Reserve Team Match Reports by Paul Murphy
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Hamworthy Recreation Reserves v Bridport Reserves - 15 April 2026 Hamworthy Rec Res welcomed Bridport FC Res to the Meyson Properties Stadium, after a home defeat to Wimborne Town Res Rec were keen to put this right in another game under the light, the last game was an end to end 3-2 win for Rec with goals from Matt Kerse and Bryce Banfield, can Rec keep it tight at the back at home? The game got underway with the visitors kicking off, Bridport looked to get the ball forward quickly but the Rec back line were comfortable in possession and played out looking to control the pace of the game, Rec had a couple of attacks down the wings but didn’t test the Bridport GK. On 10 mins Bridport were awarded a free kick in the middle of the Rec half, the ball was floated into the box but punched clear by Toby Butt out for a throw-in on the right, Bridports Paul Hill took the throw-in, it was set back to him and he carried the ball past 2 Rec defenders and into the box, side stepped another before unleashing his shot which beat Toby from close range, 0-1, not the start Rec were hoping for. Rec responded immediately from the re-start, Rec controlled possession, drawing Bridport onto them, Logan Nicholson spotted the run of Henry Bowe down the left wing, Henry took the ball to the Bridport goal line, pulled it back to Matt Kerse on the edge of the penalty area, Matt cut in side and let off a right footed shot that cut across the GK, hit the far post and rebounded into the goal to draw the score line level after 2 mins, 1-1. The Rec players settled into the game, looking to exploit the wide areas, Curtis Lane and Henry Bowe were enjoying a lot of possession in the wide areas, in the 23rd min Rec switched the play into the middle of the pitch, Samuel West spotted the run of Matt Kerse across the back line and beating the offside, Matt goal scorer now provider, took the ball out to the wing, drilled a low pass towards the front post where Harrison Whitelaw made a great diagonal run and flicked the ball past the GK into the bottom left corner, 2-1. Rec really got on the front foot from here, happy in possession trying to tease another opening as Bridport appeared to sit back to soak up the initial pressure, Rec played the ball from left to right in an attempt to find a 3rd, this came on the 31st min, Harrison ran onto a long pass down the right wing, took the defender to the goal line and played it off him for a corner, Harrison now turning provider delivered the corner into the box, Curtis peeled back from the GK and had a glancing header at the back post which hit the back of the net, third goal scorer of the game for Rec, 3-1. The visitors were not going to take this laying down, in the 34th min the visitors won a throw-in high in the Rec half, the thrower got the ball back and drove inside, got a shot off which deflected off Gavin Haynes for a corner, the corner was played short, the ball was carried to the edge of the box where the Bridport player had a shot, a great save by Toby to his bottom left corner unfortunately spilled to a Bridport player who side footed his first time shot over the stranded Toby, 3-2. The game looked like it was going to fizzle out to half time with the visitors struggling to maintain possession of the ball, but Rec wasn’t finished there, Bridport now had the wind in their sails and looked to nick an equaliser before half time and committed numbers forward, Harrison pick the ball up on the half way line and carried the ball to the penalty area, he squared the ball to Samuel West, Westy played the ball out to Henry Bowe on the left, Henry rolled it back to Westy who had space and time to shoot, the ball deflected off a defender out to Curtis who was waiting on the right wing, now Curtis’s time to play provider clipped the ball into the box where Matt Kerse timed his run brilliantly to meet the ball with a flying header to increase the home sides lead, 4-2. The half wasn’t quite finished there, after the goal there was a scuffle in the penalty area where it appeared someone stood on Matt whilst he was on the floor, a scuffle broke out with some pushing and shoving between Henry Bowe and a Bridport player, the referee took both players to one side, Henry got a straight Red and the Bridport defender Yellow, very strange! HT 4-2. The second half started with Rec looking to control the game now down to 10 men Bridport now started to look for the spaces, Rec managed this well until the 57th min, Bridport won a freekick by the Rec dugout, played it into the far post, it was knocked back across goal and met by an unmarked Bridport player who tapped the ball home from close range, 4-3. From here the game was back and forth, both teams having half chances but neither GK had a lot to do, Rec looked to maintain possession and slow the game down with Bridport having the man advantage, Bridport looked to get the ball forward at every opportunity by these were cleared by Gavin, Jack and Logan, all in all a good reaction from the lose to Wimborne, now we move onto our next midweek against Balti Sports. Full Time 4-3. |
