Sidmouth Warriors Under-13s were good value for a 3-1 victory on their visit to Exeter-based Central Giants and, with the win, cement their place amongst the teams looking to gain promotion out of Division Two of the Exeter and District Youth League.

The sides were familiar to each other for they had met in East Devon just a few weeks before and that had been a close encounter that Warriors won narrowly.

The match was played out on a sloping pitch with a wind gusting severely throughout, making simply standing up difficult for players and supporters!

Warriors skipper Callum French opted to play into the wind in the first half and it was not long before the elements began to influence proceedings!

Every ball pumped forward became an aerial challenge for the Warriors, but the back line were equal to the task.

Indeed, the two central defenders, the skipper and Thomas Nicholls, were simply superb, heading away everything that came before them!

After a lengthy period of battling the wind, Warriors eventually worked out a way to play both the elements and the opposition and, in a slick counter attack, Thomas Fletcher was inches away from opening the scoring when he threw himself bravely at a free-kick – getting a clattering from the home glovesman for his efforts!

With the half drawing to an end, Central were awarded a free kick and they lofted it into the wind for it to travel over the entire back-line and into the Sidmouth goal past the desperate attempts of the keeper.

With the elements in their favour, Warriors began the second half looking to restore parity.

They used the wind well and, after several ‘near things’, levelled when Man of the Match Jamie Pitter weaved his way through the Central defence before firing the ball home.

Once level, the confidence grew in the Warriors’ ranks; they went in search of a second and when the lively Pitter was brought down when bearing down on goal he got up and rifled home the penalty.

Now in charge of the contest, Warriors went close again when a Michal Bielawski shot flashed marginally wide, before the frame of the goal kept out another effort.

The final passage of play saw yet another corner and, with time ticking down, Ben Elsom, who had been testing his range all game, decided to fire in a corner, looping it into the wind and into the far corner of the goal!