Tuesday 20th August Weymouth 2 Frome Town 0
A HARD working and battling display saw Frome eventually lose 2-0 to a very good Weymouth side, though the game was no doubt influenced by a nasty injury to influential Frome midfielder Matt Smith in the opening minutes.
Manager Derek Graham was able to include new signing ex Luton player Ryan Charles at number 10 for the first time with the rest of the side identical to the team that had done well against Cambridge.
However, the game had only just started when Matt Smith collided at pace with the concrete pitch wall just to the side of the dugouts, and it rapidly became apparent from the reactions of those close to the incident that the injury was serious as the player was unconscious and not moving.
The game was held up for 30 minutes while an ambulance was called and Smith was taken to hospital where, thankfully, an X ray confirmed no lasting damage and he was released later the next day. Everyone at the ground was impressed by the reaction of all the players, management and supporters of Weymouth FC, and Frome Town would like to thank them for their concern and efforts.
The game restarted with Ben Thomson replacing Matt Smith and for the first 10 minutes, Frome had the better of the game, with Luke Ballinger involved in everything that threatened the Weymouth goal. His 2nd minute free kick was flicked on by Rhys Baggridge into the arms of Jason Matthews, and twice his persistence led to shots from difficult angles that brought saves from the home keeper.
Thomson hobbled off after 11 minutes to be replaced by Brandon Mundy and as the game settled, Weymouth began to look sharp and incisive as they moved forward, and after a 30 yard free kick had thumped against Darren Chitty’s cross bar, they started to show their class and numerous pacey attacks kept the Frome defence on their toes.
Ballinger again brought a save from Matthews in the 31st minute, but then Weymouth took the lead as Scott Walker curled a perfect free kick onto the head of the tall central defender Sam Poole, and the header went downwards and bounced up high into the net for the opening goal.
The second half started with Jon Crowley being substituted by new signing Johny Lynn at right back, and Baggridge moved to a wide right position in midfield, but Weymouth looked really sharp now, and after a brave Chitty block and clearance an underhit back-pass allowed Stewart Yetton to pounce and shoot home low from 12 yards out.
As the match progressed, Weymouth always looked to be in the driving seat, and though there were some excellent, very hard working performances from many of the Frome team, Weymouth always looked like they had the edge and would increase their lead whenever they attacked, which they did often and in numbers.
Darren Chitty showed again why he is rated as one of the best keepers in the league as he brought off 4 or 5 top quality saves as Weymouth tore through the Frome defence with fast moving passing attacks, and the performance rightly earned him the man of the match award.
Crowd: 785. Star Man: Darren Chitty. Entertainment Value: 4.
