If this afternoon taught us anything, it was the value of Rusthall’s first class social media, surely the envy of all clubs at this level. Truly valued by Rusthall fans and players alike, if VCD had paid any attention to it in recent weeks, they would have seen how this Rusthall side simply do not give in, and fight until the very end no matter what nonsense they have had to put up with from incompetent refereeing. They may also have perhaps saved themselves the embarrassment of celebrating going 3-2 up with such misplaced glee.

Rusthall looked confident from the off, and indeed why not? Once again, Charlie Clover, Louie Clarke and Yassin Fares formed a dangerous front three, ably supported by the excellent Jack Kirby, proving once again that less of some things can lead to more from others. Behind them, Frank Griffin lined up alongside Jeffrey Njuguna, both of whom were a solid presence in midfield. A harsh red card for Louis Anderson last time out and injury to Mustafa Hashemi meant the fullback positions had an attacking feel- Jack Lyons slotted in on the left and Kalani Barton- in excellent goalscoring form in recent weeks- took Anderson’s right back berth. Robbie Bissett and Dan Blunn formed their usual formidable centre back pairing ahead of Serine Sanneh in goal.

Rusthall had no problem creating chances- in fact it seemed VCD were in the mood to help the home side with some incredibly poor passing out from the back- the only shame was that the home side were unable to capitalise to full effect. The Louie Clarke of three weeks’ time would have had a hattrick by half time as several chances fell his way but instead, he turned provider for the opening goal when a shot-come-cross was flicked home by the prolific Charlie Clover. The lead was fully deserved but it seemed to spark VCD into life, and the referee into a stupor from which he never recovered. Blatant fouls were ignored, a yellow card was issued to Yassin Fares for handball after he had been unceremoniously bundled to the floor, and baffling decisions were given in the face of noise from the away bench. It seemed inevitable that an equaliser would come given Rusthall were up against 12 men, and it duly arrived from Ollie Freeman who finished well.

The referee might have hoped for a better second half but it wasn’t to be- instead, he continued to misjudge the talent of Yassin Fares who has no need to go down under rudimentary challenges from inferior defenders with dreams of starting for Manchester City. It could only be that the man in the middle began to feel sorry for the VCD defenders as, once Yassin had dribbled around one of the poor saps, he gave a throw-in when the ball had clearly stayed in play. VCD took the lead from a good break after, inevitably, a Rusthall freekick was turned down, and they found themselves in on the left. A good cross was headed home and the referee wheeled away to celebrate with the away side, waiting until they’d finished clapping each other on the back before allowing the game to restart.

After this, it was all Rusthall. Jack Lyons proved to be the main threat in tandem with the always-excellent Yassin Fares down the left-hand side and VCD began to look very much a team that won’t be at the top for long. So rattled were they that at one corner, one of their hapless defenders made a move towards Robbie Bissett, probably expecting him to flinch away. Bissett stayed still and laughed in his face. It was from another corner that Rusthall drew level- the defence was unable to deal with the in-swinging ball and when it dropped in the box, it was Yassin Fares who was quickest to react, steering the ball home acrobatically.

Even when VCD took the lead again, it always felt like Rusthall would get something from the game- in the face of such ridiculous refereeing it would have been incredibly unfair if they hadn’t. And here is where the away side would have done well to be aware of Rusthall’s never-say-die approach- while they were away celebrating in front of no-one, the Rustics were already plotting a way to earn a point, despite there being only two minutes of normal time remaining. Louie Clarke will have been desperate to get on the scoresheet, but when a freekick was awarded in the 6th minute of added-on time, he was behind Fares, Lyons, Bissett and probably others in the queue to take it. Instead he took upposition in the box while the VCD defence readied themselves for a strike from Fares. The expected strike never came, with Fares opting for an alternative approach which worked wonders- his clipped delivery found Clarke perfectly who drilled the ball home, low past the despairing dive of the goalkeeper. Jockey Farm erupted and those with any voice left sang Louie Clarke’s name with unbridled joy.

At the final whistle, the home side were saluted, as the away side regrouped to try to understand how they reached the summit of the SCEFL in the first place. The referee- normally content to take up position in the clubhouse after a game and hold court- remained in the changing room, hopefully to have a good long think about his efforts or lack thereof. For the Rustics, it was a case of asking whether this was a point won, or two points lost- on reflection, given all that had gone on and the lateness of Clarke’s strike, it has to be a point won and a good day’s work.

This is a side on the up, despite falling a position in the league today. The unity and togetherness that has been evident on the pitch in the last few weeks will take this team far, as will the ever-bountiful crowd who will always be behind their boys in green and white.

Next up, the popular trip up to Fisher on Saturday, where Jimmy Anderson and his players will look to continue this excellent run.

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