WLC R2 Brockenhurst 1 Yateley United 1 (5-3 pens)

16 September 2025

Important to start this evening by saying a huge thank you to everyone for the kind words at the weekend – to Maxine, Darren, Ellis and Matt for coming along, and to everyone at the club.  Laura and I both had a great day, it would have been bettered only with a win but even then – we genuinely smiled throughout and definitely felt the love.

Enough of the self-indulgence, and on to the Wessex League Cup against Yateley, take two.  You’ll probably remember that the first game was abandoned on 83 minutes following a serious injury, so the first hope for this evening was for the tie to be completed, hopefully without resorting to pens!  Ah it’s the hope that kills you.

I always try to be honest in my reports, so I have to say: this was a desperately disappointing affair, not helped by some desperately poor officiating (free kicks, thrown-ins, corners all given the wrong way for no explicable reason).  Two blunt teams created almost nothing of note in the first half; an overhead kick just over the bar from Sam Steel, a brilliant run by Dylan Walker down the left but Mason missed a very presentable chance; for Yateley, Holmwood was played clean through but took a heavy touch and the chance was gone.  The hottest moment of the half was just before the interval when Bourne went straight through the back of Burgess, who reacted angrily – two yellows, could easily have been two reds.  HT 0-0

The second half was probably an improvement on the first, although that was accompanied by increasing frustration in the stands as Brock failed to impose themselves onto the game.  Cannon shot wide for the visitors… then finally a tidy move from the Badgers down the left, Toby Colmer at the heart of it, a cross to the back post – but Brooks steered the ball back across the goal rather than into the net.  70 minutes, Brooks with a searing effort from 25 yards which flew just over the bar, keeper nowhere.  It wasn’t all one-way traffic and one piledriver which looked goalbound hit another figure in orange and bounced away: that resulted in a challenge, free kick awarded to Brock, Scott so upset that he said enough about it to get sinbinned.  And almost immediately, the Badgers made the man advantage count, Brooks with a clever run inside his full back, pulled the ball back to Mason, on to Kian Dugdale who arrowed a shot into the net and finally break the stalemate.  78 minutes and it should have been all over – Mason looked well offside but not flagged, he had a good portion of the goal to aim at but passed to Dugdale, in space 16 yards out – who calmly placed his shot over the bar.  I could be kind and suggest there was a bobble, but…  A final push from Yateley, one player so eager that he jumped on Rossi’s back and – somehow – was awarded a free kick for his offence – that free kick played into the box, a poor defensive header and Joe Moriarty, only just on the pitch, stole in to level things up.  Still time for Brock to win it, incisive pass from Dugdale through to Walker, keeper Strong saved with his legs and, yes, pens it was. FT 1-1

Four successes for Brock – Rossi, S Walker, D Walker and Brooks; three for Yateley – Vincent, Turner, Wilson.  But then Puleo produced a flying save to deny Conlon, and Burgess converted to send the Badgers through. 

As I always say in cup competitions – if you win the trophy, nobody will remember (or care) how it began.  And it’s likely that nobody will remember this at all, except maybe Ben for his super save in the shootout.  Sam did well at the back, and there might be mentions in dispatches for Jamie and Dylan, but improvement will definitely be needed for Saturday at Foxcotte.  And before then – to my huge disappointment I am unable to attend the Youth Cup tie on Thursday against Dorchester because I’m away at a conference in Birmingham (how jealous are you?) but my heart will be with the young Badgers and I really hope they get through so that I can come along to the next round!