Sport

Sport Blandford make it to Dorset cup final

Dorset Senior Trophy Semi final April 24 Gillingham Town 1 Blandford United 2 (after extra time)

A Brad Pike goal five minutes from the end of extra time saw Blandford squeeze past The Gills in a pulsating cup semi-final. Both sides hit the woodwork on more than one occasion and shared spells of pressure. Gillingham had five corners in the first 20 minutes with keeper Mike Gleadall forced to make two fine saves. But in the 26th minute, The Royals attacked through Archie McCarthy, whose ball found Sam Watson. The striker, who scored a hat trick in the quarter final against Sturminster Marshall, coolly dummied the keeper and slotted in. Blandford led for just two minutes when The Gills equalised from the spot after a handball in the box. In the second half, Gillingham applied huge pressure, hitting the bar, then seeing the ball twice come off the post and roll along the line. Blandford responded, with Brad Pike hitting the post. With minutes remaining, Pike had another shot saved, then found space to slam home the winner. The Royals will now play the cup holders, Merley Cobham Sports, who defeated Poole Borough 6-2 in the other semi. The final is pencilled in for May 18 – which would allow fans to attend the game at the Dorset County Ground in Poole.

Quarter final Shaftesbury Town Res 0 Merley Cobham Sports 1

Shaftesbury attacked the cup holders until the last minute. Dan Edwards scored the only goal of the game in the first half but Town dominated. Harry Wilkinson struck the inside of the post and Town again hit the woodwork with 10 minutes to play. Merley stayed strong and Town’s last chance was gone when Matt Hindle shot over the bar.

FOOTBALL FIXTURES

MAY 1 Dorset Premier Supplementary Cup 3pm Merley Cobham Sports v Gillingham Town Shaftesbury Town Reserves v Sturminster Newton United Dorset Senior League Cup 3pm Stalbridge FC v Dorchester Sports Reserves Tisbury v Poole Borough Donhead Barbarians v South Cheriton Comets TGR v AFC Blandford United Wincanton v Team Gryphon

May 3 Dorset Senior League Cup 2pm Beaminster v Tisbury United Hamworthy Rec Reserves v Stalbridge FC

May 4 Dorset Premier Supplementary Cup 6.30pm Shaftesbury Town Reserves v Gillingham Town Sturminster Newton United v

KICK START Mere Karate Club is back at Gillingham RiversMeet today. It’s juniors only until May 17: numbers are limited so please book in. New members welcome. More: officialkarateuk.co.uk, 01747 860144 or 860231.

Sorry Stur slip again

Dorset Premier Supplementary Cup April 24

Holt United 4 Sturminster Newton 1

Bournemouth Sports 2 Shaftesbury Town Res 1

Stur’s miserable run continued with a thumping away to Holt. The two teams are bottom of Group A with one victory –against each other. Tyler Rutten again scored for Shaftesbury Reserves but the club slipped to a 2-1 defeat at Bournemouth Sports after playing well in recent games. Rutten also scored against Holt in their previous game, along with Matt Hindle and Cam Butler. Gillingham lead the group with five wins from five. They next face Merley Cobham Sports away tomorrow, who have also won all their games. The top two from each group go through to the semi-finals.

April 20 Gillingham Town 1 Sturminster Newton 0

Holt United 0 Shaftesbury Town Res 3

Bournemouth Sports May 8 Dorset Premier Supplementary Cup 3pm Gillingham v Bournemouth Sports Sturminster Newton United v Shaftesbury Town Reserves Dorset Senior League Cup 3pm Stalbridge v Sturminster Marshall Tisbury v Chickerell United

May 9 Blackmore Vale Football League 10.30am AFC Blandford United v South Cheriton Comets Bruton United Colts v Donhead Barbarians Team Gryphon v Bradford Abbas Wincanton v Sturminster Rovers

May 12 Dorset Senior League Cup 6pm Westland Sports Res v Tisbury

Blackmore Vale Football League 6.30pm AFC Blandford United v Sturminster Rovers Bradford Abbas v Wincanton South Cheriton Comets v Bruton United Colts Team Gryphon v TGR

Sport Wincanton strolling towards BV title

Blackmore Vale Football League April 25

Bradford Abbas 3 Team Gryphon 4

Bruton United Colts 1 Sturminster Rovers 6

TGR 1 South Cheriton Comets 3

Wincanton maintained their unbeaten run with a walkover win when Blandford failed to field a side. That’s 13 out of 13 for United, who are strolling their way to the league title. South Cheriton Comets moved into second place with a fine 3-1 win at TGR and a first outing for new player/coach Ollie Godbolt. Alfie Collings netted a brace. Match of the Day was the 34 result between Bradford Abbas and Team Gryphon Josh Farrant scored two for the visitors. Meanwhile Sturminster Rovers followed up their 5-0 win the previous week with a 6-1 thrashing of bottom placed Bruton Colts. Will Guppy bagged four.

