Bognor Regis Town’s eight-month league unbeaten run is ended by Southall
Danny Hollands suffered a first league defeat since he took over at Bognor Regis Town as the Isthmian South Central division table-toppers went down 3-1 away to Southall.
Hollands and No2 Ben Kneller guided the Nye Camp outfit to 10 games without a loss from February after taking over last season and were unbowed in league fixtures thus far – until this result at the home of Uxbridge in front of 206 fans.
Rocks stay top of the pile but the reverse is a blow as they look to build on what had been an unbeaten start to their league campaign.
New boy Timmy Abraham gave the visitors the perfect start with a goal after just four minutes and that provided a continuation of the confidence in the camp — but the home side refused to let the early setback disrupt their ambitions.
Bill Montague pulled Southall level on 39 minutes and the fear from the travelling supporters was that the dreaded ‘goal just before half-time’ would lift the home side after the break.
And so it was. There was added impetus about Southall and it was that man Montague who made it 2-1 on 75 minutes.
And to compound their misery the home side went further ahead two minutes later when Liam Ferdinand notched for 3-1 and effectively ended the contest.
The Rocks had entered the fray in good form and with three points under their belts from a dramatic 2-1 win over basement boys Binfield the week before.
Hollands hasn’t been afraid to freshen up his options through squad selection and of course has been forced to juggle his choice of personnel through injury considerations.
Abrahams, signed recently on a dual deal from Gosport Borough, started up top in his league debut after featuring in the Sussex Senior Cup win over Worthing United.
Liam Webber missed out through suspension while Tommy Block dropped to the bench. Experienced Harvey Whyte returned to right-back to try to solidify the visitors’ rearguard.
Defeat was the outcome but the wider context is that the Rocks would have taken their current position before a ball was kicked this season – and the away day vanquishing can serve as a reminder of more hard work to come.
Hollands gets the chance to get his group back on track at Ascot United next Saturday.