Photo courtesy of Simon Carlton – carltonphotography@live.com Hamworthy Recreation FC Res v Portland United FC Res – 15/03/25 DPL – League Cup – Semi Final
ISSUE - 26 1 Welcome ………… To the 26th edition of the Dispatch, this edition covers our League & League Cup Semi Final matches played on Saturday 15th March 2025. CONGRATULATIONS to both DORCHESTER SPORTS FC & HAMWORTHY RECREATION FC Reserves for reaching this seasons DPL League Cup Final, commiserations also go to the 2 losing Semi Finalists. In the League at the weekend, focus shifted to the foot of the table, WIMBORNE TOWN FC Reserves moved out of the bottom 2 after their win against POOLE BOROUGH FC, which then saw BRIDPORT FC Reserves drop back into the bottom 2 after their defeat at the hands of BALTI SPORTS FC. It is still tight at bottom, but time & Games are running out ….. CONGRATULATIONS go to both COBHAM SPORTS FC & BLANDFORD UNITED FC who both reached this seasons DORSET COUNTY SENIOR TROPHY FINAL The Final will take place at the County Ground – Hamworthy on the 20th May 2025 with a 7:30pm Kick Off. With the League well up on its fixtures, the LMC has decided to run a Supplementary Cup Competition this season, 12 sides have entered with Bridport FC Reserves, Holt United FC, Poole Borough FC & Wimborne Town FC Reserves not entering. The 12 Teams have been drawn into 3 Groups as follows. The Group stage will consist of 3 games each with the winners and best Runner Up going into the Semi Finals where the Semi Finals will be as follows. Winner Grp C v Winner Grp A & Winner Grp B v Best Runner Up The Semi Finals & Final will be played over 90 Minutes and if the scores are Level after 90 minutes, then the tie will be decided by Penalties. The Rules of the Competition will follow where applicable the Rules of the League Cup Competition - ALL matches are to be played. Kind regards. Giles Kilshawe-Fall A B CCobham Spt Swanage T WestlandsPort Utd Res Ham Utd Res Blandford UBalti Spt Bmth Spt Ham Rec ResSherb T Res Bmth Elec Dorch Spt
ISSUE - 26 2 LEAGUE MATCH REPORTS – SATURDAY 15th MARCH 2025 BLANDFORD UNITED FC (0) 0 HOLT UNITED FC (1) 1 After last weekends spirited 2 goals in the 90th minute for the Royals to earn a point in a 3-3 draw, against a well organised Sherborne Town Reserves, the Royals this week welcomed the Bulls of Holt United to Park Road in the Dorset Premier Football League. After a few half chances the best opening chance came on the 18th when Watson had his toe poked shot saved and the ball fell to Lanahan whose shot was cleared off the line by a back tracking Holt defender! But in the 25th minute Holt took the lead after some confusion at the back between defenders and Munday in goal allowing SAM BENNETT to lob the stranded keeper. Back came the hosts and the closest they got to restoring parity was in the 40th minute when the ball fell to Lanahan at chest height in the box and he got a shot away which was saved by the Holt custodian. HT 0-1 The second half had a few half chances for both sides seeing a few good saves especially from Munday in the Royals goal. 0-0 probably would have been a fair result but the Royals go again next week as we travel to Bournemouth Sports, the hosts day got worse in the 80th minute as they were given a red and went down to 10, after Charlie John was sent off for foul language. Photo courtesy of Benjamin Smith
ISSUE - 26 3 SHERBORNE TOWN FC RESERVES (2) 3 BOURNEMOUTH ELECTRIC FC (1) 1 Both teams arrived at a cold and windy Raleigh Grove. However, by the time KO arrived the sun was out, and the wind had dropped. Both teams observed a minute’s silence out of respect of ex Sherborne Town and Westland Sports player Yogi Murley. Everyone from Sherborne Town FC would like to pass their love and thoughts to Yogi's family at this time. The game kicked off and it was Sherborne who started the brighter of the two sides and carved an opportunity in the first couple of minutes. After this Electric settled and created some good opportunities through the wide areas. However, Sherborne broke the deadlock in the 12th minute after a superb ball from Joe Boon, into Alfie Calway who crossed for JAMIE RUSSO to head home. 1-0 to Sherborne. Soon after though Electric managed to level proceedings. A good move down their right-hand side resulted in the ball being pulled across the box and the onrushing FAUSTINO MAHER stroked the ball home. If we thought that was enough entertainment for the 1st half we were wrong! After a few chances at either end it was Sherborne who took the lead again. JOSH HASKETT ran onto an attempted clearance from the electric box and finished into the bottom corner from