Horsham YMCA assistant manager Julian Miller admitted AFC Uckfield Town’s second-half implosion ‘made it easier’ for his side in their 3-1 win over the Uckers on Saturday.
Tayler Maddock and Sam Cooper both received red cards while Dean Stewart-Hunter and Ellis Cormack were both sent to the sin-bin in a tumultuous second half which saw the visitors playing with just eight men for a short period of the game.
Johden De Meyer (centre) looks to jink through the Uckers defence
Miller said: “It was a really funny game because we missed a lot of chances and let them back in, and then, once we got going again, they got ill-disciplined and it was a lot easier than it could have been.
“Once we were playing against ten, then nine, then eight, we just kept the ball really well, stretching them.”
Miller also believes his side had a big impact on the visitors’ two red cards. He added: “We were putting them under so much pressure so we caused a lot of it.
“That made it easier for us but we pressured them into making these tackles because they couldn’t get anywhere near one or two of our players.”
Guy Harding looks to win the ball in an aerial duel
The tenth-placed Uckers began relatively well, handling the threat of a home attack with the best scoring record outside of the SCFL Premier Division’s top five without too much early trouble.
YM broke the deadlock in the 29th minute as Maddock felled a home forward and Dean Carden fired the resulting penalty into the top right corner.
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The hosts exerted their control before the break, but the Uckers still went close as Maclean almost met a Bailo Camara cross on the stroke of half-time.
The introduction of Dee Okojie at the restart proved pivotal when his 60th minute cross found Cormack who prodded a header home to equalise.
Adam Hunt battles with an AFC Uckfield Town player for the ball
While the Uckers would’ve expected to push on, the events of the next ten minutes removed all hopes of winning.
The away side self-combusted when Maddock was first shown a second yellow, then Matt Daniel put the hosts 2-1 up in the 65th minute, and Cooper was also awarded a second booking to add to Stewart-Hunter’s sin-bin soon after.
YM had full control thereafter and confirmed victory as Daniel bagged his second – and 21st of the season – in the 83rd minute, before Cormack was also placed in the sin-bin in the final few minutes.
Horsham YMCA: Jeal, Carden, Evans, Donaghey (Lovegrove 82), Harding (Gibbs 50), Hunt (Gedling 74), Lemon, Dugdale, Daniel, De Meyer, Clarke. Unused: Pavlovic, Eales.