TIVVY ARCHIVE

Truro City 2 - 0 Tiverton Town

Tiverton’s horrendous form in away matches against Truro, and their equally horrendous profligacy in front of goal added an additional underline as they fell to a lax defeat at Bolitho Park, further hampering the Yellows’ attempts to avoid a heavy petting session with the relegation places. A goal three minutes in from Ollie Tomlinson, and a second half Rocky Neal penalty assured the defeat for Tivvy, while a blank at the other end of the pitch increased to over 600 minutes the length of playing time since Town last scored a goal from open play. With echoes of the latter part of the 2003/04 season when Tiverton threw away a place in the new Conference South, and of the winter of 2012 into 2013 and the awful run that saw Mark Saunders’ head roll from the managerial throne, the current campaign seems destined to end in grave disappointment and, who knows, perhaps even relegation. Given the recent performances against basement rivals Merthyr and Wimborne, dropping down a level is a very real possibility unless improvements are swift and significant.

Even by the time Tomlinson had headed home Will Dean’s free kick the portrait had already been outlined, and Tiverton survived a scare as Connor Riley-Lowe had a low effort deflected, and the follow-up by Neal was cleared off the line by Alfie Pond. But Pond was soon at fault when he allowed Tomlinson to get goalside from a set play on the left, and with Dan Hayfield not able to leap high enough to intercept, Truro were ahead before they had even had to breathe deeply.

From there it was relatively straightforward for the home side to manage the game, with Lewis Williams called into action to save from Dean, and then again at point-blank range from Alex Battle as Truro exploited their left flank and moved the ball smartly in and around the Tivvy penalty area. Tiverton had one good chance when Gary Warren headed goalwards from a corner, and Shane While was perfectly positioned to bunt the ball away, but that was as good as it got for the Yellows until a volley from Andy Watkins was blocked at close quarters well into the second half.

There was a weak free kick from Louis Morison that wouldn’t have concerned Truro goalkeeper James Hamon too much, and when Craig Woodman and Morison contrived to concede possession deep inside their own half, Battle perhaps should have done better with the opening he was presented. Not that it mattered a great deal as Morison’s flailing arm intercepted a Rio Garside cross, giving Neal the opportunity from twelve yards to seal what was a wholly comfortable victory for the White Tigers. Late on Battle again failed to make the most of a great chance when he dithered to allow a dangerous Niall Thompson cross pass across his body when the merest of touches would have seen him score, although by then the game was well won anyway.

Truro City: James Hamon, Niall Thompson (Zac Hartley 85), Connor Riley-Lowe, Ollie Tomlinson, Shane White, Jamie Richards, Will Dean, Rio Garside (Ryan Brett 89), Alex Battle, Rocky Neal, Owen Bevan
Goals: Tomlinson 3, Neal 71p
Booked: White, Garside, Neal
Sent off: None

Tiverton Town: Lewis Williams, Joe Belsten, Craig Woodman, Louis Morison (Matt Wright 72), Gary Warren, Alfie Pond, Jordan Lam, Dan Hayfield, Theo Simpson, Andy Watkins (Court Francis 72), Nelson Iseguan (Austen Booth 37)
Booked: Morison, Simpson
Sent off: None

Attendance: 245