Antonio Morgan’s first Isthmian League goal was the icing on the cake for Sittingbourne as Ryan Maxwell’s side cruised to a 5-0 away win at East Grinstead Town.
Grinstead, just one of two sides this season to beat leaders Ramsgate, were dismantled by the Brickies with both Jean-Baptiste Fischer and Luke Woodward playing their best respective games since returning from long term injury and with Ade Azeez and Mitch May running for everything up front, the visitors looked dangerous every time they went forward.
May it was from Fischer’s exquisite touch it was for the first before Donvieve Jones fired home the second. A flying Ryan Kingsford made it three and when Liam Smith ran onto a quickly taken free kick to fire home number four, it was job done for Maxwell’s side. But when Kingsford and Ayman El-Mogharbel combined, Morgan was able to beat keeper Matte Pierson to, with the last kick of the game, roll the ball home and send the large amount of travelling brickies home very happy!
But the game could have started so differently had Brickies keeper Roco Rees made an excellent save to keep out a speculative low shot from Finlay Lovatt.
When the Brickies got into their stride, there was no looking back. Fischer’s Bergkamp-Esque touch to feed May through for the opener was brilliant – May’s strike his twenty-seventh goal of the season. Moments later, Azeez did well to hold the ball wide, the play was moved across the field and Jones powered home goal number eight of the season and the second on the day, although Pierson may not want to see the goal again.
The Brickies were rampant – Henry Sinai fired inches too high, Azeez was denied by Pierson’s fingertips after getting on the end of long Rees forward ball, and from the resulting corner, Jones saw his header crash off the left post and rebound straight into the keepers relieved arms.
Grinstead almost got a goal back on the stroke of half time when Charlie Gibson’s low free kick skipped off the rock-hard service just in front of the diving keeper who made an excellent save and as the ball rebounded to Lovatt, he fired over the bar.
At the start of the second half, a rare defensive lapse allowed Matt Daniel to race away only to shoot wide when he really should have done better. And how the Brickies made their hosts pay… Azeez had a shot blocked by a defender and from the resulting corner, Smith headed the ball back across goal for a diving Kingsford to head his seventeenth goal of the season and the Brickies had the cushion they so fully deserved.
Azeez saw a low shot fumbled by Pierson but the keeper was lucky that the ball squirmed away from Kingsford and the chance was gone but the fourth goal wasn’t long in coming, after a great bit of quick thinking saw Richie Hamill’s quick free kick release a rampaging Smith who was allowed too much room as he had time to pick his spot low into the corner and register his eleventh goal of the season.
Azeez then went close yet again, but Pierson blocked him twice – the first time when the Brickies striker was through, the keeper did well to bundle the ball wide, and from Hamill’s corner, Azeez was denied again by the keeper.
The only downside of this fine performance came in the final minute of the ninety when Troy Howard was sent off a second yellow card – in all honesty two very cheap cautions but Mr. Wootten’s decisions were final!
As stoppage time drew to a close so came Morgan’s big moment as some dire defending gifted the ball to Kingsford wide right. He cut the ball inside for El-Mogharbel who’s touch put Morgan in, and he slotted the ball home as the ten men celebrated the fifth and final goal in an away day romp.
EAST GRINSTEAD TOWN – Pierson, Parker (Filipe), Cadman, Harrison (Wilson), Weaire (Ayoola), Wilson, Gibson, Singh (Colman), Daniel, Lovatt (Tighe), Folkes
SITTINGBOURNE – Rees, Jones (Lukombo), Graham, Hamill, Smith, Arthur, Sinai (Morgan), Woodward El-Mogharbel), May (Kingsford), Azeez, Fischer (Howard)
REFEREE – Mr. Wootten
Images courtesy of Grace Joines