BISH-BOSH! YOUNG BRICKIES HUSTLED OUT OF CUP BY DETERMINED DYNAMOS

NEW MILTON 0-2 BISHOPS WALTHAM DYNAMOS THE Brickies’ “run” in the Southampton Senior Cup has ended before it began. With a crucial FA Vase local derby against Brockenhurst coming up on Saturday, manager Jamie Kay made eight changes from last Saturday’s starting eleven, and fielded a squad of mainly Under-23s. That was no disrespect to the competition or the opposition, but there is big money - and prestige - at stake on Saturday and the Brickies could not risk injuries to key players. That factor was possibly underlined by the fact that the Dynamos were certainly up for gaining the scalp of the Wessex Division One big guns. There was some seriously tough hustling, all over the pitch as the Dynamos played the underdog card with a fair bit of venom. Good luck to them, however, for a couple of terrific opportunist goals, the first as quickly as the fifth minute. A vast gap suddenly appeared in the home defence after some slip-sliding footwork on the greasy surface and Sam Adams scooted through for an unstoppable finish. It was 15 minutes before New Milton got a sniff of goal, then Leo Clarke headed just over from a corner and Cal McHale, lively down the left flank, only just missed the target after cutting into the area. Ethan Duell-Merritt was next to try his luck, but his header from McHale’s cross was saved. Skipper Jack Broad teed up meaningfully from 25 yards, but fired too high. Just after the half-hour, Shea Woodsford in the Brickies’ goal made fine save from Owen Plunkett - but the young keeper was powerless to keep out a goal of the season contender from Davi Rodrigues, a net-buster from 20 yards after running through from the halfway line on a loose Brickies’ pass. It needed a New Milton goal quickly in the second half to make a game of it, and take some of the enthusiasm out of the Dynamos. But in fact it was Bishops Waltham who had the chance to put it out of sight with a 49th minute penalty. Woodsford had been penalised for being on the sinning end of a 51-49 challenge inside the box and ref Con Dacosta hesitated before deciding it was worth a spot-kick. Bowi Bosma was full of confidence, but Woodsford took a tip out of senior keeper Lloyd Thomas’s book and dived full length left to push it away. After that it was just a big old scramble, with the Dynamos happy to shut up shop, and put in a few hefty tackles to douse any enthusiasm from the Brickies. In fairness the New Milton youngsters stuck at it. Keeper Kieran Connell got down well to keep out Harry Swager’s 20-yarder, and followed that with an astonishing close-range stop from Leo Clarke. After that it just fizzled out with a bit of niggle here and there, but in the end it had to be admitted that the Dynamos had worked ultra-hard for their success.

NEW MILTON: Woodford; Cousens (Neagu 70), Broad (Lane 60), McHale, L.Clarke, Stokes (Abercrombie 60), Husher, Rayner, Scott, Duell-Merritt (Swager 60), Burns. Sub not used: Hayworth.

ATTENDANCE: 118 MATCH PICTURE: Les Chase