​As the title of this blog suggests this evening was an opportunity for me to complete my collection of non-leagues sides, in Steps 3 to 6, that have a CV post code. Having already seen Copsewood, Sphinx and United play, I thought that a trip to Green Lane was the icing on the Coventrian God Cake. Of course, United have now moved and play at Butts Park Arena, so even though I have seen all of the teams, I still need to visit United again to complete my CV.

Alvis Sports Club, on Green Lane, plays host to many sports and is quite a large complex that was once part of the Alvis Car and Engine Company, which produced all sorts of cars, engines and military vehicles up until the late 60s.
There is a reasonable sized car park and plenty of extra spots available along the long access road that leads from Green Lane into the sports complex. The football ground is a short walk from the car park, past the clubhouse, and is accessed through a single gate. There are two covered stands on the opposite side of the pitch, one a standing area and one seating, either side of the dugouts which, incidentally, are reminiscent of Eastern European bus shelters.
The covered standing area holds a small secret. It has a very limited seating arrangement within it. Actually, it is what appears to be a piece of bar seating that has been relocated to the stand, very reminiscent of the clubhouse side of Fairford Town's Cinder Lane ground. (see photo). It's little quirks like this that make non-league grounds so appealing.

​Having not been able to get a programme, I spotted someone carrying a notepad. Always a good source of a team sheet. Sure enough it was a seasoned groundhopper, clutching his hand-written notes. He was kind enough to allow me to take a quick photograph of them so, at least I would have some idea of any who was who out on the pitch. It turned out that my notepad carrying acquaintance, who I assumed was an official from either Alvis or Chelmsley, was a groundhopper from Stockport. That's a hell of a round-trip on a Wednesday evening. Another reason that I don't consider myself to be a ground-hopper.

I spent the majority of the match engaged in conversations with the man from Stockport, who had worked on the railways, travelled a fair bit and visited a vast number of non-league grounds in all parts of the country.

Coming into the game, Chelmsley had played four games and, despite a 6-1 thrashing at Atherstone, were in a position to go top of the league with a win. Alvis had played a game extra and had one just once, a 3-1 victory at Nuneaton Griff in early August. Even more worryingly for the home side, they had not managed a goal in their last three games, two 4-0 and the other 3-0.

With all this in mind, I was fully expecting to Chelmsley take the game by the scruff of the neck, especially with the incentive of going top of the league. However, it was Alvis who started on the front foot. They looked sharper in the tackle and quicker to any loose balls. With a better final ball and some more composed finishing they could, in fact, have been at least a couple of goals to the good after 30 minutes.
Michael Turner, the Chelmesley keeper, was called upon to make one very good save but, in the main, he was not stretched, with the exception of an Aaron Cooke free-kick, from the edge of the box, which whistled past his right-hand post and out for a goal-kick.

With half-time rapidly approaching Alvis were made to pay for their wastefulness. When the ball dropped to Kaine Williams on the edge of the home box he first turned to his left and then dragged a low shot back across Jack Tregath and into his bottom left-hand corner. 0-1.

HT Coventry Alvis 0 Chelmsley Town 1. The home side caught by the classic sucker-punch after looking much the better team for most of the half.

​The second half continued almost in the same vein as the first. Alvis continued to look the better of the two sides but not with quite the same amount of domination as they had in the first period. A little more niggle came into the game after half-time as well.
One or two confrontations, in midfield especially, threatened to boil over once or twice prompting a few yellow cards to be shown.

Chelmsley, to be fair, always looked reasonably comfortable and happy to retain their one goal lead. When they did break out their main outlet was Jemuel Mills who, it has to be said, ran himself into the ground for his team.

Late in the game lightning struck twice. With the home side pressing up in search of an equaliser the ball was launched clear down the Chelmsley left flank. Alvis had only left one player back on the halfway line and he had to track to his right in an attempt to beat the lone Town striker to the ball. The keeper also raced out of his box. In the ensuing mix-up the ball broke to the Chelmsley striker who looked up to spot the run of Louis Inverary, breaking through the middle. The ball was rolled into the substitutes path and he had the simple task of finishing into an unguarded net. 0-2.

