Folkestone Invicta’s unbeaten home Ryman League Division One record came to a crashing halt as they were comprehensively beaten 4-0 by Merstham at a wet Buzzlines Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

This result came out of the blue as Invicta had been unbeaten for their previous ten matches and had won by the same 4-0 scoreline when the two sides met in Surrey back in October.

But Merstham – under new manager Hayden Bird – produced a good attacking display from the start and striker Harry Ottaway stole the show with an impressive hat-trick.

Personnel-wise Invicta had central defender Liam Friend missing for the first time this season with a one-match suspension after he had been sent off for handball in the Folkestone side’s previous home match against Godalming.

The home side seemed to be covered as player-coach Roland Edge came in at left back and Liam Dickson moved across into a central defensive role that he had occupied many times before.

It was Merstham though who started well as a second minute Fabio Saravia free kick from the right hand side of the penalty area was touched over the crossbar by Invicta goalkeeper Jack Delo.

And the visitors opened the scoring in the tenth minute when OTTAWAY side footed a Robert Carter ball from the right into the net after David Graves had initially played the ball up to Ottaway.

Invicta responded as Josh Burchell found Stuart King down the right hand side of the penalty area three minutes later but Justin Hemmings blocked and Burchell followed up to shoot at goalkeeper David Wilkinson.

Merstham broke again in the 17th minute and Delo had to save from Liam Wright when Sam Tucknott found him at the far post in a moved also involving Saravia.

Delo was called into action again two minutes later when he palmed away an Ottaway shot after centre half Frankie Chappell had fallen to allow the goalscorer to run through.

It was 2-0 in the 28th minute courtesy of a strong SARAVIA header when Wright played the ball across from the left after the goalscorer had just been unable to meet a Tucknott cross from the right after a ball out wide from Graves.

At the other end, Darren Smith could not quite lift the ball over goalkeeper Wilkinson on the half hour mark when Burchell played the ball forward down the left hand side.

But it could have got worse for Invicta in the 41st minute when Tucknott found Wright on the left and Delo touched his shot onto the underside of the crossbar.

Invicta needed a way back into the game but were denied in the 45th minute when a great strike from King was touched over by Wilkinson when Graves gave the ball away to the Invicta striker.

And the home side looked like pulling a goal back during first half stoppage time but Smith’s shot was blocked by Carter after Edge had headed the ball into the penalty area to James Everitt.

It was the second successive home match that Invicta had found themselves 2-0 down at half time, but they had recovered to draw 2-2 with ten men against Godalming a fortnight earlier and must have held hopes of a similar great escape here.

But Merstham showed no signs of letting up as Wright fired at Delo within a minute of the re-start after receiving the ball from Ottaway.

And OTTAWAY made it 3-0 in the 49th minute as he laid he ball off to Saravia and ran behind the home defence to meet the subsequent through ball and finish of an extremely well-worked goal.

Tucknott could not then connect at the far post four minutes later when Wright played the ball in to Saravia down the left hand side.

Delo then had to save at the expense of a corner when James Evans put Wright clear down the left hand side of the penalty area.

Invicta were rocked again in the 54th minute when OTTAWAY completed his hat-trick with a glancing header into the roof of the net when Tucknott crossed into the penalty area.

The home side made a double substitution as Simon Austin and Antonio Gonnella replaced Burchell and Dickson, with James Everitt dropping back into defence.

It nearly paid instant dividends as King fired wide when Josh Vincent combined with Gonnella.

Delo had to make a great 66th minute save to keep out another Ottaway strike at the expense of a corner when Wright played the ball in from the left after play had been switched from the right hand side.

Merstham defender Hemmings cleared from close to the line for another corner in the 72nd minute after some head tennis inside the visitors’ penalty area following a Gonnella corner on the right.

Chappell then blocked from Ottaway four minutes later when substitute James Fray was given on-side down the right.

Defender Chappell got forward at the other end a minute later but his close range shot was blocked when Austin drilled the ball down the middle.

The game finished amid heavy rain as Austin collected the ball from Gonnella in the 88th minute and drove it wide of the far post across goal from the right hand side.

Having scored in 18 successive matches, Invicta have now fired blanks in their last two games.

And having won seven successive games they are now four matches without a win.

There were bookings for Invicta captain Micheal Everitt and for Merstham’s Evans.

FOLKESTONE INVICTA: Delo, Vincent, Burchell (Austin 59 mins), Dickson (Gonnella 59 mins), Chappell, Edge, Smith, Marsden, J. Everitt, King, M. Everitt. Unused subs: Mortimer, Gondongwe, Hayward.

MERSTHAM: Wilkinson, Carter (Sesay 85 mins), Wedgeworth, Graves, Hemmings, Evans, Tucknott (Fray 63 mins), Moriarty, Ottaway, Saravia, Wright (Jones 72 mins). Unused subs: Holland, Broomhead.

Attendance: 263.