Sittingbourne made it three wins out of four with what would appear a comprehensive four one win at Gay Dawn Farm over Corinthian. 

The game though as it often the way a lot closer than the score suggests and turned on the showing of a first half red card to Corinthian midfielder Jack Mahoney who received two cautions in the space of a matter of minutes with his side a goal to the good.

But with a man advantage, the Brickies came roaring back and after levelling Oscar Housego’s early penalty through Johan Carey-Bryan in first half stoppage time, goals in the final quarter as the ten men tired from Harrison Pont, sub-Tom Loynes and a last-minute penalty from Ahmed Abdulla gave Darren Blackburn’s side on paper at least a very comfortable win.

The home side started brightly and early on Jamie Miller stung the hands of Brickies keeper Harry Brooks. Corinthian enjoyed some early pressure and won a number of corners and from one, referee Swanton pointed to the spot after the visitors couldn’t clear their lines and Housego beat Brooks with some aplomb.

The visitors finally got into their stride and after Toby Bancroft had had a shot deflected for a corner, the original delivery was half cleared, and Pont had home keeper Aiden Prall scrambling from his delivery back into the danger zone before the ball was cleared.

The game then turned when Mahoney caught Danny Taylor on the side of his head with his boot – leading to an eleven-minute delay – during which the Corinthian man was shown a second yellow card just minutes after being cautioned for kicking the ball away. Taylor was eventually led away head very heavily bandaged.

With the extra man, the visitors stepped up the tempo and were level before the break. Pont played a delightful ball into Abdulla, who’s shot on the turn was blocked and as the ball ran to Caney-Bryan who drilled the ball home with the Corinthian defence waiting for an offside flag that didn’t come.

The second half began just as tightly and to their credit the ten men tried to take the game to their visitors and indeed sub-Josh Stirman forced Brooks into a fine save not long after half time. Just past the hour mark, Andres Tobon flashed a header past a statuesque visitor’s defence which somehow also sadly for Corinthian beat Brooks’ right post.

As the game entered the final quarter, the home side begin to wilt, and Brickies side Christophe Aziamale blazed over when well placed at the back post. The miss though wasn’t to prove costly as on XX minutes, Sittingbourne took a lead that they weren’t to lose. Toby Ajala’s delightful free kick deflected on its way towards goal forcing a wrong footed Prall into a terrific save. Sadly, for the Corinthian stopper, the first to react was Pont who did wonderfully well to hammer the ball home.

It was three one inside the closing five minutes when Neville Rivelino did brilliantly getting to the by line, and after Prall pulled off another fine save to deny Chuk Okoya-Aheneku, but as the ball looped high into the air, again it was a Sittingbourne shirt who reacted quickest and Loynes headed home. The icing on the visitors win came in the final minute as Loynes was brought down and Abdulla hammered home the spot kick beyond a despairing Prall to seal the triumph that lifted the Brickies to within a point of the top of the fledgling League table.

CORINTHIAN – Prall, Lashley, Trueman, Jones, Billings, Bath, Atkinson (Stirman), Mahoney, Tanner, Housego, Miller (Tobon)

Subs – Edmundson, Gyeabour, Wray

SITTINGBOURNE – Brooks, Rivelino, Fisher, Monger, Rogers, Pont, Taylor (Aziamale), Ajala, Caney-Bryan (Okoya-Aheneku), Abdulla, Bancroft (Loynes)

Subs – Fisher, Adjei

REFEREE – Mr Swanton

Pictures supplied by Ken Medwyn.