FT Coventry Alvis 0 Chelmsley Town 2. Alvis were made to pay a high price for not scoring when they were on top. Town, to their credit, kept plugging away despite clearly not being at their best.

I do hope that the Stockport Hopper made it home without too many delays on the notorious M6. Me, I'll be looking out for a chance to visit United's new home so that I can finally finish off my CV.

Teams
Coventry Alvis: Jack Tregath, Mitchell Boe, Corey Blackwood, Adam Day, Najib Abukar, Ben Steane(c), Jagit Aujla, Ryan Pace, Dennis Oppong, Kieron Martin, Aaron Cooke. Subs: Jojo Mukwita, Reece Snape, Jacob Winit, Zuhayb Abdi, Luke McKiernan

Chelmsley Town: Michael Turner, Sam Sadler, Harry Sweeney, Ross Casey(c), Matthew Kent, Nicholas Ellis, Adam Keeley, Robert Ellis, Jemuel Mills, Kaine Williams, Jamie Barrett. Subs: Chris Guerney, Louis Inverary, James Taylor, Shawn Francis, James Ward

Att. 67

Ground No. 133
Entrance: £4
Programme: £1 (sold out before I arrived)

​A Wednesday evening and, having to pick my wife and child up from Heathrow at 11pm, I was in need of something to pass the time away. What better than a trip to Hampshire and some non-league football? With both Farnborough and Cove at home, I was spoilt for choice. With both sides being 
based in Farnborough I was only going to be 30 minutes from the airport and perfectly in time to welcome my family home. I have to say, I was tempted to check out how life in Step 3 was for Royston Town, who were playing at Farnborough. However, I eventually chose the Combined Counties Division One clash between Cove and Fleet Spurs.

A note of praise for Rushmoor Borough Council at this point, if indeed it is they who are responsible for road signs in Farnborough. Upon getting into the town and, bearing in mind that I had not been to a game in this town before, I was very pleasantly surprised to see signposts for many of the local sports clubs, Farnborough FC, Farnborough Rugby Club and, more importantly Cove FC. I don't think, in five years of hopping around non-league grounds, have I seen signposts pointing the way to a Step 6 football club. If I had a cap I would doff it to the person who sanctioned this. I wonder if it would improve attendances if all local councils followed suit?

The home of Cove FC is Oak Farm, situated down a single track lane, Squirrel Lane, just to the North of the town and Farnborough Airport, home of the famous air show. The football ground has several pitches, including a 4G pitch, and is adjacent to Farnborough Rugby Club and the Tennis Club. There is a small(ish) car park outside the clubhouse with the option for additional parking inside the actual football ground.
The ground features covered standing and seating areas, the main stand being the Ron Brown Stand, all of which are on the far side from the clubhouse, car park and entrance. The dugouts are situated either side of the entrance to the playing surface, in front of the clubhouse.

Cove have been on something of a downward spiral in the last couple of years but are hoping that this season will be a turning point. Relegation from the Combined Counties Premier in 2015-16 was followed by a second from bottom finish in Division One last year. However, they were reprieved from a second consecutive relegation by the fact that Dorking folded at the end of the season.
​Fleet, meanwhile, finished 16th of 21 in the Wessex League Division One last term but transferred into the Combined Counties League in the summer. Both teams started the season with entertaining games, Fleet beating Raynes Park 3-2 whilst Cove fought out a 3-3 draw at Cobham.

​If I'm honest, the first 25 minutes or so of this game had little to offer the supporters. Neither side managed to get any fluidity into their game and neither managed to stretch the opposing goalkeeper. If anything, it was the home side who looked slightly the better side.
As is often the case though, despite not looking likely, it was the away side who created the first real chance on 28 minutes. The ball fell to striker Sam Knowles, the Fleet number 10, inside the penalty area, but he wasted the opportunity when he possibly should have done better.

