Whitehawk 2 Poole 0

FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round

24 October 2015

Whitehawk showed why they are 3rd in the National League South and reduced Poole to staying in the game for long periods of this match. They eventually made their superiority tell running out 2 - 0 winners.

In spite of that it could have been so different. Whitehawk were profligate with their many chances and Poole defended heroically to keep the score at 0 - 0 until Will Spetch's sending off. The second yellow was for a soft obstruction and many referees would have looked at the context and given a final warning. This referee decided to apply the letter of the law and made the task almost impossible. Poole held out until half time and could even have taken the lead as Roberts wriggled past a defender on the wing and Brooks put the low cross past the post under heavy pressure. The shot count of 11 - 1 in favour of the home side does tell the story though.

As Poole fans hoped against hope to hang on for a replay the players had other ideas, starting the second half strongly with Burbidge coming into the game. He tricked his way into the box and about to unleash a shot was clipped from behind but no penalty was given. It did seem to be a penalty from behind the goal but the referee waved away strong appeals. Whitehawk immediately went to the other end and scored from a corner. Whether Poole's concentration suffered from the incident is open to debate but that there was to be no way back. Poole were able to put some pressure on the home defence playing a faster and more pressing game in the second half but Whitehawk made many more chances and scored again just before the end.

In other circumstances and with some luck Poole could have won or drawn this game but in other other circumstances Whitehawk could have taken their chances and won by a hat full of goals. Maybe Poole backed off a little too much in the first half but I couldn't fault the Poole effort. Whiskin and Walker were immense at the back and in front of them Pettifer and Devlin were everywhere trying to hunt down the ball. Tallack ran all day and Roberts produced some good moments of trickery. My Star Player today though was Nick Hutchings who not only made some outstanding saves but was a commanding presence in the area.

Dorchester Town 1 Poole Town 5

Southern League Premier Division

20 October 2015

Poole
Spetch 15
White 35, 58
Walker 39
Roberts 73

Dorchester 
Tarbuck 90+2

Att. 556

Poole 3 Cirencester 0

Southern Premier League

17 October 2015

With new striker Jamie White (loaned from Gosport) in the line up and Jack Dickson on the left it was a slightly new look Poole team that took on 6th placed Cirencester. Losing 3-2 away during the run was one of the defining moments last season so it would be good to impose some kind of superiority early on this season.

Dickson looked sharp running at the defence a number of times early on and should have scored with a free header at the far post from a Burbidge cross as Poole applied steady pressure. Roberts came close a couple of times and plenty of chances were created begging to be finished off. However it was Cirencester who came closest to scoring in the first half with Hutchins called into action to make 3 smart saves, the best of which probably was a tip over from a free kick from Cirencester's sprightly no. 9. The shot count at half time was 9 to Poole and 3 to Cirencester.

In the second half Cirencester looked sharper and pinned Poole in their own half for the first 5 minutes but Poole absorbed the pressure and came back strongly with a dominant display which showed they were back to their best form of last season. Devlin converted a Burbidge cross at the far post for the long awaited first goal, Devlin's accurate free kick in the bottom corner secured the second, and Toby Holmes converted a scramble on the goal line for the third. More goals could have followed and Cirencester were metaphorically waving the white flag before the end.

My star player of the day was Luke Burbidge who again opened up the defence time after time and Cirencester never found an answer. Of the newer players Jack Dickson started well showing pace and strength in taking on defenders and intelligent use of the ball. Jamie White hit the corner of the goal from a tight angle but otherwise had a quiet game. Toby Holmes came on towards the end of the match and made a significant contribution. He looked strong, pacy and in the right place at the right time. He did miss a one on one, shooting at the keeper but looks as if he has goals in him at this level.

Dorchester Town 1 Poole Town 3

Red Insure Cup 1st Round

13 October 2015

T. Holmes
Stone
Leonard

Hastings United 0 Poole Town 2

FA Cup 3rd Qualifying Round

10 October 2015

Whisken (3)
Brooks (43)

Poole Town 2 Paulton Rovers 1

Southern Premier League

7 October 2015

Poole

Roberts (62)

Connell (78 pen)

Paulton

Morgan-Williams (66)

Poole go top by 2 points and are the league's leading scorers with Hitchin who have played one game fewer. Notably there are 3 Dorset teams in the top 5 which hopefully presages bumper crowds for the local derby matches to come.

Poole Town 2 Redditch Utd 1

Southern Premier League

3 October 2015

Like a few times this season the opposition came out of the blocks quicker and Redditch could easily have been a couple of goals up in the first 10 minutes. As shots rained in defensive cover was sparse and Hutchins kept Poole in the game with some smart work. Against the run of play (which is sounding like a familiar story) Brooks broke into the area on the right but hesitated giving the keeper the opportunity to bring him down. A penalty without a card to the keeper feels right since there were at least 2 other Redditch players around the ball and the keeper was diving for the ball. Devlin's weak penalty was parried on to the post by the keeper but the ball fell kindly back to him and he made no mistake from the rebound. Poole's forward play seemed slow and deliberate for most of the match but a genuinely good move brought the second goal as Burbidge crossed and Roberts flicked the ball across the goal for on loan Corby Moore running into the box to score his first for the club.

In the second half you thought that Poole had to change the game a bit to get on the ball more and control things rather than letting the opposition have it but Redditch had other ideas. A free kick led to probably the worst goal that Poole have conceded this season which was Walkeresque in its execution as Carline found himself unmarked between defenders to head home. There were moments when Redditch threatened to score and the passage of play for the next 20 minutes was nervy but Poole's defence played well after the aberration. As Redditch pressed Poole took advantage of the space to come forward. Man of the match Burbidge was back to his best tormenting the left back numerous times but was unable to find anyone to finish off his moves.

So it continues to be a strange season with resilience at an all time high but quality lacking from the heights of last season so far except in patches. Rock bottom Paulton visit on Tuesday so will Poole fill their boots or will they contrive to make it difficult?