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Midweek Action: On Tuesday evening, Buckland Athletic’s 100% Premier Division record

was finally brought to an end after they were held to a 3-3 draw by Street. Buckland came

flying out of the traps and forged a two-goal lead inside 22 minutes thanks to goals from

Charlie Johansen and Lloyd Gardner. Street then forged a remarkable comeback, with David

O’Hare sliding home, followed by two goals from Steve Murray as the home side claimed a

one-goal lead going into the break. Both sides came close to adding to their tallies in the

second-half, but the only goal came five minutes from time with Jared Lewington smashing

home to grab a point for the Devon outfit. Melksham Town got back to winning ways in

smashing fashion, claiming a 6-0 win away at Longwell Green Sports. Top scorer Gary

Higdon opened the scoring in the 25th minute, before adding a second in the moments after

half-time as Melksham took control. Four goals in the final 20 minutes added gloss to the

scoreline with Luke Ballinger (twice), Daniel Demkiv and Mike Perrott all beating the

Longwell keeper. A second-half header from Kane Simpson handed Odd Down a 1-0 win

over Brislington, while goals from Ryan Guppy and David Steele helped Willand Rovers

claim a 2-1 victory away at Wells City. Dean Griffiths, Tom Knighton and Ben Wych all

grabbed goals in Bitton’s 3-1 win at home to Cadbury Heath, and at Fairfax Park, there was

a 1-1 draw between Bridgwater Town and Bridport with Jake Llewellyn scoring for the

home side before Mark Salter equalised on the cusp of half-time. Wednesday night’s action

saw a trio of home wins, which included Bradford Town’s 2-1 victory over Chipping Sodbury

Town thanks to a brace from Dan Cottle. A flicked header from Scott Lewis, and a strike

from Jack Fillingham led Hengrove Athletic to a 2-1 win over Cribbs, while at the Hand

Stadium, an early goal from Kaine Gazzard was followed by goals either side of half-time by

Liam Dempsey in Clevedon Town’s 3-1 victory over Hallen who had Tom Collett to thank for

their goal.

Season 2017/18 #6

Action from Willand Rovers’ FA Cup clash with Merthyr, courtesy of John Pool

More action from Willand Rovers game with Merthyr

Town, courtesy of John Pool

In the First Division, Keynsham Town were Tuesday evening’s big winners, with goals from

Scott Saunders, Kyle Box and Cameron Shorney leading them to a 3-0 triumph away at

Cheddar. Late goals from Luke Redrup and Marcus Cook helped to secure a pair of 3-3

draw’s for Bishops Lydeard and Wincanton Town in their fixtures with Bishop Sutton and

Portishead Town respectively. There was also a goalless draw between Chippenham Park

and Warminster Town at Hardenhuish Park, while nine-man Devizes Town won 2-1 against

Calne Town thanks to goals from Tom Salter and Jake Waters. Taoufik Ben-Salem fired

Chard Town to their first league in spectacular fashion, grabbing four goals in their 5-2 win

away at Sherborne Town. It was Sherborne who made a fast start to the game, and were

ahead after only 12 minutes with Alexandru Stafie firing home. Ben-Salem scored his first of

the evening three minutes after Stafie’s opener, before adding twice in the lead up to half-

time to secure a first-half hat-trick. After 55 minutes the game was all but over when Ben-

Salem grabbed his and Chard’s fourth, with Dave Smith grabbing one back for the hosts

before Max Westlake completed the scoring five minutes into stoppage time. At the

Aitchison Playing Field, Sam Skidmore scored 11 minutes from time to grab a 1-1 draw for

Ashton & Backwell United away at Oldland Abbotonians, with the fixture between

Westbury United and Almondsbury finishing with the same scoreline.

FA Cup: Cadbury Heath are through to the second qualifying round after a 2-1 comeback

win away at Andover Town. The home side went ahead inside the opening ten minutes

after converting a corner, but Heath fought back and were level at the break following a

header from Sacha Tong. It was then left to Christian Lee to complete the turn around,

scoring the eventual winner

seven minutes into the second

half. Bridport were the second

Western League side to book

their spot in the next round

after claiming a 1-0 win at

home to Barnstaple Town.

