Page 10 - Ashton & Backwell FC v Bitton 201121

Match Report

Toolstation Western League Premier Division
13th November 2021
at Lancer Scott Stadium, Backwell.

FINAL SCORE: A+BUFC 1 [Bishop 81m PEN]
SALTASH UNITED FC 3 [Thomson 10m & 19m; Hughes 57m];
HALF TIME 0-2

A dry, sunny afternoon welcomed our Cornish visitors and the warm weather
clearly suited them better than the Stags. Despite an early flourish with
Skidmore’s shot, supplied by Hardidge and Main working together, being blocked,
it was then very much the visitors to the fore. Alex Cairo was especially lively in
the early skirmishes and then Thomson fed Hughes who beat the keeper only for
the post to prevent that first goal. It was not long coming and both of those
strikers were to be on the mark. Thomson made his first, heading in
unchallenged from a corner on ten minutes and doubling his tally on 19 when a
Cairo pass to Brown was then sent, via a Stags deflection, onto the unmarked
head of Thomson, indeed he could have had four, only dives by Coombes keeping
the ball out twice in the first half. Brown had to wait for an hour to get his goal,
and Saltash’s third, when Farrant and Thomson worked the ball into the home
box, it not being cleared and, in the melee, Brown poked home. Meet the Player

The Stags, playing a seemingly unfamiliar 4-4-2, in the first 45 minutes
particularly were too static, with too many misplaced passes and weak ball
control and this let Saltash play much as they liked, with only Miles Hardidge
giving any consistent and persistent challenge or assaults on goal. The second
period of the game saw the hosts 2-0 down but play with more intensity and little
more belief. This led to an Alfie Cummings cross finding Charlie Saunders in
space, who might have done better with his header to get his side back in the
game. Then a well struck Cam Main shot been was well saved by the previously
untested Saltash keeper. Yet the only goal was a Bishop penalty ten minutes
before time following Wooton’s foul on new signing Tom Anthony. 3 minutes later
Hardidge and Sam Price combined well to open up the visitors defence to give
debutant Aaron Price a great chance to make it 3-2 and a very interesting final 6
minutes but he shot narrowly wide from close range. From today’s evidence,
there is a lot of work to be done for the Stags to climb out of the league’s
basement.
More Toolstation action next week when the Stags entertain highflyers Bitton,
Saturday 20 3pm kick off
th
Lewis Coombes, Tom Anthony (sub Jordan Bishop 75m), Regan Sollers, Connor
Saunders© (sub Sam Price 66m), Charlie Saunders, Joe Bishop, Cameron Main
(sub Billy Devoy 74m), Miles Hardidge, Paul Uppington, Brad Skidmore (sub
Aaron Price 62m), Alfie Cummings.

MoM: Stags – Miles Hardidge
.