Horsham YMCA v Peacehaven

Twelve months later they are winning matches without playing well. There's no doubt which scenario they would prefer, but there was also no disguising that they got out of jail today.

Clive Snell's spectacular late winner was a rare moment of quality in a scrappy, messy match, which was continually interrupted and disrupted by officials, in one way or another.

On an unimpressive surface Peacehaven struggled to find any rhythm and were continually frustrated by a determined home side. When Lee Wood equalised towards the end it looked as though two points may have been dropped, only for Snell to intervene.

Peacehaven had lined up with Ashley Rees, Craig Bunch and Ashley Rees in attack, with Carl Dunk and Rob O'Toole alongside Wes Millis in midfield. Their hosts had had a difficult start to the season, with Sammy Donnelly trying to assemble a whole team in a few weeks, and they looked vulnerable in the early moments of the match.

Bradley and Bunch had both caused the home defence problems before an injury to a linesman disrupted play for ten minutes as a replacement was found and readied for action. That break seemed to cost Peacehaven their early momentum, and the match became increasingly disjointed as the half progressed. Not for the first time this season Peacehaven were over reliant on long balls which were being easily dealt with by the towering Lloyd Graham. That was partially excused by the rutted and over grown pitch, which hardly encouraged smooth passing football, but it was a policy which wasn't looking likely to pay dividends.
You sensed that Peacehaven needed a break, and they got one in the second half. O'Toole burst into the box, and his shot bounced around the penalty area before being tapped in by Rees. YMCA were adamant that he was offside, but the officials were adamant that there had been a defending player on the line, and the goal stood.

Unfortunately they took nearly three minutes to explain their decision, which again disrupted the match. Peacehaven were probably too defensive following the goal, and invited their hosts back into the match. They took advantage when Lee Wood, newly signed from an increasingly troubled Crawley Down, slid in a well placed finish.

Peacehaven now needed something special, and unexpectedly they got it. Snell was introduced almost immediately after the goal, and in his first attack he hit the winner. Picking up possession outside the box he struck a perfectly placed left foot shot into the roof of the net. Snell's goals are rare, but they are always worth waiting for, never more so than today.

Peacehaven breathed a sigh of relief, but they will know that the performance level will need to go up for the visit of top of the table Rye.