Paulton Rovers went down last Tuesday night to a sharper and more clinical Taunton Town, who punished Rovers’ mistakes.
The Peacocks took the lead after thirty seconds when Shane White laid the ball to Ben Palmer on the left, who hit a thunderous drive past Rovers’ keeper, Jon Harvey.
Harvey went on to make a string of saves to keep his side in the game, but this was outdone on twenty minutes after Jake Mawford and Harvey gave the ball to prolific scorer, Matt Wright, and the Taunton Captain slipped the ball into an empty net. Rovers then had a spell of threatening Lloyd Irish’s goal with Reek Best and Kane Simpson firing wide. Harvey then saved low down from a Craig Duff effort.
In added time in the first half, Wright made it 3–0 as another error in the Rovers’ defence allowed him to race on and slip the ball past Harvey.
From the outset of the second half, Wright tested Harvey, who pulled off a fine save from Palmer, whilst Craig Veal should have scored on the hour mark.
Rovers pulled a goal back on 68 minutes, as a fierce shot from Elliott Gibbons was deflected by a defender, then parried by Irish. Paulton substitute, Ryan Radford, was first to react and chip into the net. Former Paulton player, Pierce Mitchell, brought another save from Harvey, and then saw a shot hit the post as he looked odds-on to score.
Jordan Rogers, who had come on as substitute for Man of the Match, Wright, again kept Harvey busy, but Rovers kept fighting as debutant, Andy Elcock, signed from Cirencester Town, brought a save from Irish, who then held a shot from Will Hailston. Irish was caught off his line as Jordan Ricketts tried to lob him from fully thirty yards out before recovering to catch the ball under his bar.
In time added on, an off the ball incident involving Rovers’ skipper, Josh Ford, and Rogers, was brought to the attention of the referee by his assistant. A penalty was awarded which Rogers converted to make it a disappointing 4–1 defeat for Tony Ricketts’ boys.
Tony Walsh