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The story of Worthing’s Brighton Charity Cup success in 2002
(This article was originally published in the WFC Programme in the 2002-03 season. It has not been changed, and may no longer be fully up-to date)
After an emotional season, with plenty of ups and downs, it was a bit of an unexpected pleasure to see the Rebels lift the Brighton Charity Cup in their last game of the 2001-02 season.
The Charity Cup has a long history, but no longer attracts top drawer teams, so it was no surprise that Worthing FC were the only one of Sussex’s seven leading non-league clubs to enter. Many have derided the competition as a bit “Mickey Mouse”, but speaking as a man who witnessed Southampton’s most recent Wembley trip (a 3-2 defeat to Nottingham Forest in the Zenith Data Systems Trophy), as well as Scotland’s second-place finish (out of four teams, not two!) in the 2002 Hong Kong Reunification Cup, I do have a soft spot for less fashionable competitions!
The Rebels were granted a bye to the Second Round (also known as the Quarter Finals!), where a home game with Chichester City United awaited. A goal in the first five minutes decided the game, and by all account the other 85 minutes were pretty dire. This momentous victory brought about an eagerly anticipated semi-final away to Whitehawk, where two goals in the space of 5 second-half minutes turned a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 victory.
This roller-coaster cup run was destined to end at Woodside Road after the end of the league season, as the ground had already been booked as the final venue before the first ball was kicked. County League Division One side Peacehaven & Telscombe United were to be the final opponents, having disposed of Shoreham (aka Worthing Reserves Old Boys) en route.
Now, up until this point, both Worthing matches in this competition had clashed with other events in my busy schedule (i.e. Scotland and Southampton matches), so like a true glory-hunter I jumped on the bandwagon to come out of the woodwork in time for the final!
By the time the season ended, Worthing’s league form had picked up, and we ended our league campaign by coasting to a two-nil victory at home to an already promoted Aylesbury United. So it was with confidence that the team took to the park against Peacehaven. The early signs looked promising, as Worthing’s strike-force of Knee and Geddes lined up for target practice. Gavin Geddes was hoping for a hat-trick to take his tally for the season to 30.
An early shot was acrobatically tipped around the post by a superb reflex save by Peacehaven’s giant goalie (Phil Reid, Peacehaven’s normal number one and the Rebels goalie when we won the Sussex Cup in 1999, was not playing), although the referee instead awarded a goal-kick. At the time the fans behind the goal saw the funny side, joking with the goalie that the save of his career wasn’t even being credited to him, but as he continued to save everything that came his way, the smiles gave way to frowns of concern.
Peacehaven took the lead midway through the first half, and dropped further back as they defended with equal measures of composure and luck, coupled with the inability of Worthing to create any real chances – turning the game in to a version of “chess on grass”. We were in unanimous agreement that a defeat would be preferable to suffering 30 minutes of extra-time. But the breakthrough was eventually to come. In the 89th minute of normal time Gavin Jones whipped in a low cross from the left touchline, which Mark Knee met at the near post. The keeper got down to save (again) with his legs, but Knee showed his striking prowess as he stayed on his feet to nod in the ricochet.
This sent the fans behind the goal into raptures, but the second chorus of the Mark Knee song was still finishing when the fourth official (a rarity at Woodside!) signalled that there was 4 minutes of added time at the restart. Almost straight from kick-off, Peacehaven sprayed the ball to Cameron Johnson on the right touchline, barely 10 yards inside the Rebels’ half. He looked up to see Wastell off his line and sent in a lob. James got back just in time to tip on to the inside top of the post and into the net. Around the ground, Worthing fans stared in disbelief as the entire Peacehaven team mobbed the scorer right by the dugout. 2-1 to Peacehaven.
Back to the restart, where the ball was played back to Paul Kennett. Looking up to see the Peacehaven team getting back into position (including the keeper who had joined in the celebrations), he shot from inside his own half. Those of us behind the goal will never forget the double-take by the keeper, then the 25-yard run back to his goal, the look of pleasure on his face dissolving into one of sheer panic. Anyway, that’s what everyone else saw – all I could do was watch the ball, mesmerised as it spun through the air, convinced it was going over, until it bounced sweetly into the empty net.
The crowd erupted yet again, as much as a crowd of 200 could erupt! But it didn’t end here – spurred on by their two late equalisers, and faced with a devastated Peacehaven team, Worthing powered up the pitch for the ball to fall for Gavin Jones in the inside left position 16 yards from goal. The resulting volley nearly broke the net as it flew past the keeper’s despairing dive, sparing us from extra time and securing some much needed silverware for Woodside Road.
The final whistle came soon after, and it was difficult not to feel sorry for Peacehaven, particularly their man-of-the-match (at least for the first 89 minutes!) goalkeeper. But as the Worthing team climbed the steps of their own stand to receive the trophy, at least it filled us supporters with a renewed hope that the team may be invigorated by their success, and again grace us with their talents at Woodside Road in the 2002-2003 season.
So there you have it, a heart-warming tale of how fifteen minutes of football (the first five against Chichester City Utd, the last five against Peacehaven, and five somewhere in the middle against Whitehawk) can win a cup and suddenly make a season seem a lot more successful! I look forward to us defending our trophy this season – just don’t expect me to suffer the other 85 minutes this time around!
7th Feb 2004