SWPL EAST Ivybridge Town 2 Cullompton Rangers 0
- Details
- Created on Sunday, 14 January 2024 09:04
- Last Updated on Tuesday, 16 January 2024 08:58
- Published on Sunday, 14 January 2024 09:04
- Written by GRAHAM HAMBLY at Erme Valley
The goal brought Alexander’s tally to 12 for the season following his double in the previous week’s 4-0 away win over Newton Abbot Spurs.
He opened the scoring in the 36th minute with a shot from just outside the penalty area after excellent work by Chris Wright.
Alexander was on target again two minutes later when leading scorer Luke Forward cut in from the left and unselfishly provided the pass for Alexander to fire home from close range.
Ivybridge remained on top from that stage and might have added to their score in the second half with substitute Jacob Smelt twice hitting the bar while visiting goalkeeper Will Davies pulled off some smart saves, including one from Bailey Gamble that was heading for the top corner of the goal.
Gamble came on as substitute for midfielder Owen Raven after 65 minutes and made a favourable impression. He is in his early twenties but showed the composure of a far more experienced player. Apart from his shot to test Davies, he also made a vital contribution at the other end with a goal line clearance and kept the ball moving with some excellent passing and calming influence.
The standard of the players coming off the bench underlines the quality of the Ivybridge squad.
They included new signing Sean Thomson from Torpoint, who replaced Rio Daly in an attacking midfield role ten minutes into the second half.
Joint manager Wayne Gamble said that Thomson had been signed with a view to Ivybridge playing at a higher level next season, adding: “You can see that he is going to fit into our team really well. He is a massive signing, looking to the next step above as well.
“We have got him six months earlier than we would have expected. He will find his feet and come out of the box flying next season.”
Gamble admits that the first team squad is well staffed at the moment. He said: “You could say we are overloaded with 22 boys at training. But then we have people away on holidays, injuries and suspension.”
Absent from the squad on Saturday was influential midfielder Dane Hewings, who is serving a three-match ban and will also miss the next home match against Axminster.
Gamble was pleased to see Alexander collect a couple of goals, explaining: “He may not have scored so many goals but deserves credit for a number of assists. Now he is showing a rich vein of form with four goals in the last two games.”
The man of the match award went to skipper and central defender Scott Pocock with Gamble explaining: “I thought our defence was absolutely brilliant. Scott kept us talking with a real captain’s performance.
“When the chips were down, he got us all nicely compact, making sure everyone was in position. He showed his proper qualities.”
Saturday’s win over Cullompton was the fourth in a row for Ivybridge, starting with a Boxing Day triumph at Elburton.
They will look to continue that sequence with a home match against Axminster next Saturday (Jan 20). Ivybridge have a score to settle in that game as Axminster knocked them out of the league cup with a 1-0 victory at Erme Valley on December 16.
Gamble says: “This will be a different game from the cup match. Our approach will be completely different with different personnel. We have had a good run from Boxing Day onwards, winning four out of four with some tricky games, and will look to continue that run.”
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