A trip down to the port of Shoreham by Sea at the mouth of the River Adur seems to agree with us having won on our last three League visits. After a bright start to the season with three wins out of four League games in August, Shoreham have not picked up a point since and were on the back of 4-0 and 7-0 defeats and a change of manager a month ago.

A lively start to the game on a pitch where the grass was more semi-rough than fairway saw the home side clear for a shot with all the venom of a back pass. A flick on by Kai Neil-Gray gave Matt Feeney-Hill the chance to shoot from the left but the ball went over the bar. A long ball to Jeff Duah-Kessie allowed him to beat their offside line and centre to Feeney-Hill but his shot was straight at the keeper. Shoreham got a break on the left and centred the ball but a great block by Matt Cheeseman ended the move. With a quarter hour played, Shoreham were in down the left and laid the ball back to an unmarked player to shoot home for 1-0. Conor Wilford took the ball and played it to Jack McDonnell out on the right wing. He played a one-two with Deven Reid-Solanki and took the ball into the box to win a corner. From the corner the ball came out to Feeney-Hill for shot that was straight at the keeper. With twenty minutes played Shoreham were through too easily again on the left but Wilford got in a tackle to win the ball and clear it.

Neil-Gray battled hard to keep the ball on 25mins and then got free to have a shot that found their keeper who was in the right place again. The pace slackened a bit until on 38mins Wilford could only get a half header on a long ball and Shoreham were in on goal but for quick action by Jack Webb-Olley to come out and block. The ball broke kindly for Shoreham but with a clear shot at goal the ball ended up in a tree behind the goal for a let off. However from a free kick on the left on 41mins Shoreham had an easy header to make it 2-0. Tradition holds that just before half time is a good time to score and with a couple of minutes remaining Reid-Solanki was hacked down on the left of the D. Wilford lined up the kick and put it into the bottom left corner of the net to get us back in the game. Not the best half by us but the team was disrupted by the late withdrawal of Noah Agbinone through illness requiring David Heaton to play centre back. Guyni Nganga was back after injury and Jack McDonnell from suspension as Stephen Hodge was hospitalised with appendicitis.

As soon as the half was under way, Cheeseman was providing good cover on the right to stop a drive along the byline. A few minutes later he was firing in a shot to win a corner that Jason Stripp put into the six yard box only for a free kick to let Shoreham off. In the next minute Neil-Gray was pushing down the left and put the ball across the box but Reid-Solanki recycled in on the right. His ball into the centre found Stripp but it caught him off balance so his shot was soft. On 55mins McDonnell had a chance for a shot that was deflected over. Reid-Solanki took the ball into the box on the right and was fouled for a penalty. With 58mins played Wilford drove the penalty home to equalise. A first change followed with Reece Jacobs replacing Feeney-Hill. On 61mins it looked like we would take the lead as Reid-Solanki was in the six yard box for a shot that the keeper did well to block. It came to Stripp whose shot was also blocked as their keeper did really well to keep it at 2-2. On 64mins Webb-Olley palmed a corner away and when Shoreham recycled the ball Webb-Olley took the shot well. In this all action half it was our turn next as McDonnell set up Duah-Kessie for a shot that was too far out to give the keeper anything other than an easy catch.

Reese Cartwright replaced Cheeseman on 66mins. From a push down the right Shoreham had a man out on the left unmarked who they duly found with a cross ball. He controlled the ball well, took it into the box and despite the best efforts of Webb-Olley, found the back of the net to put Shoreham back in front on 71mins. A soft goal to concede but we were playing much better in the second half and a minute after conceding Reid-Solanki was on the ball in the six yard box but could not apply the finish and the keeper blocked. Minutes later McDonnell had the ball on the right and pushed into the box along the byline to centre the ball only to then be hacked down very late. There was a shot that went wide so advantage was over but no action was taken on the late tackle. Neil-Gray was putting in a good shift up front and driving forward was hacked down for a free kick just right of the D. Probably a bit straight for a Wilford special and his kick went through to the keeper. On 79mins McDonnell was replaced as he had taken a hit when he was fouled and was just back from a four game suspension. Bailey Neil-Gray came on just as his brother Kai was withdrawn as Reese Cartwright came on.

With just over ten minutes to go Reid-Solanki was chasing a back pass to put the keeper under pressure and Jacobs got the ball but shot high. With exactly ten to play Shoreham were in the clear to take the lead with just Webb-Olley to beat and go two goals ahead but the ball was put wide. A head in hands miss. From that let off we were on the attack again as Jacobs worked his way into the box and won a corner. From the corner Jacobs had the ball and crossed into the box to find Duah-Kessie who scored to bring it back to 3-3 on 87mins. Reid-Solanki received a ball forward, passed to Duah-Kessie who put Reid-Solanki on a chase to reach the ball. It came loose to Bailey Neil-Gray but he fired over the bar. Last minute and Heaton put a corner into the box for Wilford to head at goal only for the keeper to take.

Into added time and Reese Cartwright won a good challenge and sent Duah-Kessie on a chase into the box on the right only to be beaten by the ball. Shoreham had their chance to win it as they were on the break but could only muster a soft shot at Webb-Olley. In this end to end half, it was Reid-Solanki on the attack and into their box. Duah-Kessie took the ball and was fouled for a second penalty. Time for Wilford to be a hat trick hero as he fired home his second penalty and in the third added minute put us 4-3 ahead. Into a fourth added minute and Bailey Neil-Gray won the ball and passed to Duah-Kessie but the keeper was able to gather the ball. Into a fifth added minute and Heaton cleared the ball with a header down the left touchline that Reid-Solanki was onto and took to the corner flag, won a free kick and then hear the final whistle.

A game that would definitely be first up on Match of the Day and great for the casual watcher while we team supporters went through the wringer. After a shaky first half we upped our game in the second half in which both sides had chances to score two more goals each but The Lingers grabbed a late winner to get a much needed win. We move up to seventeenth in the table, four points ahead of bottom club Lancing, one ahead of AFC Varndeanians and Seaford Town who have two games in hand on us. We are still level on points with Crawley Down Gatwick who have a game in hand. A point above us are Wick, Shoreham and our Tuesday opponents Eastbourne United. Running away at the top with full points so far are Haywards Heath Town and no doubt hoping to avoid last year's meltdown that cost them promotion. Forest Row, Pagham and Newhaven are in the play off places with Steyning Town, Guernsey and Horsham YMCA locked together behind them.