Within two minutes he was made to pay for his profligacy. Cove sprang a very quick break down their right flank. The ball was flashed across goal and the onrushing Owusu Osei powered the ball home to make it 1-0.

HT Cove 1 Fleet Spurs 0. A very scrappy first half. Not that much in the way of goalmouth action. The pace of the breakaway and delivery of the cross for Cove's goal was the high-point of the half. 


Five minutes into the second half Cove came within inches of increasing their lead. A free-kick from out on the right-wing was floated into the Fleet area, Cove's number 4 rose and powered his header against the bar and away to safety.
Maybe that was the wake-up call that Fleet needed? They certainly appeared to up their game from this point and were beginning to show a lot more attacking intent than in the first half.
Just before the hour mark Fleet produced their best and possibly the game's best move so far. A series of interplay and one-touch passes saw them carve open the home defence but the resulting effort from 18 yards was just too high. It was, however, a very promising sign for Fleet and seemed to further galvanise their efforts. So much so that, on 63 minutes, they were awarded a penalty. Sam Knowles stepped up and made amends for his first-half miss by slotting the ball home. 1-1. 

Although you couldn't say that Cove were on the ropes at this point, the pendulum had certainly swung in favour of Fleet. They could and really should have been 2-1 up on 69 minutes. A speculative shot from distance looked destined for the top corner without the intervention of Cove's keeper. He got a hand to the ball and diverted it against the crossbar. The ball dropped straight to the feet of the Fleet number 10 Knowles, unmarked in the six yard box, only for the striker to, somehow, put the ball wide of the mark.
​It was a massive let off for Cove who then endeavoured to respond themselves.

​With the game heading towards the last 10 minutes Cove's number 7 went on a mazy dribble, beat a couple of Fleet players and unleashed a shot which cannoned back off the visitor's bar. Two minutes later a long through ball saw the Cove striker and the Fleet keeper collide in the box. 

The referee immediately pointed to the spot despite vociferous complaints from the Fleet team who clearly thought it was a 50/50 challenge for the ball. Felix Laing, also wearing number 10, stepped up but smashed the spot-kick against the bar. Still 1-1 and it was proving to be a bad night to be wearing the number 10 shirt on either side.

It made me smile when I saw that the Fleet Spurs website had posted a thank you message to their crossbar.

The number 10 curse was highlighted five minutes from time when Knowles was put clean through but, instead of sliding the ball past the keeper, he elected to go around him giving the stopper the opportunity to grab the ball, which he duly did. Another chance, and this time the last one of the game, went begging.

FT Cove 1 Fleet Spurs 1. Both sides had plenty of chances to win the game but ultimately paid the price for some wasteful finishing. On the balance of play a draw was probably the fairest result.


Att. 

Ground No. 132
Entrance: £5
Programme: Included in entrance fee

It's been a while coming, but I finally made it to Malmesbury and more specifically, The Flying Monk Ground. The name of the ground had intrigued me for some time especially as I also knew of a Flying Monk Brewery in the town. So, who was the Flying Monk and why do the good people of the town see fit to name so many things after him? Well, before we get into the football business, sit back and have a short history lesson.

