Butler off to a flyer as Arundel boss

Mullets overcame the top side 3-0 in their own backyard on Saturday, before following it up with a 4-2 win at home to Shoreham on Tuesday night.

Butler said: “They have been two cracking results. Saturday was just a dream start but then reality set in for the first half of the Shoreham game.

“We always have trouble against them and before the game I said to the lads to go out and be confident, but also said there was a fine line in being confident and over-confident.

“But we just weren’t at the races in the first half and their early goal knocked the stuffing out of us. To be honest, we were lucky to go in just one down.”

Arundel had trailed 1-0 to a second-minute Charlie Walker strike at half-time and it could have easily been more as Shoreham came out the blocks well, and Ben O’Connor made a crucial one-on-one save from Walker on the stroke of half time.

But a couple of changes at half-time saw Mullets emerge and dominate the second half.

Matt Axell levelled things up on 55 minutes after cutting inside and beating two players, before Josh Biggs put Arundel ahead 10 minutes later with a thumping free kick.

Lewis Hamilton looked to have made the game safe on 70 minutes at the second attempt, but a nasty injury which saw Shoreham’s Kevin Keehen taken to hospital with suspected broken ribs and nerve damage knocked Mullets’ concentration.

Shoreham capitalised and Liam O’Brien pulled one back in injury-time, but Hamilton’s second then secured the win.

Butler’s first game as Arundel manager could not have gone better on Saturday with a 3-0 win at Bridges.

Axell hit a post and Hamilton went close, before Mullets went in front through Scott Tipper’s close-range finish right on half-time.

Hamilton cut inside and slotted in to make it 2-0 on 63 minutes, and then Tipper wrapped up Mullets’ perfect day in injury-time after Josh Biggs’ effort was saved.

Butler called Arundel’s performance their “best of the season” and added: “I couldn’t have scripted it better, everyone from one to 15 was superb.

“Full credit to everyone, we kept the ball excellently and we didn’t give them a sniff. Everything came together perfectly, I couldn’t have asked for more, there’s good depth in the squad and a competition for places. Our attitude was superb and we defended stoutly when we needed to.”

ARUNDEL v Shoreham: O’Connor; A.Biggs, Sneller, D.Walker, L.Walker; Hamilton, R.Biggs, Axell, J.Biggs, Gardener; Tipper. Subs: Duncan (L.Walker 70), Rance (Gardener 80), Burton (Walker 85).

v Bridges: O’Connor; A.Biggs, D. Walker, Sneller, Heward; Hamilton, Axell, Grove, J.Biggs, R.Biggs; Tipper. Subs: Gardener (R.Biggs 45), L.Walker (Heward 80), Rance (Hamilton 85), Duncan, Griffiths.