The UEL 1st team lost 3-1 away to Chichester University in their relegation six-pointer and now face a relegation play-off to stay amongst the elite of university and college football.
Midfielder Siao Blackwood gave UEL the lead from the penalty spot after a good start to the first half.
However the team’s hard work was soon wiped out and they conceded a poor equaliser just before half time from a corner.
Two early goals in the second period from Chichester via a long throw and corner respectively ultimately put the game out of reach for the visitors and sealed their fate.
The fixture was the last for UEL this season and sees the club end the campaign bottom of the division with six points from 10 games.
UEL right-back Tom Bailey spoke to Rising East after the defeat and stated the team were disappointed with the result.
‘Hard to take’
“Obviously we’re disappointed with the result, we’ve worked hard over the season and to come away losing is hard to take.” He said.
“To concede two early goals in the second half was poor. We tried to push for goals but really couldn’t get anything. We worked hard, but it just wouldn’t come off for us.”
The team now look forward to their play-off game and will see it as their last chance to save what has been a below-par season for UEL.
Elsewhere, fortunes for the second and third teams weren’t much better as they also surrendered leads in their away games and come away with defeat.
Stranded
UEL 2nds went two goals clear with strikes from Jack Davis and Raphael President in the first half. However, that did not prove to be enough as Middlesex came up with three goals of their own in the second half including a 90th-minute winner.
The result leaves UEL stranded at the bottom of the 4D division, alongside Essex University. UEL have three fixtures left, one of which is against fellow relegation strugglers Essex.
UEL 3rds were the only side that went into these fixtures with a chance of winning the title but these hopes were dealt a huge blow as they suffered a 3-1 defeat away at Canterbury Christ Church University.
UEL took the lead early on in the game but a poor second half showing meant they lost in convincing fashion.
The result means UEL are only one point behind Brunel University, but having played two games more. Their fate is now out of their own hands and even two wins from their last two matches probably wont be enough.
Scintillating
The only positive news for UEL was that Connor Denham continued his scintillating run of goal scoring form, which stretches to six goals from just three games.
The second and third teams now have two games remaining each as they look to end the season on a positive note in what has proven a difficult year all round for UEL.
