Disappointing Dockers crash out of the FA Vase

Newhaven 2 Eastbourne Town 3, FA Vase 2^nd Round Qualifying

Littlehampton Town’s heroics in reaching last year’s FA Vase final and earning a day-out at Wembley have undoubtedly made more and more Sussex clubs aware – and believe – that a trip to the fabled Twin Towers really is possible.

While it’s fair to say that the competition is not at the top of Newhaven’s priority list this season, it’s equally fair to say that a decent run in the competition wouldn’t go amiss. If only they could make it past these damn qualifying rounds!

In Eastbourne Town, Newhaven were facing a side that up until last season had, for a few years, been one of the most consistent in the SCFL Premier Division.

While last season probably wasn’t what Town had been hoping for (or expecting) and their start to this campaign has been a tad underwhelming, the Dockers nevertheless knew that a home tie against them was far from a guarantee of progression to the First Round Proper

Yet on a great run of form and coming off the back of one of their best performances for many years on Wednesday night, there was little doubt that the Dockers went into the match as favourites.

In the opening 25 minutes there was little reason to doubt why.

In front of another healthy home crowd, the Dockers picked up where they left off on Wednesday night. They could have scored inside 10-seconds when Lukas Franzen-Jones nicked the ball straight from kick-off, only to be tackled just before he could pull the trigger.

Still, when Alfie Rogers gave the hosts the lead in the seventh minute, scoring with a rare left-footed shot from just inside the 18-yard box, few could argue than it was little more than the hosts had deserved.

Town had their goalkeeper to thank for still being in the game in the opening exchanges, as he made a number of good stops. The pick of these was one that denied Rogers a second, which he somehow managed to tip over the bar from close-range.

On 25 minutes, though, the visitors were afforded the perfect opportunity to level. 

Having hardly posed a threat in the game to this point, they broke quickly from a Newhaven corner and, despite two Newhaven players having a chance to deal with the situation, they failed to do so, the number 18 (who was by far and away Town’s best outfield player) got through, and the referee deemed Buss to have brought him down.

The Dockers were incensed by the decision – Buss in particular who was adamant that he’d taken the ball – but the referee was never going to change his mind.

From the ensuing penalty, former Docker James Walters, made no mistake, rolling the ball straight down the middle to level matters.

The goal seemed to knock Newhaven off their stride somewhat. While they were still the better side and still seeing plenty of the ball, the swagger that had existed in their game prior to the equaliser seemed to slightly dissipate.

Suddenly the visitors looked comfortable at the back and increasingly dangerous on the break. More and more mistakes started to creep into Newhaven’s game and they began to look increasingly frustrated as simple passes went astray.

With the game meandering towards half-time with nothing much happening at either end, the Dockers were awarded a penalty of their own. Rogers received the ball in the area before being clumsily bundled into whilst protecting the ball.

Soft? Yes. But Rogers knew exactly what he was doing and the Town defender was reckless in trying to win a ball that he was never going to get to.

With practically the last kick of the half, Rogers smashed the ball in-off the post to restore Newhaven’s lead.

Surely normal service – or what us Dockers fans have come to think of as being normal service – would be resumed in the second-half.

Again, though, Newhaven looked just slightly off the pace. Time and again they worked their way into dangerous positions, only for the final pass to go wayward.

When Town equalised five minutes after the interval, Newhaven didn’t know quite what was happening. To be fair, it was some goal. 

A loose pass in the Newhaven defence fell to Holman some 30 yards out. The Town player still had plenty to do but, my, he did it well, striding forward before bending a shot in-off the same post that Rogers’ penalty had struck earlier. Buss had no chance.

From there, the game fell back into the same pattern it had been in from about the 25 minute-mark. Newhaven seeing plenty of the ball, but not doing an awful lot with it.

That said, Town once again had their goalkeeper to thank for keeping them in the game as he pulled off two or three important saves to preserve parity. What’s more, he also dealt brilliantly with a succession of corners that were won by the home side, always seeming to manage to reach the ball mere milliseconds before a Newhaven player got to it.

With full-time approaching, and the game seemingly heading for a penalty shoot-out, Town struck the fatal blow on the break; one they had threatened sporadically throughout the second-half.

Once again, it was an impressive finish by Holman, who showed great composure to turn inside two Newhaven defenders, before calmly finishing past the helpless Buss.

While it’s a bit of a stretch to say it was a deserved winner, it was a goal that didn’t come as too much of a surprise to some of the Newhaven faithful; many of whom had sensed that something like this was on the cards from about the 70-minute mark.

The goal was met with jubilant scenes of celebration, both on and off the pitch (the away fans even started singing for the first time in the game) realising that a smash and grab victory was just a few minutes away.

The Dockers tried to respond in what little time remained, but despite managing to work themselves into some threatening positions, the final ball was once again lacking, and Town held on for the win.    

And so dreams of Wembley end for another year. It’s a shame, without a doubt, but, as I overheard more than one home fan say on the way out, 'it's better to lose today than on Tuesday night.' A sentiment I do agree with (albeit through gritted teeth!).

So, with that in mind, it's more important than ever that as many of you as possible get to Fort Road on Tuesday night to support the lads in what will be an important league match against Bexhill United.

You can be sure the management team will be looking for a positive response (as will the players and fans). It should make for a good game. One you won’t want to miss.

See you there!

Come on You Dockers!

My MOM (aka, the controversial part): John Lucero. The young wide player enjoyed his best game in a Dockers shirt to date and looked the most likely Newhaven player to create something in the early stages of the second-half. Full of running and positivity, it was something of a surprise when he was subbed off with 20 minutes to go.