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11th April 2026 - Hamworthy Recreation Reserves v Wimborne Town Reserves Hamworthy Rec Res welcomed Wimborne Town Res to the Meyson Properties Stadium, after a home victory over Swanage Town & Herston the team looked to kick on for the run of home games until the end of the season, after collapsing in the cup game earlier in the season the team needed to show it was a bad day at the office. The game got underway in a windy Meyson Properties Stadium, Wimborne opting to change ends to play with the wind in the first half, it was Wimborne who where on the front foot from the first whistle, in the 5th minute they had the ball in the Rec penalty area, a little over confident Rec tried to play their was out rather than clear their lines, Wimborne pressed and won the ball back, created a shooting opportunity and took it, 0-1. Rec then looked to get straight back into the game, getting the ball forward as quick as possible, sometimes over using the ball over the top of the Wimborne midfield which would hold up in the wind, over coming this the use of the ball down the wings started to look like Rec were going to get on the score sheet, but the reluctance to shoot was meaning the ball was getting won back on the edge of the Wimborne penalty area and played forward quickly, putting the Rec defence under constant pressure. In the 36th min Wimborne utilised the wind and Rec playing high, a ball over the top court the Rec defence trying to play the forwards offside, but an untracked midfield runner ran beyond the defence, into the penalty area and lifted the ball over Toby into the top far corner, 0-2. The Rec players didn’t give up, Wimborne looked happy to run the time down until half time but finally Rec managed to get a meaningful shot on target and were rewarded, in the 45th min Rec played the ball into Alfie Bush in midfield, unopposed he stepped forward, the Wimborne defence stepped out towards him and from 25 yards he unleashed a shot that went over the GK and straight down the middle of the goal, just underneath the crossbar, 1-2. HT 1-2 The second half started with Rec looking to get the scores level quickly and build some momentum now playing with the wind behind them, the home side a number of opportunities to put pressure on the visitor’s defence and GK but poor delivery let them off the hook. It was Wimborne who had the better of the chance in the 2nd half, even playing against the wind they still managed to get the ball forward quickly, only being denied by the centre back pairing of Rec who managed to get their heads to every cross and allowing the Rec side to clear their lines. Midway through the second half Rec made a raft of attacking changes to for broke, 1-2 down the new approach was, attack. The subs made an impact but still had very little impact on the visitor’s goal, it was the visitors who would get the next goal and finish the game off, in the 85th min took advantage of a rare attack but they were able to convert their opportunity, 1-3. Full Time 1-3 |
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04/04/2026 - Hamworthy Recreation Reserves v Swanage Town & Herston FC Hamworthy Rec Res welcomed Swanage Town & Herston to the Meyson Properties Stadium, after a run of poor results and a depleted squad, Charlie demanded a performance from the lads that they showed for the first 60 mins in the Cobham game, with only 12 players able to play the result didn’t reflect the performance the lads put in. The game got underway and both sides took a while to settle in, Rec trying to play and maintain possession, Swanage looked to go more direct and work off the knock downs off Will Prior. Swanage initially looked to have the upper hand with Toby Butt being the busier of the GKs but Rec grew into the half capitalising on Swanage playing a high line and leaving spaces in the wide areas, Jake Motton and Curtis Lane had large amounts of joy playing down the wings, Rec just failed to capitalise on the balls being delivered into the box. The first half ended with neither side really troubling either GK. HT 0-0 The second half started with Rec looking to exploit the wide areas and it didn’t take long for them to capitalise, in the 50th