Staplehurst Monarchs United 1 Chatham Town 7

Match 42/21/1907 - Wednesday, 13th October 2021 - Kent Senior Trophy

Staplehurst Monarchs United (1) 1 Pallett 18
Chatham Town (5) 7 Pugh 36,38 Watts 40,60 Richards 42,43 Garlinge 65
Attendance: 155

Admission: £4 Senior
Programme: £1
Mileage: 1/2,300

Both teams fielded weakened sides but Chatham’s greater strength in depth proved far too much for Staplehurst Monarchs.

For 36 minutes that outcome wasn’t really on the radar mainly because of Chatham’s wayward finishing and the unlikely event that saw the Monarchs actually take the lead.

Chatham fielded a team of mostly teenagers and in the opening 20 minutes it was a fairly even game. On 18 minutes, Kieran Pallett seized on a mistake around the edge of the box and drove past a startled goalkeeper.

Chatham responded to the shock and exerted their quality on the home side except for the final finish as chance after chance going to waste or being thwarted by the young Monarch’s keeper.

Despite the profligacy, one sensed that the breakthrough had to come and when it finally did it led to a deluge of goals.

After 36 minutes, a cross from the left saw Andy Pugh turn the ball home and within two minutes another cross this time from the right saw Pugh’s shot only helped into the net by the keeper.

The Chats went close on 40 minutes but seconds later they were 3-1 in front when Jude Watts brilliantly took the ball down and applied a clinical finish.

42 minutes saw the score advanced to 4-1 when a shot from Jack Richards went straight through the beleaguered goalkeeper. Within another minute it became five goals in seven minutes when the home defence failed to clear and the ball span into the path of Richards who made no mistake to send the Chats into the dressing room certain of their place in the next round of the Kent Senior Trophy.

The second period was a one-way procession with the only mystery as to how Chatham failed to more than two goals to the total. Mind you, the sixth goal on the hour was a thing of beauty as Watts collected a poor clearance and waltzed through several, you have to say half-hearted, challenges before finishing one on one with the keeper.

On 65 minutes, Kian Garlinge bundled the ball home for the final act of the evening with Chatham happy with their evening’s work and Staplehurst just glad it was over.