Timsbury Athletic continued their fine start to the new campaign with a 6-2 home win against Nailsea and Tickenham Reserves in the Uhlsport Somerset County League Division 1 but it was a victory that came at a huge cost. Striker Sam Gregory, who has made a big impact since joining the club, suffered a serious injury immediately after notching the club’s sixth goal and is likely to spend a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

Timsbury could have scored in the first minute but Tim Midgley missed the target after a telling cross from Rhys Cook. In fact it was the visitors who settled quickest and after Ollie Hogg had seen a shot saved by Ashton Tucker, Charlie Ashton headed them in front rising highest from a corner. Gregory did see one header blocked on the line and Ellis Hancock saw another header easily held by keeper Finn Taylor but it was Nailsea who were looking the liveliest of the two outfits without ever creating many clearcut chances. With half-time approaching the home side then turned the game upside down. First Toby Neilson ghosted in at the far post to head home Tim Midgley’s cross and right on the interval Cook made it 2-1 with a fine individual goal.

Timsbury dominated the second half with Cook and Gregory causing constant problems up front. After 52 minutes Gregory’s header made it 3-1 and on the quarter-of-an hour Callum Taylor’s accurate free-kick was headed down by Gregory for Cook to tap home. Within minutes Cook had grabbed a well deserved hat-trick to make it 5-1 and Neilson came close to his second goal hitting the post after finding space. With 20 minutes left Gregory raced clear to make it 6-1 but collapsed on the ground after making contact and the game was held up for 15 minutes before he could be taken from the pitch. The home side ended the game with 10 men and the visitors gained a consolation goal when Nick Walker converted a late penalty.

Malcolm Tucker

Timsbury Athletic’s excellent start to the new season continued with an impressive 2-1 win against Winscombe in the Uhlsport Somerset County League Division 1. It was a game full of good football that was a credit to the division.

The game opened in lively fashion and after Sam Gregory’s imaginative effort from distance had just cleared the Winscombe bar the visitors hit back immediately with Seb Williams heading against the post from Jamie Gibson’s free-kick.  The dangerous Daniel Morris then shot just past the Timsbury post before Liam Craze forced the Winscombe keeper Daniel Bullock to save well at the other end.

The breakthrough came after 23 minutes. A delightfully weighted pass from Ellis Hancock set Rhys Cook clear and he showed great composure in lobbing the advancing Bullock. Morris continued to be a threat at the other end and after one effort had been comfortably saved by home keeper Ashton Tucker he grabbed the equalizer on the half-hour finding a clear run to goal. As the action continued apace Tim Midgley shot just wide for Timsbury and Williams headed past the post for the visitors. With the interval approaching the home side went back in front with a superb strike from Cook that gave Bullock no chance.

Early in the second half Cook could easily have notched a hat-trick hooking one shot wide and then seeing another effort well saved by Bullock. As Timsbury continued to press Gregory headed against the bar and Hancock headed over from Tim Midgley’s cross. At the other end William Manning forced Tucker to save well but it was Timsbury creating the better chances and twice Gregory was denied by Bullock after looking odds on to score.

It always looked as though Timsbury needed the third goal to rest easy and they could easily have conceded the equalizer when Williams found space inside the box but screwed his shot wide. Near the end Ebner Heatley had a chance to tie the game up for the home side but his powerful shot went into the side-netting. It was not a significant moment as Timsbury saw out the match and maintained their hundred percent start to the new campaign.

Malcolm Tucker

Timsbury Athletic maintained their hundred percent start to the new season with an impressive 1-0 home win against Premier League side Nailsea United in the Uhlsport Somerset County League Cup competition for Premier and Division One sides. In a game that could have gone either way Toby Neilson netted the all important goal 20 minutes from time.

There was a minute’s silence at the start of the match in memory of all those closely connected with the club who had passed away during the last 18 months.

Tim Midgley had an early chance for Timsbury but shot well wide when clear. At the other end home keeper Ashton Tucker had to be at his very best to deal with a fine shot from Charlie Parsons while Ebner Heatley brought Nailsea custodian Owen Adamson into action before shooting over the top with another effort. A free-kick on the edge of the Timsbury area gave Nailsea a clear chance but Elliot Moore’s shot was easily blocked by the Timsbury wall. Tucker had a rare moment of panic when he allowed an effort from Moore to go through his legs but he recovered in the nick of time to stop it crossing the line. Chris and Tim Midgley both had chances to open the scoring before the interval but were denied by Adamson.

Early in the second half Neilson climbed well to meet Chris Midgley’s cross but his header was just wide. Chris and Tim Midgley continued to create chances with no end product but Nailsea also had their opportunities  and Tucker again excelled in saving from substitute Leon Osborne. The breakthrough, when it came, saw Ellis Hancock create the opening with a fine header and after a goalmouth melee Neilson hammered home the decisive goal. Hancock then did some sterling work at the other end putting in a great tackle to rob Sam Olsen while Tucker capped a fine match by making crucial saves from Osborne and Olsen in a frantic conclusion to the match.

Malcolm Tucker

Timsbury produced a fine all round performance to beat Clevedon 2^nd XI by 20 runs at home  in the Bristol and District League Senior Division. The home side moved up to fourth in the table in a game reduced to 25 overs per side after heavy lunchtime rain.