JAKE TAKES Bradford Abbas striker Jake Butterfield lifts the ball over the AFC Blandford keeper in the team’s 3-1 victory. Pic: Connor Standfield

April 18 Bradford Abbas 3 AFC Blandford Utd 1

Sturminster Rovers 5 TGR 0 Team Gryphon 3 Donhead Barbarians 3 Wincanton United 9 Bruton United Colts 2

Tom Colley scored his 150th goal as Abbas bounced back from two defeats to bury Blandford. Jack Watson and Jake Butterfield also got on the score sheet. Josh Thierry Farrant twice put Team Gryphon ahead against Donhead but each time the visitors replied – then went ahead. Aron Walls salvaged a point for TG. Five different scorers gave Sturminster their third win in a row. In a top v bottom clash, Wincanton’s Kieran Davis nabbed another brace in a 92 trouncing of Bruton: he also scored two last week. Dix scored a hat trick.

Tisbury boss comes off the bench in sub crisis victory

Dorset Senior League Cup April 24

Merley Cobham S Res 1 Tisbury United 3

Stalbridge FC 1 Sturminster Marshall 2

Tisbury made it four wins in a row to beat Merley Reserves and move into second place in their group table. Goals from Tobie Keel, Zach Smith and Douglas Wilson sealed the victory although The Sharks were holding on at 2-1 before Wilson made it safe with 10 minutes to go. Special mention for Tisbury manager Dan Carter– with no subs fit to travel, he came on after 20 minutes to replace injured skipper Tom Marshall and play in his first competitive game in nine years. A brace from Lewy Crumpler won the game at Stalbridge who now prop up their group with one win in six.

April 21

Cranborne 0 Stalbridge FC 2 The Sharks ran out comfortable winners to make it three wins on the bounce despite missing four starters from the previous game. Tisbury had to wait until the 25th minute when a cross was guided home by the clinical Lee Gale. Craig Knowles added a second when he reacted quickest to a parry by the Westland keeper. The visitors pulled one back but Gale secured the points with an exquisite lob from inside the centre circle. There were several opportunities to add further goals but the keeper pulled off a string of saves from Knowles and Lewis Fisher. Stalbridge picked up their first win of the tournament with a midweek ‘must-win’ victory at Cranborne, to add to a draw and three defeats.

Reserves pull out of Senior League Cup

Wincanton Town Reserves have pulled out of the Dorset Senior League Cup. First team manager Chris Wise said: “We didn’t realise there would be so many games but so many teams joined the competition. “Our players just didn’t want to be playing matches into June.”

