Peacehaven v Ringmer

In a tight and tense match The Tye held on in the face of concerted second half pressure to move into second place in the fledgling league table.

Peacehaven were clearly tired and short of numbers after Saturday's cup heroics, and were perhaps fortunate to escape after a second half which saw them largely on the back foot. RIngmer on the other hand will have been frustrated that they were unable to make the pressure pay, a familiar scenario in meetings between these sides. Peacehaven have beaten Ringmer five times in the last two seasons, and most of those matches have followed a similar pattern to this one.

Peacehaven were without Connor Saunders and Aaron Gunn, and had Clive Snell and Ben Bowra back in the starting line up. Ringmer lined up without a recognised striker but with plenty of attacking options in midfield.

Peacehaven had the better of the early part of the match, but the general tone was scrappy, with a succession of long balls and fouls disrupting the play. They took an early lead when Ryan Bradley played in Rob O'Toole who drove home his first goal of the season.

Ringmer were claiming a penalty when Jake Buss clashed with ex 'haven forward Aaron MacMillan. It certainly looked a fifty fifty decision, but the officials were unmoved. A rasping strike from Kieran Patel was then parried by Buss, and the former Ringmer stopper again reacted well to keep out a drive from Joe Dryer.
The second half saw Ringmer increase the pressure as Peacehaven tired. They were increasingly dominant in midfield, but lacking a focal point in attack struggled to create clear opportunities. Peacehaven were showing the strain of their previous two dramatic matches, and were hanging on towards the end. The ball wasn't sticking up front and with Ringmer were having a lot of the ball, though most of it was in areas where they couldn't hurt the home side.

Peacehaven did however have opportunities of their own, with Owen Callaghan and Ashley Rees both going close, but as has so often been the case in these matches Ringmer were unable to find the break through, and Peacehaven were able to celebrate a first clean sheet of the season.