Boxing Day preview - Westfield

There has been little to feel good about during a tough two-and-a-half months at The Parish Field, but belief was raised by two added time goals from Andy Hales to clinch a 4-4 draw at Oakwood on Tuesday night.

Joint manager Tony Harris said: “It’s a real confidence boost to claw it back at the end like we did. We managed to get something from nothing. If we lost Oakwood would’ve gone above us and it’s four points from two away games.”

Westfield go from one key game at the foot of the table to another when they travel to Seaford Town on Boxing Day in a match which will mark the start of the second half of their league programme.

Like Westfield, Seaford have accrued 16 points from 17 outings. Seaford have lost 11 of their last 13 fixtures, while Westfield have been beaten in 11 of their last 14, although only one of their last three has ended in defeat.

“They haven’t had the best of times, but it’s another tough place to go to,” continued Harris. “We’ve got to try and stop the silly errors and be a bit tighter defensively. We can’t keep conceding threes and fours in games.”

Gavin Bourne is unlikely to be fit so Matt Cruttwell is expected to continue in goal. Steve Ringwood is unavailable, but Westfield hope to welcome back Roberto Martelini and Jethro Warren. Kick-off is 11am.

“The spirit in the dressing room has been pretty positive,” added Harris. “It hasn’t been doom and gloom, and when we scored (against Oakwood) every player was involved in the celebrations. It means a lot to the boys.”

See today’s Hastings Observer for the full article.