The monk in question was Eilmer (or Oliver or Elmer, depending on which scribe you follow). He lived in the 11th Century, possibly around the time of the Norman invasion although his exact date of birth or death is not known. Eilmer had read and believed the fable of Daedalus, you know the one, made wings for his son. It didn't end too well from memory, so that makes Eilmer's decision to emulate the flight even more incredulous. However, that is what he is said to have done. Built himself some wings and launched himself from the tower of Malmesbury Abbey. Well I drove past the Abbey and through the town of Malmesbury - which is beautiful by the way and well worth a visit even if you aren't going to a football match (thank me later Malmesbury tourist board) - and I certainly would not have thrown myself off the tower, even with home made wings. I guess there wasn't that much else to occupy a bored monk in 11th Century England? Not much is known of the flight, but it seems that Eilmer decided to fly or glide (I imagine more of a semi-controlled fall) in a Southerly direction presumably because, as we all know, South is downhill. That's a shame really because, if he had turned his gaze to the North, he would have been heading in the direction of the Flying Monk Ground, home of Malmesbury Victoria FC. Of course, he wouldn't have seen the ground from the top of the Abbey in his day (it would have been obscured by the Co-Op).

And....we are back in modern day Malmesbury. The Flying Monk Ground, as I hinted at above, is situated behind a Co-Op supermarket on the edge of town and accessed by a small service road that runs down the side of the shop. There is very little parking available at the ground (so don't make the mistake I did and drive down there in the hope of parking. It's quite hard to turn round at the bottom of the lane). There is, however, plenty of parking close by in the streets.
​
The ground is accessed through a single gate which brings you in at the corner behind the Co-Op end goal. All of the facilities run down this side (the town side?) of the ground. There is a, quite narrow, covered standing area running down much of this part of the ground. There is also a small, covered, seating area to the side of the goal at the Co-Op End. The dugouts are on the far side of the ground, opposite the main facilities block. There are trees directly behind the Co-Op end goal. I think I have said it before, but there is something appealing about a ground that has trees behind the goal. Maybe it's that rural feel? Whatever it is, I like it.

​This evening's fare was a bit of a local derby with the visitors coming from Chippenham Park FC, just over the other side of the M4. Of course, in Eilmer's day, this would gave been a day's travel, but nowadays, with modern traffic, it probably takes less than half that time.
Park were formed on the back of the town's senior club, Chippenham Town, and have the pleasure of ground-sharing with The Bluebirds at the wonderful Hardenhuish Park, one of the finest examples of a non-league ground in my opinion.

The sides were coming into the game on opposite sides of the form spectrum. Having both played three games, Malmesbury had picked up just a solitary point, a 2-2 draw with Westbury, and had gone down 4-0 at Warminster in their last game. Park, meanwhile, were yet to lose and yet to concede a goal, after two 1-0 wins and a 0-0 draw from their first three. So, early season but already it was a crunch game for both sides. Could Park push on and go top? Could Vics get their season under way?

The opening quarter of an hour was quite scrappy, although it's fair to say that the home side were marginally the better of the two. Neither side managed to really test their opposite goalkeeper in ths time.
However, with 18 minutes on the clock, the game, and specifically Malmesbury, sprang into life. The upturn was sparked by a free-kick given right on the right-hand edge of the Park penalty area. The shot was driven in and saved well by the Chippenham stopper. The loose ball was then both cleared off the line and smacked against the inside of the post before dropping to Keiran Jones on the opposite edge of the box. His low drive evaded everyone and nestled in the corner of the net to give Malmesbury the lead. 1-0.

Just a minute later and it was 2-0. This time another effort came back off the inside of the same post and fell to Jamie Packer to score.

Malmesbury were, at this point, competely rampant. It was almost as if someone had flicked a switch and told them to start playing.
Three minutes after going two up they came very close to making it three and Park were clinging on for dear life.
Just on the half hour mark, with Vics still dominant, they produced a sparkling piece of football to set up Jamie Packer again. His superb lob over the advancing keeper was just a fraction too high but the move really deserved a goal. I make a great effort to stay neutral when watching games (unless it's Stourbridge and then I am as partisan as the next man) but I must admit I did find myself applauding this passage of play. It was a delight to watch.

Two minutes later and yet another piece of great interplay saw the ball arrive at Packer's feet again but he pulled his shot just wide when he probably should have scored.
I'm not sure how they managed it but Chippenham held out until half-time without conceding again. They deserve great credit for staying in the game when they were under immense pressure for quite a sustained period.

