Tivvy went in to this game with nothing to play for with the league already won and disappointingly it showed especially throughout the first half.  Tivvy not only found it hard to adapt to the small pitch but found it hard to play any football at all in which was a disappointing match and a low to an otherwise great season.  The first half saw Stoke Hill dominate and with Tivvy not challenging, it was no surprise that the yellows found themselves 5-0 down at half time, having conceded goals from set pieces and allowing players to run through unchallenged with some of Tivvy's midfield and back line not at the races.

The second half saw strike partners and joint man of the match Jack Rainey and Scott McMillan play out of position and winning the midfield battle to create better scoring opportunities, these were squandered and the only goal of the half came again from Stoke Hill when it was fumbled into the goal.   

Full credit goes to Stoke Hill for their first half performance and hopefully the Tivvy boys will learn from this game and will understand that you can't just turn up to a game to make up the numbers against any of the teams in Division 1.

Stoke Hill Spurs hit Tiverton for 6 with a fine display of football. Stoke were 5-0 by half time of which some of the goals came from set pieces which the boys have been working very hard on in training. Tiverton had no answer for the onslaught which carried on throughout the second half.

Goalkeeper Jo Forster was called upon 3 times only and he equally made 3 fine saves, the midfield were too strong for Tiverton Town and Ryan Wallis worked tirelessly up front. The Goal scorers were Jack Saunders with a fine brace Jake Tillet with his trademark poachers goal and captain Ethan Chalk scored a super hatrick. Well done lads for a well deserved win.

Sidbury became the first team to take points off Tiverton Town this season, it was a gutsy performance with few chances as both sets of defenders proved hard to break down. Aaron Pearse, Rob Mansfield, Ben Logan and Cody Northcott worked tirelessly and played well as a unit in the Sidbury defence, denying the Tivvy attack of any real clear cut chances.

It was an even first half where both teams seemed to cancel out each other for long periods, the midfield quartet of Hamish Culling, Zac Mattin, Bill Reed and Kieran Murphy were made to work extremely hard, but they kept their heads and linked up well together. Harry Wright and Ben Kidson fed off the scraps well, Wright's hold up play was impressive, and Kidson's pace is always a threat.

There was some sporting moments, which in these tight and tense matches is always good to see like when Jack Rainey decided to pass the ball back to our keeper, after he had been injured in a collision with a Tivvy player.

The second half substitutions had there desired effect as Jake Lucas added some composure in midfield, and Jack Murrell was in great form when he came on, he created some panic in the Tivvy defence. Midway through the half, after some nice play through the middle Jack Murrell played in Zac Mattin who passed the ball into the bottom left corner.

With just three minutes remaining, it looked like Sidbury had done enough to clinch all three points but Tivvy were awarded a free kick on the edge of the box, which was well struck and all though keeper Daryl Young done well to get a hand on it, it found the corner of the net.

The point was enough for Tiverton to clinch the title, so we would like to congratulate Tivvy Town on a fantastic season and being crowned worthy champions. As for Sidbury, if we play and compete in our two remaining matches like we have for the previous twelve then I'm in no doubt that we can regard this season as a great success.

The atmosphere and banter in the clubhouse after the game was great, with both teams having a laugh, which is nice to see.

In the first half Tivvy started the stronger and dominated for large periods limiting St Martins to few scoring opportunities and putting the hosts on the back foot.  Early pressure paid off  with a through ball from Jack Rainey to Matt Pengelly to shoot past the keeper low into the bottom right hand corner to put Tivvy 1-0 up early on, and further  good work from the yellows resulted with 2  well executed goals 1 from Ollie Morgan with a curved strike into the top right hand corner and Jack Rainey who rounded the keeper to hit home tivvys 3^rd  to go into the break with a comfortable lead.

This was certainly a game of 2 halves and the second half saw both teams attacking looking for goals and it was the Saints who found the net first to make it 3-1 with a fine strike, Tivvy replied within a minute and a good move down the right handside  saw Scott McMillan put in a good cross for Matt Pengelly to tap in and grab his brace. 

Tivvy squandered further scoring opportunities and with the loss of two defenders through injury Tivvy were left wide open and with sloppy defending gifted St Martins 2 further goals to get themselves back in the game at 4-3.  Changes were made to balance the team and Jack Rainey and Ollie Morgan had to deputise at the back to try and avoid further pressure, the whole team had to work very hard for this 3 points right to the very end.  Man of the match Scott McMillan.

Tivvy had to settle for a share of the points for the first time this season but it was still enough to see yellows regain the league title.

Tivvy were up for it today knowing they only needed 1  point to win the league after winning 11 consecutive games and got what they thoroughly deserved.  Although Sidbury made this a tough fought game the yellows were relatively comfortable throughout but against the run of play Sidbury got on the score sheet first when a  player was left unchallenged to score and put themselves ahead.  Tivvy continued playing and working hard for each other right to the very end and got their just rewards when a free-kick was awarded, and although under a lot of pressure Ollie Morgan stood up and made no mistake with an excellent strike to give the keeper no chance which was fully deserved.  Man of the match to the whole team.

It's been the strongest Division 1 yet with very competitive football,  so to go a run like this  is a tremendous achievement - so a big congratulations to all the boys for becoming this seasons Division 1 Champions.

Tivvy can now relax and go out and enjoy their remaining two games.  Well done boys.

Thanks to all at Sidbury for your hospitality and a well contested game.

Tiverton U13's hosted Sidbury in their 10^th league game of the season and maintained maximum points to keep themselves in a good position at the top of the table. Sidbury had a big physical side throughout and set out their stall to try and get in amongst the yellows to stop them playing football which worked in the first half. The best bit of football came 15 minutes into the game with good combination play from central midfielder Ollie Morgan who put a good ball through the channel for Will Pinnick to pick up and cross into Jack Rainey to side foot in and put the yellows 1-0 up. Sidbury were pumping long balls into Tivvys half getting several shots away with the yellows defence being called on several times with a barrage of shots on Tivvys goalmouth with one of the shots hitting the crossbar, this paid off for Sidbury when a foul on the defender saw the ball fall to a Sidbury player who struck the target and scored which resulted in the equaliser before the break. Tivvy had further chances with some good balls in and around the 18 yard box with Will Pinnick, Jack Rainey, Scott McMillan and Scott Billing all finding themselves unlucky not to capitalise further to make the chances count. 

In the second half Tivvy started the brighter with substitute Reece Kingdom making an immediate impact and Marcus Old and Scott Billing linking up and working well together. Tivvy were keeping the ball well and had a lot of possession in Sidburys half looking the most likeliest to go ahead, with the visitors best chance of the second half coming from a misjudged ball from the back line which goalkeeper Ryan Clarke was looking to pick up but in doing this the ball rebounded back out for the Sidburys front man to strike at goal but a brilliant recovery save from Ryan Clarke denied the visitors the chance to go ahead. With 10 minutes to go hard working Scott McMillan put a through ball into the path of Matthew Pengelly who took the ball down well with an excellent lobb over the keeper to win the game 2-1. Man of the Match Ryan Clarke. 

Well done to all the boys for concentrating on playing football right to the very end which paid off for a well deserved 2-1 victory.

Tiverton Town hosted Crediton Saints and started off brightly with Ollie Morgan scoring a thunderbolt shot within 4 minutes to open the scoring, Tiverton extended their lead in the first half to 5-1 with further goals from Jack Rainey, Scott McMillan and a fine brace from Ross Holmes one of them a well directed header.  The Saints goal came from a well taken free-kick. 

The second half saw the yellows add another 4 goals to their tally, with Thomas Parkins heading home with a  bullet header, Scott McMillan grabbing his brace and Jack Rainey his hatrick. 

Crediton Saints battled bravely through the avalanche of goals but could not add to their own score.  The game finished with Tiverton running out 9-1 winners. 

Joint Man of the Match Ross Holmes & Ollie Morgan.

Stoke Hill put in a 5 star performance in their Semi against West Exe. The back Four stayed solid all game which allowed keeper Jo Foster to keep a clean sheet,the Mid field worked really hard throughout which resulted in some great goals being scored.

Stoke were 3 0 up by half time the goals being scored by a thunderbolt from Ethan Chalk,a set piece free kick from Ryan Wallis which dropped in behind the West Exe keeper and an acrobatical overhead kick from Jake Tillett,Second half West Exe came out fighting and had their effort on goal chalked off for being offside. Stoke settled in quickly with another fine strike from Ethan Chalk which bulged the back of their net.Macauley Burge pushed up high into the West Exe half with 10 minutes to go and curled a superb strike into the bottom Right of the West Exe goal.

Well done to West Exe who never gave up and to both teams who played the game in the correct spirit, thank you to the Exeter and District league for providing the boys with a great venue to play their Semi Final.

Good luck to Stoke Hill Spurs in the Final on the 16th May at St James Park well done to all.

Tiverton  2  v  0  Westexe Athletic 

Tivvy ran out 2-0 winners at home to a much improving Westexe side and although the yellows were having much more possession the visitors were making it very difficult to break down at times.  With a lot of play in the West Exe half chances came for the yellows and their first goal came from Will Pinnick on the turn to stike home and put Tivvy 1-0 up before the half time break.  It was much the same in the second half with West Exe most likely chances coming from free-kicks and corners of which were defended very well from Tivvys back line but further good work and a good move down the left hand side Jack Rainey crossed the ball across the face of goal for Matt Pengelly to side foot home to win the game 2-0. 

Man of the match Max Atifeh.

 Heavitree Harriers  0  v  2  Tiverton Town 

Tivvy were away to Heavitree Harriers who are also doing well in the league this year.  The whole team were up for this game and did not disappoint working hard for each other all over the park trying to create chances to get themselves in front and with a well worked ball from Scott McMillan, Jack Rainey lost his defenders and with a left footed strike from outside the box left the Heavies keeper no chance to put Tivvy ahead.  Heavitree had  few chances of their own with a few shots wide of the target with their best chance in the first half at the far post with Marcus Od blocking a close range shot to send it out for a corner.  Tivvys back line of Jack Dickson, Ross Holmes, Marcus Old and Max Atifeh were clearing their lines and defending well throughout and this allowed the team to get the ball forward and play some excellent football and keep the balll in Heavitree's half. 

