Our second-half onslaught against Havant & Waterlooville resulted in an emphatic 4-1 win on Saturday at the Bob Lucas Stadium.
t of our four goals were scored within the final 20 minutes of regular time, after a mix-up between Corey Panter and Harvey Wiles-Richards drew the visitors level early in the second half.
Our luck began to change when Tom Bearwish won a foul inside the box, resulting in a spot-kick being converted by Brandon Goodship, now just five goals off joining the 100-club.
Substitutes Keelan O’Connell and Ezio Touray then slotted in from close range to seal what is now 50 points in the league so far this season.
This also now leaves us 14th in the table, with two more points than last season’s total, having played seven less games.
Bobby Wilkinson made one change, tweaking the formation slightly in order to bring in Harry Jones at the expense of Harry Parsons.
The gaffer stated before Saturday’s game that he knew the visitors “would turn up, because they ha[d] to.”
It came with little surprise that the Hawks would create the first major chance of the match.
With just eight minutes gone, Kwaku Donkor was able to take the ball past Bearwish and feed Jake McCarthy with a low cross.
We were, however, handed a lifeline when the ex-Terra hit the crossbar.
It wouldn’t take long for fortunes to further swing our way, either.
Barely a minute on, Goodship found Bearwish with a first-time pass in-between the lines.
Anticipating an offside, the Havant defence stopped in its tracks.
Instead, now with all the space in the world, Bearwish powerfully fired past Ross Worner in off the post, from approx. 12 yards.
With us now a goal ahead with much of the first half still yet to play, one would be forgiven that we would capitalise on our lead by creating more chances.
However, we would fail to test Worner for the remaining minutes, instead being mainly tasked with shutting out opposition opportunities.
The visitors hit the post with seven minutes remaining, Jack Jebb curling a spectacular free-kick over the wall and beyond Wiles-Richards, who was handed a slice of luck via the woodwork once again.
Jebb proved central to the Hawks’ danger once again, delivering a powerful low-cross down the right-hand side.
The ball landed to ex-Terra Brendan Willson, who fired well wide of the goal from close-range.
Though their final chance of the half would call Wiles-Richards into action this time, as he pushed away a McCarthy header to keep us in the lead before the break.
Our shot stopper would remain busy at the start of the second half, being forced into a double-save three minutes in.
The first stop was made after James Roberts struck a half-volley from outside the box, awkwardly swinging towards goal.
Wiles-Richards’ initial parry then looked to send the ball into the path of Ryan Seager, before our keeper heroically dived to the ball with both hands.
We wouldn’t be able to keep the visitors at bay for much longer, though, as the Hawks would be handed a huge slice of luck in the 56th minute.
After Kai Innocent swung in a looping cross down the left-hand side, both Panter and Wiles-Richards ran towards the ball.
However, instead of clearing it to safety, a mix-up between both players would follow, resulting in a Panter own-goal which would draw both sides level.
Soon afterwards, we would see Wilkinson make a double-change, introducing Keelan O’Connell and Ezio Touray in place of Harry Jones and Joel Rollinson.
It would be at this point when our fortunes began to turn around.
Our first positive moment of the second half came when Bearwish made a clever run past Donkor into the box, before he was fouled by the right-back, resulting in a penalty.
Goodship, making no mistake, then blasted the ball into the roof of the net, scoring his 95th goal for the club.
With us now back in front with under 20 minutes of regular time to go, the momentum again swung our way.
It would take just seven minutes for us to further extend our lead.
Goodship was at the forefront once more, composedly slowing the ball down on the counter-attack as he played a delicate through-ball in O’Connell’s path.
The winger then placed the ball into the bottom-left corner for his second goal of the season, his first since his winner against Hemel Hempstead Town.
O’Connell was close to scoring another goal four minutes on, heading over the bar after Willson was unable to properly intercept Hamblin’s cross.
Our wait for a fourth would not take long, though, when Hamblin began a dazzling run down the wing, taking the ball round Harry Jewitt-White.
Our full-back then fired in an accurate low-cross, towards Touray, who tapped home to make it 4-1 just before stoppage time.
Match report
by Jack Webb