about 20 yards. HT 2-1 The second half was eventful with goal mouth scrambles at both ends, both teams hitting the woodwork and some last-ditch defensive blocks, accompanied by goal line clearances at both ends. It certainly was entertaining for the spectators. It was in the 63rd minute that JOSH HASKETT who further increased Sherborne’s lead and doubled his tally for the day. He manoeuvred the ball around a few defenders by juggling it with his feet before volleying home into the back of the net. The game ended 3-1 to Sherborne Town Reserves who probably played their best football of the season and a fitting tribute to Yogi. BRIDPORT FC RESERVES (0) 2 BALTI SPORTS FC (2) 3 Bridport Reserves failed to capitalise on their victory last weekend as they were beaten at home by Balti Sports, in a crucial bottom of the table clash in the Dorset Premier Football League at St Mary’s Field. The first half started poorly for the bees with indecision presenting Balti with their first opening after 15 seconds which went narrowly wide. It wasn’t long before Balti did take the lead, a cross was put into the back of the net by ARCHIE WOOLFORD. Balti hit the crossbar before making it 2-0 with a neat one two and accomplished finish by CHARLIE DOYLE. Shortly before half time the bees threatened - a Noah House free kick went
ISSUE - 26 4 narrowly wide and MORE neat football presented Josh Baker with an opportunity which was blocked by a combination of keeper and defender. HT 0-2 Hopes of a revitalised second half for the Bees were dealt another early blow when they gifted a free header from a corner, and ARCHIE WOOLFORD buried the opportunity to complete his brace. Some changes made a difference late on for the hosts and Bridport pulled goals back from GARETH WILL, with a well-executed volley from 20 yards out that found the top corner was followed by a snapshot into the bottom corner from ROBIN JONES with 10 minutes to go. Mattie Loader fired wide from the edge of the area but there were no further chances, as Balti secured a deserved 3 points and in doing so, coupled with results elsewhere, plunged the Bees back into the bottom 2. WIMBORNE TOWN FC RESERVES (1) 2 POOLE BOROUGH FC (0) 1 It was the clash of the bottom 2 at the New Cuthbury in the Dorset Premier Football League as this proverbial 6 pointer would go a long way to helping either side move away from the foot of the table. NO MATCH REPORT SUBMITTED BY WIMBORNE TOWN FC RESERVES Photo courtesy of Steve Harris – steve@bdfaimages.co.uk
ISSUE - 26 5 LEAGUE CUP MATCH REPORTS – SATURDAY 15th MARCH 2025 HAMWORTHY RECREATION FC RESERVES (3) 3 PORTLAND UNITED FC RESERVES (0) 0 Hamworthy Recreation Reserves welcomed Portland Utd Res to the BJM Stadium in the Dorset Premier League Cup Semi Final, Ham Recs 2nd Semi Final this season, can they overcome the defeat to Cobham in the Senior Trophy to progress to the DPL Cup Final. Portland Utd Res got the game underway, immediately looking to turn the Ham Rec defence around only for the ball to go out for a throw in on the right hand side, Rec took the throw quickly, shifted it along the back line and played out down the left, some good inter play between Matt Kerse, Ash Boyt sent Liam Crutchley racing down the left on an overlapping run, his cross was cleared for a throw in, Liam took the throw in quickly to Ash Boyt who worked his way into the Portland penalty area and delivered a cross, the ball was partially cleared only to fall to Dan Reeks, Dans knock down fell kindly for BRAD HILL who made no mistake in smashing it past the GK from 12 yards, Goal Time 1min 32 secs. Portland kicked off but this time looked to retain the ball across their back line, some good work by Dan Reeks chasing the ball down won it back and Rec looked to immediately go back on the attack, Brad Hill picked the ball up on the right wing, played a square ball to Matt Kerse who had come in off the wing, quick first time pass found Elliot Birtwistle in space on the edge of the Portland penalty area, his slip pass found