min Ollie Gomm and Curtis Lane linked up on the right wing, Ollie mad an overlapping run which squared the full back up, this allowed Curtis to drive into the penalty area, Harrison Whitelaw mad a diagonal run across the defender towards the front post, Curtis played Harrison in and he placed it around the GK at his near post, 1-0. This gave the Rec side a lift as they hadn’t scored in 5 games and like buses on the 56th min a second came along, the same 3 players involved, this time Ollie cut in from the right, Curits making the overlapping run and again Harrison cutting across the defenders, Curits again rolling the ball into Harrisons path who this time placed his shot to the far post and doubling the home sides lead, 2-0. The visitors made some changes and looked to go more direct and this started to pay off for them, they spend a great deal of time in or around the Rec penalty area but the defence stood strong, Toby making some great saves and clearances to keep the home sides 1st clean sheet. Swanage went for bust and played high in an attempt to camp the home side in their own half, but Rec kept players high and looked to play on the counter and catch Swanage out but the visitors managed to keep the score down to two. There was a long stoppage in the second half due to a head injury, as the clock looked to be ticking down Rec sat back and Swanage took advantage in the 94th min snatching a goal back through Curtis Young at what appeared to be the end of the game, 2-1. This made for a frantic finish as no one knew when the ref was going to blow his whistle, what felt like a lifetime the ref eventually blew for full time and Ham Rec Res broke the poor run of results and goal draught to record their first victory in 5 games. FT 2-1 |
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Saturday 21st February 2026 Hamworthy Rec Res welcomed Westland Sports to a wet Meyson Properties Stadium, before the kick off both sides paid a minute’s silence for Hamworthy Recreation ex player and committee member John Notley who sadly passed away recently, RIP John. The game got underway with the first half being remember for 2 red cards and 1 goal. On 25 mins Westland centre back Freddie Chorley got turned by Max Wilcock in the middle of the Sports half, getting no where near him, Chorley brought Max down on route to goal, ref had no choice, straight red, Sports were down to ten. In the 30th min Rec tried to utilise the man advantage, putting pressure on the Westlands back line and won a corner, the ball was delivered by Elliot Birtwistle to the back post, Jack Burton arriving at the back post was underneath the ball and instinctively raised his hand to the ball, yellow card. 2 minutes later Westlands were on the attack, Jack and Westland striker Niall Woollard were pulling at each other down the line, Niall got in front of Jack, Jack made a crazy grab at Niall’s shirt and Niall went to ground, ref again had no choice, 2nd yellow, Rec Capt given his marching orders and both sides down to 10. Just as the 1st half was coming to an end Martin Vidnenov made the break through for the home side, Max Wilcock collected the ball in the middle of the Westlands half, picked out Curtis Lans on the right wing, Curits beat the full back in the penalty area, drilled the ball to the front post where Martin cut across his defender and the front post and slotted the ball home from close range, 1-0. HT 1-0 The second half started with both sides looking immediately to get the upper hand, pressing high to win the ball back in the Westlands half it was Martin Videnov that struck again, Henry Bowe cutting in from the left with the ball, it was half cleared by the visitors central midfielder only for Henry to regain possession and drive into the Westlands penalty area, he clipped a great ball to the back post where an unmarked Martin side footed home from close range to double his goals for the day and Rec lead, 2-0. The game opened up now with Westland looking to get back into the game, they went more direct to their experienced striker Phil Ormrod and in the 70 min the got their chance, Phil collected the ball just out side the Rec penalty area, as he travelled into the box Felix came out to collect the ball, Ormrod recognising Felix going to ground he clipped the ball past him and was brought down, Penalty, Ormrod stepped up and made no mistake, 2-1. Rec did not let this deter them, in the 75th min Rec extended their lead thanks to Henry Bowe, Max picked the ball up on the left hand side and skipped round 3 Westland players before getting his shot off, the ball rebounded to Henry who was following up on Max’s shot and smashed the ball home from close range, 3-1 Ham Rec looked to try and see the game out with 15 mins remaining but Westlands weren’t done there, they kept applying pressure and in the 90th min they got another goal, the ball was played in from their left hand side, all Rec had to do was clear it, but the ball took a wicked deflection of one of the Rec players and looped into the top right hand corner, 3-2. The remaining 5 mins seemed like a lifetime for Rec but eventually the referee blew his whistle, making it two wins from two for Charlie’s men, still unbeaten in 2026!! FT 3-2 |
