Match Reports

The Mavericks achieved a hard-earned draw at Storrington on this beautiful late summer's afternoon in West Sussex.  The Mavericks started well and controlled the opening phase of the match.  Joe Patching came closest to scoring, but his free-kick in the 20th minute sailed over the crossbar

Towards the end of the first half however, the home side began to press forward, and might have scored on two occasions.  The ever dangerous Martin Harris rattled the crossbar in the 34th minute, and in the 42nd minute the same player hit the post with a fierce strike from the right.

Harris it was who opened the scoring in the 55th minute, stabbing the ball past Aaron Relf in the Mavericks' goal.  The goal contained more than a hint of offside, but despite the protestations of the Maverick defenders, the goal stood.

The equalizer came in the 75th minute.  The excellent Kieran Deacon crossed from the right and Joji Phillips headed home at the far post.

The point gained ended a run of five consecutive defeats in all competitions, and lifted the spirits of the Worthing United contingent.  The Mavericks remained bottom of the division, but only on goal difference, and a revival of fortunes was hopefully around the corner.

Keith. 

The Mavericks shipped seven goals for the second match running, although on both occasions the opposition was from the Premier Division.  Trailing 2-0 at the interval, the team battled away, and it was only towards the end of the match that the floodgates opened.  Callum Thoms scored the only goal from the penalty spot.

Keith. 

On a hot, sunny afternoon the Mavericks were unceremoniously dumped out of the FA Vase by a far superior Lancing side from the Premier Division.  

Their goal hero was Alex Fair, who netted four times. He opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 4th minute, and James Rhodes made it 2-0 in the 6th minute, firing home into the far corner.   

The Mavericks' best moment of the first half came when Joe Patching saw his excellent strike parried away by Taylor Seymour in the Lancing goal.  

But the home side piled on the pressure. George Fenton's fierce strike from the left flank increased the lead in the 36th minute, and Fair's own second goal in the 41st minute gave Lancing a 4-0 lead at half-time.

Fair completed his hat-trick in the 50th minute, beating Joe Sandell from 12 yards, before Worthing United's Joe Kennard almost pulled a goal back. His superb effort was tipped over the bar by Seymour, and Lancing came again.

Fair made it 6-0 in the 69th minute with a fine individual goal, and Mo Juwara scored the  seventh in the 78th minute with the best goal of the match, a dazzling solo effort which mesmerized the deflated Mavericks' defence.

Sadly there was still time for Kieran Deacon to be sent off for two yellow card offences, completing a miserable afternoon.

Keith. 

Played on a mild evening, this was an entertaining match with plenty of excitement and near misses at both ends.  At the end of 90 minutes however, it was Littlehampton who maintained their 100% start to the season with a narrow 2-1 victory.

The home side had most of the possession and created more goal scoring opportunities throughout the game, and should have taken the lead in the 5th minute.  But Harry Russell headed just wide of the post when it looked easier to score, and a few minutes later Mavericks' goalkeeper Joe Sandell saved well from Littlehampton's Ben Gray.

It was not all one-way, and at the other end Kieran Deacon's excellent strike was tipped over the crossbar by Littlehampton keeper James Binfield.  With half-time approaching however, the Mavericks fell 1-0 behind when Gray netted from close range.

The Mavericks drew level on the hour mark when the referee awarded a penalty following an infringement inside the area.  Dom Taylor stepped up and crashed the ball into the roof of the net, and at this point a share of the points looked feasible.

Parity lasted just three minutes.  George Gaskin bundled the ball over the line in the 63rd minute to put Littlehampton 2-1 ahead to complete the scoring.  Gaskin might have added to his tally in the 70th minute but was denied by Sandell.

The Mavericks almost reduced the deficit in the 82nd minute when Dillon Nagle's dipping shot from a corner shaved the bar, but frustratingly there were no more goals and the team returned home empty handed.

The match ended on a bizarre note when no less than three United players were sent to the sin-bin for dissent, leaving just eight able-bodied players on the pitch.

Keith. 

On a beautiful sunny afternoon in late summer, the Mavericks succumbed to an efficient, hard-working Mile Oak side who moved into a comfortable 3-0 lead at the interval and never really looked back.