In the second half Tivvy continued where they left off taking the game to Heavitree looking for the second goal cushion as the hosts could always be a threat to get back into the game.  Thomas Parkins and Ollie Morgan were playing excellent in the middle of midfield working well with Scott Billings and Will Pinnick and with 15 minutes remaining the hard working due of Scott McMiilan put a lovely through ball in the path of Jack Rainey who angled his body well to see off the Heavies defender and take on the keeper with another left footed strike to grab his brace which killed the game off and put Tivvy in the driving seat to win the game 2-0.  Stronger performances from the whole team and

Man of the Match Thomas Parkins.

Well done to all the team who showed great desire and concentration throughout this game - lets keep it going.

Tiverton ran out 2-1 winners at home today up against a good footballing side Okehampton, in which is always a close game played in the right spirit.  Good attacking football was there to be seen from both teams considering the heavy pitch and Tivvy  were denied their chances with some excellent goalkeeping between the sticks for Argyle, and up the other end the visitors fizzed a few shots narrowly over the cross bar or just wide with the first goal of the half coming from an own goal.  Wtih Tivvy wanting to make up for their mistake a good move down the right hand side Max Atifeh hit a good ball up the line to the feet of Jack Rainey to make a good run and smash the ball home past Oke keeper to level the game just before half time. 

Tivvy were pretty much on top throughout the second half and were looking the most likliest to score and pressure was paying off and although Tivvy missed a penalty further chances came with Tivvy being awarded a free kick which Will Pinnick took well with a precise finish to put the hosts ahead, the game was never won though until the final whistle as Okehampton were always capable of getting back into the game with some great moves of their own.  A great game of football from both sets of players. 

Goalkeeper Ryan Clarke handled the ball well throughout and strong performances from Will Pinnick, Jack Dickson, Max Atifeh, Ollie Morgan, Scott Billings and joint man of the match to Scott McMillan and Jack Rainey. 

All the best to Ross Voaden for a speedy recovery from all at Tiverton Town.

Tiverton 4 Stoke Hill Spurs 3 Stoke Hill started off the first half of this game by far the better side. Ryan Wallis got Stokes first goal with some great build up play. Macauley Burge marked Tiverton's striker out of the game for the first 35 minutes, which was where their only threat was going to coming from.

The beginning of the 2nd half saw Tiverton come out all fired up as they must have had a good talking to in the interval. This paid off as Stoke found themselves 4 - 1 down in about 12 minutes. The Stoke Hill boys dug deep and with some tactical changes moved Jimmy Balkwill up the field who replied with 2 great finishes. In between goals 2 and 3 for Stoke a blatant hand ball in Tiverton's own penalty area, that should have resulted in a stone cold penalty, of which the only person not to see it was the referee. This seemed totally unbelievable. Stoke Hill's coaching staff, players and parents came away feeling very disappointed.

Well done to the Stoke Hill boys who never gave up the fight, and narrowly missed out today. Good luck to our boys for Tuesday night in the semi-finals of the League Cup.

Tivvy U13's were up against Stoke Hill at home today in which was always going to be a tough encounter.  As the first half progressed there wasn't much between the 2 sides the only difference being that Tivvy gave away needless free kicks in their own half allowing Stoke Hill to get too many shots away and balls into the box. Tivvy had an equal amount of chances in the first half and played some decent football with Stoke Hills keeper and defenders doing well.  The only goal of the half was scored by Stoke Hill when a player was left unchallenged to get a shot away and score from a tight angle. 

Tivvy always in the game upped their tempo early in the second half with a ball dropping through into the visitors half and although marked very tightly Jack Rainey made no mistake of winning the ball and to shake off his marker showing great determination and desire to run through and finish with a good strike to put Tivvy deservedly on level terms and give the team a lift. Tivvys tails were up and were playing some excellent football and adapted well with the loss of Jack Dickson and with in-form Will Pinnick having to deputise as a centre back who continued his good work alongside Ross Holmes, Marcus Old and Thomas Parkins, allowing Lewis Fraser to come on the righthand side of midfield.  Now on top and good work from the midfield of Ollie Morgan, Reece Kingdom and Scott Billings allowed the hard working stike partnership of Jack Rainey and Scott McMillan to link up well and this time a well worked ball in from Jack Rainey saw Scott McMillan shoot across goal with another good finish to put the yellows 2-1 ahead. Further good movement and play allowed Tivvy to pressurise Stoke Hills defence and another corner was whipped in which Stoke Hill defended with the ball coming back out to the feet of Ollie Morgan who gave the goalkeeper no chance with a thunderous shot.  

Good work continued in and around Stoke Hills box and with good attacking movement from Tivvy allowed Scott McMillan into the penalty area who was taken out and a penalty awarded which Jack Rainey stepped up to take who struck the ball calmly into the bottom left hand corner.  Although Tivvy were very comfortable at this stage of the game with 18 minutes remaining they took their foot off the pedal thinking they had the game won and were adjudged to have gave away another free kick and with a long ball over the top, Stoke Hill capatalised on this and grabbed a goal back to make it 4-2, this gave the visitors a great lift and further pressure paid off with Stoke Hill bringing the game back to 4-3. Further goals were squandered when Jack Rainey beat the keeper only to be denied his hatrick from the cross-bar and Lewis Fraser also had a good chance to beat the keeper with a close range header. Full credit to Stoke Hill who kept fighting to get back in the game right to the final whistle, a very competitive game but on the day Tivvy came away with the points in a well deserved victory.

Stong performances from the whole team especially in the second half and Man of the match Ollie Morgan.

Two Solid Performances from both teams on what was a difficult bumpy surface,Jake Tillett got Stokes First.Macaulay Burge scored an amazing 25 yarder lobb over their keeper and Jordan Major put in a great cross after going down the Right side to pick out Ethan Chalk who Calmly side volleyed it into their net.

Sidbury United played their first League game for two months and managed to grab top spot with a great display away to Crediton Saints.

United started to take control in midfield with Man of the Match Bill Reed and Kieran Murphy scrapping for everything and alongside Hamish Culling and Zac Mattin they began knocking the ball about and creating the Sidbury chances. Most of the Sidbury attacks were on the right where Ben Kidson was making some great runs, which was finally rewarded when he opened the scoring in the tenth minute.

Daryl Young pulled off a blinding save when he managed to tip the ball over the bar after the ball came back off Aaron Pearse. Sidbury went back on the attack. Kieran Murphy played Hamish Culling in on the keeper who cooly finished to give Sidbury a two goal cushion.

Crediton pulled a goal back from a free kick which was very well struck into the top corner to make it 1-2. The communication between Ben Logan, Aaron Pearse, Rob Mansfield was first class at the back, which allowed them to play themselves out of trouble on a couple of occasions. Cody Northcott is proving a very reliable and consistent left back who must be a contender for player of the season

Sidbury went close to scoring, with Harry Wright, Ben Kidson, Bill Reed all being denied, they continued to put Crediton under pressure, and were finally rewarded when Harry Wright restored the two goal lead with a well taken goal similar to the first two.

Kieran Murphy made it 1-4 when he gambled and reacted first to capitalise after the keeper had spilled the ball. It was all United now and they increased their lead even more when Jacob Lucas got a fifth from close range. Daryl Young made a rare appearance as an outfield player for the last ten minutes and very nearly added to the Sidbury tally on two occasions.

Zac Mattin showed some great determination when he would not give up the chase on what seemed a dead cause, he won the ball, beat two challenges, got to the by line and his low cross was inch perfect for Jack Murrell to side foot volley into the roof of the net

This was a superb team performance which both the manager Steve Logan and his boys should be very proud of.

Tivvy travelled away to West Exe Athletic and can consider themselves very lucky to come away with all 3 points.  West Exe were first to open the scoring with a well taken goal in the opening minutes and although Tivvy tried to respond and were having a lot more possession the game became frustrating and Tivvy were unable to get the ball in the right areas to create clear cut chances until the end of the first half when Max Atifeh crossed in a great ball for Marcus Old to rifle home a well driven left foot shot to even the game up.

West Exe had good fighting spirit throughout this game and continued from where they left off in the first half working hard as a team, but Tivvy took the lead early in the second half with Will Pinnick getting on the end of Scott Billings cross to slot home Tivvys second.  At this stage it looked like Tivvy were going to press on looking the likeliest to score further goals but it was West Exe who scored to level the game through sloppy defending.  This game was looking to end as a drawer with Tivvy wasting opportunities and a lack of concentration in other areas of the pitch but the yellows did press and the pressure paid off within the last minutes of the game when they forced an own goal to seal a 3-2 victory. 

Strong performances from Ollie Morgan, Scott McMillan, Will Pinnick and Jack Rainey and Man of the Match to Max Atifeh.  Well done to West Exe who never game up.

Okehampton travelled to West Exe for a much anticipated game.  They started the game a little nervous and took until the 11th minute when they took the lead by a great move with Ben Bickle chipping the ball over the top to Ross Voaden's feet for him to tap it in.  The next goal followed a goalmouth scramble with Ben Bickle having two attempts at goal before finally curling it home past the goalie. 

Okehampton were dominating the game when Ryan Gross was making a break but was brought down in the penalty area, which unfortunately they didn't capitalise on when the West Exe goalie made a great save.

In the second half, Okehampton wanted to keep their lead and Nathan Andrew took advantage of a lapse of concentration from West Exe when he shot the ball past the goalie.  Ben Bickle made a great run through the opposition before firing the ball home for Okehampton's fourth goal.

Midway through the second half West Exe took advantage and scored from a free kick, closely followed with a goal from a penalty.  Okehampton got over this setback and they came straight back at them with Ollie Crimmins making a great run and scoring.

Okehampton showed some good team play and came away with a well deserved win. 

Man of the Match:Ryan Gross

Tiverton U13's put in an excellent team performance in their first league game of 2010 and were back to winning ways with a 4-2 win over a very strong St Martins side.  From the off the yellows started the brightest working hard for each other all over the pitch and in doing this were gaining a lot of possession causing problems for St Martins defence and with a good run down the right hand side Jack Rainey shot a well driven srike across goal low into the bottom left hand corner to give Tivvy the lead and within 5 minutes with further pressure from Tivvy Reece Kingdom punched a great pass into space for Jack Rainey to turn and score a well taken strike for his second of the game. 

