Goodship double secures away day joy for Terras
Summary:
Weymouth secured back-to-back league wins for the first time since February 2024 after coming from behind to beat Basingstoke on their own patch. The hosts had capitalized on an error by Terras’ keeper Max Evans to take the lead at the end of the first half. But two goals for Brandon Goodship after the break were enough to take all three points and extend their record under new manager Jamie Wells to ten points from five games.
Match Report:
After last week’s hard-fought victory over leaders Walton & Hersham, Jamie Wells opted to keep the same starting XI for the visit to Basingstoke, but there were a couple of changes on the bench with Brooklyn Genesini and Reuben Reid both available after recovering from injury, and Luke Bennett returning to AFC Totton after completing his loan spell.
The Terras started the game brightly, going close with a couple of headers from corners and Burrows forcing Grant into an early save with a volley from 15-yards out. But Basingstoke came closest to scoring after 12 minutes when Blake hit the post from 25-yards. Shortly afterwards, Weymouth were forced into an early change when Douglas suffered a knee injury and Genesini was brought on to replace him. Wells took this opportunity to shuffle things round, reverting to a back four and pushing Pollock into midfield.
Genuine chances were in short supply for the remainder of the first half, with Weymouth gaining some control of the game but being restricted to long-range efforts. Genesini, Robinson, Bearwish and Goodship all tried their luck but didn’t really trouble the Basingstoke keeper. Then, as we reached the fourth minute of added time, a hopeful punt forward from the home team was fumbled by Evans and the ball fell into the path of Gallagher who gratefully rolled it into an empty net.
The Terras responded immediately after the break and were level within two minutes. Burrows received the ball on the right wing, beat the full back and drove in a low cross to find Goodship waiting at the back post for a simple tap in. Weymouth pushed for the winner as the second-half progressed and the heavens opened, but the home side still presented a threat from set pieces. Evans pulled off a point-blank save from Cook to make amends for his first-half mistake, before Goodship knocked in his seventh goal in six league games to put the Terras into the lead with 79 minutes on the clock – Reid won the ball 30-yards out and chipped it forward to Goodship who held off his marker and hit a low strike into the bottom right corner.
Basingstoke pushed for an equalizer in the remaining minutes but Evans was equal to their final effort on target, while Stone had a chance to wrap things up for Weymouth in injury-time but was denied by the outstretched foot of Grant in the Basingstoke goal. With the final whistle ringing out, Weymouth’s travelling fans were able to celebrate a third win in five games under their new manager and another step towards safety.
Reaction:
Speaking to Radio Terras after the game, Jamie Wells said “I thought they started better than we did” but after the early substitution he felt that “the little reshuffle played into our hands and that’s where the game started to turn”. Jamie conceded that it was “unfortunate how the first goal went in” but he “lifted the lads up at half-time” and was “really pleased” to see his team secure back-to-back wins. Speaking of the Terras’ current form he said “you can’t fault a single lad in this team … for their work rate, their attitude, their desire … and the atmosphere in the changing room at the minute is brilliant”.
This win sees Weymouth jump up to 16th place in the league, now 2 points and 3 places above the relegation zone, but they face a stiff challenge next Saturday when second-placed Poole Town are the visitors to the Bob Lucas Stadium for yet another Dorset derby.
Lineups:
Terras: Evans; Betts, Douglas (Genesini, 15), Watt, Brooks, Pollock (Moss, 90); Burrows (Reid, 58), Robinson, Bearwish, Goodship (Gray, 84); Stone
Subs not used: Stavrianos
Goals: Goodship (47, 79)
‘Stoke: Grant; Snell, O’Loughlin, Green (Rowe, 80), Armsworth, Upton, Blake, Brown (Cook, 71), Sylla (Barough, 71), Gallagher, Reid
Subs not used: Dickson, Legg
Goal: Gallagher (45+4)
Attendance: 808
Media:
Watch Jamie Wells’ post-match interview here:
Scroll through the match photos here: 24-Jan-26 Basingstoke Town vs Weymouth | Flickr
Enjoy some video highlights from a visiting neutral here: Basingstoke Town v Weymouth
Match Report by Ian Middlebrook
