At a wet, windy and Wild Oval. Pagham made the 118 mile round trip on Tuesday night. With the weather really playing it’s part the game was an entertaining one. It took the Pagham’s number 9 Ryan Morey 5 minutes to open the scoring. Pagham who tirelessly pressed the Common defence and keeper throughout, there goal came from an energetic front three press, with the ball falling back to the Little Common keeper. Ryan Morey chased another lost cause and earned himself a goal when the keeper failed to move the ball quick enough and morey nicked it from the feet of the goalkeeper and rolled it into the back of the net. One nil Pagham.

The game seemed to calm down after a hectic first ten minutes with Pagham’s press really setting a high tempo. Pagham struggled to match that tempo in possession but Little Common started to string some nice passing moves together, and it didn’t take long for an equaliser, the ball recycling from full back to left midfields and some quick feet down the line saw a square ball roll across the pagham box and an easy nod home for the number nine Lewis Hole.

With the weather only worsening the football clearly became harder for both teams to get the ball down and play. The Pagham front three carried on the buoyant pressing style out of possession, this time Lukas Micevicius turn to win the ball back high up the pitch, and to run at his counter part, cutting in on the edge of the box looking like he was to shoot but a late arrival from the right hand side, Micevicius slipped the ball into Langford path who calmly slots home across the goal as pagham regained the lead. Pagham found them self with a corner from the right hand side, Jack Barnes keeping his delivery low seemed a wise choice in the swirling winds, the ball fell at the front post where Langford seemingly handled the ball into hes own path to smash the ball home, with the Little Common bench and player rightfully so protesting to the officials saw captain Lewis Hole shown a yellow card and sent to the sin bin. A catastrophic error from the officials leading to Common finishing the half with ten men. Pagham fail to capitalise on the extra man and the teams go in. Pagham with a two goal cushion.

The second half started just as buoyant as the first, with Pagham pressing and control in the game with countless efforts within the first 10 minutes but not one-shot find in the target. A spell of play where Pagham could’ve finished the game early in the second half. On the hour Mark saw 17-year-old Finlay Smith enter the field for the departing Micevicius who really stamped his mark on the game with an impressive game.

Little Common slowly found their way back into the game and really started to take control, moving the ball impressively in the monsoon weather and really working the Pagham back four, with crosses in the box loose balls popping around the box but common just couldn’t find the back of the net. Lions Veteran Radmore took the place of centre midfielder Edwards to see the game out. With some great and lucky defending from the pagham back four Little Commons started to run out of ideas until a looping through ball found the Common number six through on goal with Dylan Jelly guiding the player wide, with a wild swing of the boot, air shot the Common defender fell to the floor with minimal contact…. The Referee pointed to the spot. Player manager Eldridge tucks it home. Pagham hold on for the win and on an overall performance a deserved 3 points to help them climb the table to two spots.

Next up East Preston at the Lions Den Saturday 4th Dec 3ko our last home game of the season.

Boughton.Hambleton.Jelly.Geoghegan.Barnes.Edwards(Smith).O Hambleton.Clarke.Langford.Micevicius(Radmore).Morey.Bingham(unused)

Star man Langford