Although Tivvy were having a lot more of the ball in the first half St Martins were also trying hard to get the ball into Tivvys half to create chances of their own but Tivvys back line of Jack Dickson, Ross Holmes, Marcus Old and Max Atifeh were working extremely hard to cancel out any immediate comeback from the visitors.  Ollie Morgan and Reece Kingdom were winning the central midfield battle , Will Pinnick and Scott Billings were also in fine form down either side of the pitch and linked up well with the hard working forward line of Jack Rainey and Scott McMillan,  further pressure paid off with a well taken corner from Reece Kingdom finding the head of Will Pinnick who calmly headed the ball into the net for a well deserved goal and to put Tivvy 3-0 up. 

Although Tivvy were well on top in this half St Martins never gave up and managed to get in behind Tivvys defence to shoot high into the roof of Tivvys net giving the keeper Ryan Clarke no chance, this seemed to spur the hosts on once again and with some neat exchanges from Will Pinnick and Jack Rainey who crossed the ball into Scott Billings to coolly side foot the ball into the bottom right hand corner of the net to go 4-1 up at half time.

In the second half as the pitch became heavier and heavier St Martins contested this half very well and scored the only goal of the half with another excellent long range strike.  Although tired legs were there to be seen from both sets of players further chances were spurned from both sides with the game finishing 4-2 to Tiverton.  Also contributing well to the game was Lewis Fraser who had to adapt to right back early in the second half and the fresh legs of Matt Pengelly, Josh Bruce and Jay Buckingham who can count himself very unlucky not to have been on the score sheet.

Man of the match goes out to the whole squad who worked tireless for each other throughout this game and got their just rewards.  Well done boys, keep up the good work.

Thanks to Lee Jenner for refereeing the game at such short notice.

In their first league match of 2010 Crediton Saints came away from Exminster with a well deserved point in a keenly fought match.

St Martins started the better of the 2 sides and took the lead in the 3rd minute, however Saints equalised after 8 minutes when a through ball from Dan Tucker found James Langmead 35 yards out from goal, and his first time effort flew into the net. Crediton soon took the lead for the first time when debutant Jack Hawksby squared the ball across the penalty box for James Langmead to side foot home his second. St Martins were not behind for long and after their equaliser, Thomas Langmead in the Crediton Saints goal had to be at his best to denie St Martins further goals. Eventually St Martins regained the lead and it was only on the stroke of halftime that Crediton once again drew level.

A through ball from James Eginton allowed James Langmead to round the St Martins keeper to complete a superb first half hatrick. 

In the second half with both defences tightening up, chances for both sides were reduced. After 51 minutes St Martins once again regained the lead , however Crediton were level once again within 4 minutes.

Josh Hill played a lovely through ball to Jack Hawksby who despite being under pressure slotted home from the edge of the box to crown a very encouraging debut. In the closing stages both sides had opportunities to win the match, but in the circumstances a draw was probably a fair result .

Stoke played some lovely attacking football as did Okehamton with their defending as they were very hard to break down,Okehamtons 1st came from a goal mouth scramble and their 2nd from a very soft penilty,Stokes goals both came from good build up from open play,Macauley Burge with the 1st and Ryan Wallis with the 2nd. Well done to both teams for a good game of football.

Sidbury United notched up their first victory over Tiverton Town to book a very well earned Semi Final place against St Martins. It was an extremely entertaining cup tie, both teams started well and despite the bobbly pitch played some very good football. First half was a tight affair with both sides fully aware of the threat each team pose. However it was Sidbury had the better of the clear cut chances.

Kieran Murphy nearly broke the deadlock with a delightful volley which the keeper saved well, Ben Kidson was a constant menace to the Tivvy defence and was almost rewarded for his efforts but his best chance went narrowly wide. Connor Long saw his free kick saved right on the line, Zac Mattin and Ben Logan came very close too.

Ben Logan, Connor Long, Aaron Pearse and Cody Northcott were immense at the back and showed great strength and commitment. As did the midfield who must have covered every blade of grass on the pitch, with Bill Reed at the heart of everything.

The second half was played at the same pace and with the same commitment as the first, Man of the Match Cody Northcott put in a fantastic cross with Harry Wright about to pounce, but the ball was tipped off is head and out for a corner. It was now end to end stuff, but no more real clear cut chances. Jack Murrell was putting in his best performance for the club on the right.

Midway through the second half and keeper Daryl Young pulled of a great save at the feet of a Tivvy player, the only real test he had because for all their position the Tivvy attack were reduced mostly to long range efforts which Daryl Young dealt with comfortably.

Kieran Murphy put a delicate ball over the Tivvy defence right into Harry Wrights path, he took one touch then smashed the the ball into the bottom left corner of the net, to put Sidbury into the lead with just 8 mins remaining. Todd Lewendon nearly wrapped the tie up a little later when his shot was brilliantly saved by the Tivvy keeper, who had a great game. Hamish Culling made two fantastic runs from midfield, as Sidbury started to run the clock down.

This was a fantastic team performance made even better considering five of the Sidbury squad were not 100% recovering from illness or injuries, this was Sidbury giving their all for each other, and in doing so, gave their best team performance so far this season. Well done lads. Hope your feeling better soon Rob.

Note from the Club Secretary worthy of printing:

I just want to pass on some comments

The Tiverton boys showed excellent sportmanship , and very polite after the match. Five of the boys approached Steve (Manager) individually after the game and shoke hands thanking him and wishing Sidbury good luck in the next round.

With Tiverton's longest lay-off from football to date of 14 weeks, this game was always going to be  hard work for Tiverton but despite this, this was one of those games where the score line didn't truly reflect the game.

Sidbury made Tivvy work hard from the off but due to heavy glue pitch conditions and Sidbury putting in some good challenges in the middle of the park Tivvy found it hard to play their normal quick passing game. Tivvy did however have the best chances in the first half with Ollie Morgan, Will Pinnick and Scott McMillan all going close but not to take anything away from Sidbury who also finished strong towards the end of the first half.

Tivvy upped their game in the second half and created the most chances through numerous free-kicks and corners but the team did not capitalise on this and were unable to convert, it was also a big loss in the front of the defence with Ross Holmes having to come off at half time leaving a big hole to fill as he was playing so well.  Tivvy gave the ball away needlessly at times which gave Sidbury the breakthrough with their best chance of the game to score.

Although tired legs were there to be seen Tivvy pressed hard for the remainder of the game to get the equaliser but it wasn't to be with the score line finishing 1-0 to the hosts.  With the possession Tivvy had today it just about told the story with Ryan Clarke only having 2 shots to save the whole game, one of them being a cracking save and Marcus Old very bright out from the back to restrict Sidbury to further chances .  Although all the boys did work hard today after such a long lay off, strong performances came from Ross Holmes, Will Pinnick, Max Atifeh and Man of the Match Marcus Old.

Top marks to the referee Rob Thorne who had full control of the game.  And best of luck to Sidbury in the next round.

Stoke Hill Spurs recorded a great win with some great football and some amazing goals,the goal scorers were Jake Tillett 1,Jordan Major 1,Maccauley Burge 3, Ethan Chalk 4,Jo Winsor 2,Jack Saunders 2,Ryan Wallis 1,Tarji Jones 1,well done boys.

Okehampton got back to playing football after a long break and were determined to put on a good show.

They started brightly and took the lead when a well worked goal was finished off by Ben Bickle.

The second soon followed with a good corner by Tallan Burns superbly headed in by Lewis Taylor. 

Saints got a goal back when a mix up in the defence allowed their striker through to score.  This did not knock Okehampton as they went up the other end with a well worked passing move allowing Liam Alford to sprint through the defence and calmly slot the ball into the back of the net.

A great individual goal from Ollie crimmins made it 4-1.

Another great team effort allowed Ross Voaden to knock in the fifth and final goal of this entertaining game.

This was a good solid team performance with the defence in great shape.

Men of the Match Liam Alford and Lewis Taylor

This is always a very tough fixture and so it proved again, with Sidbury at full strength for the first time this season, they for some reason failed to impress for much of the game. It certainly was not through lack of effort or commitment, so we'll put it down to just one of those footballing days when it just was not meant to be.

Stoke Hill put United under some early pressure, keeper Daryl Young pulled off a blinding save when he tipped a shot just round the post. Stoke Hill scored on 20 minutes after a bit of a goalmouth scramble. It became 2-0 on the stroke of half time after a nice move and cross cut the Sidbury defence apart.

It was a heavy pitch with long grass so both teams stamina and fitness was tested to the full. Stoke Hill went three up 15 minutes into the second half and seemed to have killed off the game, but Uniteds pride had other idea's.

Sidbury showed a real strength of character in not letting their heads drop and give up, in fact they showed great determination throughout and were rewarded when Hamish Culling pulled one back  with a well taken goal from the edge of the box, then Ben Kidson saw his volley go just wide of the upright.

With just minutes remaining Sidbury were awarded a penalty which Hamish Culling cooly tucked away to make it 3-2. Thanks to Southern Electric for sponsoring the boys new away kit, it looks great.

So unlucky lads, and well done for showing tremendous spirit and pride.

 An entertaining game played on a heavy pitch, a fine brace from Jake Tillett and a good finish from Tarji Jones was enough to take the 3 points.

 St Martins and Feniton finally got this cup fixture played at the 5th time of asking. The Saints ran out comfortable winners with goals from Dean Billingsley (4), Harry Skinner (2), Josh Lake, Ben Broome, James Horrell and Dylan Knight who scored his first for the club.

There were a number of excellent performances for the Saints but man of the match was Connor Batho.

Yet again it seemed as though Sidbury were slow to get going as Crediton started off the brighter of the two teams, in this rearranged league fixture.

Crediton took the lead from a free kick after 15 minutes, this gave United the wake up call they needed and they started playing some decent football and threatened the Crediton goal on a number of occasions. Some great work down the right was rewarded when Aaron Pearse put in a lovely cross which Ben Kidson headed into the top right corner.