ISSUE - 26 6 Dan Reeks in behind the Portland defenders who crossed low and hard, the Portland keeper could only deflect it in front of him for it to fall nicely for ELLIOT BIRTWISTLE to tap it home to double the home sides lead, 2-0, Goal Time – 2 mins 54 secs. After the electric start by Rec, Portland looked to play more direct, with a change of formation they pushed their captain up from CB to CF and got the ball into the home sides penalty area but Henry Birtwistle was comfortable in retrieving anything that came near him, Rec controlled the tempo of the game narrowly missing out on getting a 3rd when Alfie Phillips had 2 chance from a corner to score only for the GK to stop him both times. The 3rd goal did come shortly after in the 23 min when Liam Crutchley received a great ball from Bard Hill, he turned and was brought down in the penalty, up stepped BRAD HILL and made no mistake, sent the GK the wrong way and placed his penalty in the top corner, 3-0. The 3rd goal looked to have knocked the stuffing out of Portland who looked happy to keep the score at 3-0 and regroup at half time. HT 3-0 Ham Rec got the 2nd half underway, Portland fresh from their half time team talk immediately put a lot of pressure on the Rec players and won the ball back, the ball spent a lot of time in the Rec half for the 1st 15 mins with Portland looking to give themselves a lifeline, they did have the ball in the back of the net only for the ref to rule it out for a foul on Henry Birtwistle. Ham Rec defensive unit, marshalled by todays Captain Gavin Haynes, stood firm and reduced Portland to limited efforts on Henry’s goal. On 70 mins both teams started to make changes, Rec then stepped up the pressure again to see if they could snatch a 4th, a great effort fell to Dan Reeks on the edge of the Portland penalty area, a defensive head fell to Dan whose volley went narrowly wide. After this the game started to fizzle out, Rec happy to maintain possession and run the clock down until eventually the ref blew his whistle for full time and the young Hamworthy Recreation Reserve side progress onto the Final!! Photo courtesy of Simon Carlton – carltonphotography@live.com
ISSUE - 26 7 SWANAGE TOWN & HERSTON FC (0) 0 DORCHESTER SPORTS FC (1) 1 Dorchester Sports FC booked their spot in the Dorset Premier League Cup Final with a narrow semi-final victory over Swanage Town & Herston at Days Park It is the first time Sports have made the final since 2009 and Ashley James side will now face Hamworthy Recreation Reserves who beat Portland United reserves 3-0 in the other semi-final. A Dylan Ellis 20-yard strike on 20 minutes was enough to seal the win in what was a close and tight encounter at Days Park on Saturday. The win came a week after the club finished their league campaign - setting their rivals a target of 70 points in the race for promotion and the Dorset Premier League title. Sports made two changes from the side that beat Balti the week before with Sam Poole returning to partner Shaun Bessant in central defence. There was also a change in goal as Sam Duncalf deputised for first team keeper Nick Hutchings who was away on holiday. Sports started the game well, but chances were hard to come by for both sides in what was a physical encounter from the first whistle. Both defences looked really strong, but the Swans could do nothing about the goal that would go on to win the game. With 20 minutes on the clock, DYLAN ELLIS picked up the ball 20 yards from goal and let fly with a powerful strike that flew into the top corner past Taylor Hibbs. Sports captain and top goal scorer Alex Godfrey saw a shot fly just past the post before the home side nearly equalised. Duncalf
ISSUE - 26 8 made a good save from Cody Moore and the rebound found Cohen Lee, but his shot was cleared off the line as Sports held on until half time. HT 0-1 The Swans came hard at Dorchester in the second half but Poole and Bessant, along with Elliott Browne and Dylan Riley either side of them, stood strong to everything the home side threw at them and Sports saw out the game. The DPL final and will be played in May but a date has yet to be confirmed. Speaking after the game, Dorchester Sports manager Ashley James was delighted with his team's performance. He said: "We knew it was going to be a close game; we won 1-0 at Swanage earlier in the season and drew 0-0 at the Avenue, but the goal that won it was special. "They are a good team, and we had to be at our best and I thought the way the whole team defended was really good. "We're delighted to be in a final, but now our only focus is to try to win it and hopefully we can do that." Report courtesy of the - Photo courtesy of Gerald Dimarco – ST&H FC
ISSUE - 26 9 COUNTY CORNER Who play open aged Football (Adult) – “KNOW YOUR RIGHTS” IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR SEASON 2024 – 2025 • All clubs with open age teams will be required to have a named Club Welfare Officer at the point of affiliation from 2023 – 2024 season onwards. • All open age teams with 16/17-year-old players must ensure that the team coaches must have an in-date FA DBS in place. • It is the responsibility of clubs to ensure that they are aware of any 16/17-year-olds playing, and to adhere to the FA DBS requirements.
