Shepshed Dynamo ease into FA Vase round two
FA VASE FIRST ROUND SHEPSHED 2 BEWDLEY O A SUCCESSION of set pieces saw Shepshed Dynamo progress into the second round of the FA Vase with a comfortable 2-0 defeat of Bewdley Town on a blustery afternoon at The Dovecote.
Defenders Jordan Wakeling and Joe Pheasant were on target for the hosts, who are now unbeaten in their last seven matches in all competitions.
Dynamo boss Damion Beckford-Quailey fielded an unchanged lineup to that which routed Stourport Swifts last weekend, but the windy conditions hindered his side as they sought to make their mark early on.
Sam Moore twice fired wide from outside the box as Bewdley frustrated the home side - though it would not be too long until their resistance was shattered.
Josh Thomas’s corner was the mother of much panic among the Bewdley rearguard, and Wakeling was on hand to turn inside the box and guide a low finish into the net with just over half an hour played.
And it soon got even better for Shepshed just five minutes before the interval when Pheasant rose highest to head home Moore’s laser-guided free kick from the left - his third goal in two matches.
Bewdley had their clearest opening early in the second period when Luke Sidaway sent a fierce strike crashing against the post - but that was as good as it got for them as the hosts pressed for more goals.
Celson Patrocinio drove Thomas’s low
cross back across the face of goal, but Matt Melbourne was unable to force the ball home.
Melbourne then seized upon Karl Whymark’s excellent through ball before drawing a strong save from Bewdley ‘keeper Joe Sidaway.
And to Bewdley’s chagrin, the chances continued to come for the hosts as the clock ticked down.
Ollie Roome raced onto fellow substitute Sean Phillips’s splitting pass and before having a low strike saved with fulltime fast approaching.
Thomas almost added a tad more gloss to the scoreline in injury time when Joe Sidaway’s feeble clearance fell into his path, but Steve Clarke’s last-ditch intervention spared the visitors further anguish.
This was scarcely Shepshed’s best performance of the season, but it was enough to secure the win, and if not for some profligate finishing, they might have netted more goals.
Beckford-Quailey and his men will now welcome Blidworth Welfare to the Dovecote in the second round on November 3 and return to league action on Saturday away at Dunkirk.