Brighton, Worthing & District League
Saturday 16th March 2024
Kick Off 14.00 Actual 14.04
A.F.C. Broadwater 0 Sompting 5, attendance 35
17’ 0-1
53’ 0-2
55’ 0-3
69’ 0-4
79’ 0-5
@ Northbrook Recreation Ground
Romany Road
West Durrington
BN12 6FG
No Admission or Programme.
With the full weekend closure of the M25 in both directions between J10 and J11 (first time this has happened since it opened in 1986), which would cause total gridlock in the area, I was left with the option of heading either south, or east (unless I left ridiculously early) for my game today. I opted for the former, heading to the outskirts of Worthing, where seventh in the league table A.F.C. Broadwater were hosting second placed Sompting, being played at the only ground I hadn’t yet seen a game on in this league. My choice was made easier by the fact that I had a 3G backup about 25 minutes away, but thankfully the pitch here was good to go, despite unbeknown to me, heavy rain having fallen overnight (wasn’t on the Met Office forecast). Northbrook Recreation Ground is a two pitch job, each running widthways when looking from the changing rooms/car park, with today’s game on the furthest one. Both pitches were suffering from mole hills, with our game on the less blighted of the two. It was unusual that both had square goal posts too. There was a soft area just outside the centre circle in one half of the pitch, but the Referee said “we’ll give it a go” and “see how it goes”.
Ovingdean look almost certain to win the league, but even A.F.C. Broadwater could still mathematically finish second (they have five games in hand) coming into this, although it is more likely to be between Sompting, St. Marys and Boys Brigade Old Boys for the runner up spot.
The game here started off as a very even contest. The only goal of the first half being a 25 yard free kick into the bottom corner after seventeen minutes that gave Sompting the lead, with the best of the other chances seeing them have a shot from just outside the box hit the crossbar. Goal number two came eight minutes into the second half, with an angled finish that the ‘keeper should really have kept out and they made it 0-3 a couple of minutes later, when a free kick from near the centre circle was headed over the ‘keeper from 15 yards as a number of players challenged for the ball as it dropped. The hosts notably tired from here and Sompting created chances at will, adding two more goals to round off a resounding win.
