Rye are in a right Stu as Souter lifts Selsey

Selsey returned to the top half of the table after a late Stuart Souter goal saw them record a fine 1-0 win at Rye.

Their opponents have been struggling with fixture congestion, but the Blues didn’t mind.

Blues boss Ian Martin told the Observer: “It’s amazing – one win can shoot you straight back up again. It was a good result and we played much better than the previous week.”

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Martin’s side are tenth in the league table with five games to go.

Souter’s 80th-minute strike, his ninth of the season, gave Selsey their second win in three games and put them closer to mathematical safety and Martin reserved praise for the young midfielder.

“It’s his first season as a first-team regular and he’s a gifted young lad who’s done really well.

“He’s got some important goals for us this season,” Martin said.

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Selsey can now concentrate on consolidating a top-half place, though many teams below them still hold games in hand.

“The aim was always to maintain first-division football but we’d love to finish in the top half,” he said. “We just have to keep trying to win as many games as we can.”

With four of their five remaining games at home, Martin’s side will be up for the challenge – but the manager was honest in his assessment of Selsey’s home form so far.

“We’ve not really impressed our home fans this season. We seemed to have had some great results away but it will be nice to play on a good pitch and hopefully in front of some good crowds,” he said.

First up is Lingfield, who visit the High Street Ground on Saturday themselves trying to guarantee safety.

MARK ALLAWAY