Robinson bemoans 'soft' penalty as Hungerford fall to narrow defeat at Worthing

Hungerford Town fell to a narrow 2-1 defeat against National League South play-off contenders Worthing on Saturday as the Crusaders prepare for the relegation run-in without star striker David Bremang.

The visitors gave a good account of themselves against a side that are notoriously hard to beat on their 4G pitch and went ahead through Joel Rollinson's 21st minute strike but goals from Reece Meekums and then Ollie Pearce, who converted a second half penalty which Crusaders boss Danny Robinson felt shouldn't have been given, ensured the three points stayed on the Sussex seaside.

Hungerford were left reeling in the week with the news that Bremang, who scored four goals in his first four games, had suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury at the beginning of Tuesday night’s win over Cheshunt and was out for the rest of the season, meaning Robinson had to call on half-fit frontman Dan Roberts, who was rushed back from a hamstring injury sustained at the end of January.

The hosts, who were fresh from a 6-0 win over Dulwich Hamlet on Tuesday night, made a fast start and should've been ahead inside the first two minutes but Jed Ward was the catcher of Joe Rye's back post header after a corner from the left was flicked across the six-yard box.

The Crusaders couldn’t keep Ollie Pearce and Worthing's impressive captain Joel Colbran out of the game and the two linked up in the 14th minute as Pearce combined well with Antigua and Barbuda international Daniel Bowery before picking out Colbran, who turned the ball over the bar from just six yards.

Hungerford endured another heart-in-mouth moment in the 18th minute when Kyle Bailey, who was re-introduced to the side in place of Jerry Gyebi, who started Tuesday night's win over Cheshunt, made a succession of mistakes when attempting to deal with a long ball, letting it bounce, getting turned and then dragging down Josh Chambers when the Worthing midfielder appeared to be through on goal.

The referee resisted the calls to show the centre-half a red card, letting him off with a yellow, and the increasingly frustrated home fans had more reason to grumble four minutes later when Joel Rollinson was allowed too much time and space in the box and the stand-in striker lashed beyond Worthing's Harrison Male to make it 1-0.

The Crusaders held onto their lead for less than 15 minutes.

A slick Worthing move unlocked the visitors' defence as Pearce’s flick released Chambers, who squared the ball to Meekums and the former Brighton man smashed the ball into an almost empty net from six yards to make it 1-1 in the 35th minute.

Worthing came out for the second half with the Sussex sea breeze in their sails and hit the upright three minutes after the restart when Pearce struck the outside of the post following a flowing move down the right.

Then in the 55th minute the home fans were disbelieving when a combination of Ward and the woodwork kept the visitors on level terms after Chambers failed to convert from six yards.

However Hungerford couldn't hold on much longer and went behind on the hour when Pearce rolled a penalty straight down the middle after the referee pointed to the spot following a Jed Ward collision with Meekums.

The Crusaders had a great chance to draw level in the 64th minute after Jones intercepted a wayward pass from Male high up the pitch and linked up with Christie Ward before squaring the ball to Dan Roberts, who was a little back on his heels and side-footed wide of the far post from close range.

Hungerford pressed for an equaliser and fashioned a final chance in the 86th minute when Rhys Tyler made a determined run forward and laid off to Louis McGrory, who picked out Roberts but the striker’s header was turned past the post by the right hand of Male as Worthing held on and condemned the Crusaders to their first defeat in four league matches.

"I thought we were excellent and should've got something, that's never a penalty," said Robinson afterwards.

"Jed's actually come out and made a save, it's soft.

"I think the referee was the only person in the entire ground that thought it was a penalty."

Hungerford drop one place to 23rd and are now four points off safety but can look forward to two successive home games in the league, starting with the visit of 14th placed Welling United on Saturday.