CHELMSFORD 4

St Aimie 60, Cheek 65, Ward 77, Edmans 90+3

MAGPIES 1

Losasso 87

DORCHESTER Town crashed to a 4-1 defeat at Melbourne Park as they were unable to make ground on the teams above them at the foot of the Skrill South table.

A poor game was sparked into life on the hour mark when Kieron St Aimie opened the scoring for the hosts, and they went on to find the net a further three times to secure the win.

Michael Cheek, Joe Ward and Rob Edmans all got their names on the scoresheet, while Charlie Losasso had grabbed a consolation for the Magpies before the Clarets’ fourth in time added on.

The defeat leaves Dorchester at the bottom of the league as Chelmsford climb further away from the relegation zone.

The Magpies went into the game without a win in four but knowing that they had already beaten the Clarets earlier this season – it was actually their first taste of success at the eighth time of asking.

Their chances of repeating the feat had been dealt a blow before kick-off when it was confirmed earlier in the day that Torquay loan duo Nathan Craig and Ashley Yeoman had been recalled by their parent club.

That meant Jake McCarthy and Jack Twyford came into the starting XI, with Sam Lanahan switching into midfield, while reserve-team youngster Luke Pidgley received a call-up and was one of three substitutes alongside Clive Makoni and Ryan Case.

A largely nondescript first half was interspersed by a number of long-range efforts from the hosts that failed to find the target.

The Clarets did have the better of the game before the break but their finishing, particularly St Aimie’s, was way off the mark when it mattered.

Mark Jermyn picked up another booking when he was adjudged to have brought down Cheek just outside his own box on 16 minutes.

That pre-empted a succession of corners for the Clarets that ultimately came to nothing.

The referee’s notebook seems to be featuring Nick Crittenden’s name of late and after his red card last Saturday the midfielder was in trouble with five minutes of the half left.

And his booking nearly brought about the opening goal for the Clarets when Justin Miller’s free-kick reached captain Mark Hughes and his clever back header went just wide.

The visitors made a change within four minutes of the restart, bringing Case on for Twyford, and the Magpies seemed to be coping well as Chelmsford pressed.

That was until the hour mark when St Aimie gave his side the lead, turning in Aaron Greene’s low ball from close range.

And, like so many times this season, one goal soon brought another.

Matthew Lock’s corner made its way to the back post and Cheek was there to rifle the ball into the roof of the net.

Dorchester’s night then got even worse when Jermyn had to go off with an injury, Makoni replacing him, and a minute later the Clarets put the game out of reach.

A scramble in the Magpies’ area ended with Ward tapping the ball into an unguarded net from a few yards out to make it 3-0.

There was a consolation for the visitors when, three minutes from time, Losasso strode forward from midfield and buried a 25-yard effort into the bottom corner.

But that wasn’t the end of the scoring and deep in injury-time substitute Edmans made it 4-1 with a fine strike as he cut in from the left.

Chelmsford may well have had a fifth if Alan Walker-Harris hadn’t managed to tip a shot from another replacement, Luke Callander, onto the post.

Magpies: Walker-Harris, McCarthy, Smeeton, Jermyn (Makoni 76), N Walker, Lanahan, Crittenden, Gleeson, Twyford (Case 49), Byerley (Pidgley 89), Losasso.

Chelmsford: Pentney, Miller, Redwood, Lock (Davis 80), Haines, Smith, Ward, Hughes, Cheek (Callander 68), St Aimie (Edmans 73), Greene. Subs not used: Avery, Forecast

Yellow cards: Chelmsford – Miller (foul, 58)

Magpies – Jermyn (foul, 16), Crittenden (foul, 40)

Att: 562