Ransom earns Maresfield cup triumph

An early opportunist goal from the tenacious Karl Ransom and one each from young strike partners Hayden Rolfe and Tom Ransom, in the second period of extra time, brought the Stratford Cup to Maresfield for the first time in the club's history.

By The Newsroom

Published 19th Apr 2007, 15:14 BST

Updated 7th Jun 2018, 22:52 BST

Maresfield, who were fielding eight players under 18, lost the influential Luke Forster with a hamstring injury after just 20 minutes.

Barcombe took full advantage of his loss and, following some indecision in the Maresfield defence, they created the simplest of opportunities to level the scores from eight yards out.

For the remainder of the 90 minutes Barcombe had the upper hand and peppered the Maresfield goal at regular intervals. Only their lack of quality in finishing and some inspired defending from the vastly experienced Andy Avis and Ross Sutton denied Barcombe the opportunity to end the contest.

After some tactical switches from player-manager Chris Vacher the extra time period saw Ransom surge clear of his marker and hit a fearsome shot past the Barcombe keeper.

With the momentum now with Maresfield, Rolfe put the match beyond Barcombe with the finest of finishes from close range.