East Cornwall premier

Liskeard Athletic Reserves 1

Bere Alston United 3

AFTER defeats in their opening three games, Bere Alston have finally put some points on the board and are up and running after this excellent team performance at Liskeard.

Despite being without seven first team players, including club captain Will Westlake, Bere started brightly and took the game to their opponents, creating early chances for Dan Follett and Darren Smalley.

In truth, Bere had played some good stuff in their opening three games, with their inability to find the net proving their downfall, but any fears of a repeat were quickly put to bed, when Dan Follett opened his account on ten minutes with a smart near post header from a Dave Hallett corner.

With Darren Smalley and Dave Hallett pulling the strings in midfield it felt like only a matter of time before Bere would increase their lead, but they were dealt a blow on 25 minutes when keeper Tony Rawlings had to go off after a collision with a Liskeard forward.

Manager Kevin Taylor reshuffled his pack with Mark Wheeler going in goal and any worries the Bere fans had were soon banished when Wheeler made a great finger tip save from a long range effort from Liskeard's Dave Waters, as Bere held on to take a 1-0 lead into the interval.

The second half started with Bere Alston defending resolutely and causing Liskeard problems on the break and from one such counter attack, Mike Curtis weaved his way past three Liskeard defenders before unleashing a left foot drive, low into the bottom corner.

Bere's tails were now up and a third goal quickly came, courtesy of some good work from Steve Carew and Brad Harvey to set up Dan Follett for his second of the afternoon with a close range finish.

Not even a late goal from Liskeard's Matt Lindsey could take the shine off a superb Bere performance and the three points were greeted with delight from everyone, both on and off the field.

Kevin Taylor was especially pleased for his two strikers who had both finally got on the score sheet and the way his supposedly patched up side had responded to the call, with one or two playing out of position, and worked so hard as a team to secure the three points. Bere man of match: Kyle Robinson.

l Bere Alston United's next match is on Saturday away to Roborough in the Devon Premier Cup, ko 2.30pm.