After their shaky start Ben Logan, Aaron Pearse, Rob Mansfield and Kieran Murphy began to get a better understanding and were certainly getting the better of the Crediton attack. Zac Mattin made it 2-1 to Sidbury with a well taken goal, then soon after a delightful flick from Harry Wright, and Mattin was through on goal again, he made no mistake in cooly beating the keeper.

United went into the half time break 3-1 to the good, but started the second half as if all the hard work had been done. Crediton pulled another goal back after a quick break caught Sidbury napping, but the finish was first class and left keeper Daryl Young no chance.

Hamish Culling, Bill Reed, Jack Murrell and Matt Broom started to regain control in midfield, which acted as a platform for Sidbury to regain the initiative. The Crediton keeper pulled off some great saves from Harry Wright, Todd Lewendon, Ben Kidson and Zac Mattin, before Todd Lewendon beat his defender and then the keeper to restore Uniteds two goal lead.

Zac Mattin then got his hat-trick after another great move put him through on goal. So a comfortable scoreline in the end, but the boys were made to work hard for this win. Having said that Sidbury are now growing into a very decent outfit, and I'm sure they will carry on getting better.

It was great to see Scott Redman getting back to his old self after a long lay off, also Rob Mansfield put in a blinding performance as a stand in centre half which earned him the Man of the Match award.

A massive thank you to Mel and Graham who without their efforts this match would never have gone ahead. Cheers lads.

It was quite ironic that the game was played at an archery club when the Heavies had multiple chances but failed to hit the target throughout this match. Brixington never let their heads drop even after the Heavies took the lead in the 2nd half, the goal scored by Heavies MOTM Danny Savage, this only spurred the Blues to push even harder and getting their reward by equalizing soon after.

It may have been a cold wet miserable morning and even the ref didn't turn up but fair play to Dave and his team who got the game on and fair play to the Blues who stuck to their task superbly throughout this encounter. Extra time saw more Heavie chances go astray, with penalties looming the Heavies broke away with only the keeper to beat but he stood firm making a fine save from the attack releasing a long ball up field putting the Heavies under some pressure with a fabulous finish by the Blues Frontman eventually settling the match.

Well played Brixington and all the best for the next round.

Tiverton Town U13's entertained Pinhoe Panthers after it was agreed their pitch would be unplayable, due to the bad weather. 

This was definitely a game of 2 halves with Pinhoe starting the brighter and first to open the scoring within the first 5 minutes through some good work. Tivvy were working hard to try and get back into the game and did not have to wait long for the equaliser from Scott McMillan.  Pinhoe managed to get forward again with the wind behind them and made it count with a long range effort high into the net giving Tivvy's keeper Ryan Clarke no chance.  With it being end to end football Pinhoe were up for this occasion and were working hard to contain Tivvy's line but with a good run down the left handside and an excellent cross from Jack Rainey, Lewis Fraser equally met the ball with a good finish to put Tivvy back on level terms.  With both teams now battling hard to get back in front Ross Holmes was adjudged to have gave away a penalty which Pinhoe calmly slot home but it was Tivvy who created the further chances towards the end of the first half and Lewis Fraser with another fine strike made it level before the break.

In the second half Tivvy had Pinhoe on the back foot and considering the heavy pitch played some excellent football with Ollie Morgan, Reece Kingdom and Thomas Parkins solid in the heart of midfield and with a great partnership from strike partners Jack Rainey and Scott McMillan this pressurised and caused no end of problems with Jack Rainey racking up 6 goals in the second half with some excellent strikes and a looping header and also further goals from hard working Reece Kingdom grabbing a brace and Ollie Morgan having a few long efforts this time made one count with a fine trademark strike and a typical left footed strike from Scott Billings from a tight angle and Thomas Parkins made no mistake with a right footed strike to get his name on the score sheet.  Strong performances from Scott McMillan, Ollie Morgan, Ross Holmes, Lewis Fraser and Man of the match to Reece Kingdom and Jack Rainey.  Also playing well Will Pinnick, Thomas Parkins, Matt Pengelly, Jack Dickson, Max Atifeh, Alfie Whitelegg, Jay Buckingham, Scott Billings, Ryan Clarke and Ben Hearn. A great solid team performance from all the boys in the second half.

Despite the score line it was by no means an easy game especially in the first half with Pinhoe equally playing their part.

Thanks to Snowy and Colin for refereeing the game

Tivvy U13's travelled away to Okehampton Argyle in the second round of the Devon County cup a game that was always going to be a tight affair with two very good footballing sides.  Tiverton Town started the brighter trying to create the early openings and were unfortunate not to take the lead early on, but midway through the first half it was Okehampton who broke the deadlock and got their goal from a corner to give an Okehampton player an unchallenged free header at the far post.  Jack Rainey, Marcus Old and Scott McMillan all came close to scoring in the first half but the Okehampton goalkeeper was on fine form.

With only a handful of players looking for the equaliser throughout the first and second half of the game it was never going to be Tivvy's day and as Okehampton are an equally good side all the Tivvy players needed to share the workload but unfortunately this was not the case today and Okehampton furthered their lead midway through the second half from another set piece which floated in and watched in off of the far post for Okehampton to go on and win the game 2-0.  Although Tivvy were 2-0 down, the hosts goals came from set pieces and strong performances in defence came from Jack Dickson, Ross Holmes and Max Atifeh who all stood strong throughout leaving little for Ryan Clarke to do between the sticks and  limiting Okehampton to a couple of shooting opportunities, superb desire, work rate and strong performances from Jack Rainey, Scott McMillan and Max Atifeh, also working hard throughout the second half was Reece Kingdom.

Thanks to Nelson for getting the game on and making it playable.  Congratulations and all the very best of luck to Okey for the rest of the competition.

Sidbury United go through to the 3rd round of the Devon County Cup after a very impressive performance against a previously unbeaten Old Suttonians side. United knew they would have to be at their best if they wanted to progress in this competition, and they certainly did not disappoint.

Sidbury started confidently and were quickly on the front foot, putting the Old Suttonians defence under some early pressure. Man of the Match Ben Kidson was causing all sorts of problems on the right flank. United came very close to opening the scoring during a bright spell early on, but the finishing touch just seemed to be eluding them.

After some neat passing from midfield, Zac Mattin put in a great ball for Hamish Culling to put Sidbury into the lead. Old Suttonians tried to amount several counter attacks but Aaron Pearse, Connor Long, Ben Logan and Cody Northcott were immense at the back and with keeper Daryl Young back between the sticks, United were proving to be a tough nut to crack.

Some quick thinking by Aaron Pearse set Ben Kidson through on goal who fired home to make it 2-0, and a great little move just before half time nearly ended up with United taking a three goal lead but Ben Kidson shot went narrowly over the bar.

Old Suttonians pulled one back very early in the second half with a well taken goal, and then started to take the game to United. With so much hanging on the next goal Sidbury kept cool heads and continued to play there football, and were rewarded when Harry Wright shot low and hard to beat the keeper to restore Uniteds two goal lead.

Second half substitutes Rob Mansfield, Jack Murrell and Matt Broom all had an effect on the game, and contributed to the overall team performance.

Kieran Murphy and Bill Read battled throughout in midfield and were involved everything, including the move of the match which cut the defence right open, it saw them involved in some quick inter change passing between them and Zac Mattin on the edge of the Old Suttonians box, then a delightful little touch to Harry Wright, who calmly poked the ball passed the keeper.

A great all round team performance, well done lads, very proud of all of you.

 A very cold and wet morning saw the Heavies entertain a very down on their luck Exmouth side. The pitch was certainly not at it's best but the Heavies made the better of the start with Jordan Harris scoring direct from a corner and the Heavies never looked back. This game was won in the midfield, never letting the Eagles settle, pressing the away side up into their own half constantly throughout the match. 5-0 at half time with a few changes saw the Heavies go on a rampage scoring another 7 on their way to an impressive score line.

Goals coming from Josh Awcock(1). Dan Savage (2). Marcus Fanson (2). Ashley Matthews getting a hat-trick and also collecting the Heavies MOTM with a great display down the Heavies right wing, with Jordan Harris grabing four goals to round up a fine performance for the front man.

A big shout out to Jason Hawkins for all his work with this Exmouth side which he has acquired, carry on your good work Jason i'm sure you can help your team to turn their season around.

Despite the score line Tivvy were  not at their best today which allowed the visitors at times to play some good passing football of their own.  Scott McMillan opened the scoring for Tivvy with some good link up play from Jack Rainey and Scott Billings and although Tivvy started the first half slowly 6 more goals followed with a first half hatrick from Matt Pengelly, a goal from Scott Billings and a well deserved goal from Jack Rainey who contributed to all first half goals.  With Tivvy's defence standing off Exmouth grabbed their consolation goal just before half time.

Tivvy upped their tempo a bit more in the second half and Jack Rainey grabbed a second half hatrick within the first 10 minutes.  Tivvy were now dominating play penetrating the Exmouths defence and an incoming ball from man of the match Scott Billings found Alfie Whitelegg on the edge of the box which he took well with a left footed strike and his first goal of the season.  Exmouth continued to battle but the ball came into the path of Jack Dickson who with a clever strike  saw the keeper off his line to score from his own half. 

Again with good link up play from Jack Rainey and Scott McMillan, Jack Rainey struck a further 2 goals to grab his double hatrick and hardworking Scott McMillan finished with a brace, Reece Kingdom was unlucky not to get on the score sheet himself fizzing a couple of good shots over the bar and wide of the upright along with Ollie Morgan, Lewis Fraser and Jay Buckingham all coming close.  Strong performances on the day from Scott McMillan, Jack Rainey, Jack Dickson, Ollie Morgan and Man of the match Scott Billings.

Goalscorers:  Jack Rainey (6), Matt Pengelly (3), Scott McMillan (2), Scott Billings, Alfie Whitelegg and Jack Dickson.

Sidbury put in a fantastic first half performance away to Exmouth which saw them totally dominate in every department. The passing and movement was first class, creating chance after chance and keeping a clean sheet. It was a very convincing win which should bolster the boys for some tough upcoming fixtures.

United scored nine first half goals and it could have been more. The second half enabled Sidbury to change things around with defenders playing up front, substitutes getting a good run out and even keeper Daryl Young making an appearance as an outfield player.

