Home fans couldn’t have asked for much more from their side’s final preparation game this afternoon as five-star Fleet tucked away chance after chance – and could have had a couple more into the bargain.
Newly promoted from the Isthmian Southeast Division and with permanent signing Michael West skippering them, Herne Bay were on the back foot from early and were unfortunate that Fleet’s shooting boots were firmly on in the opening stages.
Fleet might have gone ahead on five minutes when Omari Sterling-James exchanged passes on the edge of the Bay box with Rakish Bingham then squared to Josh Wright whose shot was blocked. But it was a similar move a minute later that put the first score on the board, Sterling-James again with some space down the right to slot a low drive into the bottom corner.
A chance for a second came on 11 minutes when Dominic Poleon switched a quick pass in the box to Joe Martin. He might have taken a shot, instead attempting to slip a pass to Bingham lurking in the six-yard box but the ball skipped over his foot.
Herne Bay’s first opportunity came shortly after that, Zak Ansah’s power driving down the right and forcing a scramble clear by a combination of Mark Cousins and his defence.
Bingham’s solo effort, running wide on the left then cutting back inside to swing a shot just past the far upright and over, came on 21 minutes and he was holding his hands four minutes later when a finish from the centre of the box would have made it 2-0 but he steered it wide.
His strike partner made up for that on 28 minutes, Luke O’Neill crossing into the middle for Greg Cundle. He shimmied for space, saw his shot blocked and it parried to the far side of the six-yard box where Poleon arrived to slide the ball back across and over the line from a tight angle for 2-0.
Poleon found a way through seconds after the restart in search of his second but the visitors defended that one well. Instead it was Sterling-James who came even closer to a brace when Poleon and Cundle played a lovely lay-off and a ball to the right ended with the winger smacking an effort off the corner of the bar.
But 2-0 did turn to three not long after, Bingham steering home from inside the box as Herne Bay struggled to contain their hosts’ forward pressure.
Cousins had to keep his eye on a shot that deflected away from him but he held that one cleanly and then Fleet were back on the attack, another swift move involving Poleon and Wright ending with Bingham pulling his effort the wrong side of the far post.
A fourth goal was denied by a flag at the beginning of the second-half, O’Neill’s lovely chip for Wright’s first-time cross headed home by Poleon but without reward thanks to the assistant referee’s intervention.
On a muggy afternoon, the two sides were content to let each other have a period in possession and it wasn’t until past the hour mark that another chance came Fleet’s way, Tanner’s dinked free-kick to Poleon outsmarting the Herne Bay defence but they managed to get a foot in on the home striker’s shot.
Ben Chapman was only on the pitch a minute before he sent a searching shot across goal from the left and then fellow sub Darren McQueen showed a turn of pace Fleet fans remember so well when he burst through after seizing possession but his route to goal was blocked off.
Poleon won a penalty on 77 minutes with an excellent turn after good work by Martin, the sort of move that invited the foul which duly followed. Alas for the No.14, his driven spot-kick down the middle was smartly stopped by goalkeeper Lucas Hanley.
It’s becoming a feature this summer that if a chance is missed, it’s followed up with a goal and Poleon shrugged off any disappointment by making it 4-0 on 80 minutes. It was substitute Toby Edser in the thick of it to thread a pass beyond the back line as Poleon moved into the box and his shot went in off the underside of the bar.
Herne Bay’s consolation came two minutes later with West creating space in the middle and setting Kymani Thomas free to hold off Alex Finney and bend a smart effort around the dive of Cousins.
There was still time for a few “oohs” from the crowd as Wright’s ambitious flighted effort from 30 yards almost caught Hanley off his line.
Further shouts followed a blatant foul on Edser in the box on 90 minutes that the referee waved away but when McQueen was flattened in the very next moment, he had little choice but to award a second penalty. This time Bingham took on his usual duties and struck home Fleet’s fifth as the final whistle sounded on pre-season.
The real thing is now just seven days away and Fleet go into it on a high after today’s impressive performance. Bring on 2022/23!
EUFC: Cousins, O’Neill (Chapman 63), Martin, Solly, N’Guessan, Wright, Sterling-James (McQueen 63), Cundle (Finney 63), Tanner (Edser 76), Bingham, Poleon. Subs: Domi, Coulthirst, Monlouis, Hollis, Haigh
HBFC: Hanley, Parter, Howlett-Mundle, Johnson, Williams, Anidugbe, West, Campbell, Smith, Ansah, Barrington
