Sweet victory at Maidenhead ends Eastbourne Borough’s long wait for league success

Never mind the quality, feel the relief. For beautiful football, this was no afternoon for the purist. Maidenhead’s club reporter awarded the game a grudging one star, but the triumphant Borough contingent would happily have given it six out of five.

The points were secured thanks to Freddie Carter’s 64th minute strike, from an Eastbourne corner. But the other 89 minutes were just as crucial as every man in a Borough shirt manned the defensive ramparts – with regular sorties forward to trouble the home side.

Returning to Priory Lane, where he enjoyed five eventful seasons from 2012 to 2017, Widdrington had barely been in post 48 hours when he took his troops along the M4 to Buckinghamshire. But he had done his homework.

Speaking to the Herald last Thursday – actually in his first interview with the wider world – Tommy was already focused. “I’ve had a look at the data, and I’ve watched a couple of games back. We haven’t scored enough goals – but we haven’t conceded many either. We’ve drawn five out of ten, and we’ve been very close in a number of games.

“Something will spark us – whether it’s a piece of individual brilliance, or even our keeper makes a great save and that’s as good as a goal – something will flip. I’m just hopeful that my input and my way of playing will spark something and bring a change of fortunes!”

And with the marker pen barely dried on the tactics whiteboard, Tommy’s XI were primed and ready with a game plan. The tightness and discipline were still there, in a contest which frankly was short on breathless goalmouth action and scoring chances – but finally, finally it was the Sports who claimed the crucial match-winning moment instead of conceding it.

We did have to wait for over an hour of tight combat before that decisive moment arrived. The Sports won a 64th minute corner, from which home keeper Jordi van Stappenshoef – needing a clean catch or an emphatic punch – managed only a feeble parry. Freddie Carter – up for the sort of set-piece awayday that all centre-backs relish – instantly hammered the loose ball through a tumble of players and into the net.

Eastbourne lad Freddie has always been a superb defender in the making, and only nagging injuries hindered him last season. Now he grows with every game – although at about 6’2” he surely must stop soon! – and Freddie embodies that spirit of the Sports, which the entire squad is buying into.

Not that this was a one-man victory. Previous manager Matt Gray has bequeathed to Tommy a pair of very seasoned goalkeepers – big guys in every sense – and Ryan Sandford stood up strong and confident on Saturday. Within minutes of kick-off he had denied the influential Liam Dulson, and on either side of half-time he saved strongly from Magpies front-runners Josh Popoola and Corie Andrews.

The Sports had spent most of the first half taming the Magpies, but just on the interval they earned their best scoring chance of the half, Pemi Aderojuh’s power header saved by home keeper van Stappershoef.

Halfway to another draw, then? Widdrington’s side were aiming higher, and on 64 minutes they broke the deadlock. When van Stappershoef could only flap at a curling corner from the cultured left foot of Isaac Piblado, Carter seized his chance and hammered Borough into a 1-0 lead. At last, after weeks of frustration, the tide had finally turned.

At risk of mixing his metaphors, from defending like the Alamo, to setting the compass for home like a piratical Jack Sparrow.. We will save the victory fly-past and vapour trail for Airbourne week.

But this Eastbourne squad has never lacked the belief that, one day soon, the tide would turn and the Good Ship Borough would finally evade the submerged wrecks and the hidden rocks, and steer safely home with the prize of three National South points.

From the quayside, the ever loyal and ever so slightly manic Pink Army cheered and roared to the echo. This victory may have been a long time coming, but it was all the sweeter for that.