5 goals put Wells back in the hunt

Wells City have moved back into the top six of the Western League First Division with games still in hand following a 5-1 thumping of bottom side Bishop Sutton.

City are now very much in the promotion picture and it gives the Boxing Day clash with Cheddar an extra dimension with both sides playing at the top of their game.

The game started well for the home side and the inevitable opening goal came on 14 minutes, shortly after Lee Pitman had thumped an effort against the Bishop Sutton crossbar, with James Batchelor striking a free-kick that left goalkeeper George Dempsey rooted to his line.

Wells continued to dominate in the opening period and they deservedly doubled their advantage midway through the opening half courtesy of another strike from leading scorer Pitman who got on the end of a Leon Britton cross to fire low past Dempsey.

The game was then put out of the reach of the visitors just after the half hour mark as Ollie Bryant got on the end of a Pitman cross to head powerfully past Dempsey.

The 3-0 interval lead was well deserved, but if City do have an Achilles' heel, it is a fact that they can turn their supremacy into a frustrating lapse that sees them go off the boil far too often and they did just that at the start of the second half.

That lapse of 15 minutes was to cost them a clean sheet as Raphael Waugh somehow squeezed between two defenders before slotting the ball wide of the advancing Will Justin.

The goal lifted the visitors and they came close to adding a second moments later as Sam Downes dragged an effort from 20 yards inches wide of the goal.

Wells City did reclaim their composure in the final third of the game with Britton unlucky not to get on the scoresheet when he closed down a Dempsey clearance and the ball almost crossed the line, before Jack Neil tracked back and cleared the ball off the goalline.

City did regain their three-goal advantage on 75 minutes following a foul on Batchelor on the edge of the Bishop Sutton penalty area, when Pitman took full advantage of the visitors' disorganised wall from a free-kick by lifting the ball into the corner of the net past the unsighted Dempsey.

Batchelor and Pitman then linked up to set up a fifth goal for the home side on 80 minutes with Jake Brown getting on the score sheet with the simplest of tap ins from close range.

Merv's merit marks: W Justin 7, S Saunders 7, O BRYANT 8, S Gerrish 7, M Grist 8, S Sokol 7, A Allen 7, J Batchelor 8, L Brittain 7, L Pitman 8, J Brown 7, Subs: N Rendell 6, T Smith 6,

Referee: Mark Lillington 8

Entertainment value: 7