Bexhill United 6 v 0 Loxwood

Wednesday 30th March 2023, Kick-off 19.30

Southern Combination League Premier Division

The Polegrove, Bexhill-on-Sea

Admission: £6.00

Programme: £1.50

Attendance: 135

Despite suffering a head cold, I convinced myself that the best thing would be to get plenty of fresh sea air inside me this evening, for my second consecutive evening of football, and my eighth, and surely last, visit of the season to The Polegrove.

Bexhill came into this game in tenth place, following 18 wins and two draws from 32 league games. This game looked winnable for the Pirates, with Loxwood down in 17th place in the table, following six wins and six draws from 32 league games. In the reverse fixture of this game played back in mid October, Bexhill won 1-2.

On a fairly mild evening, dry during the first half but with heavy misty drizzle enveloping the ground in the second half, this game had a lightning start, with the outcome pretty much put beyond all doubt within the first 25 minutes. In the fourth minute, Bexhill opened the scoring when Tom Vickers fired a free-kick into the top right corner, despite the keeper getting quite a decent palm to the ball. And they doubled their lead on 9 minutes, when a mistake by a Loxwood player allowed Bexhill to take possession, drive to the byline before crossing the ball low into the box, and although the initial shot came back off the underside of the bar, the ball was recycled and Vickers slotted the ball home. And Bexhill scored their third with just 12 minutes on the clock, when the ball was looped beyond the back post, and Corey Wheeler headed the ball goalwards, and although the keeper got a good hand to the ball, that only deflected the ball slowly, looping down just inside the far post. And Bexhill opened up a four goal cushion in the 26th minute following a long throw in into the box, and Wheeler stabbed the ball home. As good as Bexhill were, it was a very harsh scoreline on the visitors, who were actually playing quite well. Bexhill almost scored a fifth on the half hour, when a shot came back off the far post,  The game then rather settled down, and 39th minute it was Lowood's turn to hit the woodwork, 

With the heavy misty drizzle arriving at the start of the second half, Loxwood hit the woodwork again in the 58th minute when a shot skimmed the top of the bar. But Bexhill soon regained control, creating plenty of chances, before they were awarded a penalty in the 79th minute, when the Loxwood keeper brought down a Bexhill forward in full stride towards the right edge of his area. Vickers completed his hat-trick, firing into the bottom left corner and sending the keeper the wrong way. And Bexhill scored their sixth on 88 minutes, when a beautiful cross from the left was met by a glancing header by Dominic Whittaker, guiding the ball inside the far post. So a thoroughly convincing win for Bexhill, but the scoreline really did only tell half of the story, as Loxwood kept battling and played well in patches, and the scoreline could well have been closer with a little more fortune.