HT Malmesbury Victoria 2 Chippenham Park 0. Some really lovely play from the home side who deserve their lead and probably feel that they should have been out of sight by the break.

​

​The second half, much like the first, started off quietly with no real efforts on target from either side in the first fifteen minutes.
On the hour mark Jamie Packer, who seemed to be involved in just about everything, struck a great effort which was equally matched by a diving 
save from the Park keeper but, apart from that, the game was played mainly in the midfield area.
It also became very stop/start as both sides conceded a number of fairly soft free-kicks. This probably suited the home side down to the ground. 

At 2-0 up, they really didn't want the game to open up at all and were more than happy for Park to not have the opportunity to get a head of steam up. To be fair to Chippenham, they certainly put the effort in but didn't really ever look like getting back into the game.
With 10 minutes to go, Malmesbury made a very shrewd tactical substition, removing Number 8 who had already been booked and seemed to like a tackle. The last thing they needed was to go down to 10-men this close to their first win.
​
Then, with almost the last kick of the game, Malmesbury applied the icing to their cake with a third goal. Keiran Jones broke through for a one on one, the ball was slipped neatly under the advancing keeper and into the net for 3-0.

FT. Malmesbury Victoria 3 Chippenham Park 0. A thoroughly entertaining first half followed by an intriguing but not as open second half. All in all, Malmesbury deserved their victory, they were much the better side on the night.
​
Att. 94

Ground No. 131
Entrance £5
Programme £1.00

​Saturday gave me a chance to drop in at a ground that has been on my list for a couple of years now. I saw Highgate United lift the Midland League Division One title at Coverntry Copsewood two seasons ago and, since then, I have been looking for an opportunity to visit The Coppice. So, after a morning visiting my parents, B90 was a perfecting stopping off point on my way back to Oxfordshire.
The ground is quite interesting in that the club house and all facilities are separate from the actual stadium. From the ample parking you can see the clubhouse to your right. Right in front of the facilities is a junior pitch which is directly behind the main stand at The Coppice, The Tony Allden Stand, a covered area that runs the full length of the pitch. Entry is through a single gate which brings you into the stadium alongside the aforementioned main stand. Directly opposite is the only other structure, an interesting combination of dugouts and what I presume is a press/announcer box. 
Behind this structure is an open area which may well also be used as a junior pitch at times. This was in the process of being mowed, very thoroughly, by the Highgate groundsman on his quite large sit-on mower. The reason I mention this is that Patrick (just the name I gave Mr Mower in my head) became a prominent feature of the afternoon.

​As can be expected with an opening game of the season, there was a fair amount of the teams getting to see what each other were about for the first 15 minutes. In this time, in my opinion, it was the home side who looked slightly better, more organised and sharper going forward.

Just on the quarter hour mark came the first incident that had a bearing on the game. Lye midfielder Simon Williams lunged into a challenge on Highgate captain Aaron Brown, going straight through the back of the Gate player, a clear foul. The referee blew for the free-kick but, whilst the players were down in a tangle, Brown kicked out at Williams. Fortunately for the home side, neither the referee or the assistant was well placed to see the kick and only two yellows were handed out. Saying that, if they saw nothing, I wonder why Brown received a yellow at all. Highgate, in my eyes, were quite lucky to still have eleven on the pitch.

Of course, by the rules of football, after getting lucky one minute, Brown then popped up to open the scoring for Highgate. A long throw-in from the right-hand side of the box found Brown rising, unmarked, in the Lye box to power a header past Charlie Price. 18 minutes on the clock. 1-0 to Highgate.
​
Lye tried to hit back immediately and only a brilliant reaction save from Behan prevented Pearlman from heading them level.
The game had opened up more now and Lye wree beginning to look more dangerous, with former Glassboy Ben Billingham pulling the strings for them in an advanced midfield role.
Meanwhile behind the dugouts, Patrick was mowing away merrily, getting closer and closer to the row of spectators watching the game. Thankfully the referee blew for half-time just in time to save all of our ankles a severe trimming.

