Hythe & Dibden

‘Milligan’s marches on as ‘Rockies’ spin six wins on the spin.

It’s a more robust ‘Rockies’ that dug out a win at one of the hardest places to win at Baffins Milton Rovers last Saturday. The 3-2 win at the PMC Stadium was our 6th in a row in the Velocity Wessex League Premier Division.

We still play the neat passing stuff with Dan Bartlett, Ben Satterley and company yet we are getting scraps off set pieces. Hence an experienced forward like Stuart Green was in there, Brett Pitman scoring a ludicrous winner for his 54th ‘Rockies’ goal in all competitions. We mixed it up. This is ‘Milligan’s Way’.

As ever Cameron Beard was pushing on with Eddie Perrett’s long throws curtailed by a strong wind. It was the midfield prowess of ‘The Engineer’ Bartlett that provided once again the cutting edge. This is a more solid side. One more prepared for battle.

Shane Murphy as ever in goal is a highly experienced keeper with a Wessex League title medal and FA Vase semi final on his CV. Ash Wells and Sam Davidson have the benefit of many Southern League appearances as do Louis Kellaway, Bartlett, Green and Satterley.

Liam Farrugia was at Bashley yet has got himself into Milligan’s reckoning with some recent good displays in the wing back role pushing up and delivering some good dead balls. The lad was hurting being substituted at Baffins as we had to go on a particularly high press. One for all. All for the badge stuff.

From the bench Greg Peel used his experience to see out a vital win along with Asa Philips up front challenging the Baffins defence. For me though substitute Callum Sweeney really mixed it in and got the ball down for Bartlett to do his work.

With AFC Portchester drawing 1-1 with Brockenhurst and AFC Stoneham winning 7-0 vs Fareham Town (played at the HP Arena) it looks like all that needs to be resolved is whether we are home or away based on being 3rd or 4th placings.

We can beat both and just as equally they can us. Not to worry though whatever happens as we still have made a lot of progress that Milligan is moulding. It is AFC Stoneham gaffer Jamie Philips vow to get promoted this time around.

As for Moneyfields it’s all but sealed and signed off. They just cannot stop winning and travelled the short distance to a former shared home to face second bottom United Services Portsmouth. They administered six of the best winning 2-6. No surprises there.

🏆 We are in the Dorset Senior Cup final due to a walkover due to Poole withdrawal from semi final.

Not how I hoped it would go as we prefer to play. Home walkover is not what anybody wants but when you win 1-0 at Dorchester Town and Louis Kellaway gets the winner you deserve to go to the final automatically!

We will play Hamworthy Recreation in the final which will be very tough but we MUST win this cup!

Hythe & Dibden sit in the bottom half in a season which has been disturbed by postponements and venue changes. They have hardly played any home games since November and this will have been very frustrating for the club and manager Terry Cox.

They currently sit 16th with 30 points after a 4-1 victory at ‘home’ to Lymington Town which was switched to Lymington Town ‘s Sports Ground.

With eight games to play (including the abandoned game vs Sherborne Town), this week is going to be busy and there have been some interesting results. They faced  Baffins Milton Rovers on Tuesday night which the visitors won 2-1

A 4-0 win at Blackfield & Langley was followed by a 4-0 defeat by Laverstock & Ford at ‘home’. Hythe had held Christchurch to a 3-3 draw and won 3-1 at Sherborne Town with some interesting form.

This will be Hythe’s second visit to North Dorset this season. They will be the home team due to the problems with Clayfields. That day back in September they put up a decent performance as we edged a 3-2 win.

Had they nicked a draw that afternoon we couldn’t really have complained but we hung on. Milligan has tightened the nuts and bolts up. Some players have moved on and we are in the terms of the football book of cliches a different animal.

Hythe & Dibden – Marcel Laptas the former AFC Stoneham  and Downton striker and once a Shaftesbury target has 15 goals for Hythe & Dibden.

Shaftesbury – Another good performance from Dan Bartlett last Saturday at Baffins Milton Rovers.

🎯 Marksmen

Hythe & Dibden – Marcel Laptas 15, Cain Prentice 8, Luke Gray 6, Christos Papakonstinou 4, Benjamin Slade 4, Rhys Crookes 3

Shaftesbury – Brett Pitman 54, Cameron Beard 14, Callum Sweeney 9, Steve Devlin 7, Asa Philips 6, Greg Peel 6, Louis Kellaway 4, Stuart Green 4, Ash Pope 4, Steve Walker 4, Joe Wickham 2, Billy Maybury 2, Ben Satterley 2, Liam Farrugia 2, Ash Wells 1, Aaron Roberts, Luke Holmes 1.

🌧️ Rain decimates Wessex season.

It will be a strange experience playing as the away side at our home. The weather has decimated clubs like Hythe & Dibden and Fareham Town with no income at all it paints a bleak picture for some clubs in the league.

We know here that the 3G pitch has been a lifesaver. We have been able to host clubs more locally such as Hamworthy Recreation, Wincanton Town Reserves and Donhead United and Hamworthy United Under 18’s.

It should not be lost on councils that investing in a 3G/4G surface is so beneficial for the whole community. The ‘Rockies’ Ladies with Sunday fixtures adds to the weekend, the Veterans and youth teams, soccer schools and walking football, also local cup finals can be hosted if needed.

Even a majority of the most sceptical anti artificial pitch groundhoppers have visited and said how good the club is and the pitch, the facilities and the way we do things, yet keep the traditions and history of Shaftesbury FC alive.

Personally you can’t beat a good grass pitch yet clubs like ourselves, AFC Stoneham, Bishops Cleeve, Moneyfields and others have a sustainable future. It’s sad to see our neighbours Gillingham Town and Wincanton Town suffer so many postponements and lose revenue.

In non league we look out for each other as basically we are all in the same boat and looking to encourage more loval people to move away from the sofa and be outside and involved. It’s not an easy task. Once you sample your local non league club you see the real side of football. You simply cannot better that.

Avril 🐌

Action from our home game with Hythe & Dibden back in September which we won 3-2 in the Velocity Wessex League Premier Division.

Article/Photos – Avril Lancaster