Chris Simmons Broadbridge Heath team faced a 4-hour roundtrip for the trip to Deal Town on Saturday for the 2025/26 Non-League Day which attracted a crowd of 523 to ‘The Charles Sports Ground’ home of Deal Town FC.

Heath took the lead 11 minutes into the game when Jay Richardson played a long ball down the right flank which was being shielded by Deal’s Jack Penny hoping his goalkeeper James Tonkin would come out to collect but Yuvi Mann nipped in between them, cut inside and hit a left foot shot into the empty net 1-0 to ‘The Bears’.

The Heath lead only lasted 2 minutes when a Penny corner from the right was played to the far post to Callum Davies who powered a header that dipped over Alfie Hadfield and dropped into the net.

Things got even better for the hosts a minute later when a long ball forward bounced awkwardly for Sean Terry flying high over his head allowing Rory Smith to run through on goal and the striker coolly slotted a low left foot shot wide of Hadfield to give his team the lead and a complete turnaround within 3 minutes.

Heath came back again and on 27 minutes the match was level when Charlie Gibson received the ball in the left back position and went on a run forward, linking up well with Matt Hay who drove into the penalty area and fired a right foot shot that Tonkin saved at full length pushing the ball across the face of goal but Mann was on it in a flash to knock the rebound into the net for his second of the game.

The game continued to flow from end to end but it was Chris Simmons side who regained the lead on 37 minutes with Mann completing his hat-trick when Luke Bejashvili’s right foot shot from distance was pushed away by Tonkin to Louis Evans whose goal attempt was cleared by a defender straight to Mann on the corner of the penalty area and he took a touch and struck a right foot effort that dipped over the Deal goalkeeper into the net to complete a first half hat-trick and give his team a 2-3 half-time lead.

The hosts equalised on 69 minutes when a corner from the right was played into the penalty area, Heath defenders had their chances to clear the ball but it eventually fell to Ben Chapman who hit a right foot shot through the crowded area into the net to bring the score level.

Both sides had chances to win the game; for the home-side Wes Hennessey hit a right foot agonisingly wide of the post and Jacob Strouts saw his header go just over the bar onto the roof of the net while at the other end in the closing stages Mason Doughty had a great chance to pick up all 3 points for ‘The Bears’ but his right foot shot flew high and wide of target and it remained 3-3 at the final whistle.

Team: Hadfield, Terry, Gibson (Wooster 78), Marino, Hyde, Richardson, Bejashvili (Doughty 76), Connell, Hay (Pitcher 75), Evans (Peters 88), Mann.