Worthing secured a 2-1 victory over Gateshead in the National League on Saturday afternoon at the Gateshead International Stadium. The visitors, sitting fifth in the table with 21 points from 12 games, moved further clear of the relegation zone while the hosts remain rooted to the bottom with just four points. Gateshead have now lost ten of their twelve fixtures and this result extends that run to five consecutive defeats.
Wadham opened the scoring for the hosts in the 19th minute, a moment that caught many by surprise given their recent form. Worthing responded quickly though, with Hiwula finding the net just ten minutes later to level matters. And here's the thing — the home side had nothing to do all evening after that equaliser, while the away side controlled the tempo. McCalmont picked up a yellow card in the 27th minute as Gateshead tried to find a way back into the game.
Worthing took the lead in the 71st minute when Lankshear turned his own goal into an own goal. That moment changed everything, even though Gateshead had dominated possession with 121 attacks compared to 114. The hosts pressed higher up the pitch after going behind but couldn't quite switch on at the right moments. Fenton and Spellman both went into the referee's book as frustration mounted.
Substitutions came thick and fast in the second half, with Sutton and Colbran among the first to leave the pitch at half-time. By then everyone could see what was coming. Worthing brought on Hiwula and McCalmont in the 85th minute alongside Aguiar and Kendall, while Gateshead introduced Issaka earlier to try and salvage something from the game. The academy graduate marked his first start with a goal, but it wasn't enough to turn things around after the break.
The statistics tell their own story. Worthing registered eight shots on target against four for the hosts, though Gateshead had more attacks overall. Both sides held 50 per cent possession, which suggests the game was balanced for long periods. Worthing's efficiency with their chances proved decisive — they had nothing to do all evening once they took the lead.
Worthing's unbeaten run now stretches to five matches, with results including victories against Halifax Town and Hartlepool. To be fair, we had given them the win with 46 per cent confidence before kick-off, and the result confirmed that assessment. Gateshead sit 24th in the table and face a long road back from this point. The gap between them and Worthing now stands at 17 points.
