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The End of Summertime BluesNewhaven FC face Haywards Heath FC the Southern Combined Premier League at Fort Road |
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Summary (TLCBA)
A tough day for the Dockers with a 5-1 defeat at home and an early statement from the title hopefuls. Not one to dwell on and a performance to forget for the depleted Dockers squad. Scoring a goal with the very last kick of the game will be little consolation.
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| Good Morning from Fort Road |
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| An unusual line up |
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HasSocks and SandalsNewhaven FC away to Hassocks FC at The Beacon Ground |
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Where are we and what's going on?
It’s a lovely sunny evening in West Sussex. The Dockers ⚓ are away to the Robins 🐦 in the first away game of the season. We haven’t seen the new away kit yet. Hope it’s nice. And the first game on grass for a while. Hope it’s not too hard. The pitch does look OK if a little lumpy and the grass is green due to some recent rain in Hassocks.
The teams are out and the Dockers are in light blue with white shorts. We like it. Leo is in goal. In front of him are Matt and Max. Out wide are Rudy and Shay. In the middle are Blunty, Joe and Billy. Up front is Captain Lee with Ezra and Tyler. Strangely, George is on the bench. We expected him to be banned for today's game after his red card. Maybe Andy Burnham had a word and got it suspended 🤣.
The Robins are much taller than Shoreham. We recognise the keeper. He was at Steyning at the end of last season when we played them in the cup. He’s Mitch Bromage whose Dad, Russell, we met at that game.
We have left the dark clouds in Newhaven and it’s nice and sunny in Hassocks. Were sat on a park bench with a good view and we have hot chocolate. The Robins won 5-1 at the weekend so have the advantage of knowing where the goal is.
There is a change of ends before the start. The Dockers must have won the toss as the Robins are now starting facing into the low sun ☀. Oh dear, what a pity, nevermind. Anyone want to borrow a cap and some shades 🧢🕶. Come on you Dockers ⚓.
Off we go..
The sides are feeling each other out. It might take the Dockers a while to get the feel of the pitch.
We get a corner, then another but the soft header is easily caught.
On 20 minutes, the Robins unveil their secret weapon. The No. 6 Kyle Sim, has a long throw. He can easily reach the near post. It’s easily caught this time.
A great cross from Robbo find Tyler who's shot bounces down off the bar and Billy is on hand to tap it home on 21 ⚽. 0-1.
Ezra cuts in after a run down the left and puts in a good cross but it just evades Lee on 27.
There is a pause in the play as Max is down injured on 28. The Dockers use it as an impromptu hydration break 🚰 while the Robins just stand around having a nice chat 🗣. Max goes off and it seems like he has to wait a couple of minutes to come back on. Ref must have been busy.
It looks Tyler is playing as the 10 with Billy in the 9 and Lee on the right.
A long Robins throw into the Dockers box, it’s headed a few times by both teams before one of the Robins lobs it way over the goal. Glad we parked at the other end.
A thundering shot from the edge of the Dockers box is clearly stopped by a light blue clad elbow. The ref doesn’t (can’t) see it and neither does the lino on the far side. We have a clear view and sit back quietly watching the Robins players and fans venting their frustrations at the ref 😶.
A good run by Billy down the left ends in a poor cross that is easily caught by the keeper. The Dockers falling short on quality again tonight.
Tyler makes a good break away on 45+3 but he’s hacked down in the centre circle. It would appear that the ref doesn’t want to own up that he has forgotten his cards as that is a clear yellow.
It's 45+4 when the whistle goes and it’s a 0-1 lead for the visitors.
The Dockers are back in action as Billy’s deep run sees him cut the ball back to Lee but it’s intercepted. Billy was in a good place for a shot. Just HIT IT. Too much time spent trying the perfect goal.
A long ball from Lee finds Billy who crosses to Joe. Joe goes for power and the ball flies way over and heading for the car park.
Leo is needed to make a good save on 62. The ball runs loose in the box and the Robins forward throws himself into a sliding tackle . He gets to the ball and prods it towards the goal. Leo anticipates it well and makes the stop.
Robbo runs on to a ball down the right and knocks it past the defender who then flattens him. An easy yellow . But apparently, it’s a dropped ball for the Robins. How bizarre 🤪.
