Large crowd was a big help, says Kane

Some 900 people - far more than for any other game home or away all season - took advantage of free admission to see the U’s triumph 2-1 against high-riding Faversham Town.

United manager Kane said: “It was a big help having a big crowd there. We needed to bounce back from the previous week’s defeat at South Park, and we got back to the sort of level we produced against Ramsgate and Herne Bay (over the Easter weekend).

“I think the first half was as good a performance as we’ve produced since I took charge in January. In the second half we were under the cosh a bit after we scored (what turned out to be the winning goal), but we showed good resilience and we stood firm. I thought Harvey Hanifan in particular did well, but it was a good team performance. I was very, very pleased.”

Sam Adams scored both of United’s goals - the first from a free kick and the second a penalty - and despite missing several matches of late, the attacking midfielder has played a key role in United’s survival bid.

Adams scored the winner in both matches against fellow strugglers Ramsgate and is the club’s leading scorer with 13 goals in all competitions.

“Sam’s been a big player for Hastings for a number of years and he proved his worth again on Saturday,” Kane said. “It was a fantastic free kick; we’ve known all along he’s got that in his locker. We’ve made a point of practising penalties in training.”

Of the decision to award the penalty for handball, Kane added: “I think if the decision had been in the other box, they’re the sort of decisions that have been going against us this season.

“There’s been occasions where Lady Luck hasn’t favoured us, especially down at Merstham when the referee played a big part in the winning goal. Since that moment we’ve not had the rub of the green, but maybe we did on Saturday.”