Sidbury United scorers were Harry Wright who scored five, a hat-trick from Ben Kidson, Todd Lewendon chipped in with a brace. Zac Mattin got on the score sheet and a long awaited goal from Kieran Murphy.

In what is proving to be a very tough season the Exmouth lads should be commended for their attitude and

Crediton Saints turned in an excellent allround team performance against a previously unbeaten St Martins side.

Crediton got off to the best possible start, taking the lead in the 2nd minute when James Langmead crossed for  Toby Parker in fire home from close range. With James Langmead and Matt High creating several chances Crediton looked to build on their lead . The second goal eventually came after 26 minutes when a James Eginton corner was headed home by a St Martins defender. With Josh Hill, Cory Eaton and Toby Parker all performing particularly well in midfield, Crediton continued to create chances after half time. On 40 minutes James Langmead capitalised on a loose ball to fire high into the net with a thunderbolt for a richly derserved goal.

After 51 minutes Crediton completed the scoring when a pass from Matt High was slotted home from 12 yards out by James Langmead. In the closing stages St Martins put the Crediton defence under pressure but the defence of Alex Rodd, Dan Tucker, James Eginton and Jeremy Tucker who were all excellent throughout , held firm.Special praise for goalkeeper James Langmead for his allround performance and Creditons first cleansheet of the season.

Joe Pincombe, Josh Lambert and Liam Parish all played their part  in the victory. Crediton had the ball in the net for the 5th time , only for Matt Highs lob to be ruled out for offside.  

Finally the club wishes to thank Jamie Mackenzie and Kieran Vinnicombe for their long service to the team over the years, they will be greatly missed, as they leave to concentrate on their rugby careers.

 Heavitree were not at their best today, on a pitch which was perfect for a game of football the Heavies struggled to get going. When they did manage to make a few passes the Heavies showed what they can do and opened up West Exe's defence, but this was few and far between.

Very sloppy defending gifted West Exe both their goals, but goals from Matthew Fanson(1), Jordan Harris(1), a superb brace from on form striker Marcus Fanson(2) with Danny Savage scoring a long range shot on his way to collecting the Heavies MOTM with a steady performance in the midfield.

Tivvy U13's started their cup campaign with a 14-0 win over FC Newton.  The opening minutes of the game saw 2 quick fire goals the first through some neat exchange of passing from Scott McMillan and Will Pinnick for Scott Billings to hit the net with a clean finish and the second with a good through ball from Jack Rainey for Marcus Old to pick up and coolly slot home,  with further good work in midfield from playmaker Will Pinnick and Lewis Fraser, Scott Billings and Scott McMillan a further  6 goals came  with  strong runs and good finishing from Jack Rainey along with a well taken goal from the hard working Scott McMillan and Reece Kingdom and Matthew Pengelly also adding to the tally to go into the break  11-0. 

The second half saw Tivvy make numerous changes but full credit should also go to FC Newton who continued to battle despite the score line and are a credit to their manager for their attitude throughout the match.  It was however Tivvys day and further goals followed from a Matthew Pengelly header before  second half goalkeeper  Jack Rainey picked out Jack Dickson from a goal kick to see him hit the net with a well taken shot.  Thomas Parkins scored the final goal of the game when Scott McMillan's shot was cleared to round off the rout.  Man of the match to the whole team.

Good luck to all the boys from FC Newton in their respective league.

Sidbury are in the draw for the next round of the league cup after this victory over a good Crediton side, being without our regular goalkeeper it was always going to be a tough task, but one the boys rose to with enthusiasm and commitment.

Sidbury started very well indeed and when Kieran Murphy and Zac Mattin combined well down the left, the cross into the area was met by Harry Wright who headed United into the lead with just four minutes gone. It was soon 2-0 after Todd Lewendon got behind the Crediton defence and comfortably beat the keeper.

After a blistering twenty minutes when United really should have added more goals, Crediton started to get more and more into the game and created several chances themselves. Defenders Ben Logan, Conor Long, Kieran Murphy and Aaron Pearse coped well at the back and cancelled out many Crediton counter attacks.

Halftime came with Utd two up, but Crediton I felt finished the half in the ascendancy so the next goal would be vital and again it was Sidbury who looked the more likely. Zac Mattin, Hamish Culling, Rob Mansfield and Bill Reed done everything which was asked of them in midfield and it was from their pressing which finally led to Harry Wright getting Uniteds third goal.

Jack Murrell and Matt Broom came on in the second half and did well. With just ten minutes remaining Cody Northcott smashed in the fourth from the edge of the box. Crediton pulled one back at the death from a well taken corner, well done to both teams who played out the match in the true spirit of the game.

Special thanks to Ben Kidson and Cody Northcott who both volunteered their services and did very well between the posts, and to referee Rob Thorne who officiated the game very well.

Brixham United of the Pioneer League division 1 were the hosts to a Crediton Saints team, looking to bounce back from their defeat to Tiverton Town last week.

 Both team started brightly, but the was the visitors who took the lead when a Matt High cross was headed home by James Eginton after 5 minutes.

 A very wide pitch allowed both teams to pass the ball freely and as a result of this, Brixham equalised after 12 minutes. The home team then took the lead for the first time in the match just five minutes later.

The superb Josh hill was the playmaker in the centre of the park, creating several chances out of nothing.

 Tom Langmead who had a comfortable first half in goal was replaced by Matt high at half time. Jeremy Tucker who looked strong in the centre of defence had to be replaced due to injury, Martin Hodge coming on to take his place.

 At the start of the second half, Matt High made an outstanding save to deny Brixham. 10 minutes later, a good ball from James Eginton allowed Toby Parker to take his chance and finish with a great strike.

 With the back four of Martin Hodge, Dan Tucker, Jamie Mackenzie and Cory Eaton looking very confident and wide players Kieran Vinnicombe and Ben Sharpe creating constant opputunities, Saints looked dominant.

 The partnership of James Langmead and James Eginton up front proved vital both scoring in the last 5 minutes. Langmead scoring twice from close range and Eginton getting his second of the game, this one an individual effort.

 Full credit must go to Brixham who provided an entertaining game of football. Saints will face another away tie in the second round. Well done to all involved, an excellent all round team performance.

 Two quick fire goals saw the Heavies off to a flyer before Okehampton really settled in. To their credit Oke took control of the game and shortly after netting their first byway of a corner.

The first half was played out with commitment shown by both side with lots of goal mouth action at each end. The Heavies return to the field knowing they had to perform alot better if they were to get anything from this game, and perform they did to see of a very good side in Okehampton who's desire and passion showed never died and faught all the way to the end in a very fair faught contest.

An outstanding display for keeper George Wannall and goals coming from Marcus Fanson(1) a first goal of the season for midfield powerhouse Dan Savage(1), a well taken brace from Matthew Fanson with Jordan Harris driven home the Heavies 5th goal to cap of a fantasic game for the striker. Kyle Blackmore recieving the Heavies MOTM with another solid display at the heart of the defence.

Well played to both teams for the way the game was played and well played to Nelson and his Okehampton team for their never say die attitude.

Tiverton Town U13's continued their good start to the season with a 5-0 win away to Crediton Saints.  In very windy conditions the game started off slowly, chances went begging and it took Tivvy to midway through the first half before the first goal came when a through ball from Will Pinnick reached Jack Rainey whose shot came back off the keeper but with good pressure from Marcus Old, Jack Rainey won back the ball to smash home to give Tivvy a much deserved lead. 

Tivvy started the second half a lot brighter and within minutes a good cross from Scott McMillan saw Ollie Morgan lob the keeper with a well taken goal. 

With Tivvy now having much of the play it was only a matter of time before the next goal came when Lewis Fraser made a good run down the right hand side to cross in a lovely ball for Jack Rainey who anticipated the incoming ball to fire home Tivvys third.  

The hosts having to play against the wind in the second half they were finding it hard to get out of their half to try and get themselves back into the game which Tivvy took full advantage of with strong play from Will Pinnick, Scott Billings, Scott McMillan and Ollie Morgan all playing well and Euan Howells, Jack Dickson and Max Atifeh standing strong in defence. 

In the last 10 minutes of the game Jack Rainey grabbed his hatrick with another strong run before setting Marcus Old up to score his first and a fully deserved goal to wrap the game up with a well earned 5-0 victory. 

Joint Man of the match Ollie Morgan and Euan Howells.

United had to soak up some early pressure. Ben Logan made an excellent goal line clearance early in the game. Cody Northcott was very strong at left back, and Dan Greenland at centre half was proving hard to beat. As the game went on Sidbury grew in strength and started creating chances of their own.

Zac Mattin was immense again today and thought he'd given United the lead when the keeper parried a free kick straight into his path, but was judged offside. This seemed to spur on Sidbury and they took the lead shortly afterwards when Man of the Match Connor Long fired home a superb free kick straight into the top corner.

The action continued at both ends, Sidbury keeper Daryl Young made some vital saves throughout the game, but could do nothing about Okehampton's two goals. One either side of the break. Even at 2-1 down, Sidbury piled on the pressure and were justly rewarded when Jack Murrell equalised for United with ten minutes remaining, he latched onto a quick through ball, controlled it well and rounded the keeper

Sidbury were then put under some late pressure, but they kept their heads and defended well. Robert Mansfield put in a very good and solid second half performance at right back. Sidbury did very well to hold onto the draw, and earn their first points of the season. I think most teams will come away from Oke, empty handed. So well done lads, proud of all of you.

Tiverton Town U13's started their league campaign with a 5-4 win over a strong well organised Heavitree side.  In this entertaining game it was Heavitree who found the net first with Tivvy equalising soon after through Scott Billings and some good pressure up front.   Full credit must go to both sets of players who worked very hard in a high tempo game from start to finish. Further goals came from Max Atifeh, an excellent lob from Reece Kingdom and two superb free kicks from Jack Dickson. 

Strong performances from Will Pinnick and Euan Howells and Man of the Match performances coming from Scott McMillan and Jack Rainey who made a big contribution towards the goals.

 St Martins travelled to Exmouth and came away with a convincing win although Exmouth certainly had their chances in the match with Sam Warren playing particularly well for the home side.

Star of the show for St Martins was Dean Billingsley who scored 5 of the goals with singles added by Mike Wilkie, Connor Batho and Ben Whatmore who scored his first goal for the club. Although the goalscorers take the headlines this was an excellent team performance by the Saints who played some great passing football throughout the match.

