Cowes Sports secured their 1st Wessex Premier Division victory of the season as club legend John McKie struck a perfect hat-trick against Hythe & Dibden.
The Yachtsmen went into Saturday’s encounter at the Diverse Marine Stadium on the back of successive cup victories over Hamble Club and Whitchurch United and looking to make it 3 wins on the bounce.
Cowes produced a confident 1st-half performance but had to wait until the 29th minute to make the breakthrough.
Fin Phillips saw his shot parried by the Hythe goalkeeper, but McKie was in the right place to pounce on the rebound and put the Yachtsmen ahead (1-0).
Just 3 minutes later, McKie was at the centre of the action again when he won a penalty. The veteran forward stepped up himself and made no mistake from the spot to double Cowes’ advantage (2-0).
Half Time: Cowes Sports 2-0 Hythe & Dibden
It took McKie just 5 minutes after the restart to complete his perfect hat-trick, meeting the ball with a superb header to give the Yachtsmen a commanding 3-goal advantage (3-0).
McKie passed the 200-goal mark for Cowes last season, having spent more than a decade with the Yachtsmen and established himself as one of the club’s most prolific goalscorers.
Cowes appeared to be cruising towards the points before Hythe & Dibden gave themselves hope in the 79th minute, finding the net with an effort from just outside the penalty area (3-1).
The visitors then had a golden opportunity to set up a nervous finish when they were awarded a penalty in the 87th minute.
However, another long-serving Cowes stalwart came to the rescue as Ed Hatt saved the spot-kick to preserve the Yachtsmen’s 2-goal advantage. Hatt passed the 500-appearance mark for Cowes in 2024 and has spent virtually his entire senior career with the club.
Cowes survived the late pressure to record their 1st Wessex Premier Division win of the campaign and their 3rd successive victory in all competitions.
Full Time: Cowes Sports 3-1 Hythe & Dibden
Cowes Sports: Hatt, Flood, Dempsey, Chase, Oatley (c), Colson, Biss, Phillips, McKie, Marsek, Biggs. Subs: Arnold, Cruttenden, Carter-Knight, McFarlane, Mumford.
Man of the Match: John McKie
Attendance: 172
The victory leaves Cowes with 3 points from their opening 2 Wessex Premier Division matches, with the Yachtsmen having games in hand on many of the sides above them.
Cowes are back in action on Tuesday evening when they travel to Horndean, fresh from their 3-0 victory over East Cowes Vics at Beatrice Avenue.
Can the Yachtsmen fare better than their rivals from across the River Medina? Victory would take Cowes above Vics in the Wessex Premier Division table.