The match was preceded with a minute's silence in memory of former players Matthew Grimstone and Jacob Schilt who lost their lives in the Shoreham Air Show disaster of August 2015.

The home side started the match brightly but fell a goal behind in the 7th minute when Mile Oak's Joe Benn struck from distance.  It may have been slightly against the run of play at that point, but sadly it was portent of what was to come.

Joe Patching, who had another good match for the Mavericks, might have equalized on the quarter-hour with a fine solo effort, but his final shot was easily saved by Aaron Stenning in the Mile Oak goal.

Five minutes later the visitors moved 2-0 ahead when a defensive lapse allowed Benn to waltz through the heart of the Mavericks' midfield and plant the ball very firmly into the far corner of Ryan Reid's net.

In the 34th minute it was 3-0.  Benn's free-kick from the right was met by Harvey Dunk at the far post who headed home unopposed.  It all looked far too easy and at this stage a heavy defeat looked to be on the cards.

To their credit, the Mavericks upped their game in the second half and contained the away side, who were unable to add to their goal tally. Callum Wells almost scored a consolation at the death after being put through by Patching, but by then the damage was already done.  The game had been won and lost in the opening 45 minutes.

Keith.

The heavy rain from the previous day had abated, allowing this match to begin under sunny skies.  And what a match it was! Missing several key players due to injury and suspension, the Mavericks battled magnificently for the entire 90 minutes to overturn a 2-0 deficit and obtain a well earned 2-2 draw.

In such a fine team performance it may seem unfair to single out individual players, but it should be noted that the Mavericks' Ted Hartley was outstanding and hardly put a foot wrong all afternoon. Dillon Nagle, Joe Patching and goalkeeper Joe Sandell all put in decent shifts, but it was the collective team effort that ensured a share of the points.

The opening exchanges were about even with goal-scoring opportunities at both ends. In the 5th minute Sandell saved well from point blank range at the feet of Tyler Goatcher, but the Mavericks' keeper was unable to stop Seaford's Connor Jones slotting home in the 15th minute.

The visitors moved 2-0 ahead in the 38th minute when Owen Muller unluckily sliced the ball into his own net at the far post, and at this stage things were looking ominous for the home side.

Nagle, however, pulled a goal back on the stroke of half-time with a low shot into the far corner. It was the psychological boost the Mavericks needed, and after the interval they came out fighting.

Midway through the second half Yassine Jilal equalized with a screamer into the top corner that left Seaford's goalkeeper Josh Measor clutching at thin air. Jilal's goal celebration was something to behold, containing enough backward somersaults and backflips to win a gymnastics bronze medal at the Olympic Games.

All in all, it had been a great game of football, and a wonderful advert for the SCFL.

Keith.

On a blustery afternoon at Lyons Farm the Mavericks were knocked out of the Peter Bentley Cup at the first hurdle, but despite the high winds the match was full of incident, containing four goals and a sending off.

Mavericks' captain Kieran Deacon was dismissed in the first half for receiving two yellow cards, and with only ten men on the pitch the task became difficult.

The Mavericks had their chances however.  In the 20th minute Joji Phillips side-footed just wide of the post, and the same player ballooned the ball over the crossbar from 12 yards in the 27th minute.  Midway through the second half Joel Davison came close, and a Joe Patching free-kick in the 83rd minute was tipped over the bar by Oakwood goalkeeper Ashley Davy.

But this was Oakwood's day.  Josh Neathy opened the scoring in the 24th minute with a precise finish, and in the 45th minute Mitch Casselman made it 2-0 following a poor clearance by Connor Berwick in the Mavericks' goal.

Charlie Adsett added a third in the 67th minute after more terrible defending, and Neathy completed the scoring late in the match with a decent finish. He might have scored a hat-trick but his penalty kick at the death was wide of the mark.

Neathy, it has to be said, hardly endeared himself to the home supporters, going down like a sack of King Edwards each time a United player so much as breathed on him.  Eventually, the referee became exasperated and showed him a yellow card.

Keith.