Important Wins for Sholing & Bideford

Sholing moved ten points clear at the top of the Pitching In Southern League Division One South table on Tuesday evening after a 2-0 win against eighth-placed Paulton Rovers at The Imperial Homes Stadium.

It was an important game for both sides, with the visitors sitting just two points off a top five spot.

The first half finished goalless and it was the Boatmen who broke the deadlock in the 69th minute when Sholing’s keeper Ryan Gosney sent a free kick into the area and Byron Mason set up Lee Wort to score.

Then on 86 minutes, Mason headed Sholing’s second to seal the points.

Rovers finished the game with ten-men when Neil Martin was shown a straight red card for a high kick on Wayne Robinson.

The evening’s other game was also a crucial one at the opposite end of the table as Bideford AFC welcomed Bristol Manor Farm to The Sports Ground.

Manor Farm went into the game on the back of two successive 1-1 draws but in third-from-bottom spot.

The Devonians had won their last two games 1-0, including last Saturday’s excellent success at Bashley.

And Scott Joyce’s men made it a third win by the single goal, scored by Ryan Turner 3 minutes before half-time.

The victory lifts Bideford up to 14th in the table, four points ahead of Manor Farm, with two games in hand.