A sad Saturday as Vickers and Heath depart

We had the most local of local derbies as VCD Athletic welcomed Phoenix Sports. This is a match which is normally one of the highlights of our Isthmian season, but one which has been missing from our calendar of late following Sports relegation to the SCEFL at the end of the previous campaign, and one which we knew would be missing next season too as only one of the two could emerge victorious.

The only goal of the game arrived just as the match was set to go to extra time, and to increase the cruelty it came from the spot. A red card for Jonah Tolulope, a cool head from twelve yards for Ryan Hayes, and VCD’s Isthmian tenure came to an end, whilst we expect Sports to make a welcome return to our ranks unless the FA decide otherwise.

There were eight hundred and twenty in attendance. Image from David Bauckham.

Haywards Heath Town were amongst our promotion favourites after last season’s fourth place, but it has been a disastrous campaign for all at Hanbury Park and it ended with the biggest disaster of all against Essex Senior League runners up Redbridge. It looked so promising when Heath went two up in the first half, Richard Pingling and Alex Laing with the goals, but as has happened so often this season they then imploded as the visitors hit back. Jerrold Cobblah reduced the arrears four minutes after the restart, and the same player got the equaliser with nineteen minutes to go. Nine minutes from time, a Redbridge winner- Solomon Ogunwomoju ensuring that they return to Step Four after six years away.

Six hundred and thirty one watched on.

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