KO for cup holders Beccles

Beccles Town must pick themselves up after being knocked out of the Suffolk Senior Cup at the weekend.Town, the holders, lost 3-2 at home to Corton - who were semi-finalists last season - with a depleted team.

Beccles Town must pick themselves up after being knocked out of the Suffolk Senior Cup at the weekend.

Town, the holders, lost 3-2 at home to Corton - who were semi-finalists last season - with a depleted team.

Tomorrow the first team host an Anglian Combination Premier Division game against Mattishall, ko 2.30.

Beccles Town 2, Corton 3

BECCLES opened their defence of the Senior Cup with a tough home tie.

The game had been called off temporarily the day before due to ground conditions but with heavy overnight rain, the pitch looked in perfect condition.

More than could be said for manager Mick Broxup's preparation with injuries, suspensions and county cup call-ups, robbing him of at least seven players.

Beccles kicked off and it soon became clear that Corton would be a tough proposition.

They attacked Beccles from the outset and Beccles were forced to defend in numbers.

The presence eventually told when a shot appeared to be drifting wide before being diverted into his own net by Beccles centre-back Andy Wigg.

If one goal seemed manageable, to claw back two was going to be much harder, as following a goalmouth game of head tennis, Ritchie High added in Corton's second despite efforts by keeper Cable to keep the ball out.

Beccles had now conceded as many goals in the first 30 minutes as they had in all league games put together this season.

If they were to have any chance, they would need to strike back before half-time.

This they did and the goal came from a somewhat unlikely source, with Andy Woods on the right cutting inside and beating the keeper at his near post to make the half-time score 2-1.

Corton appeared for the second half and again tended to out-play the hosts in most departments, with Alan Remblance closely marked by the visitors' impressive rearguard and also feeling the effects of a long-standing ankle injury, little was seen of the hosts as an attacking threat.

Beccles' plight was also hindered by two more injuries to key players, - Kevin Waterman and Neil McMorran necessitating a reshuffle, introducing Jason Clarke up front to renew a partnership with Alan Remblance that stretched back over many years.

If a fight-back looked imminent it was stopped in its tracks by ex-Beccles player Elliot Dawes who used his fighting pace to great effect before lobbing over Cable for a clinching third goal.

At last Beccles awoke from their slumbers and Clarke was instrumental in winning a penalty which strike partner Alan Remblance converted.

But, in truth, the grandstand finish had come too late and the referee called time to give the visitors a notable scalp.

The scoreline was perhaps a little hard on Corton, as the manner of their performance possibly deserved a wider margin of victory and Beccles wish them well in their quest to match Beccles achievements and reach Portman Road.

Meanwhile, Beccles Reserves came back from third-in-the-table East Harling with a fine 4-2 win, with a hat-trick from Scott Barnard, who for much of the season has been out with a broken foot, and a debut goal for new signing Adam White.

Tomorrow the Reserves travel to Newton Flotman.