ISSUE - 26 10 STATS League Table Upcoming Fixtures
ISSUE - 26 11 Postponement Count = 22 24th Aug 2024 Poole Borough FC v Holt United FC Waterlogged Pitch 23rd Oct 2024 Swanage T&H FC v Holt United FC Waterlogged Pitch 23rd Nov 2024 Blandford Utd FC V Poole Borough FC Severe Weather Protocol “ “ Bournemouth Sports FC V Balti Sports FC “ “ “ “ Cobham Sports FC V Westland Sports FC “ “ “ “ Hamworthy Rec FC Res V Swanage T&H FC “ “ “ “ Holt United FC V Dorchester Sports FC “ “ “ “ Portland Utd FC Res V Hamworthy Utd FC Res “ “ “ “ Sherborne Town FC Res V Bournemouth Electric FC “ “ “ “ Wimborne Town FC Res V Bridport FC Res “ “ 7th Dec 2024 Balti Sports FC V Dorchester Sports FC Severe Weather Protocol “ “ Hamworthy Utd FC Res V Hamworthy Rec FC Res “ “ “ “ Holt United FC V Swanage T&H FC “ “ “ “ Poole Borough FC V Cobham Sports FC “ “ “ “ Sherborne Town FC Res V Portland Utd FC Res “ “ “ “ Westland Sports FC V Bridport FC Res “ “ 11th Jan 2025 Sherborne Town FC Res V Bournemouth Electric FC Frozen Pitch 25th Jan 2025 Blandford Utd FC V Bournemouth Electric FC Waterlogged Pitch “ “ Swanage T&H FC V Balti Sports FC “ “ 1st Feb 2025 Hamworthy Rec FC Res V Westland Sports FC Waterlogged Pitch 15th Feb 2025 Bridport FC Res V Hamworthy Rec FC Res Waterlogged Pitch Cobham Sports FC V Holt United FC “ “ 22nd Feb 2025 Sherborne Town FC Res V Poole Borough FC Waterlogged Pitch
ISSUE - 26 12 LEAGUE CUP 2024 – 2025 1st Round 11 Sep Dorchester Sports FC 5 - 1 Balti Sports FC 11 Sep Hamworthy Rec FC Res 3 - 1 Bournemouth Electric FC 11 Sep Wimborne Town FC Res 1 - 0 Cobham Sports FC 14 Sep Holt Utd FC 4 - 1 Bridport FC Res 14 Sep Poole Borough FC 2 – 3 AET Hamworthy Utd FC Res 2 – 2 @ FT 14 Sep Portland Utd FC Res 5 – 4 on Pens Bournemouth Sports FC 3 – 3 @ FT 4 – 4 AET 14 Sep Swanage T&H FC 4 - 1 Sherborne Town FC Res 14 Sep Westland Sports FC 1 - 2 Blandford United FC Quarter Finals 5 Nov Hamworthy Utd FC Res 3 - 4 Swanage T&H FC 6 Nov Portland Utd FC Res 2 - 0 Blandford United FC 13 Nov Dorchester Sports FC 4 – 2 AET Wimborne Town FC Res 2 – 2 @ FT 20 Nov Hamworthy Rec FC Res 2 - 1 Holt Utd FC Semi Finals 15 Mar Hamworthy Rec FC Res 3 - 0 Portland Utd FC Res Swanage T&H FC 0 - 1 Dorchester Sports FC Final Dorchester Sports FC V Hamworthy Rec FC Res