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10th January 2026 - Hamworthy Recreation Res v Hamworthy Utd Res Hamworthy Rec Res welcomed Hamworthy Utd Res to the Meyson Properties Stadium for our first game of 2026 in the Hamworthy Derby. Both teams came out of the traps trying to get the first goal, but it was the home side that broke the deadlock on 10mins, Rec had the ball in and around the Utd penalty area, Bryce had a shot which the GK saved, the ball bounced back out to Bryce at a tight angle, he delivered the ball into the box and into the goal off the cross bar and in, there was a defender on the line who could only manage to header the ball into the roof of the net, 1-0. The first half played out with both sides looking to get in behind the other, Rec looking to extend their lead and Utd looking to level the score before the break but both defences/GKs prevented this. HT 1-0 The second half started with the visitors looking immediately to get the scores level, pressing high to win the ball back in the Rec half and this paid off in the 61st min, the ball was crossed in from the wide area and headed home by Charlie Shears, 1-1. This spurred the home side on, the passing got sharper and the balls played into the forwards paid off, in the 68th min the ball was played into Sergii Ismail, he showed great strength to hold the defender off with his back to goal, he pivoted and drilled the shot from an angle past the GK from 10 yard and into the bottom corner to give Rec the lead once again, 2-1. The front 2 for Rec had been a handful all game, even though it was thei first game together, linking up well, this led to Rec’s 3rd goal, Sergii pressured the defender who headed the ball goalwards, Bryce reacted, got in behind the defenders and smashed the ball past the GK in to the bottom left corner, a brace for Bruce!! 3-1. With the game edging towards the final whistle Utd kept their foot on the pedal still looking to get another goal and in the 85th min they got it to set up a tense finish, the ball got played into the Rec penalty area and was stabbed home by Kieran Gooding, 3-2. The last 5 mins and stoppage seemed like a lifetime but eventually the final whistle came, and Rec secured the 3 points in a hard fought, fair, Derby match. FT 3-2 Goal Scores Hamworthy Recreation – Bryce Banfield x2, Sergii Ismail Hamworthy United – Charlie Shears, Kieran Gooding |
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18/10/2025 - Hamworthy Recreation Res v Holt Utd Hamworthy Rec Res welcomed Hot United to the Meyson Properties Stadium in their 4th game in 14 days, needing to make a couple of change to rotate players and keep things fresh, one of those was Matt Kerse, in the 4th minute Rec were on the attack, Matt broke into the Holt penalty and was deemed to have been fouled, the referee awarded the home side a penalty. Bryce Banfield stepped up and tucked home the spot kick to give rec an early lead, 1-0. The rest of the first half played out as a midfield battle with few chances really testing either goalkeeper, Holts experienced central midfielder Sami Garci was doing a great job of smashing and crashing any attempt Rec had of playing through midfield, frustrating the young side in to looking to play long which Holt were happy with. HT 1-0 The visitors came out firing in the second half, getting the ball forward at every opportunity to gamble on the ball being in and around the home side penalty area, utilising their players height, for most of the game the home side manage to deal with the ariel threat, Lucas Davies doing a great job keeping another of Hols experienced players, Kane Daysh quiet with few to no clear chances, however, the chance did come for the visitors in the 55th minute, Holt had a corner, literally every outfield player was in the homes sides penalty area and it was the visitors who reacted quickest, the corner landed in the penalty area, what felt like a life time the ball was ricocheting off bodies until Sami Garci got something on the ball, it manage to evade a mass of bodies and find its way into the home sides goal, 1-1. This then opened the flood gates to both sides looking for the winner, Holt made a bulk of changes shortly after the goal to add some fresh legs but again both midfields cancelled each other out, all in all probably the correct result, Rec turn their attention to another midweek game, at home to Wimborne Town Reserves. FT 1-1 |
