Terras find it tougher this time
By Nigel Biddlecombe

Tuesday 8th August 2006

TERRAS were pushed all the way by plucky Portland United as they closed their pre season programme on a high last night.

But Garry Hill's full-timers certainly didn't have it easy against the Blues youngsters at Grove Corner.

Dave Kiteley's lively hosts - many previously on the books at the Wessex Stadium - restricted Weymouth to only a handful of efforts on goal with Ashley Vickers, Chukki Eribenne and Marcus Richardson on target for the visitors.

This time last season the islanders slumped to a miserable 9-0 defeat at the hands of the Wessex Stadium club, so this performance showed just how far they have already progressed under new boss Kiteley.

For much of the opening period any casual observer would have been hard pressed to see any evidence of the gulf in standard between the two sides.

While the visitors bossed possession for long periods as expected, openings for starting strikers Richard Logan and Wayne Purser were somewhat restricted.

In front of a bumper Grove Corner crowd which included former Terras chairman Ian Ridley, Portland keeper Nick Carroll denied Simon Downer and Terras trialist Abdou El Khalti before Weymouth hit the front on 35 minutes.

From Nick Crittenden's right wing free kick, one of a number of dangerous crosses sent in by the former Aldershot star, towering defender Vickers planted a header past Carroll.

But the former Dagenham and Redbridge player's opener by no means opened the floodgates as the Blues went in at the break looking fairly comfortable.

Crittenden nearly doubled Weymouth's advantage with a well-struck volley just after the restart before Hill introduced substitutes
Raphael Nade, Eribenne and Richardson.

The move, including a switch to a 3-4-3 formation, pepped up the visitors attack and it wasn't long before Eribenne earned a penalty after being sandwiched in the box by Callum Ross Jennins and Lloyd Cranny.

Eribenne took the resulting spot kick himself and coolly slotted past the helpless Carroll. Less than two minutes after the restart

Weymouth made it 3-0 when Logan, playing deeper behind the forwards,released Ben Smith with a cracking pass who squared to Richardson to slot home from close range.

Lee Elam nearly added a fourth midway through the half before Portland created a couple of openings of their own, as Terras took their foot off the gas.

Two former Terras combined with Scott Dixon's curling free kick finding Carl Mutch at the near post but the striker couldn't divert his shot past substitute Jason Matthews.

Late on Eribenne wasted a couple of good openings to grab his second, blasting over with a clear sight of goal.