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Pre Season Friendly
Tuesday 28th July 2026
Shaftesbury 1 (Regula 62)
Wimborne Town 4 (Munn 32, Rayfield (OG) 45+1, Williams 44, 52)
By Avril Lancaster
Alefe Santos DAbadia- Minutes.
Photo – Behind The Fence Photography
The ‘Rockies ‘ faced a stiff exami against Pitching In Southern League Premier Division South Wimborne Town in the penultimate friendly of the pre season schdule with both sides using the game to provide opportunities as this is the kind of work which is needed in the warm up programme moving forwards.
Wimborne Town came into the game on the back of a 1-1 draw with National League South Maidenhead United whilst we had defeated Laverstock & Ford on Friday night, which put both sides in good stead to focus towards sharpening up the squads for the upcoming season.
Wimborne Town as a Step 3 club utilised their options well and are of a standard where the plus one can be applied in pushing the game onto the opposition. After a pretty uneventful first half hour the ‘Magpies’ utilised the high press and Cam Munn was in an excellent position to put them ahead from close range after 32 minutes.
Former Andover New Street star Lewis Williams had time an space to add the second a minute before half time and the visitors pushed on to create another chance in first half stoppage time only another precision ball into our box deflect in off Charlie Rayfield for the third goal.
With substitions rife in the second half, it was Williams who was hand to put away the fouth goal before Dawid Regula came on to calmly finish to pull a goal back for the ‘Rockies ‘ in the 62nd minute. The striker signed from Larkhall Athletic already showing he is going to be key in the forthcoming season.
Key defender Sonny Pike was rested in the second half and both Harry Morgan and Harry Baker did not appear though Jack Hoey, Tom Hewlett and Alefe Santos DAbadia added some more gametime with neither side particularly turning on the burners in the second half. That is not at this stage the aim as it is all about fitness levels and seeing what options are available for both squads.
Josh Staunton and Steve Rutter can take credit from a decent first half hour and the second half, though Wimborne Town like any team of a higher level really did what they needed to in a fifteen minute spell in the first forty five.
Saturday sees a Chippenham Town side relegated from the National League South visit Cockrams and these are the sort of tests that are needed in the run up to the seasons opener versus Bishops Cleeve. Staunton fielded a first and second half team with Wimborne Town manager Tim Sills staff ensuring minutes for all after his side had done what they needed to in the first half.
Attendance-203
Sonny Pike will be a key player once again after a successful debut season for the ‘Rockies ‘ last season.
Photo – Behind The Fence Photography.
‘Moneys’ won the game and very much like Shaftesbury they are a team that finished in the top positions (4th) in their Step 4 Isthmian League South Central campaign last season making the play offs.
Indeed the ‘Rockies’ were promoted as play off winners in the 2024/26 season when the South Coast side were crowned Wessex League Premier Division Champions. Staunton and assistant Steve Rutter will have looked at this game to see what the options were against a team of equal standing. It’s the nature of the business.
Moneyfields themselves did just this by engaging themselves in a 0-3 home defeat to National League South side AFC Totton, before victory over Southern Combination Division 1 side Infinity in the week. Staunton is moving the gears in much the same fashion as the side prepare to take on last seasons Wessex Premier League Division play off finalists Laverstock & Ford next Friday night.
The ‘Bulldogs’ defeated a Winchester City side (moved across to the Pitching In Isthmian League South Central) in the week, and despite a penalty shoot out defeat to Portland United in that game, they will have a side that last season took the ‘Rockies ‘ opening day opponents Bishops Cleeve to a replay in the Emirates FA Cup. They are capable of matching and defeating any Step 4 side especially on their own patch.
Staunton is not looking at results in pre season friendlies. Like any quality manager it is about conditioning and preparation, gametime and minutes. The games are almost like workshops and really not a fan watch as such. A chance to see who is going to be in contention for when the season starts for real.
