Buildbase FA Trophy
First round proper
Taunton Town 1, Bognor Regis Town 4

TAUNTON Town were unable to make FA Trophy history on Saturday, denied what would have been their longest run in the competition by a Bognor Regis fightback at the Vididor Stadium.

Les Afful had given the Peacocks a half-time lead, but goals from Ben Swallow (2), Ibra Sekajja and Doug Tuck won the day for the away side, who play two divisions higher than their hosts, who also had substitute Ollie Chamberlain sent off.

With striker Dan Sullivan missing due to a wedding and his side looking tired on Tuesday night, Taunton manager Leigh Robinson freshened things up by bringing in Afful, Ryan Brett, Omar Simpson and Ross Staley.

Matt Wright and Staley had early sighters which were straight at visiting keeper Dan Lincoln, as the home side's direct style seemed to unsettle their opponents early on.

As the Rocks settled, though, they began to look the more dangerous side as the hosts struggled to keep hold of the ball, but for all their flashes of slick play and fizzed crosses, they did not overextend Lloyd Irish.

Things began to get more interesting after the half hour, as Calvin Davies' shot was beaten out by Irish and the Peacocks took the lead on 38 minutes.

It was a defensive mistake which opened the door for them, as Bognor Regis skipper Sami El-Ad's sloppy pass was picked up by Wright, who slipped in Afful to finish confidently.

The hosts led at half time and began the second period well too, putting pressure on their opponents but unable to find a second goal.

That proved costly, as after Irish had saved from Sekajja in a one-on-one situation, the equaliser came on 56 minutes, as a counter-attack from a Taunton corner ended with Swallow stooping to head in Jimmy Muitt's cross.

Matt Buse missed a presentable chance, skewing his shot just wide from Simpson's cutback, but with Robinson eager to avoid a replay, Chamberlain was brought on for Chris McGrath, and the game became much more open.

That suited the visitors most, as Muitt hit the post with a header and Chad Field blazed over the bar when clean through on goal.

Eventually the decisive goal came, as a decent move saw Dan Beck find Sekajja in the box, and he fired across Irish and into the bottom corner on 81 minutes.

With the Peacocks throwing more men forward, another break from a corner saw Sekajja brought down by Chamberlain, who was the last man and had to be shown the straight red.

Swallow got his second on 86 minutes, finishing well from Sekajja's pass, and in the 90th minute Tuck fired into the bottom corner from 25 yards to give the scoreline a rather one-sided slant.

The gamble did not pay off for the hosts, and so it's Bognor Regis who claim the £6,000 prize money and a spot in the second round.

For Taunton, they return to league duty with a home game against Wimborne Town on Tuesday night (ko 7.45pm) - if the weather and their rather overworked pitch hold up.

Taunton Town: Lloyd Irish, Pierce Mitchell, Ross Staley, Shane White, Chris McGrath (Ollie Chamberlain 65), Ben Adelsbury, Matt Buse, Ryan Brett, Matt Wright (c), Omar Simpson (Ben Palmer 76), Les Afful.
Substitutes not used: Tom Stone, Brett Trowbridge, Michael Meaker.
Attendance: 508.