ON a sunny Saturday afternoon Monmouth town AFC 1sts entertained Trinant on the Sports Ground.
After a much improved performance the previous week Monmouth had to prove to the home fans that they were not a one off team.
Trinant had only lost one game this season and Monmouth were expecting a hard encounter. The game started fast and furious and Monmouth began to show some good touches.
The defence of Perella, Skipp and Watkins held Trinant at bay, often starting the moves from the back.
Keene in goal had very little to do but showed his quality when called upon.
The two wing backs of Dorrington and Harris started to see more ball and peppered the Trinant box with crossed from both sides.
It was not until the 35th minute that Monmouth put their constant pressure to any use. a free kick by G Skipp was hooked on by M Williams. The ball broke to D Skipp who drove it in low into the Trinant net to make it 1-0.
In midfield the workhorse Aaron Davies and the deft touches of Ross Kennedy began to tell on Trinant. S Wookey was moving freely in the opposition half and found himself open. He latched onto the ball and scored Monmouth's second.
Monmouth were 2-0 up at half time and went for the kill. It was not long before they were awarded a free kick 25 yards out. The Trinant defence pulled down M Williams and R Kennedy stepped up to hit an unstoppable left footed free kick that curled into the top corner.
Monmouth, however, sat back on a 3-0 lead instead of going forward. This allowed Trinant to score an opportunist goal to make it 3-1.
Monmouth have now won 10 points out of 12 and have started to show their true ability. Co-managers McDonald and Phillpotts have been happy with the performances but will be looking for improvement in the coming weeks.
The side are grateful to the Vine Tree for their hospitality in supplying refreshments after the match and to the stalwart home supporters who have never given up.