Rye Town Football Club had an afternoon to remember as they clinched the first of maybe three trophies by winning the East Sussex Football League Division 1 championship with one game to go after beating Icklesham Casuals in their final home game of the season.
Town needed just a point from their final two games but started off sluggishly with Icklesham frustrating them by putting men behind the ball and trying to hit Rye on break. The first chance of the game came when a cross from the left was met by the head of Charlie Stevens which prompted an excellent save from the Icklesham goalkeeper, Jack Davies. Casuals continued to frustrate until eventually the deadlock was broken a minute before half time when a shot by Stevens fell to Rob Levett who put the ball in the net from close range.
Icklesham started the second half hoping to get back into the game, but a minute later Town broke down the right and a nice cross from Stevens found Alfie Weller in the middle, who calmly placed the ball into the goal. Rye 2-0 up. Two minutes later a flick on from Weller found Rye’s leading scorer Stevens who smashed the ball into the top of the net to make it 3-0. The next goal came in the 55th minute when a cross by Foulkes from the left was converted into the net by an Icklesham player. 4-0 soon became 5-0 when in the 70th minute the goalkeeper could only parry a shot which continued to roll closer to the goal line. Weller managed to knock the ball over the line before the Icklesham defender could clear it. Six minutes later Rob Levett blasted Rye’s 6th goal past the casuals goalkeeper. The scoring ended there but that was mainly due to the heroics of Jack Davies who made some top class saves. The man of the match was Dom Cruttenden.
Rye Town’s next fixture is a friendly on Saturday April 1 away to Crowhurst before they play their final league game of the season away to Bexhill Town on Saturday April 8.
Rye will play the final of the Hastings FA Junior Cup final against Sedlescombe Rangers II on Monday April 24 at The Pilot Field home of Hastings United, kick off at 7:30pm. We will bring you details of when and where the final of the Robertsbridge Intermediate Cup against Bexhill AAC when we have them.
Rye Team: Weller; Wilson, Cruttenden, Willis; Heffernan, Henham, Osborne (Ball 61), Hurley, Fraser (Foulkes HT); Levett, Stevens (Skinner 61).
Photos: Charmaine Ridgers