Thomas Richardson was the

Bridport match-winner,

scoring the only goal in the

25th minute in front of a

bumper crowd. There was no

such luck for Willand Rovers

who went down to a 6-1 loss

at Merthyr Town, with former

Bath City-winger Kerry Morgan and current Newport County loanee Modou Touray each

scoring twice for the Welsh-side. Odd Down’s run is also over after Harry Baker smashed a

hat-trick in Weymouth’s 5-0 win, while Chinedu Vine scored the only goal as Gosport

Borough defeated Bridgwater Town 1-0.

Premier Division: Buckland Athletic survived a scare to maintain their unbeaten start to the

season, scoring a late equaliser in their 2-2 draw with Melksham Town. Jared Lewington

had given Buckland the perfect start, before goals either side of the break from Dan Demkiv

and Oliver Webb put Melksham ahead against the league leaders. The game then seemingly

got tougher for the trailing Buckland side when Liam Drew, but they showed a lot of resolve

to claim a point with Liam Head equalising eight minutes from time. Street claimed their

third league win of the season, with David O’Hare’s 35th minute strike helping them edge to

a 1-0 victory over Hallen. Shepton Mallet grabbed a share of the points in their 2-2 draw

with Bradford Town despite falling to an early two-goal deficit. A Will Haliston header and a

cross-come-shot from Dan Cottle put Bradford two goals up early in the piece, but goals

either side of the break from Ash Willmott and Craig Loxton helped Mallet rescue a draw.

Cribbs skipper Jake Hodgson starred for the Bristol side as they claimed a 3-2 win at home

to Wells City. After breaking the deadlock in the 13th minute, Hodgson watched on as Wells

snatched a 2-1 lead thanks to goals from Darren Maynard and Harry Davidson. Charlie

Aldom got Cribbs back on level terms, before Hodgson smashed home a penalty eight

minutes from time to claim all three points for the home side. Chipping Sodbury Town

scored twice in either half to claim their first win in five games, strolling to a comfortable 4-1

victory over Brislington.

First Division: Bristol Telephones continued their electric start to life in the Western

League, storming to a 6-0 win away at Bishops Lydeard. Dhani Golding’s early season goal

scoring exploits continued, with the frontman scoring twice more in a statement win for the

early leaders. Lee Pitman also grabbed a brace for the Phones, with Leon Britton and James

Batch completing the scoring. Chippenham Park’s unbeaten run in all competitions has

stretched to five matches following a 3-1 home win over Welton Rovers, with their goals

coming from Darrin Moss, Ben Pring and Lewis McCarron. At the Lancer Scott Stadium,

Calne Town fought back from a two-goal half-time deficit to draw 2-2 with Ashton &

Backwell United. A first half brace from Sam Skidmore looked to be edging the hosts

towards a the win, but Calne

were having none of it and the

prolific Billy Gleed and Stu

Windsor grabbed second half

goals for a share of the points.

Harry Brook’s brace, plus goals

from Ashley Knight and Alex

Bisp led Almondsbury to a 4-1

win away at Radstock Town,

while Oldland Abbotonians

took a 2-0 win over Chard

Town thanks to goals from Joe

Walters and Jack Metcalf.

Action from Corsham Town’s First Division encounter with

Wincanton Town, courtesy of John Cuthbertson

Wincanton Town claimed a 3-1 win away at Corsham Town, with Danny Golden and Andy

Mitchell registering goals after an earlier own-goal. Sherborne Town and Portishead Town

shared a 1-1 draw at Raleigh Grove, with Sam Farthing firing home an equaliser after Rob

Latham had given Portishead a tenth-minute lead, while Bishop Sutton moved up to tenth

with a 2-1 win away at Warminster Town. Westbury United remain unbeaten in the league

this season after claiming a 3-2 win away at Roman Glass St George. A goal in the sixth-

minute from Josh Ferguson set Westbury on their way, and when Mark Robinson managed

to scramble the ball home they were two goals ahead just after the break. The hosts got a

goal back with Lewis Wentland powering home a header, but Westbury’s two-goal lead was

soon restored with Liam Milburn scoring from inside the box. The scoring was not complete

however, and after Joe Swift scored Roman Glass’ second, they pushed for a late equaliser

which didn’t originate.