HT Highgate United 1 Lye Town 0. The home side just about deserved to be in front at the break but Lye were far from out of the game.

​After a cup of tea and a visit from the local ice-cream van (I resisted) we all headed back into the ground for the second-half. Patrick was still hard at it. Never has a patch of grass been so well mowed. Actually, in his defence, I have to say that the Coppice pitch looked to be in very good condition, so hat's off to Patrick (I really should find out this guy's name), he's clearly a dedicated groundsman.

Seven minutes into the second half came the second game-changing event. With Highgate looking to make a quick break, Simon Williams was forced into a rash challenge which earned him second yellow card.
With the away side down to 10 men everyone expected Gate to kick on and sew the game up. However, after a scrappy 10 minutes after the red card, it was actually Lye who started to play the better football and look the more dangerous.
By this time, Patrick had finally won his battle with the grass on the far side and had turned his attention to a patch behind the Lye Town goal. I swear that, at one point, he was trying to do donuts with a lawnmower.

Gate were struggling to take any kind of advantage from the extra man and, more and more, Lye were looking dangerous at the other end.
​
With 11 minutes left to go, Ben Billingham picked up the ball 25 yards out, steadied himself and unleashed an unstoppable drive into the top left-hand corner of Behan's net to make it 1-1. At the time I was chatting to a Birmingham City supporter behind the opposite goal and we both had a great view of the shot. It was in the second it left Billingham's boot.
There was still time for the referee to even up the numbers when he produced a second-yellow for Brown in the 88th minute.
FT Highgate United 1 Lye Town 1. Probably a fair reflection over the 90 minutes. All in all a highly competitive game between two evenly matched sides and an entertaining first visit to The Coppice.


Highgate United: Behan, English, Pulisciano, Bryan, Turner, Brown(c), Mooney, Edwards, Adaggio, Richards, Wilcock Subs: King, Wright, Cosgrave, Akembe, Sharp

Lye Town: Price, Tye, Mills, Meacham, Flowers, Pearlman, Till, Shilvock, Collins, Billingham(c), Williams. Subs: Paskin, Gennard, Love, Evitts, Downes 
Att 72

Ground No. 130
Entrance £7
Programme £1.50

Well fancied Melksham Town lay down an early season marker in their opening fixture.
​​
After deliberately taking the entire summer off from football, I was more than ready to get back out to watch a live game. So, what better than a summer evening in Wiltshire to watch my first game of the new season? Well, the weather for a start but that's a different discussion.
My destination was Oakfields Stadium, home of Western premier side Melksham Town. I say home, they only moved in last season after a prolonged exit from their old ground, The Conigre which I, unfortunately never managed to visit.
The new stadium is part of a purpose built complex that houses both Melksham football and rugby clubs. There are numerous pitches across what appeared to be a very large complex. As I have mentioned numerous times before, I am not normally a big fan of these new purpose-built stadia. I completely understand the need for them but I generally find them a bit soulless. Having said all of that, I like Oakfields and i can;'t quite put my finger on why I like it. Maybe my views on new stadia are softening or maybe the designers/builders are putting a little extra into them? Whatever the reason, Oakfields has a good feel about it. The feel of a proper football stadium.

​There is ample parking (once you have negotiated the very bumpy service road that leads into the complex) which I noticed on the way out was also very well lit. The site is dominated by the main clubhouse block which, I believe also serves as the main stand for the primary football and rugby pitches, which are adjacent to each other (a similar setup to Steel Park, Corby by the looks of it). The dugouts are situated in from of the main stand. There is another, smaller, covered seating stand opposite the main complex with the rest of the surround being given to hard-standing. Unsurprisingly, the whole stadium has a very clean and new feel to it. The pitch, as you would hope for August, looked in absolutely perfect condition and ideal for some flowing football especially with the slick surface caused by the ongoing drizzle.