 The Heavies travelled to Tiverton for another cracking game. A whole round team performance nearly gave the heavies their first points on the east devon pitch.

Goals from Ashley Matthews(1), Matthew Fanson (1) and a brace from Marcus Fanson gave hope but it was not to be. Kyle Blackmore stood strong at the back recieving the heavies MOTM.

Fantastic effort by the heavies who with a bit more luck could have taken something from the game for a fair result.

 Stoke Hill started brightly and found their selfs 5-0 up t half time after some good passing and movement off the ball.

Goalkeeper Jo Forster had little to do but when called on he commanded his area well. Other new signing Jo Winsor scored his 1st goal for the Spurs with a good finish, a further 4 goals were scored in the second half.

Goal scorses for the spurs were, Jordan Major 2, Ryan Wallis 2, Ethan Chalk birthday boy 2, Jo Windsor 1, Tarji Jones 1 and James Chudley.

EXMOUTH TOWN EAGLES 2  CREDITON SAINTS 6
 
Saints got their season underway with an excellent allround team performance, and a victory that took them to the top of the table.

After a bright start by both teams in a match played on an excellent playing surface, Exmouth took the lead with a fine individual goal from Sam Warren.Within 3 minutes Kieran Vinnicombe brought Saints level with a fantastic 35 yard dipping volley . A James Eginton corner was then lashed home by Kieran Vinnicombe from 8 yards after 21 minutes to give Saints the lead. With Dan Tucker and Jeremy Tucker both proving formidable in Saints defence, ably assisted by Alex Rodd, Jamie Mackenzie and Martin Hodge, Saints hold on the game grew as the half progressed. James Eginton completed the first half scoring with a fine drive from 25 yards to make it 3-1 to Saints at the break.

Josh Hill fired in an angled shot having been put through after 51 minutes as Saints increased their lead. Cory Eaton then saw his thunderous drive strike the underside of the bar following another Saints corner, just as the home side had done on 2 occassions in the first half !

With Saints strikers Matt High and Toby Parker having worked hard without reward , it was then the turn of subs Ben Sharpe and Joe Pincombe to show what they could do up front.  

Ben Sharpes angled shot was superbly saved by the home keeper , only for Joe Pincombe to net the rebound with his first touch in competitive football for Saints !Minutes later a fine cross from Joe Pincombe was netted from close range by Ben Sharpe as the 2 strikers proved their worth.

Sam Warren then netted a fine late consolation for the home side as the match came to a close.

A special mention for Saints keeper Thomas Langmead who performed well throughout the match on his competitive debut for the side.

Finally best of luck to Jason Hawkins in his new role  as Exmouth manager.   

Sidbury United opened their season with a game best described as a goal fest at home to Heavitree, but still managed to end up pointless. A total of twelve goals, as the lead first went one way then the other in this entertaining game.

It was a pretty even encounter, with both sides going for the win. Ben Kidson was rewarded for his efforts when he equalised to put the game level at 1-1. and was a constant threat up front whilst on the pitch.

Zac Mattin and Hamish Culling both scored on their debuts, Robert Mansfield put in a fine performance in midfield before having to retire through injury. Billy Reed also done a good job in the heart of the Sidbury midfield.

Heavitree's early season fitness probably proved to be the deciding factor in the end, but heads should not drop from this first performance. Three quick goals in the space of four minutes for Heavitree seemed to have put the game beyond United, but back they came again with a well taken goal from Connor Long, and created even more chances that they were unable to convert.

 It was like a cup match!!!! Heavitree travelled away to Sidbury for a cracking opening game. End to end attacking football made for a entertaining 1st half. Two defencive errors by the Heavies and a good play down their right side saw Sidbury take a deserved 3-2 into half time to end a ping pong 35 minutes.

Fitness was the deciding factor as the 2nd half unfolded and Heavitree slowly became the dominating side. Goals from Joe Vittles(1)Tapuwa M(aka T)(1), Jordan Harris(2) and Marcus Fanson scoring a hat-trick on his debut coupled with his brother Matthew Fanson recieving Man of the Match saw the Heavies eventually going on to win the game.

A big shout out to fitness coach Glenn Burnett for his hard work and commitment pre-season.

A typical cup match with both teams working really hard and putting in a battling performance. Westexe came quickly out of the blocks putting the Saints back line of Jacob Manley, Joe Bickingham and Jake Ankers under pressure for the first five minutes but couldn't breach the defence. Saints then had a spell where thay had the upper hand but again Westexe defence held firm.

Both midfields were closing down well and making it hard for anybody to get the upper hand. Saints middle three of Ben Holmes, Sam Richards and Ben Mills worked exceptionally hard as did the Westexe players. There were few clear chances but Saints Hugh Stronge Westexe's Dan Ensor both did really well to get into scoring positions but just couldn't quite finish. Saints Jake Ebdon also took a good free kick that went over the bar. The score at half time remained 0 - 0.

The second half saw much of the same with few chances. Saints Alex Jarred tried an audaciiuos mid air back heel from a great Oliver Johns cross  that would have been goal of the season had it gone in!  Westexe worked some goal scoring opportunities which needed Harry Slack in St Martin's goal to pull off some excellent saves to keep a clean sheet. Westexe had a really good spell that really tested Saints resolve, Scott Boult came on for Saints and carried on the good work of the players putting in some good tackles and passes.

It looked like the game was heading for extra time when with less than two minutes remaining, Jake Ebdon picked up the ball down the left jinked past a couple of players and put a superb shot across the goal leaving the Westexe keeper no chance to make it 1 - 0 to Saints, this capped off a superb game for the saints player.

Westexe tried to come back but Saints held firm to go through to the final!

Kentisbeare Colts Under 13's travelled to Ottery St Mary on Saturday and came away with a 4-3 victory. 

Cameron Jones opened the scoring for the Colts with goals from Joe Conway (2) and George Horton adding to the tally.  Conway walked away with the man of the match award.  Also good performances from Joe Dunn and Sheridan Farrant.

Lightning edged this repeat of last weeks Cup game, and it was definitely a game of two halves - Pinhoe came in at half time 4-0 up following some really determined and gritty football.

Buckland though showed what they could do in the second half coming back to set up a nailbiting finish. In the end it proved too much for the spirited lads in red, Lightning defence was on form today with several top performances - but goal of the day must go Mitch Brooks with his first in a Pinhoe shirt - well done lads.

Other Pinhoe goals Luke England, and Liam Amatruda with 2. Well done the ref and thanks Charlie for great hospitality.

Very soft conditions made it very difficult for either side to play good football. A very motivated Bradnich side could have easily upset a very lack lustre Pinhoe side by opening the scoring.

Bradnich although probably not there strongest side gave a very good account of themselves and made life tough for Pinhoe. Pinhoe came out the winners but all the players parents and management can be very proud of a very young Bradnich team.

The final score bieng 4-1 with scorers from Pinhoe being Ashley Hilliard, Oliver Frankum 2 and Jamie Burrough.

The scorer for Bradinch was Toby Maddocks Many thanks to Dave (the Coach) all the parents and the players from Bradnich.

Lightning edged this rearranged County Cup match, starting brightly they peppered the visitors goal without getting anything only to go 1 down as Tamarside caught them on the break.

Almost right away Liam Amatruda equalized with neat side foot. Deep in the second half Jimmy Hinds thought he had secured the victory only for some poor defending to let the Plymouth lads back in.

With extra time on the cards Isaac Furness struck the winner 3 minutes from time. A great cup game and well done Tamarside Kings who are a good bunch of lads.

 A game that was played in a very sporting manner and produced no free kicks, Referee Pat McCarton remarked "he thought this was the first game where he had not needed to intervene apart from the ball going out of play and the odd offside".

The visitors gave a spirited performance and breached the Lightning defence twice and this could've been more. Pinhoe showed their class, but only in spells, great performances from James Sharman, Bradley Palmer and Jimmy Hinds.

Bucks enjoyed a comfortable win with most of the damage done in the first half.  Fath (4), Sanders, Johnson and Clenahan the scorers.  However, the Buckland squad would like to thank the Kentisbeare staff and parents for their help and concern following what looked a nasty foot injury to Lewis Sanders. 

Pleased to report following a trip to the hospital, nothing is broken and Lewis suffered very bad bruising.

The Pins got off to a great start with a goal inside 5 minutes, however due to the hard work and endeavour of the Ottery lads they came in 3-1 down at the half way point. Lightning took control of the second half which was crowned by a Stuart Tait Hat Trick.

The score-line doesn't do Kentisbeare the justice they deserve as this was a well contested and evenly balanced game with both sides at times playing some good football with concise passing.  The Blues went 1-0 around the 10 minute mark with some great build-up play that saw the Kentisbeare goalkeeper make two fine saves before a slight indecision and caught in no-mans-land the ball went beyond him.  Ten minutes later the Kentisbeare striker returned the favour, chipping the ball over the Blues' keeper after a great pass in to the danger area from Callum Burgin who had a superb game, working hard and delivering the ball to the feet of the Kentisbeare strikers in the danger area on countless occasions.  With the game going from end to end the Blues managed to score again just before the whistle for half time. 

The second half saw Kentisbeare start in the ascendancy with several chances to equalise in the early moments, with Burgin and Jake Burridge coming close.  Twenty minutes into the second half, after more confident goalkeeping from Kentisbeare's goalkeeper, the Blues finally broke down the Kentisbeare defence to poke in their third goal of the game after a goalmouth scramble.  The final goal of the game came two minutes later with great strike from distance by one the Blues' front players that gave the keeper no chance.  Both sides endeavoured to play football, but it was the Blues who came out on top by virtue of being able to finish their chances. 

Final score 4-1 Brixington Blues.

Lightning edged out a very competitive Watts Blake & Bearne YFC in this 9 goal thriller at Abbrook Park. After taking the lead through an early Isaac Furness goal Lightning fell behind 1-3, and despite creating several good chances they failed to take them.

With 10 minutes left Jimmy Hinds put a cross which Brad Palmer headed home. The Pins left it late equalising in the last minute of normal play. Again they fell behind almost from the kick off and again they drew level, before Jimmy Hinds latched onto a poor clearance by the home goalie - catching him off the line he fired into an open goal.

