WTFC U18 KYL (South)

Playing on a very firm pitch at Archbishop's, Whitstable's good start to the new season continued on Sunday with a 2-1 victory over a hard-working Margate side.
Whitstable started brightly with Darius Ogodon netting the opener in the 2nd minute. Unfortunately Whitstable weren't able to build on the lead as the teams went toe to toe in a congested midfield area. Neither side were able to hold the ball for very long and, as a result, there was little football of note being played. Margate got themselves back into the game on 26 minutes with a deserved equalised. They ramped-up the pressure but were mainly reduced to long shots which were comfortably dealt with by Emile Haratbar in the Whitstable goal.
Little changed in the second half although the reds began to find spaces beyond the Margate defence who were continuing to play a very high line, despite the pace of Whitstable's attack. More of the action was in the Margate penalty area and their keeper made two or three very good saves. Eventually, in the 77th minute another long pass set Ogodon away again and, after a bit of pinball, he managed to put the ball in the net for what turned out to be the winner.
Although delighted with three points in the bag, the Whitstable coaching team know the performance in possession was far from what we will be expecting in the future. There can be no faulting the effort of the boys throughout and that's a very positive attribute which will be essential for the team to be successful.