Alton finished the season in 13th place in the Combined Counties Premier Division South after slipping to a narrow 2-1 defeat at Camberley Town in their final game of the campaign.

A missed first half-penalty proved costly for Alton as Camberley’s improved showing after the break secured a hard-fought victory, but it was not enough to secure safety for the hosts as Eversley & California’s win against Redhill consigned Camberley to relegation.

Going into the match Camberley needed to better Eversley’s result but if the onus was on them to score, it wasn’t apparent and Alton should have taken the lead from the spot after a clear pull. Zac Nash’s right-foot strike was well-saved by Camberley keeper Dom West but he could only parry the ball straight back to Nash, this time on his left, and he skied it with the goal gaping.

No doubt aware that Eversley were ahead, Camberley came out after the break with more intent and took the lead on 47 minutes when Archie Mills calmly side footed home.

The Krooners doubled their advantage on 56 minutes through Josh Ewing’s dinked finish.

Alton pulled one back with 20 minutes left through Mackenzie Patterson’s glancing header, but the hosts held on to pick up all three points.

Alton joint-manager Jamie Phillips was disappointed with the defeat, but reflected on a job well done after his side had secured their safety last month with plenty of games to spare.

“It is job done from our point of view,” said Phillips.

“When myself and Matt Benham took over with 11 games to go the objective was to secure our safety, which we did with plenty of games to spare.

“I am disappointed we finished the season with three defeats, but the bigger picture is we achieved our objective.”