Evesham United suffered a narrow defeat to Yate Town, losing by a solitary goal on a cold and breezy Saturday afternoon at the Spiers and Hartwell Stadium, writes Simon Purfield.
The match, which drew a crowd of 531, featured both clubs newly promoted from Division One South.
The visitors started brightly and created the early chances. After 12 minutes, a free kick from Lloyd James fell to Lucas Tomlinson, but the Yate player sent his shot just wide of the post.
Shortly after, Tomlinson tried his luck from 25 yards out, but Evesham goalkeeper Brendan Beard dealt with the effort comfortably. Corey Evans also threatened with a left-footed shot, which was well saved by Beard.
Evesham grew into the game in the 24th minute when Josh Barlow came close for the hosts, his shot from 20 yards narrowly missing the target after some defensive confusion from the visitors.
Yate Town took the lead in the 34th minute. An excellent cross from James Ollis picked out Corey Evans, who found space near the penalty spot and fired a powerful shot into the roof of the left-hand corner of the net.
As half-time approached, Evesham's Ethan Dunbar made a determined run down the right flank, delivering a cross for Aaron Heap, who blasted his effort over the bar.
The second half proved to be a scrappy affair with few clear-cut opportunities.
Evesham had the first chance after the break, as Dunbar blazed a shot over the bar following a counter attack. Soon after, Ollis had a run at goal for Yate, but his attempt went wide.
Marlon Jackson set up Evans, who looked poised to score, but Evesham’s Player of the Match, Ioan Richards, produced a superb tackle to deny the opportunity.
Later in the half, Ollis attempted to lob Beard from outside the area, but his effort drifted just wide of the post.
The best chance of the half fell to Evesham with 15 minutes remaining.
The midfield won possession from defender Will Larvin, and the ball broke to Dunbar, who surged towards goal. However, from a promising position on the edge of the box, his shot went over the bar.
Neither side managed to truly test the goalkeepers in the second period.
This result sees Evesham United slip to 12th place in the table, following a disappointing run of just one win in their last six matches.
Their next fixture is an away trip to second-placed Gloucester City on Saturday, January 3, with a 3pm kick-off.
