Yate Town 1

Blackfield and Langley 0

Ollie Mehew’s penalty was enough for Yate Town to progress to the second round of the FA Trophy against Southern League rivals Blackfield and Langley, writes John Davis.

The score-line suggests a close encounter but in truth, particularly if first half chances are the measure, Yate should have won much more comfortably..

There was a delay to the game after the visitors had faced traffic problems and the setback was reflected in the play as Yate dominated all the early exchanges.

Ollie Mehew, returning to the side following suspension, hit the woodwork from distance with a speculative effort and Sam Kamara lifted a shot over the crossbar as the home side pressed forward.

There was a scare at the other end on 17 minutes when winger Owen Fee struck a superb free-kick from way out with Lewis Thomas getting an outstretched hand to the ball as it seemed destined for the top corner.

It was all Yate then with non-stop action at the Lodge Road end with Blackfield goalkeeper Lewis Noice, a former Bluebells loanee, in the thick of the action.

He blocked a Mehew effort with his legs while Price shaved the outside of the post with his follow up shot. The visiting goalkeeper then got his body in the way of another Price drive before Dave Sims-Burgess clipped the cross-bar from wide on the right and the ball was finally cleared after an almighty scramble on the line.

A rash of yellow cards greeted the start of the second half but Yate continued on the front foot and were finally rewarded in the 54th minute.

After another passage of good passing, Mehew was fouled as he wriggled into the box and the striker got up to dispatch the penalty kick after sending Noice the wrong way.

Thomas then blocked a shot from Leronne Plummer at the other end but the visitors faced an uphill struggle with twenty minutes left when substitute Charlie Urry, who had only been on the field for a couple of minutes, was shown a straight red card after a heavy challenge on Kamara.

There was further late pressure from the visitors but the home defence held firm, a cash reward follows and the next round beckons.

Yate boss Paul Britton said: "I'm delighted with the performance. We should have put it to bed earlier. They caused problems after they went down to ten men but we deserved it.

"We've not played a league game in two weeks and we're still top so we must maintain our form to give us a platform for the rest of a season."

Yate have been drawn at home against Dorchester Town in the first qualifying round.