WEYMOUTH 3, CRANBORNE 0 THE Senior Cup holders teetered gingerly into the last four at a frozen Wessex Stadium last night in the only quarter-final tie to beat the weather.

On a pitch that became more treacherous as the night wore on, the Terras were given a tougher than expected ride by a Cranborne side five divisions below them in the non-League pyramid.

Manager Geoff Butler was the first to admit his men had been made to work harder than he had anticipated on a pitch that proved a big leveller.

"They were spirited and bright and pushed us all the way for 90 minutes and I thought they were a much better side than Wareham who we beat in the previous round" he said. "They gave us just what I wanted. A 10-0 farce would have done us no good at all. As it was I thought my players' attitude was spot on."

However there was never any real danger of an upset despite a lively opening by the Dorset League Division One side who later had goalkeeper Andrew Loader and some indifferent Terras finishing - including a penalty miss - to thank for keeping the score down. Butler shuffled his pack and Ryan Ashford played alongside Phillips up front while Mark Rawlinson slipped into the number seven shirt in place of the injured Mark Robinson.

Cranborne started as crisply as the evening and had their largely female support screaming deliriously when the dreadlocked Ally Breeze went one-on-one with Jason Matthews after six minutes but failed to take the chance.

Then Cranborne's Graham Boreham tried his luck from a long way out and with Matthews beaten his shot flashed just wide of the upright.

Breeze was causing all sorts of problems for the Weymouth back line with his pace and had another great chance on 17 minutes when he was again set free. This time he rushed his shot and blazed well wide.

The Terras began to find their rhythm and Ashford, Phillips, Hutchinson and Rawlinson were all denied by Loader before the Terras broke the deadlock on 34 minutes.

An Ian Hutchinson corner from the left was met at the far post by Toby Redwood who side-footed

his first goal for the Terras.

From the re-start, Weymouth rushed forward and Cranborne conceded another corner.

This time Hutchinson delivered a near post curler and John Waldock's back header beat Loader to put the Terras two up.

Cranborne belied their minor league status and continued to bustle and play the ball about, although the now hardening pitch was causing both sides problems.

Phillips was set free by Ashford and as he closed on goal the Cornishman was denied a chance by Loader's crude challenge. Referee Janie Frampton pointed to the spot.

Hutchinson stepped forward and blasted his spot-kick straight at Loader and though Danny Bailey was first to the rebound he failed to make anything of it.

John Lamb came on in place of the injured Phillips and with his first touch put Weymouth three up early in the second half.

A sweeping run down the right flank by Steve Tully drew the keeper and he passed the ball to Lamb who slotted home his first senior goal for the club.

From then on it was a tale of Terras misses with Rawlinson guilty of squandering three chances and Ashford not far behind - although one of his efforts did come off the crossbar.

For their part Cranborne refused to give in and harried the Terras with Breeze displaying endless amounts of stamina and enthusiasm right up until the final whistle.

With the icy surface now making standing up a lottery, both sides played it safe and sensible for the final ten minutes.

And there was good news for Butler about star striker Phillips from physio Malcolm Coe after the game. "He's got a couple of bruises on his shin and knee but it's nothing too serious and he should

be okay by Saturday," commented Butler.

Weymouth: Jason Matthews, Steve Tully, Toby Redwood, Mark Kenway (Alex Browne 45mins), John Waldock, Matty Hale (Simon Browne 66mins), Mark Rawlinson, Ian Hutchinson, Danny Bailey, Ryan Ashford, Lee Phillips (John Lamb 45mins). Attendance: 173.