Sidmouth Town made South West Peninsula League Eastern Division title-chasing Bovey Tracey work mighty hard for what was ultimately a 3-1 Wednesday night home win over the Vikings.

Town joint-boss Kev Tooze, who had missed Saturday’s 5-1 defeat for Town at Torridgeside, was back in the dugout at Bovey Tracey – albeit on his own, as fellow joint-boss Danny Burwood was unavailable.

Tooze said: “Danny had told me how poor it had been on Saturday at Torridgeside where just about everything that could go wrong, did go wrong!

“I’d been away on a football tour in the Channel Islands with fellow vets, and so, having heard all about Saturday’s performance, I thought long and hard about it before the Bovey game and I tweaked one or two things as I felt we’d get a better return with one or two players playing in positions that I feel they are better in – and, to a man, they most certainly delivered!”

For almost an hour at Bovey, Town matched the high-fliers and there was an element of good fortune about the home side’s opening goal – a penalty tucked beyond Jake Wreford at the third time of asking.

The Town glovesman made a fine initial save, then kept out the second effort before being beaten by a third attempt!

Buoyed by the goal, the hosts scored a second, a clinical finish – netting their 100th league goal of the season in the process.

However, Town, who had given as good as they had got for much of the game, deservedly reduced the arrears with a fine finish from Ferenc Bodor. The Vikings then had a terrific chance to level, but young Louis Adey – 20 goals this season in the Town third team – pulled his shot wide before, in added time, Bovey scored their third.

Tooze said: “The lads were superb and I told them afterwards that, across our final five games, if they produce similar then they will win more than they lose.”

He continued: “We went down to Bovey with just a dozen lads and young Louis came off the bench and did well. Give the lad more experience and you’ll find that, nine times out of 10, he’ll be sticking those sort of chances away.”

Town are not in action this Saturday (April 13), but they are involved in two East Devon derby matches next week with a Tuesday evening (7.30pm) meeting with Axminster Town followed by a Good Friday (11am) visit to Budleigh Salterton. Tooze says: “We remain looking to reach 50 points this season and have five more games to get the nine points, which I maintain will represent a good season – and a progressive one.”

Town joint-boss Kevin Tooze missed Saturday’s game at Torridgeside as he was away in Jersey with the ‘Golden Boys’, a group of footballers who meet every Thursday – and have been doing so for the past 30 years!

The tour to Jersey has taken place in each of the past six seasons and, this time round, ‘Golden Boys’ beat St Peters 4-0.

Tooze said: “It’s great fun being involved in such things. We may be past our best, but we get so much enjoyment still being involved in the game.”