WELTON ROVERS 0 BISHOP SUTTON 2

This last game of the season was spoilt by the freezing cold gale force wind blowing down the West Clewes pitch and credit must go to the visitors, who took full advantage of the atrocious conditions.

It was Welton who had the wind behind them in the first half, and probed the Sutton defence early on. A goal-kick from Sutton keeper, Will Justin, just cleared his own area, having been held up by the wind, and the ball fell to Lewis Coleman, who fired back in, only to see the wind take his shot high over the bar.

Welton Captain, Dave Cooper, then waltzed his way through the Sutton defence and attacked the goal, only to see the ball run away from him at the vital moment.

Welton were then awarded a free-kick out on the left. Sam Stoppard’s delivery was taken by the wind and went well-wide of the mark. Aaron Seviour then got into the

action and intricate play saw him find Cooper in front of goal, and his first-time shot was blocked at point-blank range by a Sutton defender.

The visitors were awarded a free-kick deep in Welton territory, the ball was whipped in by Sutton Captain, Liam Evans, and Welton keeper, Ben Carter, did well to palm the ball away after it had been taken by the wind. Just before the half-time break, Sutton keeper, Justin, pulled off a great save low down to deny Joe Garland, and

moments later, good play from Chris Pile saw him find Seviour with a neat pass; his first-time shot saw Justin pull off another fine save. The ball flew out to Coleman, hit him on the leg and went wide.

The second half saw the visitors use the ever-increasing blustery wind to their full advantage. The half was only a couple of minutes old when Sutton were awarded a free-kick on the right, level with the Welton penalty area. Up stepped Evans, who fired in a firm shot that rose over the heads of the Welton defence and was wind-assisted into the far corner of the Welton net to give Sutton the lead. Welton keeper, Carter, then did well to punch away another danagerous cross from the visitors.

Ten minutes after the first goal, the exact same thing happened again. This time, Evans was found clear on the right, he raced towards the area then launched a delicate chipped-cross that flew over the keeper’s head and landed in the far corner of the Welton net. Welton rang the changes, bringing on Lewis Hoyle and Warren Forrest to try and liven things up for the home side, but were rarely troubling the visitors.

A long-range shot from Shakel Green was easily gathered by Justin. Evans was obviously out to get his hat-trick, and a forty-yard strike was taken by the wind with force, and Carter did well to punch the ball away for a corner. This was followed by another long-range effort on target from the same player, that was palmed away by Justin. Welton were really struggling with the conditions, and this was a disappointing end to the season.

Welton finished a respectable ninth in the Toolstation Western League First Division after a rollercoaster of a season that saw them reach the dizzy heights of top of the League in the Autumn. Credit must also go to Caretaker Manager, Nick Beaverstock, and Coach, Malcolm Beck, for steadying the ship for a large part of the season. The Green Army will be looking forward to a new start under the new management team that will be in place when the season recommences.

Bob Allard