Fishwick Cup quarter-final

Severn Bridge 3 Tintern Abbey B 1

SECOND-HALF goals by Chris Hooper and Craig White earned Severn Bridge a home semi-final against Caldicot Castle B at Shirenewton on Saturday.

But apart from Hooper and White, the main influence on the game came from Bridge’s manager Dean White who laid down the law in his half-time pep-talk.

“I just reminded them they were playing in a quarter cup final and that if they carried on playing the way they were, they wouldn't be going into the draw for the semis,” White said.

“I also said they could forget any ideas of going further in the league with the attitude they were displaying,” he added.

The first half is best summed up as two teams who hadn’t played football for weeks due to the bad weather, showing it in the quality of their performance.

Too often an opening would be created but the end product went over the bar, past a post or was blocked.

“It was lazy and lacklustre and I wasn't going to accept it,” White continued.

“I threatened to bring on substitutes if the performance didn't change but thankfully I didn't need to because they produced a better performance all round.”

It was a classic “game of two halves” and Abbey who arrived with just 11 players, had a number of first-half chances which they failed to convert.

Both teams struggled on the boggy Shirenewton pitch and much of the action took place on the wings.

Hooper opened the scoring soon after the break and Craig White gratefully accepted the gift when a free kick from the right eluded everyone, dropping at the far post for him to fire home.

Hooper grabbed his second when Luke Johnson’s cross from the right wing again dropped invitingly to the tall striker to fire home.

Abbey’s consolation goal came in the dying minutes when Neil Mackie, who wore the goalkeeper’s jersey until Craig White’s goal made it 2-0, hammered a penalty past Bridge’s keeper Martyn Jenkins.

In the other quarter-finals, Mathern B lost 5-3 at home to Caldicot Castle B, Portskewett and Sudbrook lost 4-2 to visitors Underwood and Chepstow Town B beat Severn Tunnel B 5-0.