With the Sidmouth College synthetic turf damaged midweek by a low flying helicopter, Sidmouth entertained Truro at Colyton last weekend.

With the Sidmouth College synthetic turf damaged midweek by a low flying helicopter, Sidmouth entertained Truro at Colyton last weekend. Whilst Colyton has been the scene of many memorable matches for the hosts over years, especially in the Ronnie Moore era, unfortunately for the hosts, the change of venue did not equal a change of luck.The opening exchanges were very even as is often the case for Sidmouth. With the dependable Andrew Jarrett on his left and flamboyant Andrew Mapson on his right, Andrew Welch looked to control the game from the centre-half position. Dan Devine played in the higher centre half position to complete the 'diamond midfield' so reminiscent of Moore's glory days as captain.The Cornishmen took the lead midway into the first half thanks to a reverse stick shot from the Truro forward. The home side nearly equalised moments later, instead managing to hit the post. And it was at this point that the match seemed to turn - it was as if the Sidmouth players conceded that luck was not on their side and that their woeful start to the season was set to continue.Paul Gannon continues to show his value to the team not only as a sound technical player but more importantly the normally reserved fullback showed a fine display of character and seemed to inspire his younger team mates. Despite falling a few more goals behind, Sidmouth did manage to find the net when Byron Fitzgerald skilfully converted a Nick Wade cross.At a time when it would be easy to identify more negatives than positives it is refreshing to see 15-year-old Fitzgerald slotting into the 1st XI so comfortably. With Bobby Brown chomping at the bit and pressing to regain a 1st team place and Chris Lewis putting in solid performances consistently, it is likely that Graham Pidgeon's recent return to 1st XI action will prove to be short lived.The Truronians returned to Cornwall having run out the victors in another disappointing game for Sidmouth. However, the team remain full of character and determination and a strong team effort is expected on the back of what has been a challenging week for the club. The realisation of a relegation dogfight is a real threat for Sidmouth and so the players will be well aware of the importance of collecting three points against relegation favourites Minehead this weekend.