Wellington progressed to the semi-final of the Somerset Premier Cup with a worthy 3-2 victory over a determined and youthful Clevedon Town on Wednesday 21st February.
The Tangerines had to work hard for this victory after going a goal down after just 16 minutes. Clevedon saw much more of the ball throughout the first half of the match and Wellington’s goalie was kept busy as the visitors – who are 6 places above Wellington in the Toolstation Premier league – put together a series of fast-paced attacks.
Wellington were denied coherent possession and it was against the run of play that Sam Towler equalised on 23 minutes, the goal coming from one of few Wellington sustained assaults in the first half.
The home side came out after the interval with a much greater sense of purpose and, as a result, the tempo rose. An own goal by Clevedon defender Dylan Wallis who parried Tom Ellis’s long throw-in from the left past his own goalie put Wellington ahead after 53 minutes and an impressive Paolo Borges added a third on the hour.
Although Wellington seemed to be in control, Clevedon remained a threat and their second goal on 74 minutes by Callum Kingdon raised the tension. An ugly challenge resulted in a fracas with Clevedon’s Kevin Camargo being shown a red card just 2 minutes after coming on as a substitute.
Wellington now play two league matches in which they will seek to maintain this winning streak. They play away at Bitton on Saturday 24th February and then meet Clevedon Town once again at the North Street ground on Wednesday 28th February. Both teams lie above Wellington in the Toolstation Premier league. Having now beaten Clevedon twice this season (they won 0-1 away in September) they are likely to feel confident about the fixture but know they face determined and skilful opponents.