Be sure to check out the Western League Podcast

which recaps all of the games from the Premier

Division, First Division and Cup competitions. The

latest broadcast can be found on the league’s official

website:

http://www.toolstationleague.com/podcasts.php

Street 3 - 3 Buckland Athletic Premier Division Tuesday 29th August 2017 Two of the sides fancied to be battling it out at the top of the Western League Premier Division come the end of

April, served up a six-goal treat at the Tannery on Tuesday night writes Kerry Miller. In the end a draw was a fair result and one celebrated more by the home side who had suffered a loss of form and confidence which manifested itself in three defeats on the spin. Buckland however went to the Tannery with a 100% record following five straight wins and sat proudly on the top of the table. Street were without suspended Lee Sweet but both teams were strong and in front of a good crowd Craig Herrod was quickly into action, setting up Steve Murray whose first time shot produced a fine save from Kenny Griffiths. Herrod then wriggled into the penalty area but from a good position hesitated and stubbed his shot. Buckland struck immediately with their first real attack as Richard Groves got free down the flank and his cross was neatly turned in by Charlie Johansen. What confidence Street had from the positive start looked as if it could drain away just as sharply as it came back, and after the returning Lewis Tasker wasted a free-kick, he set up Herrod who should have scored by skied the chance from a good position. Street were finding plenty of room and were carving out chances as Buckland struggled to cope with the speed and weight of numbers but the home side could do little about the second strike, which would be a contender for goal of the season in any league, midway through the half. Lloyd Gardner collected the ball just inside his own half and accelerated past three opponents before his inch perfect lob from way out gave Tom Punchard no chance to make it 2-0 and all of a sudden Street were in trouble and in danger of a bigger hammering. To their credit they regrouped and within a minute had halved the deficit as Murray beat a static offside line and squared the ball for Dave O’Hare to score from close range. Buckland then tested the home defence again as Groves and Johansen combined, forcing a free-kick but it was wasted leaving Street to look for the leveller on the half hour but Herrod’s effort was deflected over for a corner. He then had another fine effort clip the crossbar but they were not to be denied as Tasker was given far too much space on the wing and his cross eventually found Murray who bundled in his fifth goal of the season after 36 breathless minutes. Buckland were stunned and it got worse three minutes later when Murray hit a rocket from distance which found the net before Griffiths could move and from 2-0 down and almost out Street were 3-2 up and buzzing.

It was unlikely that the sides could keep up such a frantic pace after the break and for a shot while the game was scrappy with Groves picking up a caution for a challenge which brought the inevitable bout of peacock type strutting about but referee Rutter calmed the situation. Ollie Morris and Gardner then joined him after a brief clash but football soon broke out again as Harry Foster sliced a shot wide from a good position on the right. Groves then curled a free-kick past the post before on the hour Foster’s pace was too much for Buckland, who by then were finding the speed of the game difficult to handle, and he crossed for the unmarked O’Hare to side foot his shot wide. Murray limped off to be replaced by Josh Wadham and he was soon in the action as he crossed to Foster, who somehow scooped the ball over from a yard out. Predictably it proved costly as after being under the cosh for some while the Devon side struck when Jared Lewington moved through the centre and beat Punchard with a shot from 20 yards to make it 3-3 with minutes left. A succession of injuries and stoppages extended the final moments but in the end both sides collected a point from a game which was a credit to the league and one which bodes well for the season ahead.

Latest Match Reports

Kerry’s reports this season can all be found at the following link:

