Worthing 5
Babalola (35′, 59′, 72′), Cook (55′), Dolaghan (90′)
Jersey Bulls 0
HT Score: 1-0
Attendance: 977
Referee: Tom Ellsmore
JERSEY Bulls suffered their first defeat of the 2025/26 season at the hands of Step 2 side Worthing FC after their replayed Emirates FA Cup Second Qualifying Round clash ended in a 5-0 loss.
Elliot Powell’s men earned themselves a replay with National League South side Worthing FC following a 2-2 tie at Springfield Stadium last Saturday.
However, the manager was left “livid” at full time after a controversial free kick decision allowed Worthing back into the game.
After being 2-0 up, Powell admitted his side may have “had their best chance”, and that proved the case as Worthing turned it on in the second half at Woodside Road to blow the Bulls aside.
“I think for 135 minutes of those two games we competed, we pushed a semi pro/pro side all the way,” said Bulls captain, James Querée.
“The lads should definitely be proud we rose to that level. We held our own and gave a good account of ourselves.”
Worthing held dominance over possession for the majority of the first half, but the major incident of the first half an hour fell to the Bulls.
Striker Lorne Bickley was sent through on goal with a hooked volley forwards, as Worthing keeper Seb Stacey came steaming out towards the ball.
Bickley beat him to the ball, heading it passed him but was clattered in the process just outside the right hand edge of the box.
A defender was in place to hook the ball away for a throw in, but protests rang out from the Bulls contingent as Stacey was awarded only a yellow card.
Less than ten minutes later, Worthing broke the deadlock through powerful striker Temi Babalola, who was the scorer of the equaliser on Saturday.
The hosts carried their 1-0 lead into half time, but the second half proved one way traffic, with for more goals unanswered including Babalola completing his hat-trick for the final 5-0 scoreline.
“Credit to Worthing, they stepped it up last night, especially in the second half,” Querée continued. “We were chasing shadows in the end.
“But we never caved, we kept running till the end and it overall this will be a good experience and lesson for us to have gone through as a team.”
The experiences skipper believes despite the scoreline, the lessons of this contest remain positive for the team: “We finished with three teenagers on the pitch, Will [Yates] and Ewan [Brodie] played for the U18s the day before and this is a great experience for them to play against a Step 2 side.
“I don’t think our preparation was the best, we got slung on this tiny minibus and we were waiting round the hotel for hours, there were things in our control that we could have done better with.
“But there’s no excuses from our side, Worthing shone through in the end.
“We can look ahead now to another cup game in the FA Trophy this Saturday against Harrow Borough, it feels like cup game after cup game at the moment!”
Cup action continues for the Bulls, but league fixtures are still taking place in the background.
Querée noted: “”We can see the league ticking along with teams not involved in the cup competitions, so there’s a lot of football going on. We’re looking at a minimum of 40 more games this season but there’s lots of positives in that.
“We’re looking to bring in more additions to the squad to keep building our strength in depth. We also have Luke Campbell coming back to fitness, James Sunley coming back to fitness, a couple more there or there abouts. It’s great competition, it keeps things fresh and it’s important for us to have that depth.
“The boys will re-group over the next couple of days and look to get back to winning ways on Saturday.”
Jersey Bulls are next back in action this Saturday in the Isuzu FA Trophy Second Qualifying Round, travelling to Rogers Family Stadium in Earlsmead to take on Harrow Borough, set for a 1.30pm kick off.
Worthing: Seb Stacey (yellow, 26′), Joel Colbran (c), Sam Beard (off 68′), Joe Cook (off 63′), Razzaq Coleman De Graft, Nicky Wheeler, Harry Ransom, Temi Babalola (off 73′), Sam Packham, Odei Martin Sorondo (off 63′), Matt Burgess (off 63′)
Substitutes: Taylor Seymour, Jack Spong (on 63′), Toby Byron (on 68′), Anointed Chukwu, Bailey Smith (on 63′), Brad Dolaghan (on 73′), Teddy Jenks (on 63′)
Jersey Bulls: Euan Van Der Vliet, Jonny Le Quesne, James Querée (c), Fraser Barlow (off 78′), Joe Kilshaw (off 76′), Lorne Bickley (off 60′), Adam Trotter, Miguel Carvalho (off 69′), Jay Giles, Jack Lumsden, Luke Watson (off 66′)
Substitutes: Toby Ritzema (on 66′), Will Yates (on 76′), Francis Lekimamati (on 60′), Ewan Brodie (on 78′), Harry Mackenzie (on 69′), James Carr
