FOOTBALL: Two Sent Off as United Suffer Third League Defeat
31 August:
Hastings Utd 3, Redhill Town 1
7 September:
Hashtag Utd 4, Hastings Utd 0
Hastings United suffered their third successive defeat in this season’s Isthmian Premier League, finishing their match against Essex side Hashtag last Saturday at the wrong end of a 0-4 scoreline.
Davide Rodari – hat-trick against Redhill
The first half was an even contest, but United were punished for failing to defend two set pieces and came in 2-0 down. They started the second half brightly, but defender Dequane Wilson-Braithwaite was sent off on the hour mark after being yellow-carded twice in five minutes. Tom Howard (who was making his first competitive start for the ‘U’s after joining them in the summer) followed him to the dressing-room ten minutes later, receiving a straight red card after being adjudged to have fouled a Hashtag forward who was otherwise clear on goal. The home side were already 3-0 up by then, and notched a fourth goal in added time.
The previous Saturday the ‘U’s had overcome Redhill Town 3-1 at the Pilot Field in the first qualifying round of the FA Cup. The visitors put in a spirited performance despite their lowly status in the Combined Counties League, two tiers of the football pyramid below their hosts, and may have considered themselves unfortunate to lose.
The first half was a tale of three penalties: the first rifled in by Davide Rodari for the ‘U’s after Billy Vigar had been tripped; the second an equaliser, by Redhill’s Tommy Smith after a foul by Hastings goalkeeper Louis Rogers; then a second successful spot-kick by Rodari following a defender’s handballing of a high cross from the right.
In the second half Redhill took the game to United, coming close to a second equaliser on a couple of occasions: one header was cleared off the line and another brilliantly turned over the crossbar by Rogers. But Rodari claimed his hat-trick up the other end seven minutes from time to seal the win that put his team into the next round.
There they have been given what looks on paper a favourable tie, at home again to another Combined Counties team Harefield United, the match to be played tomorrow (Saturday). However, with Harefield beating Isthmian Premier leaders Lewes away in the previous round, manager Danny Bloor is surely right to warn against treating them lightly.
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