Bridgwater United 2-4 Wellington
After an absence of six weeks, this was far from a happy homecoming for the Robins.
As holders of the Les Phillips Cup it was bad enough that they were outplayed and knocked out of the competition by this vibrant and eager Wellington side.
Even worse, in the final analysis, is that they had key defender, Jacob Spence, dismissed a few minutes before the end for a foul.
It is pointless to go on about Wellington being a so-called “bogey” side. That is fantasy talk. The facts are that they have been better than the Robins over this three game series and there are reasons for that. In this game they feasted upon some leaky defending, especially in the first half, and could have made the winning margin more resounding.
United only looked dominant for a short spell before and after their first goal, for the rest of the time it was Wellington having a lot of fun exploiting the Robins’ flaws.
After making a bright start Wellington went ahead after nine minutes. An intended back pass from Mark Armstrong was intercepted by Jake Quick and he ran on and shot low past Phillips. He has a good scoring record against the Robins.
When United did equalise after 20 minutes it seemed that they were taking control of the game. Conor Hartley did very well to squeeze out a cross from an unpromising position on the right and Jake Brown was able to force the ball in at the far post.
This feeling didn’t last. After 24 minutes Josh Phillips was caught in possession on the right touchline. With the defence scrambling to get into position, Harvey Dorothy took a pot shot from an angle, and just outside the box, and the ball evaded the dive of Phillips to enter just inside the right post.
Wellington gained further confidence from regaining the lead and proceeded to lead United a merry dance for the rest of the half.
The third goal was after 36 minutes. Wellington were creating problems playing down United’s right flank in particular and when the ball was turned across from that side Joe Wragg twisted and turned before dispatching a fine finish from a central position.
Half time – Bridgwater United 1 Wellington 3.
United resumed with the same eleven on the pitch. Could they redeem the situation? The initial omens weren’t too encouraging because the impish Nicholson, one to watch for the future, beat a defender with ease and shot a little too high.
On 87 minutes, the Robins were dealt a savage blow. About 10 yards outside the box, Nicholson tried to burst past Spence and was fouled. Whether or not he was the last man was debatable but the red card was shown. It felt an unfair punishment.
Full credit to United for not giving in and just before the start of time added on Ross Edwards elegantly swept a low drive from 15 yards into the net following Simpson’s good work on the right.
As United could see a glimmer of hope, they committed to all-out attack, and it wasn’t too surprising when Wellington capitalised on the space at the back to wrap it up with Jake Quick’s second. He ran through unopposed and scored low past Phillips.
Congratulations to Wellington, a team on the rise, with a collection of talented youngsters.
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