The former Yeovil Town defender will ramp things up more when Wimborne Town and Chippenham Town conclude the programme later this month to then face a Bishops Cleeve side in the opening Pitching In Southern League Division 1 (South) fixture who recently signed Jamal Lawerence from Melksham Town and defeated Hereford FC 2-0 in the week.
The house that Jim built. Milligan pensive before the big game vs Frome Town.
Photo – BTR Media.
It was as you were in both camps as the second half began. It would be Greaves side that grasped the nettle first when Albie Hopkins got past our defence and did well to stay on his feet to shot fire past Taylor to put Frome Town into the lead after 51 minutes. George Dowling planted in the third going into the final quarter of the game and it looked like goodnight Vienna for us.
With Tom Hewlett and George Higgins on as substitutes we went at it.Milligan knew it was stick or twist time. We gambled to go at it and it paid off.
Holmes got inside the Frome defence to turn in his first getting past the Frome Town defence and clip the ball past Philips into the corner with ten minutes left. Game on and the Cockrams ground lit up.
Then in the 83rd minute Sonny Pike delivered a peach of a ball as two ‘Robins ‘ collided with each other and found Brown who put it on a plate for Holmes who put the chance away. 3-3! Could we win it?
Holmes is top of our scoring charts now with 18 goals and has really been on fire. With six minutes added on a downward header from Harvey Bradbury missed by inches which really would have been something. Still a point with ten men against quality opposition shows how far our club has travelled in recent years.
Shaftesbury- Taylor, Rayfield, Whisken, Pike, Burden (C), Brown, Ward (Hewlett 66), Mundy (Higgins 70), Holmes, Bradbury, Morgan
Frome Town- Philips, Lucas, Heal (Bullock 77), Teale, Dowling, Ferris, Drew (Holmes 55), Hopkins, Maidment, Feltham (Brabham 86), Dodimead (Duru 76)
Sent off – Rayfield (26),Booked – Bradbury (88), Pike (50), Hopkins (87)
Officials – A.Dunn, S.Wright, D.Bachelor
Attendance- 523
🌟 Star Man- Toby Holmes
🌟 Frome Town- George Dowling
Crediting Ben Chandler Photography 📸
Trungle Park- Mousehole AFC have risen from the Cornwall Combination League to pushing for a place in the Pitching In Southern League Premier Division South.
Mousehole AFC- Chenowith, Lewis (Konte 9), Barratt (Keverne 89), Ward, Turner, Calver, Nixon (Derham 78), Symons, Bernard (Ranalli Sousa 86), Fresenda, Massey (Sullivan 78)
Shaftesbury- Murphy, McKeown, Beard, Cocklin (McCann 68), Nixon (Wright 19), Davidson, Rogers (Thomas Young 72), Santos DAbadia (Satterley 64), Burbidge, Hoey (Almedia 86), Holmes
Officials – N.D’Arcy, D.England, C.Hancock
Booked – Beard 31, Satterley 79, Milligan (Technical Area) 45+3. Sullivan 90+4
Attendance- 199
🌟 Star Man – Toby Holmes. Worked hard all game and even though this was a game against a good side that finished well and are very good team you could see Holmes Southern League experience will help the team in the up coming games.
See highlights of this game – Way Out West (YouTube) and also featured on https://youtube.com/@footballtravel-k4s?si=6_-wa1sUQKlNR4l9
Pitching In Southern League South results-Bemerton Heath Harlequins 1 Exmouth Town 0, Bideford AFC 1 Yate Town 1, Bishops Cleeve 3 Didcot Town 0, Bristol Manor Farm 0 Tavistock AFC 3, Cinderford Town 2 Thatcham Town 2, Evesham United 2 Cribbs 0, Helston Athletic 1 Larkhall Athletic 1, Malvern Town 5 Bashley 2, Melksham Town 3 Willand Rovers 0, Mousehole AFC 5 Shaftesbury ,Westbury United 2 Falmouth Town 1
Photos- Avril Lancaster, Tim Lancaster (Tim’s Ground Travels)
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