Recap

Report

The Peacocks ended a long sequence of 17 home games without a league win as they secured the three points against their Buckinghamshire visitors. You have to go back to December 2023 when home fans last left the Cygnet Health Care Stadium in the afterglow of league victory when Farnborough were soundly beaten in the National League South, so it was good to get that feeling back! Taunton built themselves a three goal lead inside half an hour but despite dropping off the tempo as the game went on there was never going to be any way back for the division’s bottom side.

The Town team showed just the one change from the FA Cup win at Poole a week earlier, with the cup-tied Jayden Nielsen returning in place of the injured Jake Hodgson, and the hosts were soon into their stride, netting after only five minutes when captain Tom Smith tapped in from Aysa Corrick’s low centre, but denied by the offside flag. The Peacocks maintained their bright start when Marlow keeper Finn Rushton was pressed into action, firstly holding an awkward half volley from Ollie Woodhouse following Alfie Moulden’s cross and then pushing wide Owen Brain’s free kick after it had taken a deflection off the wall.

Marlow kept the Town defence busy by forcing two successive corners but suddenly had the game taken away from them in a three goal blitz, Taunton’s positive approach yielding the opening goal after 23 minutes. Tom Purrington seized the ball amidst some slack defending and laid across to Brain in the middle who couldn’t miss into an open net. The Blues nearly responded immediately when Sebastian D’Aversa’s header from Harry Hoath’s corner hit the crossbar before play returned to the opposite end for the second goal, Town breaking through Purrington who fed Smith on the right side of the box. He opted to shoot rather than pass and when Rushton parried his strike Moulden was nicely placed to drive home the rebound after 26 minutes.

Smith had the taste to get on the scoresheet and three minutes later he duly obliged. Eddie Jones’ curling long ball down the right deceived Rushton and bounced over his head, leaving the Town skipper to get goalside and roll home a third for his side. A Brain corner then deflected off a defender forcing Rushton to tip over his own bar while Taunton keeper Adam Parkes, untroubled up until now, had to conduct a similar feat when touching over Elijah Oladunjoye’s deep cross from the left. The woodwork prevented Marlow from conceding a fourth during added time at the end of the first half when the impressive Moulden chipped a cross against the inside of the far post and the ball was scrambled clear to conclude a very satisfactory 45 minutes.

The Peacocks were probably mindful of Gloucester’s comeback from a three goal deficit on the opening day of the season so surely it couldn’t happen again? The answer to that was an emphatic no and Smith made doubly sure by notching his side’s fourth goal five minutes into the second half, winning the ball in the centre and making ground to drill a lovely finish from 18 yards into Rushton’s right-hand corner for his fifth goal in two games. To their credit the visitors hit back straight away, getting on the scoresheet a minute later when Oladunjoye glanced a header beyond Parkes from Hoath’s left wing free kick.

The unusual sight of all five substitutes being employed at once saw Marlow play all their remaining cards but it made no immediate difference with Taunton extending their lead after 62 minutes, Brain making inroads from the right and tricking his way to just beyond the post from where his delivery was struck home sweetly by Purrington from close range. Brain then gave way to Reece Hedges, making his competitive debut for Town, and with further substitutions being made during the remainder of the game, the attacking threat from the hosts lost its impetus. Morgan Lewis had sight of goal for Taunton from a free kick but planted his effort into the trees and Nielsen screwed wide from Smith’s cross but there were few other openings in the latter stages as Marlow enjoyed greater possession in the final third, Oladunjoye heading over another Hoath corner.

The overall relaxation in Town’s play led to a second Marlow goal with eleven minutes left to play, Kai Hamilton-Olise’s cross cleared and Hoath latching onto the loose ball with a left-footed looping volley which picked out the far corner past the static Parkes who then did well to block a shot from Naheer Nawaf when the Town defence were caught napping. An angled shot from Hamilton-Olise flew narrowly over during six minutes of stoppage time but there was never a hint of a Marlow miracle as the Peacocks extended their unbeaten run to seven matches.

Line-Ups

Taunton: Adam Parkes, Eddie Jones (Charlie Dashfield 81), Ollie Woodhouse, Toby Down, Tom Purrington (Harris Feltham 67), Tom Smith (captain) (David Duru 75), Owen Brain (Reece Hedges 63), Alfie Moulden, Jayden Nielsen, Morgan Lewis, Aysa Corrick (Evander Grubb 73).

Marlow: Finn Rushton, Elijah Oladunjoye, Harry Hoath, Sebastian D’Aversa (Josh Masters 57), Alex Salmon, David Tarpey (Chris Ovenden 57), Naheer Nawaf, Josh Boorn (Harvey Maunder 57), Ben Mulley (captain), Mo Jallow (Kai Hamilton-Olise 57), Kareem Akinnibi (Jose Sani 57)

Officials

Referee: Said Ouchene (Paulton)
Referee’s Assistant 1: Fraser Lewis (Bristol)
Referee’s Assistant 2: Adam Boubrahmi (Bristol)

Attendance

687

Reaction

“We were really good, first half particularly…..” watch the reaction of manager Richard Luffman on Peacocks TV HERE

Highlights

Match highlights can be seen on Peacocks TV HERE

Photos

Match photos from club photographer Debbie Gould can be viewed HERE

Taunton Town MOM

Tom Smith receives the Taunton Town Man Of The Match award from family members of Match Sponsors Ben Pavey and Associates

Many Thanks To Our Match Sponsors

Ben Pavey and Associates

Many Thanks To Our Match Mascots 

Ruishton Under 8’s