BRIDPORT RESERVES 2 WAREHAM RANGERS 2

BRIDPORT responded to their shock exit from the Dorset Senior Trophy with a point at home against Wareham, but it could have been so much better.

Robin Townsend was furious after the previous weekend’s trophy loss to Poole Borough Reserves, so avoiding defeat at St Mary’s Field on Saturday was a must.

The Bees led twice only to be pegged back on each occasion and Ashley Clarke missed a first-half penalty when the hosts were 1-0 up.

But after the Poole debacle, Townsend was pleased with a positive result and one which keeps them eighth in the Dorset Premier League.

He said: “It couldn’t have been much worse than the Poole game and the boys responded in the right way.

“We probably deserved all three points after Sean Stewart put us in front with a good finish from inside the box on 10 minutes.

“We had a couple of chances after that and should have gone 2-0 up when we were awarded a penalty. But Ashley Clarke missed the target with one of the worst penalties I’ve seen.

“Wareham made it 1-1 and our heads were down a bit at half-time. However, we rallied at the start of the second half and Michael Hailu gave us the lead again when he picked up the pieces after Jack Scovell’s shot had been saved.

“They equalised when we switched off at a corner and the game fizzled out after that.”

He went on to add: “Overall, I’m a lot happier than I was last week and it was good to have Sean Stewart back in the side.

“We are a very good side but just lack a bit of consistency. We are creating chances but not putting enough in the net.

“It seems that if other teams make mistakes we don’t punish them but when we make mistakes we get punished.

“We need to go on a run now and hopefully we can build on Saturday’s point.”

In terms of the league, the Bees will have to wait a couple of weeks to see if they can do that.

This Saturday they go to Blandford United, the side one place above them in the table, in the League Cup.

Bees: B Fleet, A Clarke, Day, King, Steele, H Fleet, C Bulman, G Bulman, Stewart, Hailu, Scovell (B Clarke 65)