MINEHEAD lost their third successive game when they went down 2-0 away to Ashcott in the first division of the Uhlsport Somerset County Football League.

After a solid first half from Ashcott, during which they scored twice without reply, Minehead showed more resolve and cohesion in the second half, and noticeably took the game to the hosts but were unable to find a goal.

The result leaves Ashcott as the early league leaders, with Peasedown in second place, who Minehead also recently lost to by the odd goal in three.

Early in the game the hosts hit the crossbar with a fierce shot, and with the referee awarding a corner kick he must have spotted that Blues’ keeper Greg Turner’s acrobatics had enabled him to get a touch on the ball, which wasn’t obvious from the other side of the halfway line, making it an exceptional save.

The goalframe was rattling again when a long shot hit the underside of the bar and bounced down close to, but seemingly the pitch side of the goal line.

Minehead then went close to snatching the lead when Ollie Hall deftly beat a defender with some trickery, but his effort from more than 25 yards was inches wide with keeper Will Pope looking beaten. Guy Burns tried a thirty yarder, which was on target, but Pope made an important save.

From this point Ashcott started to get on top, and JJ Knight did well to reach a shot into an empty net when a striker had rounded Turner and tried to pass the ball into the empty net from just outside the box.

Minehead were cleverly pinned into their own half throughout much of the first half, with the home defence displaying a very organised high line, often very close to the half way line, which invariably caught Minehead’s forwards offside by stepping up as a unit as blue shirts raced forwards, which disrupted and ended several of Minehead’s attacks.

By the end of the first half Minehead had been breached twice, firstly after a few half chances were blocked, full back Ollie Bell managed to force the ball home. Then after Minehead had been pushing up during a good spell Ashcott’s doubled their lead when, after a superb save by Turner, Ollie Luce followed up to score.

It was right winger Luce who was very much Ashcott’s most dangerous player, with his free running and perfect crosses causing the Blues defence headaches throughout the first half.

Changing ends, Minehead noticeably took the game to their hosts, pinning them into defending far more than in the first half. Guy Burns and Olli Hall both went close to scoring, but with a two-goal lead, the hosts looked comfortable enough, and even after several pairs of fresh legs were introduced, as manager Craig Carr tried different options, with a two-goal advantage the result was never really in doubt.

Minehead: Greg Turner, JJ Knight, Toby Morris, Louis Burge, Stefan Phillips, Will Singleton-Voss, Sam Jackson, Bertie Harvey-Larmar, Guy Burns, Ollie Hall, Olly Prescott. Subs: Fin Harran, Declan Green, Andy Hall, Felix Faun (all used), Luke Bloys. Man of the Match: Bertie Harvey-Larmar.

Meanwhile, Minehead will be chasing the season’s double when they play Winscombe at Irnham Road on Saturday, September 6 (3p.m.), having beaten them 2-0 away on the opening day of the season.

BRIAN WALDER