Ezra goes down in the centre circle on 60. Didn’t see what happened but it’s another hydration break. Ezra hobbles off and is replaced by Jesse Lambert.
Tyler makes way for Dan Allen on 70.
Some good play by Jesse and Joe gets the ball to Lee at the edge of the box. He makes himself the space and slots it into the bottom corner on 75 ⚽. Classic Robbo. 1-2. Back in the lead.
Leo is being kept busy now as he makes a good catch after a cross is flicked on by a Robin head.
The ref is counting down every time Leo has the ball. It’s not exactly speeding things up as he knows exactly how long he can waste now. 5-4-3-2-1-kick.
The Robins are starting to push more now. Leo slices a goal(miss)kick and it slams into the home bench. Hope no-one was hurt.
There is a cheer from the crowd on 88 as they think the Robins have equalised but somehow Rudy Jones clears it off the line. There is dismay in the Robins. The ref checks with the assistant. No goal ❌. Try again boys.
It’s so close again but the Dockers head it off the line twice on 90+2. It’s getting nervy at the back. The Robins are desperate for an equaliser and might get it yet.
The shot from range on 90+6 is a desperate and easy catch for Leo.
The Dockers get one more chance as Jesse gets clear but his shot is tame. He is harassing the keeper though, which is helping to run down the clock.
It’s finally over on 90+8. And breath. Time for a quick photo of the posh scoreboard (🦃1-2⚓) before we head home.
We think it’s all over..
That was a difficult watch at times. I’m not sure that the best team won but the most stubborn one did. Some very last ditch defending kept us in the game. Neither team played well and the result flattered us but Lee found a bit of quality to get it and us over the line. Reliable Robbo.
The subs did seem to help this time, adding energy. Jesse was a great threat chasing and harassing giving Billy a rest. It helped to run down the clock as they put us under pressure in the dying minutes.
The opponents provided very little threat in the first 45. Their goal came out of nowhere. The biggest threat they had came was the long throw. They kept using it but never got the better of the Dockers’ defenders.
It was nice of our host to provide a nice big scoreboard to take selfies in front of. Thanks for that. And it makes it easier to tell “How Much?” time the man in black has added on. It did seem to go on and on ⏱.
It’s 3 points on the board for the Dockers and that moves them up to 5th just behind the teams with 2 wins.
It’s been an enjoyable evening, sitting on our bench on a bank with a good view. Up next is Forest Row away in the FA Cup on Friday. See you there.
The Other Bits
POTM: He’s back and in some style. A goal and an almost assist to Lee (big) Robbo 🏅. Well done Lee.
Officially Opinionated: We have more than a little (oops) to say about the ref tonight. He was very pedantic (and we do like a pedantic ref) making sure all the free kicks were taken from the correct spot. He also counted down every time Leo had the ball. It did seem to slow things down because he waited as long as he could. He made the delay inevitable. Every time. He did miss the handball that the Robins claimed. But he was unsighted by a crowd of tall players. He did wind up both sets of players and staff but he was at least consistent. We have seen and will see much much worse officiating.
The assistants got their calls mostly right. It’s easy to criticise when you are level with the line and he is running to keep up. So well done. Thanks.
Programme perusal: The programme is great. It’s not shiny but here is great content. A bargain at £2.
The Scran’O’meter rated the hot chocolate at 7.5. The bench we drank it on added +1 so it’s 8.5 tonight.
See you soon.
Love Tranmerekat 🐾
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| Blue sky at Hassocks |
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| Nice new scoreboard 😉 |
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Once more into the BreachNewhaven FC away to Crawley Down Gatwick FC in the SCFL Premier Division at Haven Sportsfield |
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Where are we and What’s going on?
And so it starts. Again. It’s the first competitive game since the disappointing end to the season in April. The loss to Peacehaven in the 2nd to last game cost us the playoffs. The Tye not only made it into, but won the playoffs against the odds and in spite of the shenanigans of Guernsey. Congrats. Hope to see you soon. Our derby day games will now be with AFC Varndeanians who are now co-residents at the Sports Park.
