After doing some research settled on Sherborne Town as it wasn't too far to travel and Google Maps showed that there was a stand for shelter if needed. I considered catching the train as it's quicker than driving but I was nervous about only having half an hour to find the ground from the station and the suggested route appeared to take me onto a major road with no pavements. With that in mind I set off down the A30, past Shaftesbury's ground and on to Sherborne.
When I arrived I found a big carpark and a sign advertising the day's game - shame about the verses instead of versus! The BBC weather forecast had got it wrong as there no sign of any rain and it was warm enough to be wearing a short sleeve shirt. After paying the £5 entrance and an additional £1 for an excellent all colour programme I wandered over to the far side of the ground. The two teams were warming up and the teamlist was available on a board near the entrance to the ground.
This part of the ground was elevated and had a good view of the farmland behind the ground. As the teams came out you could hear the churchbells ringing from the town and that certainly added to the picturesque setting. After the obligatory handshakes, there was a one minute silence and the teams then prepared for kick off. While Bishop Sutton's players were ready to go, the Sherborne players were still in a huddle with their manager. This continued for a minute or so and after some gesturing from the away bench the referee had to intervene to get the game started.
The first half seemed to be a contest in who could play the worst. Bishop Sutton were finding some openings down the right hand wing but weren't able to create a goal scoring opportunity from them. There was one superb dribble through a crowd of defenders but as the keeper prepared for a shot the player decided that an underhit pass to a team mate marked by two players would be a good idea. Sherborne seemed lacking in ideas and the ability to control the ball. Too often passes were under or overhit and on the rare occasion that they did get to a Sherborne player, a heavy first touch meant that they were under pressure to keep the ball.
By the 40th minute I was starting to despair at seeing any goals as neither team had a meaningful attempt on goal. Bishop Sutton played a high hopeful ball into the penalty area for one of their strikers to chase. The ball bounced up into the air and it looked like the covering defender would head it out for a corner. However he mistimed his header and instead of his head, he used his hand to knock the ball down. There was no real explanation for this and it was punished as the referee saw it and gave a penalty.
Once the protests had subsided the kick was ready to be taken until the referee noticed that one of the Bishop Sutton players was so keen to follow up the ball he was inside the penalty area. The player decided to argue with the referee about his position and one of his team mates had to run in and pull him back outside the box before he got into trouble. When the penalty was taken the player put his kick low to the left while the keeper dived low to the right. The first attempt on target and the first goal!
Bishop Sutton were unlucky not to be awarded a second penalty five minutes into the second half. One of their players appeared to be held back by his shirt in the box but still managed to get a shot on target, the keeper this time in the right place to push it wide for a corner.
This didn't matter as two minutes later they extended their lead. Sherborne lost the ball in midfield and Bishop Sutton broke down the left wing. The ball was delivered to the back post allowing an unmarked player to volley it into the top right of the net.
After 60 minutes Bishop Sutton scored again from a Sherborne error. This time one of the Sherborne players overran the ball and lost control on the left of midfield. A Bishop Sutton picked up the ball, pushed it forward and then hit a chip from 30 yards over the keeper and in.
Sherborne were finding it difficult to get past the Bishop Sutton defenders and were not helped by the assistant referee on the far side. On several occasions the ball was played over the defensive line for one of the Sherborne attackers to chase down. The Sherborne players had the pace to do this but even when they started running a yard in front of the defence when the ball was played, the assistant flagged for offside.
In the 82nd minute Sherborne created their best chance of the game. The ball was crossed into the penalty area and for the first time all afternoon there was only one Bishop Sutton defender to cover the area. The Sherborne player ran forward to take the ball on and then back heeled it for a team mate who was arriving in the box. If only the execution was as good as the set up - instead of keeping the ball low and on target the player hit his shot well over the bar.
Bishop Sutton were unlucky not to score a fourth goal in the 84th minute after one of their players found some space in the box and hit a shot from an acute angle against the near post. The ball was cleared out to the right hand side and then crossed into to an unmarked player on the left of the penalty area. He slid in to take a shot which was saved but the keeper couldn't hang onto the ball and pushed it back out. The player got up off the floor and hit a second shot over the keeper and in.
In the final minute Bishop Sutton scored again from a defensive error in the Sherborne penalty area. This time the defender went to head a cross from the right near the D and completely missed the ball. The ball then fell kindly for a Bishop Sutton player who hit an excellent volley up and into the top left corner.
Having expected to see a 0.0 game before the penalty, I was pleased that the second half play had improved. Texts from Andy and Paul confirmed that I hadn't missed much at Bemerton - a 1.0 win for the home team. Checking the FA site later in the evening I noticed that Swanage had earnt a replay after a 1.1 draw and Shepton Mallet had lost 2.0 so my late choice had proved to be a good one. I also found out that Sherborne's manager resigned after the game so not a good day for his former club.
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