Miles Rutherford, Dabba, Danny Potter & Co were without Ryan Davidson and 2024-25 league top-scorer Jimmy Wild so started Kieran Magee in goal, skipper Rob Hutchings at left back and Theo Bennetts on the other side, together with Curtis Da Costa and Ben Pashley in the heart of the defence. Joe Moore began as holding midfielder behind Joe Clarke, Isaac Bello, Lloyd Rowlatt and Emmett Dunn with Billy Vigar centre forward.
Chi did the double over Invicta last season thanks to a goal from Wild and Bello’s 92nd minute winner at Oaklands and turned Invicta over 3-1 away when Wild bagged two alongside an Ethan Prichard strike.
The visitors are much fancied for promotion this campaign though, but Chichester started brightly in the opening minute when a super Bello back-heel instigated an attack which led to an early corner that the Kent based team cleared.
Magee was then called into action at the Tennis Club end to deny No10 Josh Strouts three minutes in before a wayward back pass by Pashley led to Magee blocking an effort from Man of the Match Donnell Thomas.
It swung this way and that for the first 45 as Rowlatt fizzed one over the bar and Magee got out smartly to deny Jake Hutchinson.
Bennetts was caught in the head on 14 and needed some treatment before Ronnie Dolan fouled Bello which led to a bit of handbags and yellow cards for both Dolan and Clarke when the Folkestone No2 might have been shown a straight red.
Bello chested a long goal kick from Magee cleverly moments later and Bennetts hooked the ball out for a throw as the away side pressed again.
Next, Dunn had to have his wits about him to clear as Thomas played a slide-rule pass through the middle and Bello’s long throw was claimed easily enough by shot-stopper Ted Collins after nice stuff from Vigar.
Jay Saunders’ men put the ball in the back of the net in the 26th minute but it was chalked off for offside before Hutchinson and Pashley went toe-to-toe and Magee gathered the final delivery on the half hour mark.
At the Archery End Collins punched clear, and Invicta bought a couple of fouls.
Then Thomas tried his luck with a long-ranger that didn’t really trouble Magee who prevented Dean Rance’s fierce drive with three minutes to go until the break.
Chi contended with a long throw from Liam Smith and Hutchinson combined with Strouts only to crack one into the side-netting before referee Patrick Jolliffe brought the first half to a close.
Neither side made any changes at the interval and Dunn headed away Smith’s throw on 46 mins as the visitors sought to take the lead before the Canadian cleared again moments later.
Thomas then set Hutchinson up for a strike he failed to get a decent connection on and Pashley repelled a lovely cross from Strouts four minutes into the second period.
Vigar’s run was ended by Folkestone skipper Kevin Lokko and Dunn hooked up with Hutchings for a delivery that got blocked by Smith.
The hosts won a corner on 53 that Rowlatt whipped over and Clarke had a powerful effort also blocked before the away side won a corner which Jack Jebb delivered only for a header to smack the bar before Magee claimed the next chance.
Hutchings was harshly booked for a ‘foul’ on Dolan and Jebb lobbed the ball into the danger area but Lokko’s tame effort caused Magee little to worry about.
Next, Invicta took the lead after Thomas’s pile-driver was parried by the Chi custodian and the ball fell kindly for Hutchinson in the box to smash the opener home just ahead of the hour.
The Kent side then subbed Dolan on 62 and cleared a Bello bomb before Hutchings was poleaxed and the resulting set-piece spun out for a Chi throw in.
Collins needlessly conceded a corner which Hutchings took and it found Moore whose shot led to another on the College Lane side which Rowlatt played over this time through a cluster of players and into the back of the net for the leveller in the 68th minute.
120 seconds later Folkestone tried to buy a spot kick but there was nothing doing according to Mr Jolliffe, who judged a player offside anyway.
Strouts was replaced by William Ademiluyi and Rowlatt picked Vigar only for the striker to lose control.
The away team ramped things up a notch and Thomas forced the Lillywhites’ back line to hack the ball out for a throw which Magee punched clear before a delicious pass from Vigar teed Bello up for an opportunity that Collins stopped impressively.
Then Clarke earned Chi another corner when his effort was deflected. Hutchings delivered this and when the ball came back out to him he curled an effort goal-bound only for Collins to turn it round his post.
Rowlatt took this one once more which came to nothing and Lewis Rustell was introduced for Vigar with four minutes remaining.
There was still time for Magee to glove away a threatening Jebb corner late on before the clock finally ticked down.
Chi travel to Whitehawk on Tuesday 12th August (Kick Off 7:45pm).
Chichester – Magee, Bennetts, Hutchings, Moore, Da Costa, Pashley, Clarke, Dunn, Vigar, Rowlatt, Bello (Horncastle, Martin, Woolston, Munt, Rustell)
