Sidmouth Warriors Under-10s were good value for a 2-1 success in the Exeter and District Youth League KO Cup second round tie with hosts Twyford Spartans.

What made the victory all the more sweet was that the team had not played since before Christmas and conditions at Tiverton were particularly cold!

There was an understandable rustiness about the Warriors and they took a while to find their feet in the contest.

What made the task harder was that the pitch used for the game was considerably smaller than the pitch Warriors are used to.

However, there is sufficient quality in this particular Sidmouth team for them to overcome such issues and, once they did settle, they began to move the ball around well.

The deadlock was broken when, after some good work on the left from Jamie Pitter, Charlie Turley was able to pounce on a loose ball in the box and stab it home to put Warriors ahead.

With the defence solid and Matthew Dunford shoring up the midfield, chances for a reply by Twyford were few and far between, but they did create one last chance before the break which they tucked away to leave the sides all square at half-time.

There was a nervy feel about the start of the second half with both teams clearly knowing that the games third goal, in a close contest, might well be decisive!

Twyford threatened, but were denied by some smart handling from Warriors glovesman Antony Nita. As the game wore on extra time started to look likely but Man of the Match Finn Upsher had other ideas. Having performed superbly at the heart of the Warriors defence he strode forward and rose to meet a corner with real class and powerfully head the ball home.

For the remaining few minutes Warriors players defended like terriers. Bodies were thrown in front of the ball and, with the home side still pressing, the final whistle was blown and Warriors had secured a coveted place in the last eight of the cup.