Heath Battle to Three Points at the Polgrove
After the disappointment of a postponed match against Horsham YMCA on Tuesday, the Heath’s away fixture against Bexhill United was given the green light after a morning pitch inspection. Both sides observed a minute silence prior to kick-off in memory of former Heath player Karly Akehurst, who passed away in the week, and black armbands were worn by both sets of players.
The game at The Polegrove was underway, and Rouane’s men had the first big chance of the match 10 minutes in; Byron Napper’s turn and shot from outside the box forcing a save from the young Bexhill goalkeeper, unfortunately, the resulting corner would lead to nothing. Liam Benson nearly put the Heath ahead near the half an hour mark, the striker breaking free from his marker brilliantly and then knocking the ball around the keeper near the by-line, despite the open goal, the angle proved too tight as the ball hit the side netting.
The travelling Blue’s bright start continued, Cameron Dobell and Hayden Skerry pressed the Pirate’s back line, the latter latching onto a through ball, cooling taking the goalkeeper out of the equation and his reward was tapping into an empty net and putting the Heath ahead.
Darius Goldsmith was the first Heath player to enter the book for dragging down Bexhill’s winger who threatened to break down the left-hand side. The Heath continued to control possession and chances in the second half, and despite the hosts getting into dangerous areas, the finishing touch lacked. Some scrappy battles in midfield mixed with plenty of slips on the thawing pitch made for an entertaining watch. Naim Rouane made his changes late on with Geard replacing Dobell and Connolly replacing goal scorer Skerry. The Heath held onto their lead until the full-time whistle to claim a vital three points in their promotion chase and a well-fought-out win at the Polegrove.
