FA Vase Final: Whitstable Town hit back to claim Wembley glory

By Jon Couch

Ronald Sithole’s extra-time strike won the Isuzu FA Vase for Whitstable Town as they came from behind in an entertaining encounter at Wembley.

The 20-year-old rifled home the winner on 99 minutes after Leafe goalkeeper George Hill had parried his initial effort.

Leafe took a deserved lead through Dan Bennett on 17 minutes before Harvey Smith levelled for the Oystermen six minutes into the second half.

Both sides struck the woodwork in an even end-to-end encounter before Sithole struck to send the Kent contingent home happy.

Match action

Indeed, the final was enjoyed by strong followings from both sides, with Whyteleafe fans welcoming their players out by holding up green and white placards.

But despite their warm welcome, it was Southern Counties East side Whitstable who settled the quicker, forcing a corner inside the opening 30 seconds and registering the first effort through Nathan Jeche from the edge of the box, which flew just wide.

That set the tone but Whyteleafe soon found their feet and deservedly went in front on 17 minutes.

Craig Braham-Barrett played in Gaspar Mico down the left channel, he turned inside Fin Cotton and picked out the marauding Bennett, who took the ball in this stride before casually lifting the ball over the sprawling Daniel Colmer into the corner of the net.

Bennett was involved again on 27 minutes, this time from the right, playing in Mico in the box, the ball ricocheted to the feet of Aaron Watson, whose shot on the turn was brilliantly tipped away by Colmer.

Whitstable, though, remained a threat and they almost found a way through on the half hour when a brilliant driven cross from Ronald Sithole picked out Jeche but, out-stretched, he just couldn’t direct the ball goalbound.

Second half

Whitstable started the second half with more purpose and it wasn’t long before they got their reward.

Six minutes into the restart, Jeche received the ball out on the left, he played inside to Harvey Smith who let fly from 20 yards out, his shot wring-footing goalkeeper George Hill and nestling into the centre of the net to the roar of the Kent faithful.

By now, Whitstable were on top but AFC Whyteleafe twice went close to re-establishing their lead on the counter.

First, Ryan Gondoh played Watson through one-on-one, but he could only shoot tamely at Colmer, and from the recycled ball, Gondoh had a go himself with a curling effort from 15 yards, which Colmer palmed to safety.

Leafe went close again on 68 minutes when neat football on the edge of the Whitstable box resulted in Bennett playing in Watson, but his effort eight yards out with charged down by O’Mara for a corner.

Disallowed goal

Suddenly, as the game opened up, chances were coming at both ends – Jeche just failing to latch onto Sithole’s through ball when two-on-one for Whitstable, while the lively Bennett curled an effort just wide from the edge of the box.

Whitstable then created a glorious chance to take the lead on 75 minutes – a surging run down the left by Smith, evading three challenges, resulted in him cutting the ball back from the byeline to sub Robbie Rees, who coolly ghosted in between two Leafe defenders to shoot from close-range but Hill a sprawling saved heroically.

Leafe sub Jamie Mascoll rolled the ball into an empty net from a tight angle, only to be pulled up for a foul on Richard Thompson by referee Ruebyn Ricardo, who cranked up the tension another notch by issuing ten minutes of time added on.

And in the sixth of those minutes, Leafe thought they’d won it, sub Rodney Eruotor evading two Whitstable tackles on a jinking run across the edge of the box before unleashing a shot which cannoned onto the crossbar before Gondoh’s follow-up effort was saved by the legs of Colmer.

Extra-time

Leafe threw on all five subs before extra-time, but it was Whitstable again who showed first, forcing Hill into making a crucial double save inside the first 20 seconds, first with his feet from Sithole, who had ghosted into the box, then from Smith’s follow-up effort from a tight angle.

Whitstable thought they had taken the lead on 97 minutes when Albie O’Mara Knapp centred for Sithole, who slammed the ball against the post and then tapped home the rebound from Smith’s rolled pass across goal, only to be flagged for offside, correctly, from assistant referee Emily Carney.

But they weren’t to be denied, and two minutes later, they had the ball in the net again, legitimately this time, to silence the Leafe faithful.

Just as taunts of “you’re not singing anymore” were bellowed, a long ball forward found Sithole, who wormed his way into a shooting position, only to see his shot kept out by Hill.

Sithole, though, seized on the loose ball and on cutting inside Aaron Goode, fired his effort over the keeper and into the roof of the net.

Leafe responded, but Whitstable defended resolutely and substitute Joe Healy should have wrapped it up for the Oystermen when played through one-on-one with Hill, but shot tamely wide.

It mattered little as the full-time whistle was blown moments later to all connected with Whistable to begin their wild celebrations on and off the pitch.

Ratings and more

AFC Whyteleafe: (4-3-3): Hill 8; Braham-Barrett 7, Holder7, Goode 7, Leeward 7 (Teodorescu 90+10); Gondoh 8, Orome 7 (De Melo 79); Bennett 8 (Ansah 90+10), Mico 7 (Mascoll 72), Watson 7 (Eruotor 85), Johnson-Palmer 7.

Whitstable Town: (4-2-3-1): Colmer 8; Thompson 7, Coyle 7, O’Mara 8, McIntyre 7 (Aboagye 70); Dalton 7 (Healy 110), Wilkins 7 (Rees 45), Sithole 8, Cotton 7, Smith 8 (Thomas 115); Jeche 7 (O’Mara Knapp 84).

Referee: Ruebyn Ricardo

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