Spetch praises Dorchester's resilience after Brixham win

The visitors progressed following a dramatic afternoon at Wall Park, where Brixham played more than half the match with 10 men after Charlie Johansen was sent off in the 38th minute.

Dorchester took control after the interval as Tom Purrington opened the scoring in the 57th minute.

But Brixham levelled through James Moxon before Jack Winsor restored the Magpies’ advantage on 79 minutes.

Matty Burrows added what looked to be a decisive third seven minutes later.

However, Callum Rose pulled a goal back in stoppage time for Brixham, but Dorchester held on to secure their place in the next round.

Reflecting on the result, Spetch said the state of the pitch meant Dorchester had to prioritise getting through the tie by any means necessary.

He said: “I think today was a case of getting the job done in whatever way we could.

“The pitch was to the point of being unplayable, so credit to the boys for digging in, putting in a proper away performance and getting into the hat for the next round.”

While pleased with the outcome, the Dorchester skipper admitted there were aspects for the side to address after allowing Brixham back into the contest twice despite their numerical advantage.

Moxon’s equaliser came after Dorchester had taken the lead through Purrington and Rose’s late strike ensured an anxious finish after Burrows had made it 3-1.

Spetch said: “On the flip side of that, I feel as a team we need to defend our box better, be brave and take some responsibility.

“Teams aren’t cutting us open or playing through us; we are allowing them back into games with some lack of concentration from set plays or second-phase balls.

“This is something to look at and we will work on it this coming week.”

Spetch also thanked the travelling support which made the journey to Devon for the cup tie.

He added: “Thanks for all the great support today from the fans who made the long trip to Brixham. UTM!”