Ringmer rattle Battle for confidence-boosting win

Following a disappointing October in which they suffered two defeats and a draw, the Blues were notably refreshed at the Bexhill College 3G pitch, with two new signings and a more varied attacking approach yielding success.

With Jamie Blackford scoring a hat-trick of well-taken finishes in between a first-minute strike from Ed Easton and a late Rhys Taylor penalty, Ringmer shared out the goals and were delighted come full-time.

However, there were some shaky moments during the 90 minutes and some profligate finishing, with the final score shy of the full scale of Ringmer’s domination.

New faces excite

For those who had not seen Ringmer of late – and there had not been too many chances in October, with all three of their matches being away from home – the Blues’ starting XI in Bexhill showed several surprises.

In goal, the suspension of Xhemal Bako after a red card in a 2-2 draw at Rotherfield presented an opening.

This was filled by Benjamin Taylor, a 17-year-old ‘keeper from the East Grinstead Town youth set-up who was captured by the Blues amidst stern recent competition.

At the other end of the pitch, Fraser Argyle made his debut as the side’s new number nine, with six goals in four games for Eastbourne Athletic this season bringing him to boss Tommy Haddon’s attention.

As far as this pair were concerned, their first minute in Ringmer colours could not have gone much better.

Sweeping upfield from an initial Battle attack, the Blues stunningly sliced through their hosts as Argyle got the ball on the right and found Easton in space to rifle home from six yards.

From this point – with just 30 seconds on the clock – the contest was never truly even.

Blues shine bright

On the weekend between Halloween and Bonfire Night, it was fitting that Ringmer blew away the cobwebs and caught fire on the Sussex coast.

In truth, they should have doubled their lead several times before the half-hour mark as Easton rounded the Battle goalkeeper and lifted a shot over the crossbar, while Argyle also clipped an effort over after making a great run to meet Easton’s cross from the left.

Following this, Easton had another effort – a tricky half-volley requiring some contortion – that flew just wide of the post with the ‘keeper stranded, while a defensive header struck the bar after Rhys Taylor’s cross.

Finally, in the 39th minute, Blackford made the vital contribution as he cut in from the right and showed excellent footwork to send a scorching effort into the top right corner.

Despite all this Ringmer dominance, Battle remained a threat.

While Aston Sweetman missed a great chance as he stabbed wide of the left post when under pressure from Ben Taylor, Oliver Norris delivered with the hosts’ second chance in front of goal.

On the stroke of half-time, the winger pounced on a chance from a throw-in, turning his defender and striking a powerful half-volley past Taylor.

Ringmer bring the style

That goal was a wake-up call for Ringmer, who had previously made errors when leading this season and could not afford to do so again.

The first 15 minutes of the second half presented a real test, with the hosts being much stronger in each challenge and managing to sustain their pressure across the field.

Ringmer’s main line of attack – a connection between the surprisingly attacking George Maybury and a versatile Argyle on the right – was shut down, prompting the Blues to seek other solutions.

They did this superbly, with Rhys Taylor proving an ever-willing option when drifting in from the left while Easton and Argyle linked up excellently in attack, often operating as a pair.

The main beneficiary of Easton and Argyle’s work moving the ball around was Blackford, who consistently made runs to the edge of the box to punish Battle’s gap between defence and midfield.

In the 66th minute, this resulted in Blackford’s second goal as he found space in the right half-space after an Easton lay-off and cracked an irresistible effort through the ‘keeper’s gloves.

Just a few minutes later, the midfielder had his hat-trick too.

The Argyle to Easton pipeline worked again to let Blackford in from the left, where he drove an effort past a couple of bodies and into the net.

With Ringmer cruising, it was a quieter second game in a row for super-sub and sudden player-manager Haddon, who followed up his heroics at Rotherfield – where he replaced a red-carded Bako and immediately saved a penalty – by coming on for Benjamin Taylor, who was suffering the effects of a coming-together with Battle striker Glen Carrick.

Haddon did not have a save to make in the Ringmer net and could let assistant Jon Hart ring the changes as the Blues kept things fresh in their push for more goals.

Ultimately, this produced one more strike to boost the goal difference, with Luke Colwell being fouled while winning a header in the Battle box.

Rhys Taylor coolly converted the resulting penalty for his sixth goal of the season, putting the icing on a commanding 5-1 win.

Despite the margin of victory, Ringmer remain 8th in the MSFL Premier Division table, with 12 points after nine matches.

They know a run of form is required to close the gap on the leading pack and have the chance to deliver this with three consecutive home matches in November.

The first of those comes this Saturday as the Blues welcome Crawley Devils to the Caburn Community Ground for a 1pm kick-off. Admission, as ever, is free for all spectators.

Ringmer AFC: B. Taylor (Haddon, 70’); Wilton, Northeast (C), Verrall, Maybury; Webster, Blackford (Butterworth, 85’); R. Taylor, Earle (Coleman, 65’), Easton (Howard, 78’); Argyle (Colwell, 74’)