There are no surprises in the line up. Leo is in goal with Elliot and Matt in front of him. The full backs are Max Vardy and Shay Tobin. In the middle are George, Charlie and Joe. Up front is Jee with Ezra and Tyler. A new face on the bench is Jesse Lambert. A relative of Dexter?
The Anvils don’t look very tall . Hopefully we can take advantage of that.
We have watched some of the warm up and Jonny’s practice shot ends up in Court farm Road. The Seven Sisters arrives as the players are coming out. It’s warm again so we are expecting a game of 4 quarters again. Hot chocolate has been procured. Time to watch some competitive football. Come on you Dockers.
Off we go
The Anvils kick off towards the Surf‘n’Skate End.
We don’t have to wait long for some again but it’s not what we want. The is some hesitation in the Dockers defence and George has his pocket picked on the edge of the box. The striker makes no mistake and puts it past a helpless Leo on 3. 0-1. Bugger.
We get a free kick high on the right on 8. Joe is on kicking duty. It’s quickly cleared and the Anvils break straight down the other end where it’s cleared.
Another free kick on 11 and it’s central this time. It hits the wall and goes up in the air. There is a scramble in the goalmouth and it goes out for a corner. It’s quickly cleared.
The Anvils break and Shay gets in between the runner and the ball. They collide and Shay is booked . What a ridiculous decision 🤡.
There is more football but it's not great. It’s broken up with lots of turnovers and heading backwards and forwards. We count 6 consecutive headers at one point. We are relieved of this by a hydration break.
The Dockers are at last starting to play with some more quality and the Anvil respond by starting to fall over a lot. They have a penalty shout waved away. Didn’t get a good look but the ref wasn’t impressed. Not that that means much with some of his calls.
Ezra puts a deep cross into the box on 30. There are several attempted shots, blocks and clearances.
Shay makes a great run down the right cuts in and is fouled. The ref waves play on as Tyler picks up the ball but his shot is just wide.
The Dockers are starting to get into their stride and it’s good to watch.
Some great work on the right wing from Shay, George and Tyler ends in a corner on 36. It’s recycled but goes back in from the left. Lee meets the cross but hits miles over from 6 yards.
The ball is out for an Anvil throw on 38 but it’s delayed while the ref has a quiet chat with the visiting manager. Not sure what that was about but he didn’t look happy.
Ezra gets space down the left but his cross is cleared. He does it again but this time it misses everyone and curls out for a goal kick.
Charlie’s tame shot is an easy save. But he's back again and wins a foul just outside the box on the right on 43. His curling free kick is deep and met at beyond the back post by Elliot. He can’t keep it down and it's way over.
Charlie is in the action again as he runs onto a through ball. His low cross is put over at the near post by Tyler.
Tyler combines with Shay down the right but they run out of pitch.
They are out of time in this half. It’s going to be a difficult conversation for the Dockers at the break. They have had so many chances and are a goal down.
There are no changes at the break as we kickoff to get back underway.
Tyler plays Lee through but his right to left shot goes wide on 47. Another miss.
The Anvils keeper makes a save but it spills and Lee is on hand to pop it into the net on 49 ⚽. 1-1. A goal at last. Fantastic. All square but we need to keep the momentum going and get another.
Tyler makes a great run down the right. He gets to the touchline and cuts it back but it’s just behind Lee and he can’t get a shot away.
George gets booked for something and is soon subbed and replaced by Dan Allen who goes into the 8 with Charlie moving back to the 6.
Another Change on 56 as Shay Tobin is replaced at right back by Jesse Lambert.
There is a disagreement about a tackle on Joe the far side of our own box and it turns into a bit of pushing and shoving and one of the Anvils is booked .
It's Lee’s turn to put a cross in. It’s chipped but too long on 64.
It’s the 66th minute before we get our first offside as the Anvils get caught out by the flag.
Tyler Capon makes a great attempt from inside the box. He volleys it with the outside of his foot but it’s straight at the keeper. That would have been a great goal.
It’s time for the 2nd hydration break on 68.
An Anvil gets a great opportunity for a shot from the edge of the D but he doesn’t catch it right and drags it mile wide. Awful attempt and he looks embarrassed.