After being put into bat Timsbury looked to the experienced pairing of Mark Sage and Graeme Webb to give them a good start and they did not disappoint. They added 51 for the first wicket before Sage was bowled for 29. After a circumspect start Webb then moved into full throttle hitting two sixes in a crucial knock of 38 and with some good running at the close of the innings and a generous donation of 25 extras Timsbury ended on 128-5 which always looked a challenging total. Jack Banks (3-24) was Clevedon’s most successful bowler.

Some disciplined bowling and excellent fielding saw Timsbury keep a tight control on affairs throughout the Clevedon response. Astute  field placings reduced the boundaries to a minimum and the visitors managed to cross the line on just four occasions as they struggled to keep up with the asking rate. Teenager Oli Hulbert continued to impress with a spell of 3-22 aided by a superb legside stumping by Adam Brinkworth to dismiss the dangerous John Bachelor.  There was also a three-wicket haul for skipper Jon Strand. Opener Connor Crane top scored for the visitors with 25.

Timsbury end their season with a trip to runaway league champions Bedminster 2^nd XI while the 2^nd XI will be at home to Bristol United Banks in a game that could see them lift the Division 6 championship. It is also a key weekend  for Timsbury 3^rd XI who entertain Golden Hill 6^th XI and still have hopes of promotion in Division 14.

Saturday’s game with Clevedon saw spectators able to use the John Newth memorial seat for the first time. John was President of the club from 1982-2018 and his wife Betty came along two days prior to the match  to present the seat to the community. She was thanked by Chairman Ben Hosford who praised John for the big contribution he had made to the club.

Malcolm Tucker

Timsbury wasted a great opportunity of making further progress in the Bristol and District League Senior Division with a poor batting display losing by 42 runs away to bottom club Shirehampton. The bowlers had done their part earlier taking the last nine home wickets for a mere 50 runs but in the end it was to no avail.

After being put into bat Shirehampton got off to the fastest of starts with the aggressive  Adam Geddes taking the attack to the opposition. The visitors were not helped by a shoddy fielding display as the home side reached an imposing 82-1. When Geddes was eventually out he had contributed 77 out of a total of 95-3 but from then on it was a story of bowler domination. Opening bowlers Kev Sibley (3-29) and Oli Hulbert (3-35) were the main beneficiaries with two wickets each for Sam Hoddinott and Graeme Webb.

The Timsbury innings never got going with only Gary Pearcy (18) , Hoddinott (18) and Webb (13) reaching double figures. A late partnership between Webb and Hoddinott gave some  hope after Timsbury had collapsed to 56-8 but both players departed within a run of each other as the visitors were dismissed for 90. Tom Rogers (4-26) and Lewis Palmer (3-19) led the way for the home side.

Timsbury 2^nd XI top the Bristol and District League Division 6 after another impressive batting display in their seven-wicket win at home to Bristol Pakistanis 2^nd XI. There were two wickets each for Zak Cox, Steve Clothier and Dan Hill as the visitors finished their 40 overs on 188-8. The in-form Hill then got the reply off to a rousing start with a typically aggressive knock of 60 and Sol Thompson (53) and James Rawlings (49 not out) continued the good work to see the league leaders home with plenty to spare.

Malcolm Tucker

In a game that had more twists and turns than an Agatha Christie novel  Keynsham 2^nd XI and Timsbury tied their latest match in the Bristol and District League Senior Division. It was a game that both teams will look back on and think they should have won but ultimately a tie was probably the right result.

Batting first Keynsham collapsed to 121-8 but a sensible partnership between ex-Timsbury batsman Colin Arblaster and the experienced John Courtenay pushed the score up to a much more respectable 169. For the second week running teenager Joe Kinnear picked up four wickets and there was an encouraging debut by Oli Hulbert who opened the bowling and took two wickets. Captain Jon Strand also took two wickets and both he and Jack Williams each held three catches .

It was then the turn of Timsbury to fall into batting disarray and at 84-7 the game seemed up. A stand of 77 between Strand and Graeme Webb then looked to have secured the points for the visitors only for Webb to be caught on the boundary with eight runs needed. In a thrilling finish Strand had to call for a runner after a calf injury.  Kinnear was dismissed for three but Strand who finished unbeaten on 40 levelled the scores only for Hulbert to be bowled with four balls remaining .

A superb undefeated innings of 126 from Dan Hill was the highlight of Timsbury 2^nd XI’s seven=wicket win at home to Pucklechurch in their crucial top of the table clash in the Bristol and District League Division 6. He was well supported by James Rawlings (29 not out) and Adam Workman (23) as the home side reached their target of 217 with more than two overs to spare. Earlier the visitors had compiled a challenging 216-4 with Ryan Watts leading the charge before falling two runs short of a well deserved century. Steve Clothier showed all his experience with a spell of 3-13 from his eight overs.

Timsbury 3^rd XI staged a remarkable recovery in their home game with Hampset 3^rd XI in the Bristol and District League Division 14 before ultimately winning by 151 runs. Struggling at 56-5 they eventually totalled 301-8 thanks in large to a sixth-wicket stand of 148 between Neil Hulford and Ben Smith. Hulford missed a first century for the club by just four runs while Smith supported him with an excellent 79. Russell King then produced a late flurry with 47 not out. Frustratingly Timsbury were unable to bowl the visitors out as they finished on 135-9. Freddie Hiscott (36) was top scorer for Hampset with Matt Ball taking 3-16 and Liam Hosford 2-19.

Malcolm Tucker