A real cup match with everthing - well done WBB YFC thanks for the great reception.

The Pins found some of their old form at the Rectory against a very honest and hard working Kentisbeare side. The game was well controlled by a very young referee who again was assisted by a young linesman - it is great to see the young lads getting involved, and there were no arguments regarding decisions.

The game was really decided in the first half when Lightning stormed to a 4-1 lead with Liam Amatruda getting his hat trick.

We Look forward to the return game lads. Des F - Lightning Coach

 West Exe Yth  0   Buckland Athletic  8   A

nyone who saw the great League game between these two sides a few weeks ago which finished 1 - 2, would never have dreamt this scoreline. 

The first half was very much like the previous encounter, with Bucks edging ahead through Sanders. He and Fath linked very well from the first whistle up front.  Bucks expected a second half onslaught from West Exe, but it never came.

Once the visitors went 3 ahead, the game lacked any sparkle as West Exe heads dropped. Further goals from Armbruster (2), Fath, Whiting, Clenahan, Knapman and Johnson completed the rout.

I don't think too much can be read into the final scoreline as heads did drop early in the second half, I'm sure the return League game will be another cracker.

Despite the scoreline Heavitree played very well and made it difficult for Pinhoe who once again squandered chances in front of goal.

Heavitree fought hard and were unlucky to come in at half time only 2 down to goals from Brad Palmer and Dan Parker. The second half saw more missed chances but more purpose about Lightning's play. Isaac Furness rattled in the first of his hat trick to get the Pins going - Max Beecroft nicked a cheeky goal before Brad Palmer curled a superb corner straight into the netfor his second, Jimmy Hinds rounded it off with number 8.

Pinhoe Man of the Match: Isaac Furness

Again the game was very well officiated and as ever the Heavitree management are a very sporting group.

 St Martins came out on top of a well fought contest. St Martins came close on a number of occasions early in the first half with Hugh Stronge, Oliver Johns and Jake Ebdon missing chances. Saints finally took the lead after a cross from Chris Powell was touched past the keeper by Hugh Stronge.

Central defended well and played some good football threatening Saints defence on a number of occasions and forcing their keeper Harry Slack to pull off some good saves. Central were rewarded on the stroke of half time after a defended corner was played back in and finished by the Central attacker. Saints came out fired up after the half time talk and scored almost straight from the kick off after a good passing move was finished well by Owen Le Voi.

St Martins increased the lead when Jake Ebdon picked the ball up on the edge of the box and slammed the ball home. Saints fourth came from a well taken free kick by Jake Ebdon that hit the post and Sam Richards followed up well to calmly finish. Saints fifth came from Joe Buckingham shot from outside the box. Jake Ebdon doubled his tally with a well taken goal putting the ball over the keeper from a wide position to make it 1 - 6.

A thrilling match for any neutral supporter. The game played in true fashion of a cup match by both teams showing full commitment of trying to get into the 2nd round of the competition. Pinhoe got the result with a fine taken goal in the last 2 minutes from Ben Clark. Other goalsorers from Pinhoe were Ashley Hilliard 2, Jamie Burrough and Oliver frankum. The scorers from Pheonix were Reece Jennings, Josh Jones 2 and Jordan Bastin. A great advert for youth football. Many thanks to all the players, supporters and Management from Pheonix.

A cold Saturday morning was soon warmed up for Kentisbeare when Max Bristow got what was probably the quickest goal of the day, when in the opening minute he cut straight through the Ottery defence to lob the keeper. Kentisbeare continued to apply he pressure and around the quarter of an hour mark doubled their lead thanks to a great finish by Callum Burgin who volleyed the ball into the net at the end of a great move that saw George Horton take the ball down the wing to pass it cross-field for Jake Burridge to put the ball in the path of Burgin.

Three minutes later Ross Green was through on goal with only the keeper to beat and albeit brave goal-keeping, the keeper brought Green down giving away a penalty.  Green stepped up to take the spot-kick which was superbly saved by the Otters' keeper to keep the scoreline at 2-0.  Shortly afterwards Burridge unleashed a great strike that forced another great save.  The keeper's confidence was clearly infectious as the Otters got back into the game and for 10 minutes or so played the better football. 

The Colts grabbed control of the game back after a powerful long-range shot from Bristow looked like it was going to be caught by the keeper but it slipped out of his hands into the back of the net making it 3-0.  The next few moments saw 2 more goals for the Colts, the first of which saw Burgin place a great ball through the defence for James Lenton to coolly slot in.  The second was another cool finish, this time for Burgin, who popped the ball in after Bristow slotted through from mid-field and the first half finished 5-0.

The second half saw the Otters start the better and the final scoreline may well have been different if the three clear-cut chances they had in the opening moments had been put away.  The Colts obviously sensed the danger and started to turn the screw with Burgin and Bristow again both coming very close to extending the lead further but they were unable to finish their chances. 

With a little over 10 minutes remaining the Otters pulled back a well deserved consolation goal making it 5-1 before the Otters' keeper was forced into a carbon copy foul from the first half, this time bringing Burgin down in the area.  Burgin stepped up to take the penalty kick showing no sign of nerves and expertly place the ball in the bottom right corner, giving the keeper no chance and giving Burgin his first hat-trick in competitive football. 

The game finished 6-1 to the Colts but great credit to the Otters who continued throughout to play some very good football, but on the day just couldn't finish their chances.

 Man of the Match: Callum Burgin

This was a match that did justice to both teams, you can see why Buckland are unbeaten and Lightning showed great spirit and desire playing in patches near their best form.

Lightning opened the score with a well taken Brad Palmer goal, however Buckland were soon on level terms when a a poor clearance was pounced on by the opposition forwards. The visitors extended their lead before Lightning replied though Harry Choules. When one of the Lightning players was sent off (and we support the ref in this case).

It seemed to galvanise the team who raised their performance. Harry Choules got the Pins 3rd from a corner but the Buckland lead proved too much in the end.

A great game, a real advert for the U13's league, good competition in a friendly atmosphere and sensibly controlled by the Ref Peter Lynch. Looking forward to the return fixture. Des Furness - Lightning coach

(It's amazing how the same game of football can be viewed so differently!)

 Firstly, I must say that the pitch was far from ‘safari-like' as was mentioned in the first write-up on the website and, in fact, the pitches are well maintained by the club, and not the Leisure Centre.

 In the first part of the match, Kentisbeare created many chances, and were held at bay by some good defensive work by Crediton. After a sustained period of pressure, Kentisbeare went one-up. Crediton continued to plug away, and got the equaliser that their efforts deserved...through a great strike from Connor Abdey. 

The second half started with both teams creating chances, and continued that way. I had a very good view of the referee's "outrageous penalty decision". I believe that the vast majority of the Kentisbeare supporters were on the far side of the pitch and were, in fact, unsighted and therefore would not have had a clear view of the incident. Contrary to the first write-up, it was far from a case of "a lad who had run out of steam simply falling over". A penalty was (rightly) awarded...but credit where it's due, the kick was well saved by the Kentisbeare ‘keeper.

I must say that that the comments against the referee were totally unfair...see the Website Home Page: comment dated 18.10.08.  It is a shame that there are those who are perfectly willing to criticise referees (who, as we know, have a difficult job to do), but are not willing to ‘give it a go' themselves. 

The rest of the game was end-to-end stuff. Crediton had their chances...the closest being Paul Reed's shot scraping the wrong side of the post, after some great team work and his great run. Kentisbeare had plenty of chances too and, almost at the last gasp, converted one of these well, to snatch the game. 

I would say that the match was an enjoyable one to watch...it had goals, incident and drama, with both sides pressurising the other and creating chances. The most pleasing thing was that, overall, it was played in a good spirit. 

One of the Kentisbeare supporters commented that "a draw would have been a fair result", but as we all know...that's football!

The Alphas got back to winning ways with a hard fought victory away to Ottery St Mary.  Alphington won a tight contest 5-2 with the goals coming from five different players Ben Stone, Josh Hole, Jamie Fairchild, Luke Skinner and Conner Palmer who scored his first for the club. Callum Gent was outstanding in midfield for the Alphas.

MAN OF THE MATCH  CALLUM GENT

 Pinhoe goal: Stuart Tait - Pinhoe MOM: Harry Choules

A great game for the spectators and an example of how cruel football can be some times. Having taken the lead in the first half from a well taken goal by Stuart Tait, and held it up to 10 minutes into the second half it seemed very cruel to concede the winner in the last minute of play.

Conversely Ipplepen should be commended for chasing the game and not giving up. Both teams largely cancelled each other out and chances few and far between. The pleasing thing for the Pins is that all played better and at times looked close to their dangerous best. Well done to all officials, I thought the Ipplepen assistant(used to be called Lino') was very fair and praised good play from both teams. Des F - Lightning coach.

Today's reversed fixture saw Kentisbeare eventually come away deserved winners with 3 points.  It was never going to be an elegant game of football as it appeared both sides were struggling in the long grass, which would have been more suitable for a safari. 

Kentisbeare controlled the opening part of the game and Callum Burgin and Max Bristow both came close to opening the scoring with two great attempts that were almost identical in the tightness of angle that they fired from.  With the vast majority of the play in Crediton's half it was only a matter of time before the Colts would open the scoring, and it was Bristow who did so in the 12^th minute forcing a powerful strike past the keeper after a scrappy encounter that saw him beat the defence.  The conditions certainly provided the proverbial "level playing field" with Crediton Youth making a few chances and the Colts allowing them to stay in the game.  The 25^th minute saw Todd Scrace almost double the lead for the Colts with a well taken strike that went high over the bar.  Five minutes before time and very much against the run of play, Crediton Youth pulled back the equaliser after their nippy striker was allowed far too much space to unleash a long-range lob that gave Joe Dunn no hope.  The remainder of the half was played out in a fairly unremarkable manner with nothing else to report.

The second half started with both sides looking fired up and playing much better football than in the first half.  The game was almost spoiled after the referee gave an outrageous penalty decision against the Kentisbeare defender that appeared from the sidelines to be a lad who had run out of steam simply fall over.  Justice was clearly "Dunn" when Joe made a tremendous penalty save.  It was clear from the body language from the Colts' players that the decision had clearly fired them up and given them the determination to win, which they did with less than 5 minutes remaining when Callum Burgin, who started the game well, finished it with a tremendous strike from an unbelievable angle just outside the box, making it 2-1.