Charlie goes in for a tackle on 73 but gets injured and makes way for Billy. Hooray. The change we were calling for, sort of. It looks like he’s going in as the 10 or maybe another 9.
There is a foul on a Docker on the right wing and another fracas. There is a push on one of the Reds and another Anvil is booked for misbehavior.
Ezra makes way for Dexter on 82. He goes on the left , Lee goes to the right, Billy goes up front with Tyler behind him.
Dexter is soon in on the action. His cross is too deep but Lee heads it back in only for Billy to miss the ball at the near post. It’s not going to go in is it?
Lee makes way on 89 and Rudi Jones comes on. The left back goes on the left wing with Dexter moving to the right.
The changes of personnel and position seem to have knocked the Dockers off their stride and the slick play has become more chaotic.
There is a nasty foul on Dexter as he hangs on to the ball too long. It takes 3 of them to hack him down but the ref thinks it’s OK. One of the Anvils sits down and it seems to be catching as another one goes down as well. The first one needs treatment and is helped off. The Docker's free kick on 90+2 is wasted. The Anvil’s replacement sub is ready to come on but play has restarted and he has to wait 🤣.
He eventually comes on after a couple of minutes as the Anvils get a free kick. Not saying he is tall but he towers over his team mates.
We don’t know what happens next but it ends in George getting booked again on the bench and it’s his 2nd yellow so he gets a red as well and starts the walk of shame back to the dressing room.
Billy is full of beans and starting to harass the Anvils keeper whenever he gets the ball. It forces a few turnovers but no more goals,
It finishes with a goal each. The visitors will be the happiest with that. We aren’t 😠.
We think it’s all over..
That was so disappointing from the Dockers after such a good pre-season. I think we may have said those words before 😶. There were points where the build up play was good but the finishing was awful 🤦. Lots of shots that were wayward. Feeling the pressure of competitive football after 3 months off maybe?
The Anvil had the upper hand for about 15 minutes before the Dockers got any kind of a grip on the game. The changes didn’t improve things and it got worse as there were reorganisations. It didn’t seem like there was a plan. The yellow cards didn’t help and perhaps forced changes that may not have happened otherwise. An impact of the poor quality of the officiating in the middle of the pitch.
So we start with a point. It could have been worse and it was a nice day out by the Ouse. The sun was shining and the ferry arrived. It looked like a nice afternoon for cricket too 🏏. Mon the Whites!
Tranmere started their season today as they probably mean to go on. By being knocked out of the Carabao Cup Preliminary Round on penalties. We scored 2 goals but Rochdale levelled twice and then we scored just 1 of the 5 penalties. Just Tranmere doing what Tranmere does. Two weeks until the season opens. Can’t wait!
The Dockers have 2 away games now with Hassocks in the league on Tuesday and then Forest Row in the Vase on Friday. We are back here in 2 weeks for the start of the FA Cup with Guernsey. Hopefully it will still be warm, just not another heatwave 🫠.
The Other Bits
POTM: There were lots of performances that were OK in parts but they went missing in the final 3rd. So today it goes to a midfielder who improved as the game went on and had a few goes as well. Congratulations Charlie Gibson 🏅.
Officially opinionated: He wasn’t a good day at the office for the man in the middle. He didn’t seem to get much right. There wasn’t really a huge amount for him to do but he decided that he needed to make a difference. He left both side unhappy with what he did and didn’t do. Was it a penalty for the Anvil? Who knows? We don’t know but have zero confidence that that he did either. Nice to see assistants that assist and not just run the line. Even to the point of getting George sent off which may well have been deserved. Tom's replacement , filing his boots in style.
Programme Perusal: The programmes have continued for another season. We were worried that they weren’t going to. It’s still £1 but would be happy to pay £2. Hopefully the player pictures will return soon.
The Scran’O’meter rated the hot chocolate with 1 sugar as a solid 7. Thanks. Speaking of chocolate, we’re looking forward to some cooler weather when the half time Mars/Snickers/Twix/KitKat doesn’t melt 🫕.
Ferry Watch ⛴: The Sevens Sisters appeared bang on schedule, 2 minutes before kick off, allowing us to give the the match our full attention.
See you soon.
Love Tranmerekat 🐾
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| Come on you Dockers |
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| Know all the names now |
