HUNGERFORD Town’s excellent start to the National South season came to a halt on a wet and windy afternoon as Eastbourne Borough won 2-0 at Bulpit Lane on Saturday.

The Crusaders failed to reproduce the form they had shown in their earlier games, and could have no cause for complaint about the result as two well-taken second-half goals from Elliott Romain gave the Borough the points in the first-ever meeting between the two clubs.

With Maidenhead now top with 12 points, there are no less than five clubs, including Hungerford, on 10 points and the league could hardly be closer.

Hungerford started the game with a Garyn Preen cross that was just too long and a Nicholas Bignall effort which was easily saved, and when they appeared to have created another opening, the referee called it back before then awarding the hosts a free kick when they already had the advantage.

However, neither side seemed able to create a real opening and the conditions suddenly got much worse as a heavy downpour sent spectators scurrying for shelter before the end of a disappointing first half.

The weather did improve for a while after the break, but the rain came back before the end and did not help matters.

A cross from Bignall was cut out, but the Crusaders earned a corner from another effort from the same player, but all too often the final ball went astray and when the visitors came back on the attack, Romain got on the end of a good cross and finished well to give his side the lead after 53 minutes.

Josh Hare was booked for a foul on Preen, but James Clark’s free kick went straight at Lewis Carey in the Boro goal.

Hungerford were having plenty of the play, but seemed unable to create a real chance and did not look much like equalising, so that when Romain was there to finish off some good work from Nathaniel Pinney after 72 minutes, the visitors looked fairly secure.

Near the end, the introduction of Stefan Brown and Harry Goodger did give the home side fresh momentum and the ball was twice scrambled off the line, once when Brown looked certain to score, but this flurry was too little and too late and the visitors were deserving winners.

Hungerford had previously won 2-1 at Bishop’s Stortford on Tuesday of last week.

Chace O’Neil put the hosts in front in the first half, but goals from Mike Jones and Luke Williams gave the Crusaders victory.

Hungerford travel to Dartford on Saturday (3pm) before hosting Hemel Hempstead Town next Monday (3pm).

Thatcham Town

THATCHAM Town kick-started their Hellenic League Premier Division campaign with two wins in five days, including an incredible 11-0 victory against Burnham.

A first-half Shane Cooper-Clark double earned them a 2-1 home victory against Henley Town on Saturday, having previously won by the same margin at Tuffley Rovers on Tuesday of last week.

On that occasion it was again Cooper-Clark who opened the scoring, but Liam Wright’s ferocious 30-yarder levelled matters in the second half.

However, Gareth Thomas, who had stepped down as joint manager the previous week, showed his playing abilities to rifle home a bullet header late on to seal the three points.

Thatcham then notched a staggering 11 goals without reply in a mammoth win at Burnham on Tuesday.

Cooper-Clark struck a hat-trick inside 31 minutes to put the visitors 3-0 up, and Callum Willmoth matched his teammate’s efforts to make it 6-0 by the break.

And the rout was completed by a Cooper-Clark penalty, a Kylon Lynch double and strikes from Aaron Parfitt and Mark Hughes.

The Kingfishers have bolstered the squad with the signings of defender Lewis Leonetti from Windsor and midfielder Aaron Parfitt from Hartley Wintney.

Thatcham host Bracknell Town on Saturday (3pm) and Carterton (3pm) next Monday.

Newbury FC

NEWBURY FC fell victim to two goals in the final 15 minutes as they opened their Thames Valley League Premier Division campaign with a 2-0 defeat at last season’s third-placed side Cookham Dean.

Daniel Hunt put the hosts in front on 75 minutes, with Jake Brooks securing victory shortly after.

Newbury were due to visit Reading YMCA last night, before hosting Highmoor Ibis Reserves on Saturday (2pm) and travelling to Woodcote Stoke Row next Wednesday (6pm).