Southern League Premier South football: AFC Totton put to the sword by victorious Crusaders
Southern League Premier South
AFC Totton 1
Hungerford Town FC 2
AFC Totton’s five-game unbeaten run ended after they could not find an equaliser at home to Hungerford Town, as the away side ground out a 2-1 victory at the Snows Stadium.
The Crusaders scored twice, one on either side of the break, through Adulai Sambú and Elis Watts, and although Scott Rendell pulled one back for the Stags, Hungerford held on.
It was an even affair for the majority of the first half, but it was Town who found the breakthrough.
A defensive mix-up allowed Sambu to gain control of the ball before rounding the goalkeeper and slotting home from the narrowest of angles.
Jimmy Ball’s rallying half-time team talk did not have the desired outcome for the second half, as the Crusaders doubled their lead.
With 54 minutes played, Watts picked up the ball on the right flank before making his way goalwards and coolly passing the ball underneath the onrushing Lewis Noice.
The Stags, who sit three points off the play-off places with games in hand on most of the sides above them, looked to their bench to try and work themselves back into the game, bringing on Alfie Stanley and Adam Tomasso, with the former receiving much of the ball in the final third.
The home side eventually pulled a goal back through Rendell, who stooped to knock home Leon Maloney’s cross with a stunning diving header in the 78th minute to bag his 16th goal of the season.
The Stags probed for the final few minutes in search of an equaliser, but the battling Crusaders stood firm to seal all three points.
AFC Totton is in action on Saturday at 3pm away at Merthyr Town, with their next home game coming against East Cowes Victoria Athletic in the Hampshire Senior Cup on the following Wednesday at 7.45pm.
AFC Totton: L. Noice, B. Read, J. Ragguette, C. Kennedy, L. Hallett, J. Oastler, S. Rendell, E. Taylor, J. Chiedozie, S. Magri, L. Maloney. Subs: A. Tomasso, N. Trojanowski, L. Brown, A. Stanley, O. Pelham.
