AFC Totton
STAGS CRUSH BASH IN RED INSURE CUP
AFC Totton 7-2 Bashley
Attendance – 161
The Stags were in action last night against local rivals Bashley in the first round of the Red Insure Cup. Totton fielded a much changed line-up from the side that played Slimbridge at the weekend.
Totton started off the game well and had the first sight at goal. Gosney made headway down the left wing and found Edwards in the area, and the Stags No10’s effort struck the foot of the post, However, the linesman had already raised his flag.
Both sides were looking lively, but it was the visitors who struck first, when the referee spotted an infringement in the Stags penalty area and awarded Bashley a penalty. Will LAMBERT stepped up and hit the ball straight down the middle of the goal to give the visitors a shock lead.
Totton responded quickly though, Gosney crossed in for Edwards, but his effort looped over the bar. The Stags weren’t to be denied and they restored parity in the 27th minute. Gosney was the architect, the Stags left winger picked out a superb pass to find debutant, Tony LEE, who finished well with a driven shot from just inside the area.
Incredibly, Bashley restored their lead just 3 minutes later, when a shot was struck from distance by Warren SQUIBB and it looked in all the world as though Stags keeper, Kieran Greene would make the save, but the ball bounced up off his arm and into the net.
Yet again though, it wasn’t long before The Stags were level. 5 minutes before the break, Tony LEE headed home a lovely freekick delivery from Jake Rawkins.
A big flashpoint in the game came on the stroke of halftime when Bashley goalkeeper Rob Gillet came rushing out of his area and handled the ball as he advanced instinctively in an attempt to thwart some danger. The Stags couldn’t make anything of the resulting Freekick and went in at the break level. HT 2-2
In the second half, The Stags really came to life, with a flurry of five goals in a 15 minute period. Just five minutes in, Taylor EDWARDS struck his first of the season, scooping home a loose ball in the box. Shortly afterwards, some good work from Watts and new signing Jack Alexander, crafted an opportunity for LEE to complete his hat-trick on his debut for the club. The Stags weren’t done there though and just a minute later, they had their 5th of the evening as Nick WATTS was allowed to run at the Bashley defence unchallenged and shot from the edge of the area and found the far bottom corner. Another goal followed on the hour mark – and just 3 minutes after the 5th as Totton really began to exploit the visitors space being left open, following their goalkeepers dismissal. The Stags soon added their 6th of the evening, Nick WATTS adding his second goal of the night. Although the scoring was yet to be complete for the summer signing from Sholing. WATTS added the seventh goal and also claimed a hat trick this evening, firing in from distance and the ball found its way into the net, following a deflection off an unfortunate yellow shirt.
That completed a scintillating period in the game where Totton scored a stunning 5 goals in 15 minutes, to completely steamroll over their opponents, in almost perfect fashion, particularly given the visitors plucky nature in the first half. The Stags cruised through the rest of the game, with Bashley morale battered for the evening.
As the game wore on though, Jake Rawkins will be wondering what he has to do, having seen a number of attempts either blocked or flashing inches wide in the final 15 minutes of the game, having been pushed up the wing following the arrival of Diaper onto the field. But the damage had already been done and Totton saw out the game comfortably. FT 7-2
The Stags ended up pummelling their New Forest rivals in this Red Insure Cup tie, after a breathtaking 15 minute spell in the second half. Although Bashley made life difficult, as in the league game just 2 weeks ago, Totton remained focused. They also seemed rejuvenated by the arrivals of duel signings of Tony Lee and Jack Alexander from Eastleigh.
The reward for winning this game is a home tie against Winchester City on Tuesday 10th November. But up next, this Saturday 24th October (3pm), they entertain mid table Banbury United at Testwood Stadium as they look to bag 3 league points.
Stags Lineup: Greene, Dempsey, Rawkins, Alexander, Roden (c), Rolls, Watts*, Burgess, Lee***, Edwards, Gosney**.
Subs: Williams***, Hibberd, Brewer*, Diaper**, Allen.