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15/10/2025 - Hamworthy Recreation Res v Sherborne Town Res HamRecResset out to retain their crown from last season Under the lights at the Meyson Properties Stadium Ham Rec Res welcomed Sherborne Town Res in our opening game in this seasons Dorset Premier League Cup- 2ndRound. It didn't take the home side long to take the lead, after some great build up play Henry Bowe cut in from the left, rolled the ball into Igor Da Costa on the edge of the Sherborne penalty area, lgor spotted the over lapping run on Henry Barham on the right, he drove into the penalty area, fired a low cross into the near post which was tucked home by Martin Videnov, 1-0. The young striker was on the score sheet again just before half time, the ball this time played in from the midfield into Bryce Banfield, Bryce spotted Martin on the edge of the penalty area, Martin controlled the ball, pivoted and unleashed a curling shot into the top left corner leaving the Sherborne GK no chance, 2-0. HT2-0 The second half started with Sherborne pressing to get back in the game, they saw a lot of the ball in the initial phase really putting the home side defence under pressure, this paid off for them in the 54" minute, Gavin Haynes already on a yellow card, stretched outa leg to make a tackle, mis-timed his tackle and the ref deemed it a2nd yellow, Ham Rec Res down to 10 men. This inspired Sherborne and they capitalised as the home side tried to settle into their new formation/positions, in 74h min Rec lost the ball on the half way line, the Sherborne left back broke forward, spotted the visitors striker with a great run, slide an inch perfect pass into the strikers feet who took 1 touch and drill a shoot from the edge of the home sides penalty area into the bottom corner, 2-1. Rec did not let this phase them, straight from the kick off, Curits Lane won the home side a corner, Henry Bowe and Elliot Birtwistle took a short corner, Henry whipped in a great cross and it was met in the middle of the goal by a towering header from Lucas Davies who nodded it down into the bottom corner, 3-1. Rec now on the front foot broke down the right, a shot fired in was tipped over by the GK, Henry Bowe stepped up to take the corner, whipped in a great ball to the back post and it sailed passed all Ham Rec players, taking a slight nick off a defender's head on the way in to increase the home sides lead, 4-1. Onto the next round we go against Wimborne Town Res. Full Time 4-1 |
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Can Hamworthy Rec Res make it 3 wins from3? Hamworthy Rec Res in their first home game on a Saturday of the season looked to continue their good run of late with 2 wins in 2, can they make it 3? Both sides tried to utilise the blustery conditions, Rec playing into the wind in the first half keeping the ball on the ground, Portland looking to use the wind to assist getting the ball in behind the home sides defence. It took until the 29th min when one of the defences would be breached, and it was well worth the wait!! After an attack down the home sides left, Portland cleared the ball down the middle of the pitch, Gavin Haynes retrieved the ball, spotted Elliot Birtwistle free on the edge of the centre circle in the Portland half and rolled the ball into Elliots path, Elliot turned, with no pressure on him took a touch, spotted the GK off his line and drilled his shot from distance into the top left corner, 1-0. Rec remained on the front foot after in front, on 32 mins Curtis Lane ran the ball into the Portland penalty area from the right wing, the visitors GK came out to close his angle down but Curtis managed to open his body, switch the ball to his left foot and curled the ball around the GK to double the lead, 2-0. This spurred the visitors on, 36 min with Rec pressing for a quick 3rd, Portland caught Rec on the counter, playing the ball down the right the ball was across into the home sides penalty area, Gavin Haynes cleared the ball only for it to be picked up in midfield by a Portland player, the ball way played out to the left, the winger bounced a pass off and a team mate and received it back in the box, drilled it across the penalty area and it was tapped home from close range in the centre of the goal, 2-1. HT 2-1 The visitors got the second half underway, looking to draw the home side out and get in behind quickly, a ball was played down the Rec left wing, Gavin Haynes won the ball and rolled it back to Felix Bruce in the Rec goal, Felix played a first time long pass up to Rec skipper Bryce Banfield, Bryce flicked the ball forward and Curits Lane anticipating the flick on was quickest to react, beat the Portland defender to the ball, flicked the ball past the out rushing GK who was now out of his box and stranded, the ball ran slightly wide, the defender ran to cover the goal but Curtis kept is composure and tucked the ball home from a tight angle to make it 2 for him on the day. The second half turned into a basketball match but neither side really threatened the other side's goal. Full Time 3-1 |
