Thorpe Athletic 2, East Thurrock Community FC 1

ROCKS' final Essex and Suffok Border league Premier Division match before Christmas proved to be a tightly contested affair, with both sides creating early chances.

Howewver, in the end the hosts prevailed and Rocks saw their lead at the top of the table cut to one point.

In the opening ten minutes, Thorpe threatened with a dangerous ball into the box, but the header was comfortably saved by Tommy Bruley. At the other end, Ross Barnes saw his shot pushed onto the post by the Thorpe keeper, who also managed to save the rebound header.

The deadlock was broken in the 17th minute when Thorpe attacked down the left, and after a scramble in the box, managed to force the ball into the net to take the lead. East Thurrock thought they had equalised just four minutes later, but Harry Prince's header was ruled out for offside.

East Thurrock continued to press, with Tommy Barnacle firing a superb volley just over the bar and later appearing to be fouled in the box, only for the referee to wave play on. Ross Barnes also made a strong run through the Thorpe defense, but his close-range shot was deflected over the bar. Despite these efforts, the first half ended 1-0 to the hosts.

The second half brought more pressure from the Rocks, with Ross Barnes again denied by a fine save from the Thorpe keeper. However, Thorpe doubled their lead in the 62nd minute, slipping the ball into the bottom left corner to make it 2-0.

The visitors refused to give up, creating chances, including a notable effort from Lewis Rowe after a great ball from Barnacle, but the Thorpe keeper was equal to it. Their persistence finally paid off in the 90th minute when Prince scored on the spin, finding the bottom left corner to make it 2-1, but time was to be the enemy for the Rocks.

Despite a spirited finish and pushing hard in injury time, East Thurrock couldn't find an equaliser. While not the result visitors wanted, the team showed determination and will look to bounce back after the Christmas break.

Rocks are back in action on Saturday (27 December), with a home Border League KO Cup tie against Sudbury Sports, who sit just a point behind them in the table.