Ryman Premier
East Thurrock United 3, Margate 0
EAST Thurrock erased the memory of a 5-0 drubbing at Margate with a deserved Ryman Premier League win at Rookery Hill reports the Thurrock Enquirer.
Both sides made a lively start, pinging the ball about well but the first effort of note came from Margate after four minutes, Dan Stubbs curling a long range shot just over the crossbar.
However, a controversial moment came on 14 minutes when Margate’s Richard Avery kicked out at East Thurrock’s Marc Gorbell as he lay on the floor and though ref Paul Forrester eventually singled the visiting player for a talking to, he took no other action.
A couple of minutes later Sam Higgins almost wormed his way through a crowded box, with Margate keeper Simon Overland grateful to dive on the ball.
A fine ball from Sam Higgins set Sam Collins fee and he laid the ball into the path of Matt Hall for East Thurrock’s first real shooting chance but the Rocks midfielder scuffed his strike.
Rocks suffered a nervous moment when Curtis Robinson took on the defence on the right flank and outpaced everyone to flash an angled shot across the face of the goal.
At the other end, Higgins turned and created an equally anxious moment for Margate with his angled strike that again just evaded the far post.
The breakthrough goal came five minutes before half time when Kris Newby delivered a deep cross which Higgins headed into the path of Collins who slammed it home with precision from close range.
Moments later Higgins turned provider again, capitalising on excellent work by Newby who got the ball forward under pressure and Higgins cleverly flicked it into the path of Greg Cohen who raced through and again finished with precision.
East Thurrock started the second half the way they had finished the first, with a flowing move involving several players before Higgins brought a fine save from Overland, who did even better when the ball was delivered back into the box, saving well from Cohen.
However, on 70 minutes after Laurence Ball fouled Collins in the box, he couldn’t keep out Newby’s well placed spot-kick.
Margate came closest to a consolation goal when Stubbs turned in the box but, from close range, he blazed high over the bar.
The game ended in fierce driving rain, but it couldn’t dampen the spirits of East Thurrock, who thoroughly deserved their victory.
