Sidmouth Town Reserves made a terrific start to their defence of the Devon Senior Cup when they cruised into the next round after a 6-1 Manstone Lane win over Stoke Gabriel Reserves.
The Vikings made a flying start and took the lead as early as the fifth minute when Ferenc Bodor provided the cross for Scott Hughes to score from close range.
Town, faced with a youthful visiting side, took control following the early goal. However, Stoke Gabriel looked comfortable on, and with, the ball and, to their credit, they continually looked to play out from the back.
If there was anything that the Vikings did not do in a dominant first half, it was to not have had the game won by the break! They did add a second goal through Callum Cross, but the South Devon side hit back to halve the deficit with a superbly executed free-kick that arrowed into the top corner of the Town net, giving Vikings Rob Glukowski no chance!
At half-time a few changes were made in the home ranks in a bid to re-charge the side and also look top remove the lethargic approach that had crept in as the interval neared.
The changes had the desired effect! Bodor scored to make it 3-1 before Cross bagged his second and then a Damien Lee Armes header cannoned of a hapless defender to make it 5-1 before Aidy Parr slotted home to complete the scoring.
On Saturday (October 20) the Town second team will no doubt face a tougher task when they travel to play Hatherleigh in a Macron League Division One game.
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