Rustington lose second cup semi-final

After losing 2-1 to Rye United in the John O’Hara Cup last Tuesday, Blues suffered more heartbreak when Swans netted an 111th-minute winner at Wick’s Crabtree Park.

Storrington nearly paid the penalty in this game for what can only be described as poor officiating. Both Rustington’s goals came from the spot and Matt Huckett’s boot with dubious penalty awards.

The first half was extremely forgettable, with the long ball being considered the best dish on the menu by both sides. The only real chance came in the second minute of added time when a Richard Maymon long throw was flicked into the far corner by Luke Jearum, over a despairing Jack Bonetti dive. It was a goal that neither side really deserved.

Blues started the second period much the brighter of the teams but had a stroke of luck with their equaliser. A bouncing ball was adjudged to have hit Swans’ skipper John Rhodie’s arm and Huckett buried the penalty into the bottom left-hand corner of Gary Elliott’s net with 53 minutes gone.

Rustington’s second, just 10 minutes later, was equally controversial as Huckett clearly controlled a pass with his hand before sending Steve Kirkham through before the frontman was upended by Chris Watton. In a carbon copy of the first spot-kick, Huckett put Rustington ahead with his 16th goal of the season.

Storrington were back on terms in the 69th minute with the best move of the game. Martin showed good strength to lay the ball off to Craig Grantham. He passed it onto Jake Cockerton who smashed home an unstoppable drive into the top corner, giving Bonetti no chance.

The first half of extra-time mirrored the first half of normal time in its lack of quality, but a last-ditch tackle from Elliott after his mix-up with Stuart McCall kept the scores level.

The eventual winner came in the 111th minute when Liam Humphreys picked up a loose ball from a corner and appeared to cross from the right-hand side of the box, only to see the ball hit the far post and go in.

From that point, it was all hands to the pump for Swans’ defence, but they held on and go through to meet the winners of AFC Uckfield and Little Common, who play on Monday.

Rustington manager Brett Torode was naturally disappointed and said: “I don’t know if it’s all the games we’ve had recently, but I felt we were a bit flat tonight.

“A few weeks ago we had plenty to look forward to, but now it’s going to be a long, hard, run-in.”

RUSTINGTON: Bonetti; Bennett, Neal, Sayers, Boxall; Hudson, Clayton, Jones, Darwin; Kirkham, Huckett. Subs: Wimbleton (Jones 87), Butt (Hudson 100), Adams (Kirkham 111), Matthews, Green.