POOLE TOWN 7

PORTLAND UNITED 1

PORTLAND United first-team coach Stuart Heath believes the Blues’ 7-1 Dorset Senior Cup first round thrashing at Poole Town illustrated a “recurring theme” defensively, as Bournemouth loanee Jake Scrimshaw netted a staggering six goals.

Brendon King’s men opened the scoring in the ninth minute when winger Ed Bastick latched on to a long diagonal ball showing excellent control before skipping inside the covering defender and burying a fine finish past Poole goalkeeper Ben Rolleston.

Poole were stirred by the early concession and, after a period of concerted pressure they first equalised and then hit the Blues on the counter just before half-time, the pacy Scrimshaw bagging both.

In rainy conditions, Portland battled to keep the scoreline at 2-1 until 70 minutes, when Scrimshaw claimed a deserved treble.

Right-back Jack Dickson supplied Scrimshaw’s fourth, putting the ball on a plate for the red-hot striker with a delicious cross.

Straight from the restart, Scrimshaw took possession, broke through and finished past Jordan Tewkesbury to score his fifth.

And shortly afterwards, Scrimshaw achieved a rare ‘double-hat-trick’ as Portland’s defence conceded a fourth goal in seven second-half minutes.

Poole completed the rout when a flowing move set up Charlie Davis and, although his shot was parried by Tewkesbury, substitute Charlie Turner unselfishly squared for Tyrrell Sampson to hit the empty net.

Speaking to Echosport, Heath felt the Dolphins’ attacking play had been “ruthless”.

He said: “We weren’t disheartened at half-time and we drummed into the players that we were still in the game and to continue to stay in the game in the second half. We just never did that.

“Poole were pretty ruthless in their movement of the ball and finishing. As a result, defensively, the shape and organisation wasn’t good enough.”

He added: “First-half I thought we did okay, we rode a lot of pressure playing against the weather conditions. We started the game really well and got on the front foot, but that was probably as good as it got.

“I couldn’t fault the players’ organisation and commitment in the first half but we came under a lot of pressure, particularly as Poole responded from that early goal.

“There weren’t too many positives to come out of the second half. It went way below the standards we’ve set in the last few weeks and a recurring theme was our all-round defending.”

Blues: Tewkesbury, Mitchell (Wall 75), C Clarke, McKechnie, Whyton, S Buckler, Bastick (Symes 65), Watts, Walker, Godfrey, Beasley. Sub not used: Lillington

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