Pagham pay price for defensive lapses at Lingfield

Pagham threw away two points at Lingfield, giving away two goals that under different circumstances would have been comical.
Callum Overton was on target at Lingfield / Picture by Roger SmithCallum Overton was on target at Lingfield / Picture by Roger Smith
Callum Overton was on target at Lingfield / Picture by Roger Smith

That it was two of only three Lingfield goalscoring attempts of the game made it even more frustrating for the away side.

The Lions started on the front foot and in their first attack, in only the second minute, Liam Humphries headed a George Gaskin corner just over the bar that was so close to giving his side the lead.

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The next half an hour saw the game move from end to end, with no real chances being created by either side, before suddenly Callum Overton tucked away a penalty that was all of his own making.

Overton ran at the Lingers defence, beating two but being sent crashing to the floor by the third for a penalty that he thumped home giving the keeper no chance. The first half ended 1-0 in Pagham’s favour.

The second period started with Pagham again pushing forward and Ryan Cox almost made it 2-0, being stopped inside the six-yard box by a wonderful tackle by Lingfield’s Josh Fuller.

Play switched quickly to the other end and Lions keeper James Binfield pulled off a magnificent save from a 20-yard free-kick to tip the ball over the bar. Back to the other end and Shay Wiggins was unlucky to see his drive slide past the post from an excellent pass by Gaskin.

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Then the lunacy started. The Lions went into total defensive meltdown, giving possession to Lingfield on the edge of the box, allowing Sam Clements to chip the ball over Binfield to tie the game at 1-1 on 71 minutes.

Straight from the kick-off Pagham worked the ball wide but lost possession immediately as the ball was played back to Lingers keeper Moore. Cox was not giving up and chased the ball into the box, getting there fractionally before Moore, got the ball round him and selflessly rolled it back for Overton to gleefully smash home from a yard out.

Then, seven minutes later the Lions defence decided to self-destruct again in an identical move, giving the ball away on the edge of the box to sub Ben Connolly who lobbed it into the open goal, giving Binfield no chance.

Two more half chances fell to Pagham, one each to Scott Murfin and sub Shane Brazil, but it was not to be, and the whistle went on a pulsating end-to-end if somewhat strange game.

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Pagham are fourth in the table and host Horsham YMCA on Saturday.

Pagham: Binfield, Wiggans, Cox, Davidson, Williams, van Driel, Humphries (Williamson), Neighbour, Gaskin, Overton, Murfin (Brazil). Subs not used: Hendrick, Prisk, Miller.

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