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Sidley see off Hollington; Reserves hammer Rye

(January 15, 2022)

Sidley United 3 - 0 Hollington United - MSFL Premier Division

Sidley United re-established a 3 point lead at the top of the table after a good victory against local rivals Hollington United.

Hollington began well and probably shaded the opening 10 minutes of play, albeit without really testing Blues' goalkeeper Dan Hutchins. However the momentum shifted when Sidley took the lead on 22 minutes as Danny Ellis' strike from the edge of the area deflected off a defender and wrong footed the Lions' goalkeeper.

Lee Carey then doubled the Sidley lead on 29 minutes with a lovely direct free kick. And before half time the Blues grabbed a third goal when Chris Cumming-Bart's delicious cross from the right saw Charlie Cornford initially hit the post but he reacted quickest to the rebound to poke the ball home.

The second half, perhaps understandably, lacked the intensity of the first. A couple of yellow cards for The Lions was as much action as there was at either end. Sidley Man of the Match Tyler Capon cut inside from the left and forced a smart save from the away goalkeeper while at the other end Hutchins was out quickly to smother a rare Hollington attack.

However Sidley had already done enough already to claim the points and they saw out the game to move clear of rivals Ringmer, who were not in action. Next week Sidley turn their focus to the Sussex FA Intermediate Cup as they face AFC Uckfield II in their first match at Little Common Rec this season.

Sidley Team: Hutchins, Featherstone (McCue), McEniry, Walker, Elliott-Noye (Clifford), Carey, Cumming-Bart, Capon, Ellis, Cornford (Foster), Rogers.

Rye Town 1 - 4 Sidley United - ESFL Division One

Sidley United II's put themselves in real title contention as they enjoyed a comprehensive win over Rye Town.

A change in the lineup saw Gary Hempe start his first game since mid November as the Blues started off at a quick pace enjoying the majority of the play with Rye looking to exploit on a counter attack.

Sidley took the lead on 10 minutes when goalkeeper Ritchie Gray thumped his kick over the heads of the Rye back line for Alex Williams to run onto the bouncing ball and lob the onrushing keeper to put the Blues ahead, taking his tally to 20 for the season.

An injury to John Opaye-Tetteh forced the blues into a substitution with Harry Davies coming on in an unfamiliar role but Sidley doubled their lead as Dynamic Scaffolding's Man of the Match Sean Baldwin intercepted a loose pass in the midfield and drove towards the Rye back line, cutting back onto his weaker foot and slotting the ball between the goalkeepers legs just before the halftime whistle.

The second half began with the home side coming out of the blocks quicker, pushing the Blues deep into their own half. But Sidley went 3 up when a clever free kick found Simon Tomlinson unmarked with a perfectly timed run to stay onside and with the goal at his mercy he slotted past the Rye goalkeeper.

Rye started to throw players forward and pulled a goal back with 10 minutes left on the clock. A flashpoint then occured when Simon Corke was hacked down by the Rye right back. Corke retaliated with a push as he stood up only to then find himself being caught with a punch, sparking a large amount of pushing and shoving with players, management and even fans involved trying to separate and calm the situation down.

Eventaully when all calmed down the decision from the referee was a yellow card for Corke and a red card for the Rye player. Sidley wrapped up the game when they countered on Rye as a clinical pass unleashed Elphick who found himself one on one with the Rye keeper and he calmly finished into the bottom left corner of the net.

The final whistle was blown with the Blues earning a vital 3 points and a 6th straight win in all compeitions to remain joint top with Bexhill A.A.C with 4 league matches remaining.

Sidley Team: Gray, Opaye-Tetteh, Corke, Vincent, Tomlinson, Hempe, Ransom, Elphick, Wells, Baldwin, Williams. Subs: Davies, Mabb.

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