THE BULLETIN

23rd November 2019
Number 17

Midweek Action

It was a busy week for county cup games, starting on Monday evening, where Calne Town moved through to the third round of the Wiltshire Senior Cup thanks to a 4-0 win away at Cricklade. Goals either side of the interval from Max Wyatt put Calne two ahead, with recent signing Keiron Gleed and Jake Allen scoring in the closing stages to complete the victory. 24 hours later in the Gloucestershire Challenge Trophy, Hallen came from behind to beat Sharpness 3-2. The visitors went ahead thanks to a wonder strike during the first half, with Hallen managing to get back on level terms five minutes before the break through Ed Bamfo. The second half belonged to Sacha Tong, with the Hallen forward scoring a pair of headers to book the home side’s passage through to the second round. Bitton also progressed in that competition, with two goals in the final 20 minutes from Josh Egan helping them overturn a one-goal deficit against ten-man Stonehouse. There was also a big 5-0 win for Roman Glass St George in their first round clash at home to Bourton Rovers, while Bristol Telephones prevailed on penalties away at Cadbury Heath. Enis Akgun struck five minutes from time for the home side to cancel out Jamie Sheppard’s opener, but the Phones showed plenty of resolve, winning 4-3 on spot kicks. In the Somerset Premier Cup, Bridgwater defeated fellow Premier Division side Keynsham 1-0, with a header from Tom Ellis three minutes before the interval proving to be the difference between the teams. In Devon, second half goals from Tom Strike and Jordan Annear helped Tavistock defeat Exeter City in the St Luke’s Challenge Cup. Exmouth Town also moved through to the third round of that competition, after a hat trick from Jordan Harris saw them ease to a 5-1 victory over Honiton.

Bradford Town set up a second round clash with Bitton in the Les Phillips Cup after surviving an early scare to defeat Brislington 4-1. Mason Dagger had given the home side a dream start, but the Bobcats were soon in front, with Jamie Lyons and Gary Higdon each heading home inside the opening 20 minutes. Tyson Pollard then tucked home a penalty on the hour mark, with Lewis Powell adding a fourth for Bradford to close out the win. In the other tie, First Division Cheddar claimed an impressive away victory at Premier Division Buckland. It was a pair of quick-fire first half goals from Aaron Hooper and Robbi Maggs, which helped to decide the contest, with Callum Ham also saving a penalty to help preserve the Cheesemen’s clean sheet. There was also a trio of league games on Wednesday night, with the three away sides enjoying successful trips. In the First Division, Sherborne extended their winning run with a 3-0 victory away at Hengrove. The Zebras flew out of the blocks at Paprika Park, and built a two-goal lead within the opening quarter-hour thanks to goals from Sam Farthing and Anthony Herrin. The visitors are among the form teams in the division, and added to their winning margin when second half substitute Joe Smith struck soon after joining the field of play. 

Plymouth Parkway took ownership of top spot in the Premier Division on Wednesday following a 2-0 win away at Wellington. With a number of cup clashes on their upcoming schedule, Parkway picked up a vital three points thanks to goals either side of the interval from Luke Mortimore and Adam Carter. In the other fixture, Street drew for the first time this season, coming from behind to secure a point away at Westbury. The Wiltshire side were handed a huge fillip in the early stages of the game, going ahead in stunning fashion when Sam Jordan rifled an unstoppable 30-yarder into the back of the Street net. The visitors fought back however, and with the first half coming to a close, recent signing Callum Thompson struck from close range to secure a 1-1 draw.

Premier Division

Bradford Town moved back into top spot following a convincing 5-0 win away at Street. With 14 of their league fixtures now completed, the Bobcats have tasted victory 12 times, and suffered defeat only once. Their latest triumph was among their easiest of the season, with an early bundled finish from Will Hailston setting them on their way at the Tannery Ground. Gary Higdon then doubled Bradford’s tally following good play from Matt Morris, with Lewis Powell extending the lead to three thanks to another Morris assist. Higdon’s second of the afternoon came thanks to a well-placed Hailston cross, with Tyson Pollard then adding the finishing touches soon after. Bridgwater Town came out on top of an entertaining five-goal encounter away at Cribbs, with three different goalscorers helping them to victory at the Lawns. Town went ahead inside the opening ten minutes, when the two frontmen combined, with Jack Taylor flicking the ball home from Steve Murray’s pinpoint cross. Cribbs then produced an excellent spell, with Joe White providing two assists for Ed Harrison who scored in the 25th and 27th minutes to turn the game in the hosts’ favour. With the first half coming to a close, Bridgwater provided a magic five minutes of their own, with a pair of headed goals from Tom Ellis and then David O’Hare putting them 3-2 ahead. 

