Solitary strike condemns Bexhill

A solitary first half strike sealed their fate despite a late siege on the goal of Sidlesham - another side in the bottom three of Sussex Division Two.

"It was disappointing," said then joint manager Jason Robson of what turned out to be his last game in charge. "Losing 1-0 was better than losing 5-0, but we just didn't get going until the last 20 minutes when we went 3-4-3 and bombarded them. During the first 70 minutes I think it was probably quite Even Stevens, but it was totally one-sided for the last 20 minutes.

"We were very close to getting a goal at the end and we certainly deserved something out of the game, but I think the fairest result that could have happened would have been a draw. We got a fair bit of support from the crowd at the end, but the biggest problem was that we looked like we were playing away from home. It wasn't a good day, but in saying that, some players played quite well."

There wasn't too much to cheer about for Bexhill, who were sunk by Seacombe's goal in the 26th minute, but one positive was the return of Darren Witham.

The talented midfielder played the full 90 minutes on his first appearance for the front side since breaking a bone in his foot during pre-season. "It was nice to have Darren back," Robson added. "He go through it okay, although he was a little bit tired towards the end."

United also gave a debut on the right of midfield to Dominic Still, whose signing from Division One side Rye & Iden United was processed just the night before the game.