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Sykes late penalty miss costs Invicta a point

An 85^th minute penalty miss from striker Paul Sykes cost Folkestone Invicta a share of the spoils as they went down 2-1 away to Windsor & Eton at Stag Meadow on New Year’s Day.

This was a proverbial game of two halves as the windy and rainy conditions played their part as Windsor established a 2-0 half team lead before Invicta dominated the second half.

James Dryden pulled a goal back in the 75^th minute to set up an exciting finale and often uncertain debutant home goalkeeper Marco Celloni became Windsor’s unlikely hero when he kept out Sykes’ penalty.

Celloni had been one of the game’s central figures and as tempers began to flare both on and off the field he denied Invicta what would have been a second 2-2 draw against Windsor this season.

Even then Invicta had a stoppage time chance to equalise as the ball ran away from Dryden when he had gone round Celloni after Sykes had nodded on a clearance from goalkeeper Tony Kessell.

Windsor had opened the scoring in the 15^th minute when Paul HOLSGROVE placed the ball into the net off the post from just outside the penalty area.

And cult figure Jamie JARVIS made it 2-0 on his return to Windsor in the 28^th minute when he fired the ball back in after a corner from the left nearly went straight in but was cleared off the Invicta line.

DRYDEN made it 2-1 late in the second half when his header went in off the underside off the crossbar from Steve Norman’s free kick following a foul by Keith Scott on John Guest.

With Mark Munday out with a calf injury, Invicta welcomed Simon Glover back into the fold after he had stormed out of the ground when left out of the starting line up for the Christmas derby against Dover Athletic.

In the early exchanges, Terry O’Connor did not get enough power on his shot from the edge of the area for Windsor after seven minutes, while Invicta forced a corner after 13 minutes from a close range Glover header when centre half Adam Flanagan challenged Celloni to a Norman free kick.

But it was to be a torrid first half for Invicta after Holsgrove’s opening goal and Kessell saved from Adam Crittenden when the ball fell to another of recent Windsor’s recent signings inside the box after 21 minutes.

And Windsor’s first corner of the game led to their second goal.

Celloni lost his footing but recovered to keep out Micheal Everitt’s shot from the edge of the penalty area after 28 minutes.

But Windsor threatened again when Peter Holsgrove’s shot just wide on the turn after 31 minutes following a good exchange of passes between O’Connor and Crittenden.

Invicta have proved to be resilient at coming back from 2-0 down in recent times and with the conditions in their favour, the Folkestone side threatened another comeback as they camped in the Windsor half for the majority of the second half.

Celloni did well to keep out an Andrew Burke shot after 49 minutes.

And left back Paul Lamb twice let fly from 35 yards when first his shot flashed past the post after 62 minutes and he then fired against the crossbar ten minutes later.

Dryden’s goal gave Invicta the lifeline they were looking for and the penalty was awarded, presumably for a push, when Lamb sent over a corner from the right when Celloni had touched the ball out following a wind-assisted clearance from fellow goalkeeper Kessell.

Invicta gave a first run out of the season to 16-year-old Oliver Waters during stoppage time, but there was to be no last-gasp equaliser this time.

There were bookings for Windsor’s Peter Holsgrove and Invicta’s Sykes and Flanagan.

There was a minute’s silence before the match for the victims of the recent tsunami disaster.

WINDSOR & ETON: Celloni, Tilbury, Cook (Parsons 59), Skinner, Paul Holsgrove, Jarvis, O’Connor, Crittenden (James 33, Gomis 76), Peter Holsgrove, Scott, Carroll. Unused subs: Walsh, Oatley.

FOLKESTONE INVICTA: Kessell, Lamb, Norman, Flanagan, Guest, Lindsey, M. Everitt, Burke, Dryden, Sykes, Glover (Waters 90). Unused subs: J. Everitt, Coleman, Dyson, Morrin.

Attendance: 171.