Midweek football: Triumphant Totton & Eling seal shootout victory while Brockenhurst draws, but Bashley, Hythe & Dibden and Fawley AFC all lose.
ON a wet and windy Tuesday night, Bashley were booted out of the Hampshire Senior Cup, while Totton & Eling’s penalty shootout win was the only triumph for a local side.
Third-placed Brockenhurst drew 1-1 with Petersfield Town, while Hythe & Dibden and Fawley AFC suffered defeats.
The wild weather and injuries took the edge off Ollie Cherrett’s first match as Bashley manager since joining from Christchurch, with his depleted side stumbling to Hampshire Cup defeat to AFC Portchester.
The New Forest side came into the tie missing five key players, but it took until the final five minutes for the lively Harrison Brook to convert their best move of the game.
Bashley – who play a league higher than Portchester – dominated the first half, and it was one-way traffic at times, but the visitors defended well.
Keeper Steve Mowthorpe made comfortable diving saves from Toby Bailey and then Luke Delaney before Bailey sent a pot-shot just over from distance.
Bashley shooting on sight was obviously the right tactic, with long-range specialist Bailey forcing Mowthorpe into his best save of the half before Conor Whiteley sent a 30-yard free-kick whistling just wide.
With the scoreline blank after the first 45, Portchester took over with the wind at their backs in the second half and Lee Wort, a well-known Wessex League goalscoring machine, soon had Ross Casey scrambling to save.
Bashley had two brilliant chances to score after parried saves from Mowthorpe, with Whiteley firing over an empty net and Delaney’s goalbound effort blocked by the flying head of Ryan Woodford.
That was almost the last of Bashley’s threat as Bash lost Ben Jefford and Whiteley to injury.
Late on, Portchester produced a rapid counter, and Brook scooted through acres of space down the right before cutting in and beating Casey.
Portchester survived a confident handball penalty appeal as they scrambled the ball away, but in the end the Wessex League side saw it out.
Totton & Eling marched into the next round of the Southampton Senior Cup after winning a penalty shootout 4-2 following a goalless 90 minutes against Millbrook.
The Millers Park crowd had their hearts in their mouths midway through the first half of a cagey contest when referee Derek Pratt gave a penalty to the visitors.
The typically lethal Mark Barker stepped and smashed it low and hard to the keeper’s left, but Matt Taylor pulled off a superb save.
With the final whistle blown, the Millers showed their courage, firing four goals past former Ringwood Town keeper Olly Plunkett to seal a spot in the next round.
Brockenhurst extended their unbeaten run to seven games after coming from behind away to Petersfield Town.
With 26 minutes played, Petersfield’s Oli Davies beat James Mayo to score the first goal of the evening after a lovely bit of individual play.
With around 10 minutes of second-half action played, Badgers captain Ronan Moore delivered a peach of a free-kick right onto Sam Steel’s head, who made no mistake to equalise.
Things could have gone better for Hythe & Dibden and Fawley AFC, with the former losing 3-2 to Laverstock & Ford and the Oilers losing by four unanswered goals to Hamworthy Recreation.
Hythe raced into a two-goal lead, but the Bulldogs fought back and won the contest in the 91st minute.
