WEYMOUTH 0

REDDITCH UNITED 2 (Richards 56, Thompson-Brown 77)

WEYMOUTH’S play-off hopes now look all but over following one of their worst showings at the Bob Lucas Stadium in recent times.

Redditch United arrived in Dorset on a losing run of four games, third-bottom in the table and having not scored a goal for 450 minutes, but by the final whistle they had made the Terras look like mugs.

Coming into the game off the back of successive defeats, the hosts desperately needed a return to winning ways to stand any chance of making the top five, but quite frankly they were an embarrassment.

With Ed Palmer and Craig Duff suspended, and Danny Clay sidelined through a chest infection, loan-signing Jamie Richards came in for his debut and Jamie Skinner began in midfield.

There was also a new face on the bench where another loanee, Dorchester Town’s Jamie Symes, joined Chris Povall, Lewis Clarke and Matt Groves.

A nervy moment for Bradley Catlow was the only real highlight of a low-key opening to the game as both sides looked short of confidence.

The United keeper’s attempted clearance on five minutes was superbly charged down by Mark Ford, but fortunately for the away side the ball cannoned back into his gloves.

Apart from that it was pretty poor stuff with neither side able to keep possession. In fact, the next opening did not arrive until the 23rd minute when Redditch winger George Washbourne got in behind Scott Walker and pulled the ball across for William Richards, who was too slow to take advantage.

Ben Joyce then lashed a shot wide from 25 yards at the other end but the overall quality from both teams was distinctly lacking.

The dross continued into the second half and it was no surprise to see the opening goal arrive on 56 minutes through some suspect defending.

Weymouth should have cleared their lines but instead no one took responsibility and when Ashley Wells committed himself, Robert Thompson-Brown fed the ball through the gap for Richards to go on and slot a shot past Simon Evans.

Terras’ boss Brendon King responded by bringing on Symes and Groves, and switching to a 4-3-3 formation but his side continued to look clueless.

They were then put out of their misery with 13 minutes remaining when Dean Bennett found Thompson-Brown at the far post, who blasted the ball into the roof of the net from an acute angle.

Weymouth’s defending was once again non-existent and quite frankly they got exactly what they deserved.

Catlow spilt a volley from Symes in the closing stages and reacted well to block Ford’s follow-up, but overall the Terras were awful and deserved the derision they received from their fans at the final whistle.

Weymouth: Evans, McConnell (Groves 65), Wells, Reed, Poole, Richards, Skinner (Symes 61), Smith, Joyce, Ford, Walker. Subs not used: Povall, Clarke.

Redditch: Catlow, Moran, Gabbidon, Charlton, Flanagan, O’Shungbure, Sammons, Bennett, Thompson-Brown (Deards 83), Richards, Washbourne. Subs not used: Hylton, Randall, Hanks.

Attendance: 651