Ottery St Mary head for Sandford tomorrow (Saturday) looking to end a run of disappointing defeats at their Mid Devon ground.
In each of the last two seasons the Otters have lost at Sandford. The away game this year was actually played – though not to a finish – earlier in the season and, when the game was abandoned late in the contest, owing to an injured home player, Ottery had come back from two down – and missed a penalty – with the game locked at 2-2 at its premature end!
Ottery boss Dave Fairweather says: “Sandford has not been a happy hunting ground for us in recent seasons, but we are a different side this time round and I have no doubt that if we put in a performance we will get the result we want.”
Last Saturday the Otters were without a league game, but results elsewhere were very favourable to the Otters’ Macron League Division Three title hopes!
Defeats for title rivals University (3-2 at Otterton) and East Budleigh (1-0 at Beer Reserves) mean that, for the first time this season, the Otters cannot be caught if they were to win each of their remaining six league games (see our article on the remaining games for all the Division Three title-chasing teams at www.sidmouthherald.co.uk).
Ottery were in Sunday action with a Morrison Bell Cup tie against Seaton, played on the artificial surface at Axminster, where Jordan Wilkinson scored what proved to be the only goal of the first half, which ended with the Otters leading 1-0.
Seaton levelled and then took a 2-1 lead in the second half and, as the clock ticked down, it looked as if the ‘status quo’ would stand and the Macron League Premier Division side would put out the Division Three Otters.
However, Ottery boss Dave Fairweather, who had said before the cup tie that he quietly fancied his team’s chances, saw them draw level at 2-2 thanks to an 85th minute Dan Jewell goal and, four minutes later, they won it when Otters Under-18 player Todd Gilronan netted.
Ottery will now play a Morrison Bell quarter-final tie against another Macron League top flight side – they host Feniton at Ottery next Tuesday (March 26).
The Otters were in action last night (Thursday) when they took on Feniton Reserves in a Grandisson Cup last eight tie.
The other Grandisson Cup ties are: Kentisbeare v East Budleigh (no date yet); Sidmouth Town Reserves v Bradninch Town (playing at Manstone Lane on Tuesday, March 26) and Tipton St John v Bravehearts (no date yet).
For tomorrow’s trip to Sandford, the Otters will be without Dan Jewell and Dan Welch with Welch also missing the Feniton game on Tuesday night.
Jewell, who misses the Sandford trip as he is running a marathon, may well be back for the Fenny fixture.
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