Heybridge Swifts 0-1 Folkestone Invicta

Folkestone Invicta were celebrating back-to-back away wins as a second minute goal from James Everitt was enough to give them a first ever victory over Heybridge Swifts in Essex on Saturday afternoon.

The victory came hot on the heels of Invicta’s midweek away win at Tonbridge Angels and the doom and gloom which had descended on the club after the previous Saturday’s home defeat against Boreham Wood now seems a long time ago.

EVERITT’s early header was the first league goal Invicta had scored in four visits to Scraley Road and gave the visitors a perfect start when Kevin Watson sent over the game’s first corner from the left hand side.

Heybridge had drawn all three of their previous home matches so far this season against high-flying opponents but could not find an equaliser on this occasion and remain the only club yet to record a win in the Ryman Premier League.

Heybridge responded to Invicta’s early goal as centre half Tobi Janadu headed just wide of the post from Danny Barber’s free kick from the right after five minutes.

Invicta goalkeeper Kieron Mann made an acrobatic save to keep out a Stafford Browne header when the striker met a Danny Tenkorang cross from the right after 14 minutes and Sean Marks failed to put the rebound in at the far post.

But Invicta were close again a minute later when home goalkeeper Stephen Northwood got up to push a James Corbett header out for a corner when Damian Abel played the ball in from the right after Micheal Everitt had combined with Leigh Bremner.

Russell Pond let fly from 30 yards but Mann got down to save after 22 minutes when the ball fell to the Heybridge captain and the ball fell into the arms on Mann five minutes later when Tenkorang showed good skill and his shot from outside the penalty deflected off centre half Frankie Chappell.

The home side were enjoying good possession and forced a succession of corners on the half hour mark when Marks met Barber’s deep cross from the left, Mann did well to touch Browne’s header over the crossbar and Mark Saunders cleared at the far post.

A dangerous Pond cross from the right was then cleared by James Everitt in the 45th minute as the home side chased an equaliser before half time.

Kenny Kennedy hit a low shot at Mann in the middle of the penalty area after more trickery and a dangerous ball in from Tenkorang down the left in the 57th minute. At the other end, Corbett’s snapshot on the turn flew just over the crossbar two minutes later.

Abel switched to the left flank for the second half and an acrobatic 69th minute shot from the Invicta player was touched past the post by goalkeeper Northwood following James Everitt’s ball in from the right.

A Watson shot then flew just wide when Corbett played the subsequent corner from the right back to him.

Invicta were desperately close to a second goal in the 74th minute when substitute Ellis Remy got to a ball down the middle before Northwood and went round the goalkeeper, only for centre half Ian Wiles to just do enough to thwart the centre forward and the ball trickled agonisingly wide of the post when it had seemed a certain goal.

Heybridge substitute Matthew Batt won a late corner when he ran at the Invicta defence in the 87th minute and let fly from just outside the penalty area following a break by Robbie King. And Janadu was wide at the far post when the subsequent corner fell to him at the far post.

Invicta’s Micheal Everitt was the game’s only booking after 75 minutes for comments made to the referee after a foul by Roland Edge on substitute Craig Hughes.

HEYBRIDGE SWIFTS: Northwood, Pond, Barber, King, Wiles, Janadu, Kennedy, Gillespie, Marks (Hughes 45 mins), Browne, Tenkorang (Batt 71 mins).  Unused subs: Townrow, Bourgeois, Sanders.

FOLKESTONE INVICTA: Mann, Watson, Edge, Chappell, Friend, Saunders, M. Everitt, J. Everitt, Bremner (Remy 70 mins), Abel (Briggs 89 mins), Corbett.  Unused subs: Okikiolu, Sly, Stonebridge.