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Hamworhy Recreation Res 3 Poole Borough 1 
Hamworthy Rec Res in their changed Blue kit started the game quickly, immediately putting pressure on the Poole Borough back line but their defence stood strong and rode out the initial pressure. The game started too rock backwards and forwards with both teams looking to get the opening goal, both sides having chances but the first goal came from the home side, the ball was played the ball in from the left, Alfie Miller laid it off to Brad Hill who had drifted into the centre who fired the ball past the Borough GK to make it 1-0. The home side weren’t done there, 3 mins later Rec were on the attack again, the ball switched from left to right across the Borough penalty area, Ollie Gomm with an overlapping run collected the ball, he played in Brad Hill who again had drifted inside to create the space, Brad clipped the ball into the box where it was met by Rec left back Henry Bowe who’s glancing header beat the Borough GK to double the home sides lead, 2-0. HT 2-0 The visitors came out in the second half looking to get back into the game, Rec managed to soak up the initial pressure before applying some themselves, on 64 mins Alfie Miller, making his debut from the U17s, was played in from midfield, he cut in from the left, used the defender as a screen and whipped the ball around the defender and into the bottom right corner, great goal for the young lad in his first game, 3-0. The game at this point started to fizzle out, both side making changes and it was the visitors change that had the most impact, on 82 mins one of their subs was working hard to put pressure on the Rec players, he court one of the Rec players in possession on the edge of the home sides penalty area, took a touch out of his feet and rifled it past the Felix from the edge of the penalty area, 3-1. Full Time 3-1 |
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Hamworthy Recreaton Reserves v Cobham Sports - 10th September 2025 - Dorset Premier League. Rec started off brightly, plenty of possession but no clear chances on goal, both sides were probing but without much action in front of goal. The first real action came in the 20th minute, Rec were building up pressure on the visitors back line and won a corner, Elliot Birtwistle delivered the ball into a dangerous area, Max Wilcock made the first contact and headed the ball goal-wards, it was knocked down only to land at the feet of Recs Capt Bryce Banfield, Bryce pivoted on the spot and crashed the ball home from close range to give the home side and early lead, 1-0. Rec capitised on a miss placed pass from the restart, Brad Hill broke down the win, squared the ball to Max Wilcock who doubled the home sides lead within 2 mins, 2-0. The visitors weren’t going to let the lead get away from them, straight from the restart on 24 mins they won the ball back, Eze-Sunday crossed the ball, and Joe Wood crashed the ball home to bring the visitors back into the game 2-1 Both sides had chances during the remainder of the half, both goalkeepers being called into action but neither of the sides could beat the keepers HT 2-1 The second half started with Cobham pushing to get back into the game, they piled on the pressure, but the Hamworthy defence held firm. On the hour Cobham went to their bench and made 4 changes to get back into the game. Cobham managed to force several corners from the Hamworthy defence who managed to repel the pressure until the 77th minute, Cobham broke down the wing, a run to the near post by Callum Clarke beat Felix Bruce at his near post to bring the score level, 2-2. Cobham were lifted by their equalising goal and continued to pile on the pressure, Rec got everyone behind the ball to soak up the pressure, Cobham gambled on their height from set pieces, and this paid off in the 87min, Cobham were awarded a corner which was crashed home from close range by Cam Beard, 2-3. With the remaining 10+ minutes Ham Rec pushed to try and get an equaliser but Cobham saw the game out to win the tight encounter. FT 2-3 |