By Steve Keenan

newsdesk@blackmorevale.net

KART MAN: Team Clay racer Jordan Morris

He dreams of racing at Silverstone but for now, 15year-old Jordan Morris is working his way up the motorsport ladder with his first season in senior kart racing. Jordan has been a member of Team Clay go-kart club near Dorchester for three years and represented the team in competitions around the country. Last year he finished second overall in the club championship in the Junior Max category and now takes another step forward. In a Virtual Racing Association preview of the season, it said: “Junior Max runner up Jordan Morris makes the step up to the Senior Max ranks knowing he has it all to do to be at the front again, having pipped Harri Reynolds to second overall last season by just a single point. “There is no doubt he has the ability to mix it with best and surely time will tell if he can cut his teeth at the front.” It’s a daunting prospect but Jordan is confident. “I will be taking part in the Club Championship and competing the whole Super One calendar, travelling the country testing and racing against top class drivers. I feel confident for good results, hopefully consistent podiums.” He lives with parents Richard and Carolyn in Chettle and Jordan has always been fascinated by motorsports. “From a very young age I have been keen on speed, Formula 1, knowing so many facts and figures – from even before my parents were born.” Jordan began competitive racing in 2018 and is now a fully-fledged kart racer with Motorsport UK. He began making regular podium appearances and Team Clay began setting up his kart to suit different circuits. “In my first karting season, I won four finals, numerous heat wins and set fastest laps, ending up second in the club championship. The following year, 2019, I had to make the move up to the next class, Juniors. “Again, it was another learning curve as I was racing against more experienced racers who had been racing since a very young age. I finished seventh in the club championship with four trips to the podium. “I also made my debut season in Motorsport UK British Karting Championship, I visited many different tracks around the country, and raced amongst the best the country has to offer, a great experience.” In 2019, Jordan was accepted to the British Young Racing Driving Academy, using a simulator to improve his speeds. “The year at YRDA taught me a lot about the other side of Motorsport (media, fitness, knowledge, set up etc).” He hoped it would be a platform to start racing in F4 but he was forced to give up the dream due to a lack of funding and demands of competing in the British Karting Championship. “I was again racing in Juniors for the 2020 season, and the experience of the previous year made me more consistent and competitive as a whole. The coronavirus wrecked a large part of the season but finished second in the club championship. “The 2021 season is looking promising and fingers crossed with investment, training etc., it should be a strong season. “Like a lot of things in life, especially in sports, it’s the cost that at times can hinder the process of dream, even when you have the ability and skill to achieve. “My family is very supportive of me emotionally, mentally and financially, also taking me to where I need to be and cheering me on the whole way. “I am looking for sponsorship, investment or anything that could help, so I can keep my dream alive and keep racing in the motorsport world. I’ve been to Silverstone to watch Formula 1, MotoGP and other forms of motorsport and it is my dream that one day I will have the chance to race around the circuit. n If you are interested in helping Jordan, please contact his father Richard on 07964 958251

Jordan’s racing ahead

nJordan made his senior debut at Clay Pigeon Raceway, Batcombe, on the weekend of April 10-11. This is his report…

To finish 21st out of 36 fellow racers doesn’t paint the whole picture of my debut weekend in Seniors. After qualifying 12th for feature race, at the start of the race three (karts) into two at The Esses doesn’t really work, so I ended up on grass to avoid accident, then climbed way back through the field only to spin (like other racers) as someone’s radiator coolant was spilling on circuit making track ‘very’ slippy. But nevertheless, with pace just about there, no mistakes and learning all about this category it was a very good weekend and so looking forward to the season ahead with confidence.

Sport Fliers give a lift to children in need

A flying team at Henstridge airfield is behind a scheme that has been giving children a lift during lockdown. Annabelle Burroughes is one of the pilots at Tiger Moth Training, an outfit which lays on acrobatic shows as well as training pilots and taking up people who want to fly in the iconic aircraft. In lockdown, she and the team worked on a scheme to treat children from disadvantaged backgrounds by providing a flying sticker and colouring book, with model gliders and other aviation goodies. They were labelled Patsy’s Parcels after Annabelle’s staffie dog, and a food bank delivery system enabled the A4 packages to reach 40 families in Sherborne. Such was their popularity, the team have now donated and delivered more than 250 Patsy Parcels. And now the team has built a fundraising page so the gifts can continue. Said Annabelle: “We wanted to help children during these challenging times. Families are amazing and academically they are managing, but it was suggested that local children from disadvantaged backgrounds would love some treats. “We were invited to use the food bank delivery system to reach the families that could do with a lift and have so far delivered 250 packs. “They have been such a success we would like to continue.” To help sustain the project, go to: patsys-parcels.com

TAKING OFF: Pilot Annabelle Burroughes is behind the Patsy’s Parcels scheme, named after her staffy

Fancy turning your arm at bowls?

Gillingham Bowling Club is holding open days on May 1 and 8 for visitors to come and try the sport, any age welcome. The club is on School Lane and will be open between 10am – 4pm. Please wear flat soled shoes and bring a mask. More info: gillinghambowlsdorset.com

Blandford crowdfunding replaces burnt goalposts

A crowdfunding page raised enough money within 24 hours after vandals set fire to goal posts and destroyed the nets. The goals were used by the 21 members of Blandford United FC Under-10s and had only recently been donated to the club. Coach John Hart vented his anger on Facebook on finding the damage two weeks ago. But within 24 hours the funding page had been set up and £1,136 donated. “I was so angry and upset after seeing something that was donated to the team mindlessly destroyed,” said John.“To see the people of Blandford Forum rally around and raise such a massive amount in such a short space of time was truly humbling. Words cannot express mine and my team’s gratitude.” The money will replace the goals and also go towards training kit. Boys and girls in school year 5 are welcome to join the team. More info: John Hart 07747 399318