PHC 1 Dandy Town 2

An opportunistic strike from striker Raymond Beach with the final throw of the dice left defending Premier Division champions PHC Zebras completely gutted at Southampton Oval yesterday.

Beach scrambled a Lyn Tucker rebound past goalkeeper Raymon Glasford to complete Hornets spirited late revival which saw them hit the target twice inside the last six-minutes.

Against the run of play teenaged sub Giniko Butterfield threw Hornets a lifeline when he superbly controlled a cross from the right side, kept his composure, and lobbed the onrushing Glasford to bring Hornets back on level terms.

Beach then earned his team maximum points four- minutes later when he converted to help Hornets pull off what at one stage might have seemed the unthinkable as Zebras again paid a heavy price for some slack defending at the back.

Hornets stunning win over Zebras catapulted them two places in the standings into third spot – just one point adrift of leaders Devonshire Cougars and Boulevard who each have seven points.

Town's second straight league win of the season also went some way towards avenging last season's FA Cup final loss to Kyle Lightbourne's men who must now do a bit of soul searching after dropping six valuable points in their first three outings of the new campaign.

Town now face league leaders Cougars tomorrow night at BAA in a crucial Martonmere Cup semi-final clash with their morale soaring after showing enormous character to get past a Zebras side who had only themselves to blame for not putting the match beyond their opponents' reach after burly striker Dennis Russell put their noses out front on 18 minutes.

With his team in arrears Hornets coach Meshach Wade threw Butterfield and Tucker in the mix and his gamble paid handsome dividends as they both had a major say in Zebras' demise.

"I thought the coach (Wade) made some excellent changes in the match," commented Wade's deputy, Scott Morton.

"What some people may call substitutes we call game changers, and once they come on (the pitch) it is important that they take the game to another level and change the match the team's favour."

Despite trailing most of the way Morton said he never doubted his team's ability to salvage something from the match.

"I always had faith because this team has spirit and confidence, and we as coaches believe in our players," he added. "It was a collective effort and the guys all shared the workload.

"I give a lot of credit to PHC because Kyle has the team really gelling as a a team and so it was even more sweeter to get the win because they dominated periods of the match."

Hornets looked more organised than their hosts in the early stages but fell behind when Russell, making a first appearance of the season, scored from close range to put Zebras ahead after Town skipper Ernest Signor made a mess of a clearance.

With their tails now up, Zebras nearly doubled their lead before the break when captain Chris Furbert unleashed a long range ballistic that flew past the uprights by inches. Town also went close before the break when Jamel Swan's angled effort crashed onto the crossbar as both teams battled for control of proceedings.

Zebras created a few more scoring opportunities after the break but ultimately paid the price for squandered chances as Hornets stung their opponents at the death with two unanswered strikes after PHC's goal hero Russell limped off hurt following a collision with Town 'keeper Crockwell.

Hornets drew level on a counterattack when Butterfield finished off a purposeful raid down the right flank and minutes later Beach delivered the coup de grace with a goal handed to him on a platter after Zebras goalkeeper Glasford fumbled Tucker's soft effort in the box.

PHC: R.Glasford, I.Barry, O.Shakir, K.Richards, C.Dowling, J.Ball, C.Furbert (capt), B.Bean, J.Raynor (K.Lambe, 84 mins), D.Russell (L.Holder, 58 mins), C.Robinson (C.Castle, 62 mins).

Dandy Town: M.Crockwell, D.Signor, M.Campbell, E.Signor (capt), K.Lathan, L.Furbert, C.Smith, J.Swan, J.Dickinson (G.Butterfield, 70 mins), H.Wolffe (D.Leverock, 62 mins), R.Beach.

Yellow cards: C.Dowling, C.Castle (PHC); L.Furbert (Town).

Men of the match: B.Bean (PHC); L.Furbert (Town).

Referee: Anthony Mouchette.