Tonbridge Angels 0-5 Weymouth: Terras move off bottom spot in style

WEYMOUTH 5

Rose 23, O’Connell 26, Ash 44, 45+3, 52

WEYMOUTH dismantled a poor Tonbridge Angels 5-0 to lift themselves off the bottom of the Vanarama National League South table.

The Terras were 4-0 up at half-time following an inspired first half, Ahkeem Rose opening the scoring with a firm header.

Keelan O’Connell’s superb half-volley made it 2-0 before a predatory double for Ash on the cusp of the break effectively won the game for Weymouth there and then.

Ash sealed a rapid hat-trick on 52 minutes and Weymouth were barely troubled in booking another clean sheet on a perfect away day in Kent.

READ MORE: Tonbridge Angels 0-5 Weymouth - how it happened

Weymouth manager Bobby Wilkinson made six changes to the side that began the 4-3 win over Hamworthy United in midweek.

Nelson Akinboye, has not made the grade on his trial, while Mike Dome-Bemwin, Matt Buse and Josh Oyinsan dropped to the bench.

Luke Nippard (back) and Hari McCoy (concussion) are out injured and in came new signing David Sesay, the full-back joining on loan from Wealdstone.

Tom Blair, Ash, Rose, Scott Rees and Nathan Carlyle all returned to the starting XI.

Prior to the game, talks broke down over an earlier kick-off time ahead of England’s World Cup quarter-final.

Tonbridge stated contractual agreements were in place with third parties that prevented them from switching to Friday night or Saturday lunchtime.

Weymouth, perhaps fired up by the developments, were immediately at Tonbridge’s defence as Ash scuffed a shot at Angels’ keeper Jon Henly.

And the home custodian had to be at his best six minutes in to deny Ash, who was found in acres of space in the area and shot powerfully towards the bottom corner.

What proved to be Tonbridge’s best sight of goal in the first half came in the 21st minute as Weymouth allowed a cross to find Lewis Gard at the back post, only for the midfielder to lash against the side-netting.

One minute later, Weymouth had a Tom Bearwish goal ruled out for an earlier foul on Ash – leading to complaints from the Terras towards referee Steven Hughes.

However, their grievance was short-lived when O’Connell clipped in an inviting cross for Rose to power home a header for his fifth goal this season.

Ahkeem Rose heads Weymouth 1-0 up (Image: MARK PROBIN)

Weymouth continued to dominate and netted a second in the space of three minutes with arguably the goal of the game.

Ash’s backheel to Blair enabled the winger to curl in a delicious delivery, meeting the late run of O’Connell who expertly fired a half-volley into the top-left corner.

Keelan O'Connell's half-volley made it 2-0 (Image: MARK PROBIN)

At the other end, Tonbridge had little to shout about and Zaki Oualah’s only other business was to punch clear a Jack Wood corner.

From there it was all Weymouth for the next 15 minutes as the Terras raided forward at will.

Blair was next to try his luck, testing Henly’s handling with a fierce strike from range.

But Weymouth duly got their third goal on 44 minutes when Ash spun on a sixpence inside the area and lashed home from an acute angle.

If Weymouth were not already in dreamland, they certainly were three minutes into first-half stoppage-time when Ash put them 4-0 up.

Brad Ash's brace put Weymouth 4-0 up at half-time (Image: MARK PROBIN)

Ash was allowed to skip past three half-hearted challenges and slot past the advancing Henly to give Weymouth a 4-0 half-time lead for the first time since August 2018 against Dorchester.

Tonbridge made two changes as the break as Jamie Fielding and Louis Collins came on for Dajon Golding and Craig Braham-Barrett.

Their alterations did not have any effect on Weymouth’s control of the game as the Terras swiftly scored a fifth.

Ash completed an 11-minute hat-trick as he was played through and beat Henly with a composed finish to put Weymouth 5-0 up.

Brad Ash scored a hat-trick for Weymouth (Image: MARK PROBIN)

Ash, who now has 12 goals this season, showed his appetite for a quadruple by blasting over on 58 minutes and then won a corner when his deflected shot spun wide.

Weymouth then brought on Dome-Bemwin, Oyinsan and Buse as the second half ticked by in increasingly flat fashion, not that the away fans would mind.

It took Tonbridge until the 78th minute to have their first shot on target as Ben Swift fired at Oualah, who made a comfortable save.

That proved the last serious action as Weymouth moved off the foot of the table, above Hungerford, for the first time since the second game of the season.

Tonbridge: Henly, Braham-Barrett (Fielding 46), Miles, Swift, Gard (N Wood 56), Greenidge, J Wood, Hinds, Aransibia, Wagstaff, Golding (Collins 46). Subs not used: Parkinson, Manuel.

Terras: Oualah, McBurnie, Carlyle, O'Connell, Rose (Oyinsan 81), Bearwish, Sesay, Matsuzaka, Ash, Rees (Buse 65), Blair. Subs not used: Matthews.

Referee: Steven Hughes