Five-goal Winterbourne extend lead at top of Premier Division

WHAT a start Winterbourne United have made to their 2020-21 Bristol Premier Combination campaign.

The Parkside Avenue fliers racked up a sixth win from seven unbeaten Premier Division appearances by seeing off Chipping Sodbury Town Reserves 5-1 on their travels through James Mainstone’s brace and Charlie Davis, Dave Herbert and Harvey Woodruff goals.

That victory opened a four-point lead at the top ahead of a Hallen Reserves team, who were without a game, parading five wins from five with two games in hand with which to turn up the heat.

Cribbs Reserves made it a fourth win from five Prem outings but what a fist their hosts Pucklechurch Sports made of it at Abson Road.

Lewis Densley, Nathan Parker and Shaun Godfrey all scored for Church but still Cribbs prevailed as Dan Burgan’s brace and Jack Guthrie and James Clayton strikes saw the reigning champions to a 4-3 win and fourth spot in the standings.

Olveston United are looking the part just now in fifth, as amply demonstrated by a 5-0 away thumping of struggling Highridge United, via James Worley and Thomas Penney doubles along with substitute James Moore’s 81stminute contribution to wrap up the scoring.

Longwell Green Sports and Lebeq Saturday battled out a 1-1 stalemate, while Shaftesbury Crusade celebrated a first win since the opening afternoon by beating Seymour United 4-1 at Bonnington Walk.

Nicholas Wanderers maintained a firm hold on third place in the top flight by seeing off local rivals AEK Boco Reserves 4-1 at Dundridge Park.

In a fine footballing contest between two sides eager to play the ‘right way’, a James Fox header handed Wanderers the lead just three minutes in, only for a rare mistake by the Nics goalkeeper enabling Boco’s Harrison Kyte to snatch an equaliser for a 1-1 interval deadlock.

In the second half, a cross was headed home by Aaron Mansfield to restore Wanderers’ lead.

Mansfield’s second came ten minutes later, courtesy of a stinging 25-yard drive into the top corner, before Billy Arnold rounded off the Wanderers win with a close-range finish, prompting his satisfied manager Kevin Pollard to say: “It was another professional job done by the boys, both defensively and offensively.”

Cribbs A’s fantastic start to life in the Bristol Premier Combination shows no sign of relenting as Oldland Abbotonians Reserves discovered to their cost.

The Lawns fliers gained a place in Division One of the league thanks to a third-placed finish in last season’s coronavirus-curtailed District Senior shake-up and they have certainly hit the ground running since their arrival.

They made it three wins from three with a 5-2 home victory over Oldland, courtesy of doubles for Andy Capon and David Duru plus an Alex Crane effort, to pitch them third in the table behind pacesetting Wick Reserves and Iron Acton in second.

Iron Acton had led 3-0 at home against Shirehampton Reserves and appeared to be cruising to a third victory of their campaign, only for the away side to battle back through Reece Evans, Mark Johnson and an own goal, before the hosts prevailed 4-3 via Matt Sully, Luke Haddow, Reuben Walters and Ross Davey efforts.

Wick Reserves kept their seat at the summit with a 2-0 home victory over Nicholas Wanderers Reserves to take their winning stretch to four from four.

Bradley Stoke Town are enjoying the afterglow of securing a prized first win of their Division One mission.

Josh Morris spearheaded the success with a hat-trick, backed up by Callum Somerville and Charles Wills goals in a 5-0 home mauling of Hambrook, in which all the goals arrived in an eventful first half.

Hambrook boss David Davies said: “We should have been 2-0 up after 25 minutes as we’d missed a penalty and a far post tap-in.

“Bradley Stoke then had a great 20 minutes putting four past us and another just before half-time as we gifted them a fifth goal to trail 5-0 at the break, before a goalless second half.”

District Senior champs St Nicholas continue to enjoy their first taste of Combination action, as they kept up their unbeaten record with a 5-1 home defeat of Greyfriars Athletic, thanks to Craig Doyle’s double and Ben Reeves, Ollie Slade and Kylan Mapstone goals.