POOLE TOWN 0

DORCHESTER TOWN 2

Watson 52, Peprah-Annan 81

PHIL Simkin found it hard to find fault with his players after they belatedly got their pre-season fixture programme under way with victory at Poole Town on Saturday.

After a goalless first half at Tatnum, Ben Watson and Nathan Peprah-Annan found the net to seal a relatively comfortable win.

Centre-back Peprah-Annan, is one of several former Magpies that Simkin has on trial at the club and both Elliot Ward and Rico Wilson also enjoyed game time at Tatnum.

Other trialists Ekow Elliott and Jamie Beasley had run-outs while goalkeeper Alan Walker-Harris, released by Simkin last season, played the second half, replacing debutant Tim Sandercombe.

Apart from smothering a Carl Preston effort and palming away Steve Devlin’s header, Sander-combe didn’t have too much to do in the first half.

Watson gave the visitors the lead on 52 minutes, pouncing on a weak back header by Ian Oliver to fire past Dan Thomas.

Walker-Harris produced a great save from Jon Davis before Poole substitute Carl Pettefer was booked for a strong challenge on Lewis Morgan.

Dan Cann followed Pettefer into the book for dissent and with nine minutes left Peprah-Annan headed in after Wilson’s crashing drive hit the underside of the bar.

“I feel the season has started properly for us now after one or two false starts,” said Simkin.

“I thought we were comfortable and passed the ball extremely well on what was not an easy surface against a very experienced side.

“It demonstrated our fitness and all round I thought it was a really good performance from us.

“It was always going to be a good test and in the past we’ve struggled at Poole in pre-season.

“I was pleased because I managed to get the majority of substitutes on and win the game as well.

“It’s always a difficult balancing act because you want to win the game and also use it to look at people.

“The two boys who didn’t get on (Danny Way and Andy Masson) will take part in the Bourne-mouth game on Wednesday night.”

Commenting on the trialists, he added: “I thought they all did well and in an ideal world I’d keep them all, but that isn’t going to be possible.

“I’m going to have to sit down and think it through, do some more sums, and see what comes of it. We just have to look at who we can afford to keep and who we can’t.

“But we’ve got plenty of games coming up to look at them again.

“It’s just that when you come to places like Poole you can’t experiment too much because you’ll get beaten 3-0 or 4-0.

“It’s not easy to come into a game like that and show what you can do but most of them did show up quite well.”

Dorchester host AFC Bourne-mouth on Wednesday night (7.45pm).

Magpies: Sandercombe (Walker-Harris 46), Brooks (Bell 59), Smee-ton, Morgan, Clough, Peprah-Annan (Beasley 59), Crittenden (Elliott 59), Gleeson, Watson (Wilson 69), Ward, Martin. Subs not used: Masson, Way