DORSET PREMIER LEAGUE
SATURDAY 4TH OCTOBER 2025
VERWOOD TOWN 1 BALTI SPORTS 5

The curse of giving a head start to our opposition continued with this fixture against Balti Sports. 7 minutes old and an attempted shot on goal was on its way to Beck when a stray leg deflected the ball into the bottom corner. 0-1.

Several changes to our squad meant positional changes as well and it took a little while before we settled.

Pope and Bentley were occupied coping with a series of high balls into our third but we gradually settled and rewarded on 19 minutes when Lillis broke through and planted a curling shot into the bottom corner. 1-1.

2 minutes later Grzybowski went free and on the edge of the box and laid the ball off to Lillis. The keeper denied Lillis a second with a safe pair of hands low to his right.

We continued pushing on. Bentley’s through ball to Knott split Balti’s defence. Knott raced through but saw his shot kicked off the line. We then committed the cardinal sin of pushing up too far. A gap wider than the M6 gifted Balti clear passage to cross a high ball into the box and score their second unchallenged on 23 minutes. 1-2.

Matthews Best Pope and Bentley formed the thin red line doing well under pressure.

Inevitably a third had to follow and did so on 45 minutes.

Half Time. 1-3.

It was a scrappy opening with both teams giving the ball away through poor passing.

14 minutes of the half gone and Balti made it 1-4 with a shot from the edge of the box skidding through defence and clipping the inside of the post.

Danvers was the provider of several crosses into Balti’s area but we couldn’t put the ball in the net. We produced some good football with better flair and Balti had to defend deep to keep the score line in their favour.

Knott and Grzybowski efforts went high and wide as we gained possession and momentum. Consistency went missing however and we relaxed intensity as the half closed.

43 minutes and Balti broke through to grab their fifth.

Result. 1-5