​This evening's game was the opening game of the Western League Premier campaign. A tussle between last season's third-placed side, Melksham Town and Cadbury Heath, who finished the season in eleventh spot, 32 points adrift of their hosts. Despite the gap in final placing and points tally, there hasn't been much to choose between the sides in head to head clashes in the past couple of years. Melksham won the corresponding game last season by 2-0 but, before that, the previous three games had ended all square. Both games in BS30 finished 1-1 whilst the sides fought out a 3-3 scoreline at Melksham in the 2015/16 campaign. As with most season openers, it was very difficult to call the outcome of this game before kick-off.

The home side began the brighter of the two, popping the ball around nicely on the slick surface, although neither team made a clear cut opening in the first 15 minutes.
Heath were far more reliant upon the longer ball, whereas Town seemed much happier playing short passes and keeping the ball on the deck.
​
The game really came to life in the 24th minute when Chippenham Town loanee, Chris Allen, produced an absolutely delightful, defence-splitting, through ball for Jake Brown to run onto. The winger got to the ball first but was then felled in the box giving the referee no option other than to point to the spot.
Captain Gary Higdon stepped up and made no mistake with the penalty. 25 minutes gone, 1-0 to Melksham.
​
The remainder of the half continued in much the same vein although Cadbury did show one or two glimpses of being able to get at the home defence without ever really stretching Rob Brown in the Town goal.
The home side had two more penalty shouts. The first of which, a tangle involving substitute Luke Ballinger, would have been a harsh call. The second, however, when Higdon seemed to be tripped from behind, looked a nailed on foul from my angle. Whether it was in the box or not is a different matter but, ultimately it didn't matter, as the referee waved play on much to the ire of the home crowd.
HT Melksham Town 1 Cadbury Heath 0. A deserved lead for the home side with Cadbury probably quite grateful to go in just a goal behind.

​Melksham started the second half in much the same way as the first and it didn't take them too long to add a second goal. This came on 54 minutes when a left-wing corner towards the far post was met by Warren Maidment. The centre-half powered a header back the way the ball came and into the back of the net. 2-0.
Six minutes later it was three. Another corner, this time from the right, was flicked goal-wards by Ballinger, the ball evaded the defender on the line, hit the far post, and flew into the net. 3-0.
The Heathens were now well and truly on the back foot. Melksham started to play some really neat one-touch football, cutting through the visitors midfield and defence with some ease. It looked like only a matter of time before the fourth goal arrived. However, credit to Cadbury Heath who dug in and held firm against the onslaught.
Twice Daniel Worton, in the Cadbury goal, made very good stops to keep it at 3-0. When he was beaten he was relieved to see a shot come back off the post and be cleared to safety.
Heath couldn't quite hold back the Yellow tide though. On 89 minutes Dan Demkiv latched onto a ball on the right-wing. He drove into the box and fired high into the roof of the net to notch a goal that his performance on the night greatly deserved. 4-0.

FT. Melksham Town 4 (Higdon(p), Maidment, Ballinger, Demkiv) Cadbury Heath 0
Att. 354

Melksham Town: Rob Brown, Mark Cooper, Lee Davidson, Chris Allen, Warren Maidment, Steve Casey, Dan Demkiv, Dave Thompson, Gary Higdon (c), Mike Perrott, Jake Brown. Subs: Ben Pring, Ben Thompson, Luke Ballinger, Joe Stradling, Sayeed Ibrahim

Cadbury Heath: Daniel Worton, Samuel Bailey, Leon Maloney, Rob Scott, Andy Campbell (c), Ruben Draper, Aliaster Bamford, Lewis Shipp, Simon McElroy, Sacha Tong, George Boon. Subs: Mitchell Harrison, Kevin Douglas, Harry Churchley, Omaril Sims, Matt Huxley

Ground No. 129
Entrance £6
Programme £1