Wick win at Selsey in Peter Bentley Cup - report and pictures

Dave Crouch struck his first goal for Wick and Ben Gray was also on target as the Dragons saw off spirited Selsey to book a Peter Bentley Cup trip to Storrington.
Action from Wick's win at Selsey / Picture: Chris HattonAction from Wick's win at Selsey / Picture: Chris Hatton
Action from Wick's win at Selsey / Picture: Chris Hatton

Crouch finished with aplomb just before the break, finding the bottom corner after fine play by Scott Rafferty and Gray. Former Arundel striker Gray then burst clear after being released by Rafferty in the 73rd minute to slot the Dragons into the next round.

Wick rode their luck in the first half as Selsey twice struck the woodwork through Taylor Hayes but regrouped to defend solidly with Nathan Hawker leading the way as the Blues attack was shut down.

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"It was a complete performance in the second half when we looked very fit, very hungry and implemented everything we worked on in pre-season," said Dragons boss Lee Baldwin. "It will be a tough league match at Roffey on Saturday but we welcome the challenge."

Action from Wick's win at Selsey / Picture: Chris HattonAction from Wick's win at Selsey / Picture: Chris Hatton
Action from Wick's win at Selsey / Picture: Chris Hatton

Last Saturday, Wick hit the ground running as they chopped down Oakwood in their Southern Combination Division One opener at Crabtree Park.

Dragons midfielder Johan van Driel smashed the hosts in front with a rising shot in the 15th minute to round off a flowing move down the left involving Nathan Hawker and Liam Brady. Then after the interval Ben Gray maintained his composure to tuck away a fine through ball from fellow debutant Dave Crouch and defender Nathan Foster completed the victory, finding the far corner after a goalmouth scramble.

Delighted Dragons boss Lee Baldwin said: "The first game of the season can be a nervy affair and you can come undone but I thought we handled it really well. We showed a lot of quality combined with a ruthless streak and while last season we were guilty of not working hard enough when we weren’t in possession and were perhaps a little bit soft, that wasn’t the case against Oakwood. In fact it was the complete opposite.

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‘Our football was flowing when we had the ball, we created numerous chances and scored three cracking goals.’

Van Driel was delighted to bag Wick’s first goal of the campaign and said: "It was with my right-foot swinger as well. If we can build on this level of performance it will be an exciting season."

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