Honiton U12s knew they were in for a tough match in the return home fixture against Cheriton Fitzpaine after beating the same opposition in their previous outing.

And so it turned out with the Cherries winning the rematch 4-1.

The game followed a similar pattern with both sides contesting every challenge in an even first half.

Honiton drew first blood when Ben Spence’s direct free-kick from a wide position caught the goalkeeper wrong-footed and swerved into the net.

The visitors were soon back in the game though, equalising when Honiton failed to clear a corner following Harry Horn’s fine initial save.

With the scores level at half time, the teams went looking for the victory and it was the away side who took the initiative from the spot after Spence was harshly penalised.

Honiton pressed in search of another goal and Cheriton took full advantage of the resulting space created to further increase their lead.

This third goal proved the killer blow as Honiton’s confidence ebbed and they conceded a final goal for a 4-1 reverse.

Keeper Horn, again up from the U11s, was the pick of the players with several top saves.

Spence and Dan Loosemore deserve recognition for their non-stop running and excellent defensive positioning respectively,