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

Action from Corsham Town’s First Division encounter with Wincanton Town, courtesy of John Cuthbertson

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.

Latest Match Reports

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 AthleticPremier DivisionTuesday 29th August 2017Two 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.

Kerry’s reports this season can all be found at the following link: http://www.toolstationleague.com/reportblog.php

Sherborne Town 2 Chard Town 5First DivisionWednesday 30 th 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 ResultsTuesday 29 th August

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

Upcoming FixturesMonday 4 th September

Premier DivisionMelksham Town vs Bitton 19:30KOTuesday 5 th September Premier DivisionBridgwater Town vs Hallen 19:45KOLongwell Green Sports vs Cribbs 19:30KOStreet vs Wellington 19:30KOWells City vs Bridport 19:30KOFirst DivisionAshton & Backwell United vs Cheddar 19:30KOCalne Town vs Almondsbury 19:45KOWednesday 6 th September Premier DivisionClevedon Town vs Cadbury Heath 19.30KOWilland Rovers vs Shepton Mallet 19:30KOFirst DivisionBishops Lydeard vs Roman Glass St George 19:30KOSherborne Town vs Welton Rovers 19:30KOWestbury United vs Chippenham Park 19.30KOSaturday 9 th September (KICK OFF AT 3.00PM UNLESS NOTED) FA VaseAFC St Austell vs Bishops LydeardAlmondsbury vs Clevedon TownAshton & Backwell United vs Godolphin AthleticBitton vs BrislingtonBovey Tracey vs Keynsham TownBridport vs Wincanton TownCadbury Heath vs St BlazeyCheddar vs Radstock TownCove vs Westbury UnitedEast Cowes Athletic vs Calne TownMalmesbury Victoria vs Chipping Sodbury TownPetersfield Town vs Corsham TownPewsey Vale vs Chippenham ParkPlymouth Parkway vs Sherborne TownRoman Glass St George vs Elburton VillaTavistock vs HallenWarminster Town vs Folland SportsWellington vs Wells CityWelton Rovers vs Willand RoversWindsor vs Devizes TownWitheridge vs CribbsPremier DivisionBradford Town vs Odd DownLongwell Green Sports vs Buckland AthleticMelksham Town vs StreetShepton Mallet vs Hengrove AthleticFirst DivisionBristol Telephones vs Chard Town

League TablesPremier Division

Team P W D L F A GD PTS

1 Buckland Athletic 7 5 2 0 19 12 7 172 Melksham Town 7 4 2 1 21 7 14 143 Bradford Town 6 4 2 0 13 3 10 144 Willand Rovers 6 4 1 1 15 6 9 135 Odd Down 6 4 1 1 9 6 3 136 Cribbs 6 4 0 2 10 6 4 127 Street 6 3 1 2 12 7 5 108 Chipping Sodbury Town 7 3 1 3 16 13 3 109 Shepton Mallet 6 3 1 2 8 7 1 10

10 Clevedon Town 4 2 2 0 9 2 7 811 Bridgwater Town 6 2 1 3 7 9 -2 712 Brislington 7 2 1 4 7 12 -5 713 Bitton 4 1 2 1 5 5 0 514 Hengrove Athletic 4 1 2 1 4 4 0 515 Bridport 4 1 1 2 8 10 -2 416 Wells City 7 1 1 5 8 16 -8 417 Wellington 6 1 0 5 7 13 -6 318 Cadbury Heath 5 1 0 4 7 16 -9 319 Hallen 5 0 1 4 5 13 -8 120 Longwell Green Sports 5 0 0 5 0 23 -23 0

First DivisionTeam P W D L F A GD PTS

1 Bristol Telephones 6 6 0 0 23 7 16 182 Westbury United 8 5 3 0 17 5 12 183 Oldland Abbotonians 9 5 2 2 20 11 9 174 Chippenham Park 8 4 3 1 8 6 2 155 Wincanton Town 8 4 2 2 14 12 2 146 Keynsham Town 5 4 0 1 15 5 10 127 Warminster Town 8 3 2 3 11 7 4 118 Radstock Town 7 3 2 2 13 10 3 119 Devizes Town 7 3 2 2 10 9 1 11

10 Bishop Sutton 7 3 2 2 14 15 -1 1111 Malmesbury Victoria 6 3 1 2 10 9 1 1012 Roman Glass St George 6 2 1 3 15 12 3 713 Almondsbury 8 2 1 5 10 15 -5 714 Bishops Lydeard 7 2 1 4 9 20 -11 715 Welton Rovers 6 1 3 2 11 11 0 616 Ashton & Backwell United 7 1 3 3 7 10 -3 617 Calne Town 7 1 3 3 12 18 -6 618 Portishead Town 7 1 3 3 8 17 -9 619 Chard Town 7 1 2 4 8 12 -4 520 Sherborne Town 7 1 2 4 8 14 -6 521 Cheddar 6 1 1 4 6 12 -6 422 Corsham Town 7 1 1 5 4 16 -12 4