Terras bashed

DEFENDER Shane White had a home debut to forget as Bashley exposed frailties in Weymouth’s usually solid back-line to take all three points at the Bob Lucas Stadium.

The ex-Plymouth Argyle man had to take a huge share of the blame for Bashley’s opening three goals but he was not the only Terra off the pace in what was a dire team display.

White’s poor headed clearance led to Joe Maxwell opening the scoring on six minutes and from there things did not get much better for the young right-back.

Pierre Joseph-Dubois offered some respite by levelling eight minutes later but White then put through his own net midway through the half as Bashley profited some more hesistant defending.

Then, just seven minutes before the break, White’s misery was complete when he switched off at a cross and allowed Ian Oliver to ghost in front of him and head a third beyond the beleaguered Tom Manley.

The Terras’ defence continued to look shoddy in the second half and on 81 minutes the visitors made it 4-1 when off-colour centre-back Ben Gerring compounded his poor afternoon with an own goal of his own.

Ian Hutchinson kept faith with the same XI that started in last Saturday’s 3-1 defeat against Evesham United but he did make two changes on the bench with Ollie Tribe and Sam Charles replacing the suspended Matt Oldring and Jules Emati-Emati, who was sidelined through food poisoning.

Ex-Weymouth stopper Joe Prod-omo was the one notable inclusion in the Bashley squad.

The Terras were slow out of the blocks and they paid the price after just six minutes when White’s poor headed clearance ricocheted off Maxwell’s chest, and fell kindly into the striker’s path. The ex-Pilgrims star attempted to make amends by trying to block the resulting shot but it crept past him and beat the outstretched palm of Manley to find the bottom corner.

The goal proved to be a wake-up call for the hosts and within eight minutes they were level. Jamie McGuinness curled a lovely ball into the box from the right and found Joseph-Dubois, who got across the front of his marker before firing a low shot on the spin beyond David Elm in the Bashley goal.

Buoyed by that, Joseph-Dubois then struck another effort wide from 20 yards before Richard Groves robbed visiting midfielder Paul Roberts and had another strike from distance saved by Elm.

However, the Terras were still looking shaky at the back and on 23 minutes they went behind again as White exper- ienced another moment to forget.

An in-swinging free-kick from the right beat everyone at the near post and when the ball squirmed past Manley, the right-back could only turn it into his own net in a desperate attempt to clear.

The jitters at the back continued for Weymouth and in the 31st minute only a fantastic last-ditch tackle by Cameron Mawer stopped Mark Gamble from grabbing Bashley a third after the fleet-footed winger had bamboozled Ben Gerring with some neat skill on the move.

The Terras were still carrying a threat going forward with Sam Clarke volleying off target on 33 minutes but every time the visitors counterattacked they looked like carving the home side open.

And it was Bashley who scored again on 38 minutes when Jack Smith side stepped Joseph-Dubois far too easily before putting over a fine cross to the far post, which Oliver headed past Manley after completely losing White. In a purely tactical change, the Terras replaced skipper Simon Radcliffe with striker Sam Charles at the break but Bashley continued to cause problems.

Mawer headed over early in the second half before the visitors replied with two efforts of their own, which saw Maxwell nod over from a corner and Gamble draw a marvellous one-handed save out of Manley.

The Terras desperately required a lift and on the hour they nearly got it when Mawer fed Byerley in the box but the ex-Dorchester Town forward screwed his shot horribly wide of the target.

Another recent addition to the Weymouth ranks, Robin Nicholls, entered the fray on 62 minutes to make his home debut in his second spell at the club but the hosts continued to struggle to find an end product despite plenty of endeavour.

Their biggest threat seemed to come from set pieces and on 75 minutes only a goal-line clearance stopped Mawer’s header from finding the corner of the net with the ball being turned over by a defender stationed on the post.

Charles then failed to turn in a cross by Joseph-Dubois before a nervy moment for Manley saw him spill a corner, only for Gary Middle-ton to head over at the far post.

Bashley were beginning to threaten again and with nine minutes remaining they added a fourth. Tom Hill was credited with turning in Chris Ferrett’s corner by the stadium announcer but it appeared to come off Gerring as the Terras’ abject display at the back continued.

And the visitors could have had a fourth moments later when Gamble broke into the box.

The powerful striker strolled in from the right but could only drag his shot wide of the far post.

Terras: Manley, McGuinness, White, Clarke (King 72), Gerring, Mawer, Groves, Magookin (Nicholls 62), Radcliffe (Charles 46), Joseph-Dubois, Byerley. Subs not used: Carroll, Tribe.

Bashley: Elm, Smith, Oliver, Middleton, Whitley, Knowles, Hill, P Roberts (Murray 90), Maxwell (A Roberts 79), Gamble, Ferrett. Subs not used: Prodomo, Mead, Byrne.