http://www.toolstationleague.com/reportblog.php

Sherborne Town 2 Chard Town 5 First Division Wednesday 30th August 2017 A stunning solo show from Chard skipper Taoufik Ben-Salem sent his side eight places up the Western League Division One table on Wednesday night after they went home with a 5-2 victory under their belts, Ben-Salem netting the first four writes Kerry Miller. It was a remarkable showing and one which Chard had threatened for a while despite lingering at the foot of the table until yesterday and it came after both sides had posted their first wins of the new campaign on Saturday. The Robins included Paul Nicholls in the side, who had been playing rugby for Chard for some time and had Steve Friend on the bench after his unavailability on Saturday. The Zebras were without former Queen Camel striker Harry Vandervell, who had started well with three goals in two games but was suspended and Sherborne were out of the stalls first when Alexandru Stafie’s 35 yard free-kick was tipped wide by the flying John Hill in the Chard goal. He was not be denied, however as from George Mapletoft’s corner Stafie nodded home the opener on ten minutes. Chard responded immediately when Brad Miles’ curling cross only just missed the onrushing Ben-Salem but he also was not to be denied as Liam Cleal’s trickery was too much for the home defence and the burly striker notched the equaliser five minutes later. The same two combined in the next attack but Ben-Salem just failed to convert before Sherborne retaliated and Stafie drove wide again. Chard were showing signs of taking hold of the game and their counter attacks were causing the home defence no end of problems with Max Westlake and Ben-Salem setting up Cleal whose drive was pushed round for a corner by Simon Bleazard. Chard continued to push forward and following an effort from Miles which was wide Ben-Salem struck again six minutes before the break. Andy Holmes floated a long Crossfield ball into Ben-Salem’s path and his waist high volley flew past Bleazard to bring admiration from all round the ground. Sherborne were shell-shocked and three minutes later the front man completed a superb first half hat-trick when he was too strong again and having wriggled free despite being pulled bac k he made it 3-1 with the minimum of fuss. After the break the home side tried to get back into the game with Stafie again testing Hill, who made a meal of shovelling it away for a corner but that is as good as it got for Sherborne for five minutes later Ben-Salem was at it again, latching onto a long ball before crashing a fight footer past Bleazard, remarkably for his and Chard’s fourth. The home side were proving more dangerous from corners as Hill was having a testing time with inswingers but they looked a beaten side with half an hour to go as Chard went for more, Cleal and Holmes both trying their luck from distance. Manager Gerry Pearson made a double change with 20 minutes left, throwing on Dave Smith and Pete Ireland and the two almost combined to reduce the deficit before the lofty Smith appeared to be knocked out following a goalmouth melee. Sportingly, Hill immediately dropped the ball and attended the stricken player, who happily was able to resume after a lengthy stoppage. He then volleyed over from Jordan Fletcher’s pass with minutes left and their persistence was rewarded when Smith knocked in a second late on from yet another corner. Chard had momentarily gone to sleep and Smith brought a fine save out Hill which provoked Chard boss Paul Down into a short sharp wake-up call which worked, as Miles fed Westlake who drilled the fifth into the corner with virtually the last kick of the game.

Latest Results Tuesday 29th August Premier Division Bitton 3-1 Cadbury Heath 98 Bridgwater Town 1-1 Bridport 132 Longwell Green Sports 0-6 Melksham Town 143 Odd Down 1-0 Brislington 76 Street 3-3 Buckland Athletic 136 Wells City 1-2 Willand Rovers 72 First Division Bishop Sutton 3-3 Bishops Lydeard 52 Cheddar 0-3 Keynsham Town 101 Chippenham Park 0-0 Warminster Town 51 Devizes Town 2-1 Calne Town Wincanton Town 3-3 Portishead Town 68 Wednesday 30th August Premier Division Bradford Town 2-1 Chipping Sodbury Town 105 Clevedon Town 3-1 Hallen 93 Hengrove Athletic 2-1 Cribbs 42 First Division Oldland Abbotonians 1-1 Ashton & Backwell United 53 Sherborne Town 2-5 Chard Town 209 Westbury United 1-1 Almondsbury 99 Saturday 2nd September FA Cup First Qualifying Round Andover Town 1-2 Cadbury Heath Bridport 1-0 Barnstaple Town 246 Gosport Borough 1-0 Bridgwater Town Merthyr Town 6-1 Willand Rovers 303 Odd Down 0-5 Weymouth 190 Premier Division Buckland Athletic 2-2 Melksham Town 161 Chipping Sodbury Town 4-1 Brislington 168 Cribbs 3-2 Wells City 76 Hallen 0-1 Street 68 Shepton Mallet 2-2 Bradford Town 109 First Division Ashton & Backwell United 2-2 Calne Town 55 Bishops Lydeard 0-6 Bristol Telephones 32 Chippenham Park 3-1 Welton Rovers 60 Corsham Town 1-3 Wincanton Town Oldland Abbotonians 2-0 Chard Town 77 Radstock Town 1-4 Almondsbury 60 Roman Glass St George 2-3 Westbury United 48 Sherborne Town 1-1 Portishead Town Warminster Town 1-2 Bishop Sutton 67