 Kentisbeare Colts Man of the Match: Josh Kallaway

Alphington went down 3-2 at home to a very hard working Kentisbeare team, Kentisbeare never looked like they were going to lose this match and went in at half time one goal to the good.

Alphington best period of play came at the start of the second half and drew level thanks to a cool finish from Josh Hole, Kentisbeare took the lead again with 10 minutes left on the clock but the Alphas came back again to make the match all sqaure with Luke Skinner scoring from just inside the box,with time ticking away and the game looking like it was heading for a draw Kentisbeare midfielder  Max Bristow made a great run from just inside his own half and scored with a great finish from just outside the box.

Alphington's day got worse when their captain Sam Stewart was taken to hospital with a broken arm and he will be out for a least six weeks (get well soon Sam from all the team)...
 
Alphington's men of the match: JOSH HOLE & LUKE SKINNER

West Exe Rangers 1  Buckland Athletic  2 If only we could play games like this every week.  Both teams knew how important the result was, even this early in the season and both gave a very physical and skillful performance. 

Both sides had control of the game at different stages, Rangers early on and a high lob just sneaked in off the cross bar to give them a lead.

Bucks never had too many first half chances but made up for it in the second period. Two great strikes, one from Stevens and then the winner came from Clenahan. 

The match was end to end right to the finish, Bucks were denied what everyone thought was a blatant penalty and then Rangers were denied a last minute equaliser by the linesmans flag.

Crediton Saints 4 - Lightning 2
Goals: Liam Amatruda & Stuart Tait (Pinhoe)

A great game for those watching without a loyalty in either camp, it was the home team that did all the running though taking the lead and increasing it whenever the Pins drew level.

Again this was a match in which the Lightning forwards were far too charitable in front of goal. Saints were good value for all 3 points with O'Donnell outstanding at centreback. Pinhoe man of the match: Oliver Thomas.

Crediton Saints 4          Pinhoe Lightning 2 

A superb whole team performance from a rejuvenated Crediton Saints saw them record their first home win of the season against a previously undefeated strong Pinhoe side. Following on from some heavy defeats, the first half of this match saw Saints come out with renewed confidence as Kris Jordan gave them an early lead. A Pinhoe equaliser, a second for Jordan then a second for Pinhoe meant it was all square at half time, although either team could have gone in on top were it not for some fine saves from Saints keeper or some better finishing from the Saints attack. 

The second half saw Jordan complete a fine hat-trick. Resolute defending from the back three of Cam O'Donnell, Rob Hill and a returning from injury Ben Pike helped hold the lead, although again there were some fine one-on-ones the Saints keeper to keep Pinhoe at bay. With two minutes to go Josh Reid took a fine lob to complete the Saints tally for the day, leaving just enough time for manager Danny Mitchell's man of the match Joe Cookson to confidently catch the last ball of the match as is headed towards the Saints top corner.

A well fought match by both sides ended in a 3-2 win to Kentisbeare Colts. The Colts were in control of the game from the off and they soon went ahead with a superb 35 yard lob from Max Bristow. The Alphas soon levelled the game and continued to push hard and take the game to the Colts.

The Colts then went ahead again with a fine strike by Josh Kallaway. Again the Alphas came back to level. With good end to end football and a couple of good saves from the Colts', 'keeper Joe Dunn, the Colts pressed hard and their perseverence paid off with another goal from Bristow. Final score: Alphington 2-3 Kentisbeare Colts.

Colts Man of the Match: Callum Burgin

Alphington produced their best team performance for some time with a excellent 1-1 draw away to a very strong Pinhoe Lightning side containing 3 ex-Alphas players(Mitchell Brookes,Lee Johnson and Dan Parker.

The game was played at the Exeter Arena and the players will not play on a better surface all season.Both teams played some great football in the first half but neither team was able to break the deadlock,The second half also produce some great football and it was Alphington who took the lead with Jack Webber blasting the ball home from outside the box for his first goal of the season,Pinhoe came back fighting and drew level ten minutes later with their forward prodding the ball home from close range.

The Alphas nearly took all three points when Luke Skinner's shot beat the keeper but came back off the post and went to safety.Well done to both sides for putting on such an entertaining game.  

Alphington's man of the match     THE WHOLE TEAM

Lightning were lucky to get a point out of this game- the visitors fought for every ball and won 90% of the 50-50 opportunities. Lightning wasted 3 clear chances to taker the lead in the first half, and it was no surprise when Alphington went 1 up following good pressure from them.

Lightning showed great character though to get back into the game. Pinhoe scorer: Staurt Tait - Pinhoe man of the match Oliver Thomas. Thanks to the referee Graeme Martin and also to the linesmen - well done guys. a good game for the spectators.

Alphas 9 - 1 Crediton
The Alphas recorded their first victory of the season with a fine 9-1 win over Crediton Saints, Crediton had to play the whole game with 10 players but put up a good display and never gave up and scored a well deserved goal in the final minute's of the game.

Alphington,s goal's came from Luke Skinner(3)Josh Hole(2)Sam Stewart(2)Ben Stone and an own goal.

Alphington's man of the match LUKE SKINNER

Brixington Blues 1 - Pinhoe Lightning 4 Goals: Bradley Palmer 2, Luke England 1, Liam Amatruda 1. Lightning struggled to control a lively, strong and motivated Brixington team who were always dangerous on the break.

However the Pins opened the scoring with a superb long range effort from Luke England - they held this lead until a minute before half time. Coming out in the second half Bradley Palmer found form and the back of the Brixington net twice to edge the Pins in front. The game was over when Liam Amatruda showed great determination to hold a challenge and finish scoring the fourth. Yet again the match well ref'd and thanks to both linesmen.

As the scoreline suggests this was a fairly even game with both sides looking for a win and playing some good attacking football.

The Broadclyst lads started the brighter and it was the quick feet, hands, eyes and actions of Max Bristow who was today's stand-in keeper with the usual number 2 playing outfield, that prevented Broadclyst taking a very early lead.  The goalscoring was opened in the 23rd minute by the Colts after a defensive error from Broadclyst gave Jordan Lane an opportunity to hit the ball over the keeper and he didn't need to be asked twice - 1-0.

Just before the half-hour mark the scores were levelled with a great strike by Olly Goodwin, which Bristow managed to get a hand to but couldn't keep it out of the net -1-1.  With Broadclyst coming on strong, the managed to take the lead with another good strike from Ryan Burrows after he was left with too much space and allowed to shoot.  Half-time 2-1.

The Colts started the second half the brighter and the opening chance of the half went to Jake Burridge who unleashed a powerful shot from the edge of the box.  Unfortunately it went straight into the keeper's arms.  Midway through the second half the Colts almost equalised with a shot from Gary Pratt that rebounded off the cross-bar and unfortunately Callum Burgin, who was rushing in for the second ball, couldn't direct it on target.

The Colts made a tactical change to bring Bristow out of goal, to be replaced by George Horton.  Unfortunately before Horton had chance to get warmed up a great bit of play by the Broadclyst boys ended with a simple tap in after they had walked through the defence.  In the dying moments of the game the Colts managed to pull another goal back after a great run down the wing by Bristow resulted in his well delivered cross being slammed into the goal by debutant George Fowls.  The game ended 3-2 to Broadclyst.  Well done to all the lads on both sides and the referee who had an excellent game.

An entertaining game to watch for the first 25 minutes or so with both sides trying to play football, but not really playing all that well. Both teams managed to score a goal with Westexe taking a very early lead after the Colts appeared to still be in bed. Colts pulled back the equaliser  from a Jake Burridge lob after some good build up play between Burridge and george Horton. With the colts getting back into the game just before the end of the first half they lost their regular keper to a head injury.

With the formation all out of shape and racking up lots of injuries that eventually meant the Colts only had 10 players left on the field westexe ran away with the game to romp home comfortable winners.

With both teams recovering from heavy defeats, this was always going to be an interesting game with plenty of scoring opportunities. 

Josh Read opened the Saints account with the first of his four goals on 17 minutes with a fine assist from Ollie Seymour who had an excellent game in midfield. With more fortunate finishing Read could have had more, as could mid-fielders Dom Stapleton, Euan Westacott and Drew Laskey.

The lead was finally doubled on 21 minutes but two minutes later the determined Ottery attack pulled one back. Saints had to adjust their defence for the first of many times when right back Rob Hill limped off with a recurrent injury. Midfielders Robbie Risdon and Kris Jordan both had spells covering and Saints held the lead to half time.

Diminutive striker Ryan Read and midfielder George Bennet started the second half before the two goal advantage was restored 17 minutes in. Once again Ottery narrowed the deficit 5 minutes later to create a tense finale. Read struck again with six minutes to go with an assist from Tom Bullingham whose return added some creativity up front.

There was still time for several Ottery breaks through the Saints defence which had been resolutely lead by captain Cam O'Donnell ably assisted by Cal Stone and Ryan Paris. Well timed runs off his line from keeper Joe Cookson managed to disrupt some energetic Ottery attacks which could have produced a different scoreline, as could better finishing from Saints.

This was an improved performance from a reformed team with 5 new players: Man of the Match: too close to call between Cam O'Donnell and Josh Read.

Both teams produced an entertaining display in the season opener. A hatrick for Jack Howarth, 2 for Charlie Cotton and 1 a peice for Brandon Perry (on his debut) and James Roberts. Both sides will defend better this year and all will appreciate getting a game under their belts. Well done to all for showing the officials respect and for playing the game in a fair and competitive spirit

The start of the new season saw a fantastic victory for newly promoted Kentisbeare Colts.  The Colts went 1-0 down within the first 5 minutes but, with two quick goals from Jake Burridge and George Horton, this was the only time they were behind.  Four further goals from Burridge, a second from Horton, 2 from Callum Burgin, the first a superb freekick from 25 yards out, and 1 from Max Bristow saw the perfect start from Kentisbeare.  A brilliant all round team performance which will hopefully stand them in good stead for the rest of the season.  Well done Kentisbeare.