Handcross Village FC

This page is for pictures from the Cup final which will be added in due course as well as a full report from the match itself

April 7th 1-5 Uckfield Town III Somerville Cup Final East Court

Team:Gilson,P.Clarke,Kerr,Hartfield,Thomas,Matthews,Hollingsworth,Hassam,Parsons,Baines,Turner

Subs: Peters, Mccreadie, Daly, Mitchell

Goals: Baines

The day finally arrived for Handcross to compete in their first cup final for twelve seasons and the huge sense of anticipation was tangiable to everyone. With nearly everyone decked out in their sunday best everyone seemed to be lapping up every second of the limelight which was the sensible thing to do. Handcross were the underdogs on this occasion but were determined to upset the odds. The evening got off to a bad start as the knee injury suffered by Phil Peters on the Saturday at Wivelsfield hadnt healed properly and he made the tough decision to stand aside and take a place on the bench. It was very tough on Phil who had contributed so much to The Tigers being in the final but he must be applauded for not trying to play on which could have been unbeneficial to the whole side. On the plus side he could lend his vocal support from the sidelines. Handcross brought great support with them including many old faces and many of the Reserves came to spectate. It was also great to have Stuart Bailey give some much needed words of wisdom before kick off and give the side the benefit of his expeirence of these occasions. After a pre match walk of the pitch which was fairly hard and bobbly the scene was set to get the game underway.

From the start Village took the upperhand and began to try and play some decent football on a less than flat surface. Wayne Baines was given an early opportunity to show his pace which troubled the backline but he was just crowded out when he tried to turn inside the last defender when perhaps an early shot would have been a better option. After an even opening 15 minutes Uckfield began to show their hand and the front two began to look dangerous with their clever movement and quick feet. The forward picked the ball up outside the area wide on the left and proceeded to dance through the backline before slotting the ball into the far corner to open the scoring in fine style. It was important for Handcross to remain calm as they had already shown that they were a match for their opponents. Simon Turner was beginning to find space in the centre of the park as Uckfields centre pairing seemed more intent on getting forward. Alnur Hassam tried from range but was undone by a bobble and lashed the ball over. Spurred on by a vocal support The Tigers continued to get forward but just couldnt quite unlock the Uckfield backline to create good chances and at times the final ball lacked composure. Handcross then suffered a real sickener as a long ball over the top was raced onto by the number 9 who again finished cooly for his and Uckfields second of the game and now Handcross faced a real battle to lift the trophy. It was almost three shortly after but once more John Gilson dashed off his line and produced a heroic block at the attackers feet to keep Village in the game. Handcross needed a goal before half time to give them a hint of possible glory. This time it was Village who capitalised on a long ball which Wayne Baines scampered after and nicked the ball round the onrushing keeper and finished well with the outside of his right foot. It was a superb finish and just reward for a good first half performance. The half time whistle sounded minutes later with Handcross firmly on the front foot. On the downside Paul Clarke was clearly struggling with a wrist injury picked up just after kick off and was a doubt to finish the game.

During the interval the mood was high amongst the players and determination oozed out of them and a good start was required in the second period and an equalizer would rock Town. Once more Village made a decent start although should have gone down to ten men when Barry Hollingsworth caught the dangerous forward very late to raise the temperature a fraction higher. He escaped with a yellow but was on thin ice. Handcross were trying to utilize the pace of Wayne Baines and the trickery of Jamie Matthews but again at time the final ball was lacking in quality. Handcross were then forced into a change with Gary Kerr struggling with an ankle injury after enjoying a fine game at the heart of defence. He was replaced by Carl Daly with Gary Thomas moving to centre back. From the next corner a good ball found the number 9 again and he buried his header for 3-1. It was tough on Village and Uckfield sensed the chance to put the game to bed and homed in for the kill. Handcross were now being stretched but hung on and forced a free kick wide on the right. Young Carl Daly took the resposibilty and curled a magnificent left footer from 30 yards which seemed destined for the top corner but to everyones horror it crashed off the bar and away to safety. Tom Mitchell came on to replace Paul Clarke and Alex Mccreadie came on for Jamie Matthews. Minutes later the game was won for Uckfield when they made the most of some sloppy defending with a whipped cross and header from the edge of the box wrong footing John Gilson. The icing on the cake was applied with a ferecious volley from inside the box that swerved past the stranded keeper. Chances were few and far between for Village with Simon Turner forcing a good save with a low drive and Barry Hollingsworth almost converting a close range header.

The final score was very harsh on Handcross who for long periods of the game matched their opponents and aside from 15 minutes in the second half when three goals were conceded it was a good game. Carl Dalys free kick would have made such a difference to the final outcome had it of dropped in. Handcross were a credit to the club the way they conducted themselves and the spirit in which the game was played. Losing Phil Peters was a big blow as well as injuries to Gary Kerr and Paul Clarke which may have implications for the promotion run in. Everyone gave their all but Uckfields quality in the final third told in the end, but it was a great effort to reach the Final and everyone involved should be applauded as to should be everyone who came to support the club and we hope to see soem of you for the huge games that the side now face in the closing weeks of the season.