Rusthall continued their good run to all but seal a SCEFL Premier Play Off place as a goal either side of half time saw them beat Snodland Town 2-0 on Tuesday night.
A hugely entertaining end-to-end first half looked like it would finish goal-less until Jack Kirby’s magnificent low drive on the stroke of half time gave the visitors the lead and when Charlie Clover gloriously lobbed home the second moments into the second half, the fight that the home side more than showed in the opening forty-five all but evaporated.
The first half had the crowd royally entertained with end-to-end action that saw both keepers in fine form, and both sets of strikers shaking their heads in both disbelief and frustration.
The tone was set early on as Harry Hudson got in behind the Rusthall defence. Eman Shoderu appeared to be baulked as he tried to get on the ball whilst Bethal Gboda’s shot was blocked.
Home keeper Justin Lee then denied Louis Anderson with a smart save; Shoderu was thwarted by a big left hand of keeper Serine Sannah and at the other end Lee did well keeping out Kirby’s stinging low drive, before the home keeper was sent scrambling across his goal from another Kirby effort.
Reuel Powell-Downey then did beat Lee as he raced onto a through ball, but his prodded effort went wide of the left post, Sannah did well to keep out a Hudson header.
Shoderu was too high with a curler from the edge of the Rusthall box as the chances kept coming at both ends – Lee saving brilliantly from Kirby again before Liam Parle clearing the rebound from Powell-Downey off the line, whilst at the other end, from a huge Lee clearance and a defensive lapse, Steve Townsend, who worked his socks off all night, blazed high over.
Just as it look as if the first half would somehow remain goal-less, Kirby struck as he picked the ball up wide on the left, cut across the edge of the box before completely wrong footing Lee as he arrowed a hit back across from where he’d just run from and into the bottom corner.
The second half started and Rusthall effectively sealed the game within the first three minutes. Almost immediately, the visitors thought they had a second only to be denied by the assistant’s flag, but they needn’t have worried as on forty-eight minutes, Clovers angled run got him in behind the back of the home defence and he coolly lobbed the advancing keeper with some aplomb!
The goal knocked the stuffing out of Snodland, now kicking up the slope and try as they might, they couldn’t force a clear second have chance as the ball flew across the face of the Rusthall goal on numerous occasions without a yellow shirt getting near the ball.
Indeed, the home side’s best and only real opportunity in the second period came from a glancing header that flew wide.
Rusthall then rise to third in the table and a potential home semi-final play-off spot, although they still need another point on Saturday against Holmesdale to guarantee post season football.
But with Punjab United winning against Stansfeld, they are now just three points behind and still have rock bottom Hythe to play on Thursday.
Should the Gravesend side win that, the two will be level on points going into the final game, and should Rusthall slip up, Punjab could yet finish third if they can win their last game which is away to… Snodland Town! Talk about having the “power!!!”
SNODLAND TOWN – Lee, Rye (Johnson), Parle, Friend, Holland, Loveridge, Hudson, Wood (Alhassan), Townsend, Shoderu (Goatham), Gboda (Scott).
Sub not used – Teodorescu.
RUSTHALL – Sanneh, Anderson, Kareem, Bissett, Blunn, Njuguna, Powell-Downey (Fares), Adeyemi, Clover (Owoeye), Kirby, Clarke (Aiye).
Subs not used – Reid, Khalil.
REFEREE – Mr. Diminieux