Conceding from a corner in the opening minutes left us in control for the majority of the game in search of an equaliser but found the visiting keeper having a great game to thwart our attempts on goal. Billingshurst defended their lead well and had a few chances as we pressed forward in the second half but the early goal was enough for them to claim a third Tier 9 scalp and a trip to Faversham.

The game had barely got underway when in the third minute Billingshurst had the first corner of the game. The ball was delivered deep and headed home too easily to set the tone of the rest of the game. Unlike other Tier 10 sides we faced last year, Billingshurst are a footballing side as opposed to relying on being physical. The lads settled into the game and controlled possession with our first ball into their box coming from David Heaton in the eighth minute but nobody could make anything of it. On 10mins Archie Foy had the ball on the left wing and crossed to the far post but we had nobody making a run there. Foy soon had the ball again and made a driving run along the byline into the six yard box only for the defence to smother the ball back to the keeper. Two minutes later Conor Wilford sent the ball long to Jimmy Williams to run into the box on the right but it was defended again. On the quarter hour Keanan Allassani wriggled his way into the box from out on the right but there was nobody there to meet his centre.

Wilford fired a free kick from the centre of the half on 16mins that tested their keeper and gave us a corner that came to nothing. Jason Stripp had a shot from a central position on 22mins that had the sting taken out of it by a deflection and made it easy for the keeper. Despite having lots of possession we were not creating clear openings and the keeper was coping with shots from outside the box as he did again on 29mins as Stripp had another shot. The ball was spilled but there was nobody following in to put the keeper under pressure. Two minutes later Stripp delivered a free kick from the left that was cleared only for Allassani to pick up the loose ball and put it into the box again. The defence cleared it and this time our ball in was gathered by the keeper.

A rare Billingshurst chance on 35mins after the ball was lost on the right and their break forward was ended by Tyrone Magala Bryan blocking the cross at the expense of a corner. Jack Webb Olley was decisive in coming out to punch the corner clear and then in gathering the return ball he was fouled. On 37mins a Stripp free kick was cleared from the box again and then with two minutes of normal time left a Stripp shot was saved. In the follow up the ball was in the six yard box but nobody could force it home. Into added time and Allassani attacked the six yard box from the right but the keeper was there to gather it as he tried to walk it into the goal. The keeper saved another shot and the defence blocked a corner as the half came to an end. For all the pressure we could not find a goal.

On 48mins Williams on the right looped the ball into Ousmane Balde Dansoko on a run into the box and he won a corner. Their defence cleared the corner and did so once again when the ball was played back in. Two minutes later it was a rare opening for Billingshurst as they broke into the box, rounded Webb Olley but found Williams on the line to cover. The lads were back on the attack two minutes later as Williams won the ball on the right of midfield, played in Allassani for a shot that rebounded out to Stephen Hodge on the right wing. He crossed to deep into the box but it ended with a shot from Heaton hitting the side-netting A period of possession and pressure was testing Billingshurst and just past the hour Balde Dansoko had a break to the byline. He was challenged and taken down on the line but some how a goal kick was awarded when the options seemed to be corner or free kick for us. Almost immediately we were threading the ball out from the back with Magala Bryan finding Wilford who in turn slid the ball down the right to Hodge. He crossed deep to the left side of the box where Foy could not quite connect. On 64mins Stripp delivered a free kick in under the bar that was put over for a corner. The defence cleared the corner once again and from the clearance Billingshurst were on the break and only a last ditch tackle by Foy stopped the danger. A first change on 66mins as Heaton was replaced by Jack Porter that allowed Wilford to be moved forward. A minute later the change allowed Wilford to get on the end of a ball from Williams on the left and have a shot that could only find the side-netting

On 69mins Billingshurst were allowed to go on a long run without a challenge until the move was finally stopped and Webb Olley made a challenge to clear. Then in a further challenge a free kick was awarded in a dangerous position on the D but Billinghurst shot over the bar. A few minutes later Billingshurst bought a free kick with a dive and had a chance in the box but blazed it over the bar. A second change brought on Elliot Cannon for Balde Dansoko and almost immediately he was crossing into the box where a Linger header was blocked on the line. On 76mins Foy took a knock and Sharif Mohammed replaced him. Cannon had a shot from deep on 78mins and then another on 84mins but the keeper dealt with them both. Our play was becoming a bit tired as the game was drawing to a close but with a minute left Williams put in a good cross from the right under the bar but the keeper dealt with it well. It was nearly all over in the final minute as a quick break by Billingshurst saw their shot saved and the follow up skim off the top of the bar. There was quite a bit of added time but we could not create any real openings as the play got tired and ragged. The early goal settled the tie and Billingshurst move on to the next round a week on Saturday while we focus on the league and the visit on Horsham YMCA.