THREE BRIDGES’ STRUGGLES CONTINUE ON THE ROAD

Whitehawk 3–2 Three Bridges

Three Bridges’ poor run of form continued on Tuesday night as they suffered another disappointing defeat, going down 3–2 away at Whitehawk in the Isthmian Premier.

On the back of Saturday’s 4–0 defeat at St Albans, Bridges knew a much-improved performance was required in what was a crucial six-pointer between two sides finding themselves at the wrong end of the table. While there were more positives on this occasion, the performance was still not quite enough to end the current run.

Bridges made the brighter start and thought they had taken the lead in the 14th minute. Velvick’s cross was flicked on by Rivera towards Adeyinka, who arrived from behind two Whitehawk defenders to apply the finishing touch.

However, after what seemed an age, the assistant referee eventually raised his flag for offside, sparking huge protests from the Bridges players and travelling supporters.

The visitors continued to dominate, but Whitehawk began to show their threat as the half progressed. Billy Irving was forced into a huge goal-line clearance after Kamarni Ryan’s effort looked destined for the net.

Whitehawk then took the lead in the 26th minute when Josh Hallard was penalised for handball inside the area. Seokjae Lee stepped up from the spot and made no mistake to put the hosts 1–0 ahead.

Bridges struggled to shake off the setback and the hosts began to exploit significant gaps in midfield. Whitehawk doubled their advantage when Kamarni Ryan powered home to make it 2–0.

Bridges desperately needed a response and were handed a fortunate break in the 35th minute. An awful goal kick from the Whitehawk goalkeeper fell straight to Villavicencio, who immediately played Leighton through on goal. The Bridges captain kept his composure to reduce the deficit to 2–1.

The visitors then came agonisingly close to an equaliser before the break. Adeyinka’s ball across the face of goal was just inches behind Leighton, who was facing what appeared to be an open goal but could not quite make the necessary connection.

Whitehawk went into half-time with their 2–1 advantage intact.

Bridges got the perfect start to the second half, restoring parity just a minute after the restart. In the 46th minute, Adeyinka’s effort took a deflection and found its way into the net to make it 2–2.

Parity would last just 14 minutes.

In the 60th minute, another ball was given away cheaply in midfield, once again exposing gaps through both the midfield and defence. Kamarni Ryan took full advantage, finishing clinically to complete his brace and restore Whitehawk’s lead at 3–2.

For the remainder of the match, Bridges had the initiative as they pushed forward in search of another equaliser. Whitehawk did have one huge opportunity on the break, with an effort crashing back off the crossbar, but for the most part it was the visitors who were asking the questions.

Unfortunately for Bridges, too much of their attacking play was rushed. Despite having the initiative, the visitors struggled to turn their possession and pressure into clear-cut chances, with a lack of confidence apparent during the closing stages.

There were, however, positives to take from the performance. After the disappointment at St Albans, Bridges showed considerably more fight and produced spells of football which demonstrated that the ability is still within the squad. The challenge now is to turn those positive moments into results.

The final whistle confirmed another frustrating night for the Amber and Black as Whitehawk secured a 3–2 victory, leaving Bridges still searching for a way out of their difficult run.

Three Bridges now have a week to regroup before returning to Jubilee Field next Tuesday, 22nd September, when Leatherhead visit for a 19:45 kick-off.

In their efforts to avoid relegation, making Jubilee Field a fortress will be vital.

THREE BRIDGES LINE-UP:

Roberts, Ferreira (Chambers 86’), Irving, Bull, J. Hallard, Villavicencio (Bennett 63’), Adeyinka, Velvick, R. Hallard (Wifa 81’), Leighton (C)

			Home				Away				Total
			P	W	D	L	P	W	D	L	P	W	D	L	F	A	+/-	Pts
	1	Enfield Town	5	3	0	2	3	3	0	0	8	6	0	2	23	11	+12	18
	2	Welling United	5	5	0	0	3	1	0	2	8	6	0	2	18	9	+9	18
	3	Dartford	3	2	0	1	5	4	0	1	8	6	0	2	13	8	+5	18
	4	Lewes	4	3	0	1	4	2	1	1	8	5	1	2	13	8	+5	16
	5	Carshalton Athletic	4	3	0	1	4	2	0	2	8	5	0	3	12	11	+1	15
	6	St Albans City	4	3	0	1	4	1	2	1	8	4	2	2	17	13	+4	14
	7	Leatherhead	4	1	1	2	4	3	1	0	8	4	2	2	14	12	+2	14
	8	Ramsgate	4	3	0	1	4	1	1	2	8	4	1	3	19	10	+9	13
	9	Dulwich Hamlet	4	3	1	0	3	1	0	2	7	4	1	2	16	9	+7	13
	10	Eastbourne Borough	5	4	0	1	3	0	1	2	8	4	1	3	14	11	+3	13
	11	Chatham Town	4	3	0	1	4	1	0	3	8	4	0	4	16	13	+3	12
	12	Wingate & Finchley	3	1	1	1	5	2	1	2	8	3	2	3	13	18	-5	11
	13	Aveley	5	1	1	3	3	2	0	1	8	3	1	4	16	14	+2	10
	14	Burgess Hill Town	4	2	2	0	3	0	2	1	7	2	4	1	11	9	+2	10
	15	Cray Wanderers	4	2	2	0	3	0	1	2	7	2	3	2	13	11	+2	9
	16	Maldon & Tiptree	3	2	0	1	3	1	0	2	6	3	0	3	9	13	-4	9
	17	AFC Whyteleafe	4	1	2	1	4	0	1	3	8	1	3	4	10	17	-7	6
	18	Cheshunt	3	0	3	0	5	0	2	3	8	0	5	3	4	11	-7	5
	19	Whitehawk	4	1	2	1	4	0	0	4	8	1	2	5	9	19	-10	5
	20	Three Bridges	3	1	0	2	5	0	1	4	8	1	1	6	13	25	-12	4
	21	Stanway Rovers	3	0	0	3	5	1	1	3	8	1	1	6	6	21	-15	4
	22	Brentwood Town	3	1	0	2	4	0	0	4	7	1	0	6	8	14	-6	3