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10 man Blues beaten, Reserves in score draw

Sidley United 2 - 3 Forest Row - MSFL Premier Division

Sidley United were edged out by Forest Row in yet another crazy encounter between the sides as the Blues finished the game with 10 men for the second meeting in a row. 

The match, sponsored by Hastings Direct, saw a remarkable start as Elliot Benton fired the visitors into the lead in the first minute with a strike into the top corner from just inside the penalty area.

However Sidley responded 90 seconds later as Charlie Cornford drove forward on the left and from the tightest of angles he somehow found the far corner of the net to level. And the drama continued as Sidley went in front after 4 minutes as Sean Baldwin's strike was fumbled by the goalkeeper and Lee Carey was on hand to mop up the rebound.

The visitors were level on 22 minutes though as the home side failed to clear their lines and George Holah took full advantage and slotted home from the edge of the area. And the goals continued as Alex Evans' overlapping run saw him finish low past Joe Rogers on 34 minutes to put Forest Row back in front. 

The game then took another turn in the favour of the visitors as a scuffle saw Alan Foster shown a second yellow card and the Blues reduced to 10 men for the entirety of the second half. 

In the second period, another flash point occurred after 55 minutes. Sidley thought they had levelled but the flag was belatedly raised for offside. After consulting with the linesman, the referee pulled the play back to award Sidley a free kick for a foul earlier in the move.

Both sides created chances to alter the scoreline with Rogers making a good save with his feet to deny Forest Row while Cornford went close with a powerful drive before his stoppage time free kick from the edge of the area was deflected and the goalkeeper did well to change direction and keep the ball out. 

A tough match against a side who no doubt will be at the sharp end come the business end of the season. The Sidley Man of the Match was Toby Clifford. The Blues have another tough match next week as they travel to Ringmer AFC. 

Sidley Team: Rogers, Clifford, Walker, Saunders (Taylor), Elliott-Noye (Ellis), Bristow, Wells (Trickett), Foster, Cornford, Carey, Baldwin.

Sedlescombe Rangers II 3 - 3 Sidley United II

It was a much better performance for Sidley United II side as they recovered from the previous week's defeat by picking up a credible draw against a Sedlescombe side who came into the game with a 100% record.

Goals from Sam Knight-Farman, Chris Copley and Dave Chasumba claimed a point for the Blues. 

Sidley Team: Crittenden, Knight-Farman, Davies, Tomlinson, Copley, Morgan, Ranson, Day, Hardy, Hempe, Chasumba. Subs: Willard, Das, Cousins. 

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