Terras draw blank as winning run is halted
Summary:
Weymouth fell to their first defeat in a month in windy conditions at the Bob Lucas Stadium, as they failed to find the net with a host of first-half chances. Momentum changed after the break, as Sholing took advantage of the wind, and Folivi hit the target to secure a valuable win for the visitors.
Match Report:
After four successive wins in all competitions, Jamie Wells again made just a single change to his lineup. Captain Tom Bearwish was rested as a precaution ahead of the Easter double-header, with Matt Neale coming in as a direct replacement in midfield.
There was a strong wind blowing towards the Windowman Stand, and that certainly helped Weymouth to dominate the chances in the first half. Goodship and Robinson both hit early shots over the bar while Targett responded for Sholing with a shot that came crashing back off the post.
Quarter of an hour into the game Goodship again tried his luck from range and forced Turner into a save, and Burrows came close to scoring directly from the resulting corner as the wind took hold of his high curling delivery and it clattered against the crossbar.
Robinson tried twice more from long range without success before Burrows raced onto Hutchinson’s long ball, going one on one with the keeper only to see his shot go inches wide of the far post.
It was feeling like one way traffic at this point, though Sholing were defending well. Reid was prevented from getting a shot away in the box, Swann’s cutback was intercepted at the near post and Goodship curled another shot wide of the post. Sholing’s only remaining attempt in the first half was driven straight at Evans by Folivi, but Weymouth’s failure to capitalise on their dominance would come back to haunt them.
The change of ends certainly changed the momentum of the game, with Sholing taking advantage of the wind. Folivi was their most dangerous player, and 5 minutes into the second half he stepped inside Betts on the edge of the area to curl an effort just wide of the far post. This was just a sighter, and a few minutes later he did exactly the same thing from just inside the box but this time curled his shot inside the post to give Sholing the lead.
The visitors then dominated the game as they looked to extend their lead. Evans saved well from Targett, who had another shot blocked by his own teammate shortly afterwards. Twice more Folivi cut inside Betts only to see his shots fly inches wide of the far post. He then set up Higgs to try his luck from outside the box, but Evans was able to palm the shot away. And Mason had a crack with a free kick from 35 yards out which Evans comfortably held on to.
It was only as the game approached 90 minutes that the Terras really looked like finding an equaliser. Burrows making headway into the penalty area twice in quick succession – firstly shooting from a tight angle and secondly being bundled to the ground, but his appeal for a penalty was waved away. Finally, deep in stoppage time, a corner for Weymouth saw Evans come forward and Douglas brought on as the ball bounced around the box, Brooks’ header was pushed away by Turner and the follow up by Hanger was smothered by a crowd of defenders as the referee blew for full-time and Sholing celebrated three points that lifted them in to the play-off positions.
Reaction:
Speaking to Air Dorset after the game, Jamie Wells was “obviously disappointed” with the defeat, but highlighted the “difficult conditions today because of the wind …” leading to a “lack of quality from both sides”. He conceded that the two sides were only separated by the quality of finishing, saying “we had plenty of opportunities to put it to bed in the first half, but we didn’t take it … they had theirs with the wind in the second half and they took theirs and that was the difference”.
This defeat sees the gap between Weymouth and the relegation zone reduced to just two points with five games left to play. Next up the Terras visit mid-table Bracknell on Good Friday before they welcome Dorchester to the Bob Lucas Stadium for a massive local derby on Easter Monday.
Lineups:
Terras: Evans; Betts (Hanger, 59), Brooks, Pollock, Hutchinson; Robinson, Neale; Swann, Goodship, Burrows (Douglas, 97); Reid
Subs not used: Genesini, Moss, Stavrianos
Boatmen: Turner; Rabbetts, Riley-Snow, Taylor, D. Mason, Hesketh (Gardiner-Smith, 70), Targett, Roberts (Tume, 75), Magri, Folivi, Higgs
Subs not used: Gabriel, B. Mason, Wishart
Goal: Folivi (52)
Attendance: 1,037
Media:
Watch Jamie Wells’ post-match interview here:
Scroll through the match photos here: 28-Mar-2026 Weymouth vs Sholing | Flickr
Check out the match highlights here: HIGHLIGHTS | Weymouth 0-1 Sholing
Match Report by Ian Middlebrook
