Bridgwater survived a torrid first half at a blustery Raleigh Grove on Wednesday to progress in the Les Phillips Cup, but it took an injury to defender Ross Edwards to tip the balance on a strange night where the wind and the firm pitch played havoc with both defences.

Goals from leading scorer Jack Taylor, Jordan Greenwood and substitute Sam Crumb put the Robins into the next phase of the regionalised competition where they will face either Radstock Town or Gillingham Town at home – those teams facing off next Tuesday.

Dave Pearse was again missing Dave Thorne, Mark Armstrong, Jake Llewellyn, and Jacob Spence, but took the game to home side who themselves had leading scorer Alex Murphy on the bench but squandered a raft of free kicks as Sherborne struggled to cope with the early pace in the first 20 minutes.

Against the run of play, the Zebras took the lead on 22 minutes when the United defence again tried to play out from the back but got tangled up and Anth Herrin rifled in the opener from eighteen yards. It was a stunner, but it almost got worse on the half hour when another error at the back gifted former Street wide man Ollie Hibberd with a clear shot, but he blazed over from a good position.

George King was wide from distance but when they did go forward, with full-back Harry Durant having a fine game up and down the left, they looked dangerous and three minutes from the break Bridgy finally capitalised on a free-kick when Taylor crashed home from twenty yards with home keeper Josh Attwood rooted to the spot.

Sadly, the defensive frailties of the first half were not done as Hibbert was presented with the ball in the area moments later and he ensured his side went in ahead with a simple finish. Right on the break Taylor was booked for a rash tackle on the halfway line before boss Pearse was able to sort the situation for the second half.

With the deceptive wind in their favour and home keeper Attwood struggling with his clearance kicks, United sensed they were still in the game and with the home side dropping ever deeper from the start, chances started to arrive, and Durant went on a mission only to watch his crisp drive tipped over the bar by Attwood.

Mike Duffy was introduced, but it was Ross Edwards’ unfortunate injury which ironically changed the outcome of the tie as Crumb was sent on alongside Taylor and the pair soon put it to bed. Crumb saw a close-range effort somehow cleared off the line before George King hit the post with the rebound but, seconds later, it was all square as Greenwood got his head to a corner and it went in off at least two defenders to make him second top scorer for the season.

Duffy was then next to find the woodwork with a drive, but it seemed to matter little as fine work from Taylor gave him space to drill a cross shot which was helped in by Crumb from on the line with less than 15 minutes left.

Tom Llewellyn then escaped on the left and lined up Attwood but again the shot found the base of a post as the home side escaped and it could have come back to haunt the Robins as Sherborne mounted a couple of last attacks, but Jake Viney pulled out two stunning saves and the home match in the next round was confirmed.

Man of the match was the returning Morgan Williams who was everywhere, and the run of away games now moves on to Saturday when the side travel to Bitton for a league game.

Match Details
Match: Sherborne Town v Bridgwater United
Competition: Les Phillips Cup | First Round
Date: Wednesday 23rd February 2022
Venue: Raleigh Grove
Attendance: TBC

Teams

Sherborne: Josh Attwood, Ben Hughes, George Mapletoft, Tom Budden, Aaron White, Matty Brown, Dec Cornish, Cal Gundry, Anth Herrin, Haydn Hodges, Ollie Hebbard.

Subs: Alex Murphy, Sam Farthing, Henry Lawrence-Napier.

United: Jake Viney, Sam Hedges, Harry Durant, Morgan Williams, Jordan Greenwood, Ross Edwards, George King, Tom Llewellyn, Jack Taylor, Adnan Hiroli, Cameron Gauci.

Subs: Ryan Brereton, Nick Woodrow, Sam Crumb, Mike Duffy.

Match Officials
Referee: David Lilly
Assistant Referee: Stuart Griffiths
Assistant Referee: Spencer Chinnock

Who’s next? United are on the road again with a trip to Bitton in the Toolstation Western League on Saturday 26th February, 3pm.