Match 18. Sittingbourne v Faversham Town

Saturday 26th December 2012 @3pm Ryman League Division One South SITTINGBOURNE 1-1 FAVERSHAM TOWN Bourne Park, Sittingbourne   Admission: £8 Programme: £1.50 (A5, b/w, 28pp) Attendance: 186 Food: Sausage Rolls & Mince pies (Homemade) Drink: Guinness, £3.30, Cup-a-soup, £1   Thanks to the efforts of the Sittingbourne Committee who spent the morning clearing the pitch of water allowing the referee to pass the game on. It has been a few seasons since I was last here but there are no changes and the ground has a tired look about it.  The rain returned for kick off and became heavier as the match wore on.  This was not helping either side as control and passing gave way to staying upright and thumping the ball around the pitch.  Sittingbourne had to bring off their robust forward after only 20 minutes making the task even more difficult.   Faversham gained the upper hand from this point but Sittingbourne took the lead against the run of play when Taylor scored from close range after his original shot was parried.  Faversham hit the bar from 30 yards moments later but as conditions worsened the teams went in at 1-0. The second half started with Faversham winning a free kick just outside the area. The shot rebounded of the wall and the shot was brilliantly saved by the home keeper. Ex-Carshalton striker Adrian Stone put the visitors’ level with 20 minutes left when Sittingbourne failed to clear their own lines and he gratefully stabbed the ball goal bound.  Both sides had chances in the last few minutes but the only winner was the rain, which by now was lashing down making puddles on the pitch.  The grateful supporters cheered when the final whistle blew.