Well, the run has come to an end… it was wonderful while it lasted, but the journey for the Glovers ends in the second round at the hands of Wrexham. Let’s see what else went down this weekend for all the other NLS sides.
We begin with the FA Cup, where there was only one other NLS side remaining in the form of Maidstone. They did what we couldn’t, by defeating League 2 opposition in a major upset! They beat Barrow 2-1 at home to book their spot in the 3rd Round against either Stevenage or Port Vale, both in League 1.
Into the league fixtures now, and there were tons of goals to talk about! Aveley and Farnborough played out a 3-4 barnstormer, with the hosts conceding three times in the final 15 minutes to hand the Yellows their first away win of the season. Another classic took place at the Draper Tools Community Stadium, where Havant & Waterlooville registered their second win of the season, and their second 4-3 win of the season, holding off a late comeback from Dover Athletic to close the gap between the bottom two to 3 points.
Weston-super-mare brought Welling United back down to earth with a thud, as they ran out 4-2 winners, former Glovers Reuben Reid grabbing a brace, while a game full of action at Wednesday’s hosts Bath City ended in Chelmsford City‘s favour. 3 penalties (2 for Bath, 1 for Chelmsford), a red card for Chelmsford and also an own goal in favour of Chelmsford (keeping up?) meant they came from 2-0 down to win 3-2!
Down in Plymouth, Truro City lifted themselves out of the relegation zone with a 3-1 win over St Albans City, while an Ollie Pearce hattrick handed Worthing all 3 points at home to Chippenham Town. In the comparatively dull final fixtures of the day, both Hampton & Richmond and Torquay United registered 2-1 wins to continue their playoff pushes, over Hemel Hempstead and Tonbridge Angels respectively.
There was one postponed fixture due to the chilly weather, and one abandoned mid-game due to bad weather, with Braintree Town and Weymouth not even getting underway, while Eastbourne Borough and Taunton Town was abandoned at the half-time mark, Taunton winning 2-1 at that point. Rearranged dates will be announced in due time.
FA Cup 2nd Round results (NLS teams in bold)
Maidstone United 2-1 Barrow
National League South results – in full
Aveley 3-4 Farnborough Town
Bath City 2-3 Chelmsford City
Hampton & Richmond Borough 2-1 Hemel Hempstead Town
Havant & Waterlooville 4-3 Dover Athletic
Torquay United 2-1 Tonbridge Angels
Truro City 3-1 St Albans City
Weston-super-mare 4-2 Welling United
Worthing 3-1 Chippenham Town
Updated tables ?#TheVanarama pic.twitter.com/z0OsoJ1Wtx
— The National League (@TheVanaramaNL) December 3, 2023