⚪️ Truro City must ‘regroup quickly’ after loss in London, says Wotton
Plus, Western League title race hots up as Helston and Falmouth win again, but disappointment as division's four other Cornish clubs are defeated
⬇️ In today’s newsletter ⬇️
⚪️ Truro City must ‘regroup quickly’ after loss in London, says Wotton
🔵 Title race hots up as Helston and Falmouth win again
🔴 Disappointment as Duchy quartet are defeated
Enjoy. 〓〓
⚪️ Truro City must ‘regroup quickly’ after loss in London, says Wotton
By Gareth Davies at Beveree Stadium
Boss Paul Wotton says his Truro City side must ‘regroup quickly’ after going down 2-1 to Hampton & Richmond Borough away from home on Saturday.
City’s first away game for close to a month saw Wotton’s charges fall behind after just 12 minutes when Tope Fadahunsi emphatically finished past James Hamon.
A tepid opening stanza saw no further goalmouth action of significant note but less than 60 seconds after the restart, City were level.
Ollie Bray, who replaced Andrew Neal at the break, poked home after great work by Connor Riley-Lowe to score with his first touch of the ball in a City shirt.
And the visitors were handed a numerical advantage shortly after when Beavers’ defender Ruaridh Donaldson was sent-off for violent conduct. But City couldn’t capitalise and 12 minutes from time, substitute Isaac Pitbaldo headed what turned out to be the winning goal.
“We are disappointed and in the first half I didn’t think we got going,” Wotton told trurocityfc.co.uk. “Hampton are around the top of the league and we actually restricted them to one chance which they scored.
“We have to stop conceding the first goal and we have to stop conceding silly goals. We weren’t a threat in the first half but neither were Hampton so it was comfortable for both sides.
“We got in at half-time and it was important we went in at only 1-0 down. We spoke to the boys, they upped their levels and then in the second-half, we get a dream start.
“Ollie’s first touch for the club he scores and then for the next 15 minutes, we are in the ascendancy as we were doing all the things we asked (the players) to do.
“Then they have the lad sent off and we stopped doing the things that we had asked them to do.
“I said to the lads at half-time that if the players do the things I ask them to do and we lose, then that is my fault. I am big enough and ugly enough to put my hands up to that.
“But if we go off plan, we struggle because we are a good football team, but we are at our best when we do the things we are good at.
“I thought we had lots of chances in the second-half to put the ball down the sides of their two centre backs with real quality because we had genuine pace up top.
“We stopped doing that but fair play to Hampton because Mel (Gwinett, Hampton & Richmond Borough manager) was brave and kept two up top and pushed his full-backs on.
“Overall, (the result) is disappointing but we have got a ton of games this month. Be disappointed, be down, but we need to regroup quickly and go again on Tuesday against a manager and a team that I respect hugely.
“We know we have got a real fight on our hands.”
Despite the reverse, City’s first in four away outings, Wotton was full of praise for his side’s latest two loan acquisitions. Ryan Kavanagh joined from Cardiff City until the end of the season while Bray has made a temporary one-month switch from Aldershot Town.
“I thought Ollie’s impact was that he scored straight away,” Wotton added. “He was a threat and perhaps could have done better with another couple of headers.
“He was in and around the box and I liked what I saw.
“Kav grew into the game and I only took him off near the end to get Dom Johnson-Fisher on to score us a goal. Ryan is tenacious, he puts his foot in and I really like that in a player.
“He’s fuming that we lost so that is good sign but overall, I thought both new boys did well.”
🔵 Title race hots up as Helston and Falmouth win again
By Matt Friday
Are we looking at an all-Cornish race for the Western League Premier Division title and promotion to the Southern League? We may well be after current leaders Helston Athletic and in-form Falmouth Town won again at the weekend.
The Blues retained their four-point cushion at the summit with a 2-0 victory at Nailsea & Tickenham, with an early own goal giving Matt Cusack’s side the lead before Curtis Damerell headed in from Callum Martindale’s cross to double the advantage shortly after the turnaround.
The gap between them and second-placed Clevedon Town remains four points after the Seasiders triumphed 8-0 at home to bottom side Millbrook, but the Blues’ game in hand against Barnstaple Town next month means the west Cornwall outfit remain firmly in control of the title race.
In fact, it’s looking increasingly likely that Helston’s main challengers in this final third of the campaign may well be their nearest rivals, with Falmouth continuing their climb up the table at the weekend with a 2-0 victory over Brixham.
Andrew Westgarth’s side were helped greatly by the red card for Harvey Field, with Oscar Massey opening the scoring a minute after his dismissal on the hour before a Ryan Beattie own goal clinched Town’s 13th win of the campaign.
It was a welcome response to their midweek humbling at St Blazey and takes Town to fourth in the table, only four points behind third-placed Bridgwater United and with two games in hand on the Robins.
They are still some 15 points off Cusack’s Blues but with three games in hand on their neighbours, and with those games in hand scheduled to have been played by the end of the month, the two rivals’ meeting on Good Friday could become their biggest one yet.
📸 IN PICTURES: Falmouth Town 2-0 Brixham
By Colin Bradbury
🔴 Disappointment as Duchy quartet are defeated
By Matt Friday
A good weekend for the top two Cornish sides in the Western League it certainly was, but it was a damp squib of a weekend elsewhere in the division with each of Torpoint Athletic, St Blazey, Saltash United and Millbrook all succumbing to defeats on Saturday.
Seeking swift revenge for their 2-0 home defeat to Barnstaple Town only seven days earlier, Dean Cardew’s Torpoint fell behind at Barum’s Mill Road through Aiden Whitfield before James Rowe equalised on 77 minutes, only for Stu Bowker to snatch all three points against the Point for the second week running late on.
St Blazey, meanwhile, passed up the chance to capitalise on that result and climb into the top half for the first time after throwing away a 2-1 lead to lose 3-2 at home to Street, who rubbed further salt into the wound by leapfrogging the Green and Blacks into ninth.
Jayden Gilbert gave Brad Richardson and Andrew Moon’s side the lead after only eight minutes but were pegged back before the break by Kyle Sampson. George Newton’s 78th-minute penalty seemed to have secured the points for the home side, but Josh Goodwin restored parity four minutes later before a stunner from Sampson in the final minute broke St Blazey hearts.
Saltash United also let a lead slip as the Ashes went down 3-1 at home to Oldland Abbotonians — following up their defeat by the same score at home to Brixham seven days prior. Looking to put daylight between themselves and their opponents, it all seemed to be going to plan when Kieran O’Melia fired the Ashes in front with little more than seven minutes on the clock.
But things had unravelled before half-time with Thomas Blake scoring the first two of his treble shortly before the interval, with the visiting marksman completing his hat-trick from the spot five minutes into the second half to move level on points with Mackenzie Brown’s side.
Elsewhere, it was another tough afternoon for bottom side Millbrook, who were beaten 8-0 at second-placed Clevedon Town. The faltering Seasiders were yet to win in 2024 after four previous attempts, but goals from Joe Teall, Harlee Vozza and Sydney Camper put the home side in control at the break before Sam Beresford, Kieran Ireland, Alex Camm and Owen Punselie (2) added their names to the scoresheet in the second half.
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