ISSUE - 26 13 COUNTY CUPS 2024 – 2025 D.C.F.A - SENIOR TROPHY - Round 1 Sponsored by Dorset & Somerset Air Ambulance 5th October 14:00 Puddletown FC 2 v 1 Westland Sports FC Res 19th October 14:00 Portland United FC Reserves 3 v 1 Bournemouth Sports FC Res Round 2 19th October 14:00 Wimborne Town FC Reserves 2 v 4 Holt United FC 2nd November 14:00 Cranborne FC 2 V 0 Sherborne Town FC Res Lyme Regis FC 0 V 3 Hamworthy Recreation FC Res Maiden Newton & Cattistock FC 2 V 1 Dorchester Sports FC Balti Sports FC 1 V 3 Bridport FC Reserves Allendale FC 0 V 9 Puddletown FC Poole Borough FC 0 V 4 Cobham Sports FC Portland United FC Reserves 1 V 7 Blandford United FC Quarter Finals 7th December 13:30 Cranborne FC 1 V 8 Blandford United FC Puddletown FC 0 V 1 Maiden Newton & Cattistock FC 14th December 13:30 Hamworthy Recreation FC Res 3 V 1 Holt United FC 21st December 13:30 Bridport FC Reserves 0 V 2 Cobham Sports FC Semi - Finals 1st March 14:30 Maiden Newton & Cattistock FC 0 V 2 Blandford United FC Cobham Sports FC 3 V 0 Hamworthy Recreation FC Res Final 20th May 19:30 Blandford United FC V Cobham Sports FC @ The County Ground – Hamworthy United FC
ISSUE - 26 14 H.F.A SATURDAY TROPHY 1st Round 5th October 2024 14:00 Bournemouth Electric FC 8 v 1 Liss Athletic FC Reserves 2nd Round 2nd November 2024 14:00 Bournemouth Electric FC 4 v 1 AFC Stoneham FC Reserves Bournemouth Sports FC HW v Clanfield FC Reserves 3rd Round 7th December 2024 14:00 Bournemouth Electric FC 0 v 2 Whitecroft & Barton FC Bournemouth Sports FC HW v Paulsgrove FC 4th Round 11th January 2025 14:00 Whitecroft & Barton FC 1 v 0 Bournemouth Sports FC S.F.A SATURDAY TROPHY 2nd Round 5th October 2024 14:00 Ashcott FC 0 v 0 Westland Sports FC Won 4-1 on Penalties D.C.F.A - SENIOR CUP - Round 1 12th November 2024 19:45 Hamworthy Recreation FC 4 v 1 Swanage Town & Herston FC
ISSUE - 26 15 The DPL runs a Competition throughout each season to do with Respect and is based around the Points the Match Referee awards each Club in the following areas on a Match Day. • Behaviour of Managers • Behaviour of Players • Behaviour of the Captain Each area is marked out of 10 with 2 points deducted for each Sin Bin received & 3 points deducted for each S6 Red card received - (Foul & Abusive Language) Each block is measured over 5 games with the Club receiving the most marks getting £100.00 from the League – from games 6 – 10 onwards there is also a further award of £50.00 for the side with the most improved performance against the previous block of 5 games. GAMES 21 – 25 is now Complete as follows. CONGRATULATIONS to PORTLAND UNITED FC Reserves Who finished Top with 134 Points out of a possible 150 points and will receive £100.00 CONGRATULATIONS again to PORTLAND UNITED FC Reserves Who were also the most improved Team from Games 16 -20 and will receive an additional £50.00
ISSUE - 26 16 Latest Table – Velocity Wessex League 1 Latest Table – Jewson Western League 1
ISSUE - 26 17 DORSET SENIOR LEAGUE LATEST RESULTS UPCOMING FIXTURES
ISSUE - 26 18