Regent Good For A Point At The Met

The R's travelled to Imber Court looking to build on what was a solid performance the previous Saturday away at Lowestoft Town.

A hard fought 2-1 victory at the trawlermen had helped wipe away some of the memories of a disappointing Christmas and New Year period which saw Regent drop points albeit against some tough opposition.

Manager Tom Rothery and his staff would have been looking for a repeat performance which saw Regent dominate and outwork their Suffolk opposition. Met Police are certainly a different proposition from the one that Brightlingsea put to sword in FA Trophy last season and have play off aspirations this term.

Harry MacDonald was not passed fit to play having picked up a bug and this saw Phil Kelly drafted into the starting eleven making his own return from a niggling injury. James Love kept his place in midfield after an impressive performance at Lowestoft and the R's bench welcomed two new additions with Billy Clark previously of Needham Market and George Keys who joins for a month from Colchester United.

The Imber Court pitch had been doubtful before this fixture and the evidence of this was plain to see with lots of ruts and uneven patches. This would make a fluid passing game difficult for both sides and despite two early goals which promised a potential classic the game was not one for the purist.

Met Police started slightly the better looking a little sharper across the pitch putting pressure on a Brightlingsea team who were working hard but struggling to find any real rhythm to their play. The home side got their reward on 11 minutes when Regent failed to clear their lines and Ollie Robinson deflected a shot from Lloyd Macklin past Harry Palmer in the Regent goal.

The small but vocal R's fans upped their own efforts and this seemed to spur Brightlingsea on with the visitors starting to get some momentum and asking questions of the boys in blue. It wasn't long before Regent were level just three minutes after conceding a Josh Gould throw was flicked on at the near post by skipper Matt Cripps. The ball fell to Aaron Condon who made no mistake in calmly slotting the ball past the imposing figure of Thomas Williams in the Met Police goal.1-1.

The rest of the half was full of endeavour but little quality and it would be the visitors who would be more content with the half time score.
Half time 1-1

The second half saw a marked improvement with Regent adding some pace and quality to the hard work. The visitors were asking more questions of Met Police side that were looking a little more leggy than in the previous half . Chances were still at a premium with both sides struggling to create any clear openings.

The notable moments came from the goalkeepers with R's stopper Harry Palmer making a fantastic finger tip save from a free kick and the Met Police keeper Tom Williams saving at full stretch low to his left to deny Regent sub Billy Clark.

The game was beginning to fizzle out as a contest. Met Police were becoming more and more frustrated trying to break down a resolute and disciplined Brightlingsea team. This frustration was leading to some full blooded challenges and eventually saw Met Police number 11 Lloyd Macklin shown a red card for a reckless high challenge.

All in all another positive performance from a Regent side that seems to be growing in confidence at this level. Tom Rothery will surely be pleased with the work rate and commitment of his squad and will be looking forward to more of the same when Worthing visit the Taydal next Saturday in what is a massive game for Brightlingsea Regent.

Gavin Aplin