Magpies are champions of Sussex

The Magpies had only made two appearances in the final, one being a 1-0 defeat to Bognor in 1982, but capped a fantastic season with a 3-0 success at the AMEX Stadium to complete a league and cup double after winning the Ryman South.

Tom Lawley gave Peacehaven the lead in a closely fought first half, before man of the match Tom Burton doubled the lead on the hour. Josh Jones then went on to score a great solo goal in stoppage time to complete a remarkable season for a side who have risen through the depths of the Sussex County League and now into the Ryman Premier in the last decade.

Saunders said: “It has been an unbelievable season, and now we’ve played our last game I don’t want it to end! It just went right for us today. Obviously we had to weather a bit of a storm for half an hour in the first half, and we had to scrap to stay in the game which we did.
“We then got an opportunity and took it to give us the lead and then pushed on in the second half.

“They are a fantastic bunch of lads who never know when they are beaten. I can’t speak highly enough of them, and I am very proud of them.
“I’d be lying if I said we would expect to win the Ryman South and now this. We wanted to surprise people when we started out and we certainly have. “

The Magpies started well, with only a lunge from Craig Robson preventing Burton’s goal-bound effort from finding the net inside five minutes before Bognor came close to taking advantage of an error in the Peacehaven defence.

Jon Marzetti played a ball across his own penalty area, which was intercepted by Ollie Pearce but from the edge of the area his low drive beat Anthony Di Bernardo, but also beat the far post by a matter of inches.

After a slow start, Bognor then really came into the match and were unfortunate not to go in front after 18 minutes when Sammy Igoe found Terry Dodd, whose left footed effort curled away from the diving Di Bernardo, only to come back off the inside of the post and then bounce back off the other post on its way across goal before the Canadian keeper gathered.

Despite being very much on the back foot midway through the first half, Peacehaven went on to break the deadlock on the half hour mark. The Ryman South champions worked the ball forward well, before Lawley was teed up 18 yards out, and his low strike beat the diving Anthony Ender to find the bottom corner.

Bognor started the second half on the attack, with a strong Peacehaven defence doing well to scramble the ball away before Di Bernardo came and missed a Kane Wills’ corner from the left, but Stuart Tuck could not take advantage of it as he could only scuff his effort horribly wide from 12 yards.

Charlie Walker then came close to scoring a spectacular second for Peacehaven, but saw his 30 yard strike fly just wide of the top corner. Lawley then forced Ender into a good save as he turned his drive from outside the area over the bar after a quick counter attack from a Bognor corner, before Saunders’ side went 2-0 up from the resulting corner.
Dan McLaughlin flicked on the corner at the near post to the unmarked Burton at the far post, and from close range the former Crawley Down midfielder made no mistake to head his side two goals up.

In an attempt to get back into the match, defender Robson went up front for Bognor, and he came close to halving the deficit. However, a sensational save from point blank range from Di Bernardo prevented a certain goal.

Peacehaven added a third goal in stoppage time, with Josh Jones surging down the left wing before cutting inside, doing brilliantly to beat several challenges from Bognor players, before from the tightest of angles poking the ball past Ender at his near post to find the far corner.
The goal sparked mass celebration, with a pile-up which even goalkeeper Di Bernardo ran to join, as Peacehaven sealed their first Senior Cup title.

Bognor Regis Town 0-3 Peacehaven & Telscombe
Sunday 18 May 2014, Attendance: 2,003
By Anthony Scott

Rocks: Ender, Hinshelwood, Crane, Tuck, Axten, Robson, Chamberlain (Hopkinson 62), Wills ©, Todd (Sackman 74), Igoe, Pearce (Morey 88). Subs Not Used: Hayes, Wollers. Bookings: Robson, Hinshelwood.

Magpies: Di Bernardo, Marzetti, Metcalf, McLaughlin, A. Jones ©, Millis, Lawley (Saunders 74), Cotton, Walker (Brotherton 66), Burton, J. Jones (Hammond 90). Subs Not Used: Timms, Hamilton. Bookings: Millis, J. Jones.
Man of the Match: Tom Burton (Peacehaven).

Shots: BRT 9-10 P&T,
Shots On Target: BRT 5-6 P&T,
Corners: BRT 6-3 P&T,
Fouls Committed: BRT 10-14 P&T,
Offside: BRT 1-3 P&T,
Bookings: BRT 2-2 P&T,
Red Cards: BRT 0-0 P&T.