Upcoming Fixtures Monday 4th September Premier Division Melksham Town vs Bitton 19:30KO Tuesday 5th September Premier Division Bridgwater Town vs Hallen 19:45KO Longwell Green Sports vs Cribbs 19:30KO Street vs Wellington 19:30KO Wells City vs Bridport 19:30KO First Division Ashton & Backwell United vs Cheddar 19:30KO Calne Town vs Almondsbury 19:45KO Wednesday 6th September Premier Division Clevedon Town vs Cadbury Heath 19.30KO Willand Rovers vs Shepton Mallet 19:30KO First Division Bishops Lydeard vs Roman Glass St George 19:30KO Sherborne Town vs Welton Rovers 19:30KO Westbury United vs Chippenham Park 19.30KO Saturday 9th September (KICK OFF AT 3.00PM UNLESS NOTED) FA Vase AFC St Austell vs Bishops Lydeard Almondsbury vs Clevedon Town Ashton & Backwell United vs Godolphin Athletic Bitton vs Brislington Bovey Tracey vs Keynsham Town Bridport vs Wincanton Town Cadbury Heath vs St Blazey Cheddar vs Radstock Town Cove vs Westbury United East Cowes Athletic vs Calne Town Malmesbury Victoria vs Chipping Sodbury Town Petersfield Town vs Corsham Town Pewsey Vale vs Chippenham Park Plymouth Parkway vs Sherborne Town Roman Glass St George vs Elburton Villa Tavistock vs Hallen Warminster Town vs Folland Sports Wellington vs Wells City Welton Rovers vs Willand Rovers Windsor vs Devizes Town Witheridge vs Cribbs Premier Division Bradford Town vs Odd Down Longwell Green Sports vs Buckland Athletic Melksham Town vs Street Shepton Mallet vs Hengrove Athletic First Division Bristol Telephones vs Chard Town

League Tables Premier Division

Team P W D L F A GD PTS 1 Buckland Athletic 7 5 2 0 19 12 7 17 2 Melksham Town 7 4 2 1 21 7 14 14 3 Bradford Town 6 4 2 0 13 3 10 14 4 Willand Rovers 6 4 1 1 15 6 9 13 5 Odd Down 6 4 1 1 9 6 3 13 6 Cribbs 6 4 0 2 10 6 4 12 7 Street 6 3 1 2 12 7 5 10 8 Chipping Sodbury Town 7 3 1 3 16 13 3 10 9 Shepton Mallet 6 3 1 2 8 7 1 10

10 Clevedon Town 4 2 2 0 9 2 7 8 11 Bridgwater Town 6 2 1 3 7 9 -2 7 12 Brislington 7 2 1 4 7 12 -5 7 13 Bitton 4 1 2 1 5 5 0 5 14 Hengrove Athletic 4 1 2 1 4 4 0 5 15 Bridport 4 1 1 2 8 10 -2 4 16 Wells City 7 1 1 5 8 16 -8 4 17 Wellington 6 1 0 5 7 13 -6 3 18 Cadbury Heath 5 1 0 4 7 16 -9 3 19 Hallen 5 0 1 4 5 13 -8 1 20 Longwell Green Sports 5 0 0 5 0 23 -23 0

First Division Team P W D L F A GD PTS

1 Bristol Telephones 6 6 0 0 23 7 16 18 2 Westbury United 8 5 3 0 17 5 12 18 3 Oldland Abbotonians 9 5 2 2 20 11 9 17 4 Chippenham Park 8 4 3 1 8 6 2 15 5 Wincanton Town 8 4 2 2 14 12 2 14 6 Keynsham Town 5 4 0 1 15 5 10 12 7 Warminster Town 8 3 2 3 11 7 4 11 8 Radstock Town 7 3 2 2 13 10 3 11 9 Devizes Town 7 3 2 2 10 9 1 11

10 Bishop Sutton 7 3 2 2 14 15 -1 11 11 Malmesbury Victoria 6 3 1 2 10 9 1 10 12 Roman Glass St George 6 2 1 3 15 12 3 7 13 Almondsbury 8 2 1 5 10 15 -5 7 14 Bishops Lydeard 7 2 1 4 9 20 -11 7 15 Welton Rovers 6 1 3 2 11 11 0 6 16 Ashton & Backwell United 7 1 3 3 7 10 -3 6 17 Calne Town 7 1 3 3 12 18 -6 6 18 Portishead Town 7 1 3 3 8 17 -9 6 19 Chard Town 7 1 2 4 8 12 -4 5 20 Sherborne Town 7 1 2 4 8 14 -6 5 21 Cheddar 6 1 1 4 6 12 -6 4 22 Corsham Town 7 1 1 5 4 16 -12 4