Hallen have now won five on the bounce in all competitions, after coming from behind to defeat Westbury United 2-1. The Wiltshire side went ahead on the half-hour mark, when leading scorer Ricky Hulbert was left unmarked to convert Joe Stradling’s cross. Hallen weren’t behind for long however, and grabbed a share of the half-time spoils when Matt Davis headed home a corner. The winner was worth waiting for, and arrived in the 63rd minute when Kyle Thomas unleashed an excellent strike from 25 yards out to settle the game in Hallen’s favour. Tavistock overtook hosts Shepton Mallet in the league table after both Josh Grant and Jack Crago scored in either half to complete a comfortable 4-0 away victory. There was also a rise in the standings for Buckland Athletic, who climbed into the top half after Richard Groves’ early free-kick handed them a 1-0 win away at Keynsham Town. There was late drama at Springfield, where Clevedon Town scored an injury-time equaliser to rescue a 2-2 draw away at Cadbury Heath. Matt Huxley has been Mr. Dependable for the Heath for a couple of season’s now, and his two first half efforts saw the home side lead by two goals to one at the interval. With time running out, Clevedon looked set to suffer defeat, but they eked out one more opportunity, which Elliot Nicholson converted with a cheeky back-heel to secure a late point. Brislington also battled back to secure a 2-2 draw, with Neikell Plummer playing the starring role for them away at Roman Glass St George. Plummer did excellently to tee up Mason Dagger for Brislington’s 20th minute opener, but the visitors were stung by their in-form hosts, who struck twice to lead 2-1 at the interval. Then, with less than 30 minutes left on the clock, Plummer struck to secure the second draw in the space of 11 days between the two sides. Wellington have now lost five on the bounce, after first half goals from Alex Grimshaw and Aysa Corrick led Bitton to a two-goal victory in South Gloucestershire.

First Division

A late smash and grab from Longwell Green Sports saw them move up to second spot, scoring twice in the closing stages to defeat Devizes Town 2-1. Devizes are without a league win since the end of September, but they were on track for all three points after Charlie Buckingham had put them ahead five minutes before the interval. It was late heartbreak however for the visitors, with Liam Oswin and Tom Welling each scoring in final five minutes to hand Longwell Green all three points. Third-placed Sherborne have now won five of their last six after storming to a 5-0 victory at home to Ashton & Backwell United. Ashley Clarke and Joe Smith each scored doubles in the Zebra’s big win, with Alex Murphy maintaining his fine run with another goal at Raleigh Grove. Calne Town still continue to lead the way atop the division, with a goal in either half proving to be enough to see off the challenge of Corsham.  After former Corsham-forward Jamal Chevolleau had fired the away side ahead in the 44th minute, the result was only confirmed eight minutes from time when a 35-yard belter from Nathan Davis made it 2-0 to the Lilywhites. Cheddar backed up their impressive midweek cup victory with a late 1-0 win away at Portishead Town. Having gone close on a couple of occasions during the 90 minutes, Cheddar were reliant on a stoppage time goal to snatch victory, with a low cross from Aaron Hooper converted well by Adam Jones to spark joyous scenes. Another away side who took home all three points on Saturday afternoon were Warminster, with Francois Allen and Ian Jeffery both on target during their 3-0 victory over Almondsbury. There was a third consecutive home draw for Wells City, who pegged back Welton Rovers in a 1-1 tie at the Athletic Ground. Following a goalless first half, Rovers flew out of the blocks, going ahead just 35 seconds after the restart through Liam Evans. The visitors were unable to hold on to their lead for long however, with Wells’ Harry Foster slotting home a 55th minute penalty to draw his side level. The bottom two also drew 1-1, with Dhani Golding on target for Bristol Telephones during their stalemate at Bishop Sutton.

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