It was tough on the home side, although they only had themselves to blame, for as assistant boss Peter Hawkins was left to admit after the game, “we have to look at ourselves as I don’t think their keeper had a shot to save! As the game went on they used the conditions better than we did and started shooting across the surface, and Tom (Wellham, the Chats keeper) did well blocking some shots that really skidded off of the pitch.”
“Of course we’re disappointed – we’ve been punished in both games for defensive lapses – we got in a mess on Saturday with their goal and we’ve been punished tonight. Like everyone we could have really done with a run in the competition but that’s not to be and we’re going to have to dig deep.”
But over the course of what was a disappointing the contest, the only real winners were those who stayed away as the rain got heavier and heavier during the game left standing water on two or three areas of the pitch particularly around the half way line, but Hawkins didn’t use this as an excuse for his side’s exit. “We simply weren’t good enough on the night and didn’t adapt to the rain as well as they did.”
Yet the Chats had the first chance of the game when Joe Loft raced onto a through ball to test keeper Jack Fagin from the edge of the box. Sadly it was almost as though that’s as good as the opening 45 minutes got…
Trevor McCreadie snatched at a cross to fire high over before the half ended with Gayler twice going close – firstly with a volley that went past the far post and then even closer when a curling shot that took a clip off of a defender beating Wellham before clipping the angle of post and bar. And that was that, or as one home fan was heard to say “that’s 45 minute I won’t get back!”
The second half began with the Chats being given a free kick for a back pass as a Corey Heath stretching sliding pass was picked up by his keeper. Benbow though fired the resulting free kick into the wall.
The visitors were dominating possession but couldn’t find a way through as their final ball was skidding through. When they did get it right Wellham was for the most part equal to it – Gayler’s shot, heading for the top corner, was somehow clawed out from under the bar by the keeper, before Lewis Knight and McCredie clashed on the edge of the box, with the Worthing man finishing in a heap and screaming for a penalty.
Referee Bloy though waved away appeals, and to be fair, the official handled the worsening conditions with a great deal of common sense, even if the wet conditions made his bald head glisten more than usual under the Maidstone Road lights.
Just as the crowd were resigning themselves to extra time, up stepped Bugiel to head home and send the travelling Worthing fans wild and heading in the next round to Harrow Borough.
CHATHAM – Wellham, Potter, Collins (Hewitt 86), Solly, Hickey, Knight, Loft, Holder (Taylor 86), Gasheru (Edwards 76), Kaffo, Benbow
Subs not used – Hawkins & Watson
WORTHING – Fagin, Hendon, Sparke, Hayward, Heath, Hurley, Gayler (Rance 86), O’Neill, McCreaddie, Dodd (Pope 76), Bugiel
Sub not used- Richards
Referee – Mr Rick Bloy
Assistants – Mr Scott Rudd & Mr Josh Rudd