Pre-season Friendly
The Oval, Eastbourne
Admission: £4.00
Programme: None
Attendance: 140 (approximate)
Although this game was always on my list of possibles, I had actually been planning to visit Westfield this evening for their pre-season friendly against Bexhill United, as there will be few opportunities to visit the Parish Field once the season kicks off. However, at just after 3 this afternoon, Westfield announced that their game had had to be called off, due to a Covid outbreak within the club. And so I headed over to Eastbourne instead for this interesting looking fixture against a club where I had season ticket for last season.
Not much has changed at The Oval since last season, although entrance this evening was not at the usual pay hut, but instead through a different door in the wooden panel fencing, with admission paid at a table. Much of the grass between the pitchside walkway and the perimeter fencing has become overgrown, but presumably this will be rectified in good time for the season proper ahead.
In last season's curtailed season, Eastbourne United were in 20th place in the 23 club Southern Combination League Premier Division, and they play a step below tonight's visitors Hastings United. That does not tell the whole story however, as Hastings have been the class act in the Isthmian League South East Division in the last two abandoned seasons, leading the table and they can consider themselves extremely unfortunate that promotion has not been available from Step 4 since the outbreak of Covid.
On a warm and mostly sunny evening, Hastings took the lead as early as the third minute following a corner, which Tom Chalmers rose highest to head home. Unsurprisingly, Hastings then went on to have most of the possession and creating some good chances, although Eastbourne certainly held their own, and even threatened on the break occasionally, most notably on 16 minutes when the forward ran down the right, the keeper came out to meet him and the ball was struck low goalwards, but it bobbled agonisingly wide of the far post. Hastings scored their second on 24th minute with a sublime finish. A long throw in landed deep inside the penalty area, and the ball found itself at the feet of centre back Craig Stone, who chipped the ball high over the keeper and it fell just inside the far post. Hastings continued to create some good chances for the remainder of the half, but Eastbourne held firm to ensure the deficit was only two at the break.
In the 51st minute, Stone came close to grabbing his second of the match, and Hastings' third, following a corner and from virtually the byline, Stone's effort came back off the post. They cam close again on 58 minutes following another corner, which Chalmers headed goalwards but a defender headed the ball away on the line. The game then rather petered out as Hastings made wholesale changes with plenty of youngsters coming on to gain some valuable experience, and the scoreline remained 0-2 at the final whistle.
Line-ups:
Hastings United: Rogers, Black (’83 Walker), Worrall (’73 Lubanga), Stone (’65 Simmons), Chalmers (’83 Peacock), Pope (’73 Warren), Adams, Goldsmith (’83 Corbin), Greig, Legg, Scott (’83 Hoad)
No comments:
Post a Comment