good save but the only other positive was picking up the three points, we’ll have to play much better than that on Tuesday when we play Littlehampton Town but we should have Michael, Stuart (Chester) and Curtis Griffin back”.

Team: Evento, Frankland (Holmes 13), Robinson, Findlay, Flack, Bold, Weller (Petersen 80), Godfrey, Fender, Martin, Cousins (Kutaa 85).