Bay show resilience and desire to snatch two late goals and a point at the MBS Stadium in the league opener

Saturday 12th August 2023.
Isthmian League Division One South East
Herne Bay 2 Burgess Hill Town 2
Attendance: 393

Herne Bay: Josh Bexon, Harrison Byford (Jack Richards 65), Harry Brown (Frankie Smith 65), Harrison Pont, Liam Friend, Daniel Carrington, Gil Carvalho, Archie Burnett, Kane Rowland, Bola Dawodu (Jacob Gilbert 73), Theo Osinfolarin. Subs not used: Sammi Takaloo, Danny Walder.
Goalscorers: Gil Carvalho (93), Archie Burnett (96).

It was just 14 months ago that the two sides had last met and since then there had been changes aplenty. Herne Bay had been promoted through the play-offs and then relegated, had a new manager in place and a completely new squad. Burgess Hill had missed the play-offs by two places and four points and a year later avoided a step 4/5 play-off by one point and one position. They also had a new manager and only two players had survived since that last meeting. It promised to be a thrilling opener to the new season.

The previous two meetings had been goalless and any thoughts that this one would have the same outcome were quickly put to bed. Burgess Hill were industrious in their intent, particularly down their left flank and Josh Bexon twice had to be at his best to keep out Kieron Pamment. In the 29th minute Hill almost gifted the opener to Bay as a back pass was absolutely kamikaze, Gil Carvalho latched onto it, cut it back but the ball was thumped way over. Then on 31 the Hillians took the lead. A long ball landed at the feet of Lewis Finney, and he tucked a first-time finish in at Bexon’s near post. On the stroke of half-time Herne Bay came close to levelling when a corner was whipped in, and it turned into pin ball which eventually ended with Bay firing just wide.

Herne Bay were brighter in the second period but never looked to seriously trouble Taylor Seymour between the sticks for Burgess Hill. On the hour it looked to be game over. Reece Hallard whipped the ball in from the right and Rob O’Toole rose highest to head past Bexon. Bay huffed and puffed but never looked likely to blow the Hillians wall down, in fact when Archie Burnett struck a free kick at Seymour it was the first shot on target. Seymour fell onto the ball at every opportunity in order to waste time and the board was held up for four minutes time added on.

But if anyone was wondering why we bother to watch our favourite team play football it soon became evident. Burgess Hill had looked better in every department and were cruising to a straight-forward victory. With three of those four minutes played Gil Carvalho scrambled the ball home to pull one back. As the clock ticked away, and more time added due to an injury to Marcus Allen, Jack Richards sent the ball into the box to find man-of-the match Burnett perform a miracle and, in another scramble, send the Winch’s Field masses into raptures.

A point on the board in the season’s opener and proof that Steve Lovell had built a resilient team who never give up.