The 1st team of Icklesham Casuals went top of Division Two of the East Sussex football league on Saturday, with a 2-1 victory away to Little Common 3rds. The Casuals started poorly and it was Little Common who took the lead mid-way through the first half, in a match played on an extremely narrow pitch.
The equaliser came shortly before the break, when Bradlee Mepham headed in Phil Badrock’s cross to continue his record of scoring in every game so far this season.
After a pep talk during the interval, Icklesham came out and dominated the second half, with Ken Wadbrook netting the winner shortly after the hour mark with his first touch, after coming on as a substitute. Icklesham were also denied what appeared to be two clear cut penalties.
The 2nd Icklesham team started well against a St. Leonards side much strengthened from their defeats in the previous two weeks and created numerous chances to take the lead. It was St Leonards, though, who went ahead and a Casuals own goal and a further fine finish in the last four minutes of the half put St Leonards 3-0 up at the break.
Icklesham thought they had a chance to get back into the game in the second period, when Joe Fraser appeared to be brought down in the area. However, the referee awarded a free-kick the other way.
With 12 minutes remaining, the Casuals were awarded a relatively soft penalty for a push and Lee Pierce netted his first goal for the club from the spot. Any thoughts the side had of getting something from the game were extinguished three minutes later, when St. Leonards were themselves awarded a penalty, which they converted to leave the final score 4-1. This penalty award was a somewhat baffling decision to players and spectators alike!
On Wednesday evening (September 16), a disappointing performance against a strong Bexhill United side saw the Ickelsham veterans go down 3-1 in the Hastings FA Veterans Cup, Steve Tytherleigh scoring the only goal. With ten points from their five games, the team must now wait for the results of the remaining matches to see if they have done enough to qualify for the final.
Photo: David Mayne