After two weeks on the road Welling United are back at Park View Road on Saturday to face Braintree Town.

Last weekend, Peter Taylor took the team for the second time since taking over the manager’s role and oversaw an excellent victory at Chippenham Town.

Daniel Carr’s first goal for Welling put them ahead in the first half but a rocket free kick by Adam Mann levelled the scores in first half injury time. Welling regained the lead eight minutes into the second half when Dipo Akinyemi lost his marker to power home his header from O’Shane Stewart’s cross.

Four minutes later, it became three when Aaron Barnes took possession on the right wing, played a one-two with Akinyemi and surged towards goal, twisting and turning to send the defenders backwards and forwards. He then laid it off to Che Krabbendam who shot coolly inside the far post. Chippenham were thrown a lifeline when awarded a penalty but Ross Stearne’s shot hit the inside of the post and rolled across the face of goal and wide of the other post..

That was their second win of the season and took them up to seventeenth in the league one place above Braintree who lost at Hungerford Town on Tuesday night.

Ryan Maxwell’s team have won once, drawn three and lost four so far this term. It was their fifth league and cup defeat in a row and their only victory was on the second Saturday of the season when they beat current basement club Hemel Hempstead Town. 

The corresponding game at Park View Road last season had not been played when the season was declared null and void however they did play behind closed doors in Essex. Welling played well that day and missed a host of chances before it looked as if Thomas Derry had won it for the Iron when heading home with nine minutes remaining. However, with one minute remaining, Akinyemi hit one of his specials from twenty-five yards and parity was restored.

Picture supplied by Dave Budden.