AFC Totton
STAGS WARM-UP FOR PLAY-OFFS BY ROUTING ROBINS
AFC TOTTON WARMED-UP for their upcoming Promotion Play-Off semi-final with Dorchester Town by putting four goals past already-relegated Frome Town at Badger’s Hill on the last day of the regular 2024/25 season.
A long kick from Gosney brought Tony Lee into the game, his headed flick-on from the middle of Frome’s half enabling Blair and Taylor to combine to put the striker into the area; he sidestepped his marker and struck a low, right-footed shot that goalkeeper Kyle Phillips saved with his legs. Totton picked up the loose ball and Tanner worked it to the right-hand side, where Bennett fed Blair on the edge of the box and his low cross invited Ethan TAYLOR to nip in front of his marker and apply a close-range finish to open the scoring on 11 minutes.
And within two minutes, The Stags had doubled their lead. Taylor dispossessed an opponent near the halfway line on the Totton left, prompting appeals from the home support for a free-kick, which the referee ignored. Taylor strode forward before switching play to the right of the penalty area, where Tom BLAIR had time to control the ball, front up to his marker, shuffle it onto his right foot and fire an unstoppable shot, high into the far corner of the net beyond Phillips.
From The Robins’ next attack, Lee headed out and Tanner carried the ball over halfway and deep into home team territory. Bennett had sprinted forward to track the progress of the attack, and between the full-back, Blair and a clever flick by Tanner to force Frome into all-hands-on-deck defending, they earned a right-wing corner. Tanner delivered a high, in-swinging cross to the far post, where Oastler got above his marker to head back across goal. A small cluster of players jumped for it and Ethan TAYLOR got the deftest of touches to loop a short-range header inside the right-hand upright to make it three-nil, with just 16 minutes played.
The 60th — and, as it turned out, the last — goal that Frome Town conceded in the 2024/25 season came on the counter-attack from their own corner. Ollis again managed to get away from Magri on The Robins’ right to fire an angled shot towards the near post, which Gosney once again parried for a corner. Lee headed the cross away from close to the penalty spot and Tomasso’s header helped the ball on its way to Blair, who had time and space to carry it from midfield, across the halfway line and out to the left wing. Lee had made a dash straight through the middle of the pitch and, with only one defender back, Blair’s diagonal pass was perfectly-weighted for the striker to run onto. Phillips thought twice about coming out to try and kick clear, allowing Tony LEE to get the ball under control about 20 yards out, and slow down to look up and pick his spot, before firing into the top-right corner of the net for his 22nd goal of the season in all competitions, making it four-nil after just 32 minutes.
Luke Bennett almost added a fifth in the second half, when he intercepted a pass in the middle of his own half with acres of open green grass ahead of him on the right flank. The full-back stormed forward, leaving chasing opponents in his wake, as he advanced to inside-right and fired a low shot across Tylek and fractionally wide of the far post. The full-back was immediately pressed into action at the other end of the pitch, getting round on the cover to prevent an Ollis shot squirming over the line after Gosney got a hand to it to slow its progress towards goal.
During the last few minutes, the game took on a decidedly end-of-season feel, with the players of both teams looking as though they had had enough for the day. The referee decided against inflicting any additional time upon the 506-strong crowd, and brought the regular season to a close with his full-time whistle.
Full-Time: FROME TOWN 0-4 AFC TOTTON
Attendance: 506
Star Man: Luke BENNETT (AFC Totton)
Entertainment Value: 4/5
Author: Ben Rochey-Adams
