Hastings bid farewell with three points

Hastings United 1-0 Kingstonian

The final game for Hastings United in the Ryman Premier League saw them host Kingstonian, hoping to do the double over the Ks. United were confirmed relegated on Thursday evening but to sign off with three points would give the players a boost to go into next season. United, in 22nd place with 36 points, and Kingstonian, in 11th with 59 points, went head to head at the Pilot Field on Saturday 27 April. The match report and photos are by HOT’s Liam Willis.

The pre-match presentations took place pitch-side, with the Goal of the Season going to Bradley Goldberg for his wonder strike at Middlesbrough. Player of the Season, which had been highly spoken about within the Pilot Field, was awarded to Danny Ellis. An award was also given to player/manager Sean Ray, who was making his 300th appearance for the Us.

The first significant chance of the first half came just before half an hour, with lots of midfield play taking the majority of the time. Hastings’ Ben Judge failed to keep the ball in his own penalty area and Okai managed to win the ball but shot straight at Daniel East in goal. East threw the ball out and a quick exchange with passes between N’Diaye and Jamie Crellin saw Crellin released side-by-side with a defender and only the goalkeeper to beat. However just as Crellin entered the penalty area and was just about to pull the trigger, the defender, Goode, had other ideas and just put a toe to the ball to take it away from Crellin.

Hastings then took control of the game. Sam Adams presented himself with a glorious opportunity to open the scoring – he danced through the defence to go one-on-one with the goalkeeper, Tolfrey, but his shot was centimetres away from giving Hastings the lead. However, United didn’t have to wait much longer to give themselves the upper hand – a Lee Carey corner was flicked to the far post by Ben Judge, where it met the head of Sean Ray, whose header was cleared off the line, but only as far as N’Diaye, who thumped the ball into the back of Tolfrey’s net to give United the lead.

Kingstonian nearly got an instant reply, when a header from a corner was cleared off the line. Minutes before the half-time interval, United nearly doubled their advantage when Jack Dixon hit the side netting from range. But at the break, it was United 1-0 Kingstonian.

United started brightly in the second half with chances falling to Okojie, Ray and Adams. Kingstonian had a chance of their own after United looked to be coming slightly complacent. A free-kick the Judge failed to clear gave Okai a splendid chance to volley home but his shot went inches wide of East’s right-hand side. The first substitution for United saw Danny Ellis replace Dee Okojie and Kingstonian made a change too, with Taylor and Small coming on for Okai and Pattison. United continued to press forward, with Sam Adams heading just over from Dixon’s free-kick and Danny Ellis finding himself in space but shooting over Tolfrey’s crossbar. The second United change saw Freddie Warren come on in place of Jack Dixon.

Kingstonian continued to catch United out when they could find pockets of space. Wanadio made a blistering run down the left and cut into the penalty area, only to drill his shot just wide. From a goal-kick, United were awarded a free-kick as Kingstonian’s Taylor was given a straight red card for an alleged elbow on Lee Carey as they both rose to win a header.

Three minutes of added time brought few opportunities to either side as United’s spell in the Ryman Premier League was coming to an end. The referee blew the whistle and

United had the three points and the double over Kingstonian. The result at fellow-struggler Carshalton would decide whether United would finish bottom – in the event Carshalton’s 2-1 win at Enfield did not save them from relegation but did condemn United to finishing last.

I would personally like to express my thanks for all the support that United have received over the course of this season and to give credit to all those who have stood on the terraces home and away, week-in-week-out, through the good times and the hard times. The team have had an incredible season, with the highest of the highs and the lowest of the lows, but one thing remains – Hastings United will be back!

Hastings United: East, Cox, Richardson, Carey (c), Ray, Judge, Dixon, Crellin, Adams, N’Diaye, Okojie. Subs: Warren, Vickers, Attwood, Ellis.

Kingstonian: Tolfrey, Sidorowicz, Bird, Sweeney, Goode (c), Huckle, Barton, Pattison, Vines, Okai, Wanadio. Subs: Taylor, Small, Somner, Hall, Bragg.

Attendance: 511.

Man of the match, nominated by Liam Willis: Elliot Cox.

Photos: Liam Willis

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