Hatherleigh Town 2
Tap and Barrel 4
HATHERLEIGH led at half time through a goal by Gary Knight in the 25th minute. They dominated play, condensing space and winning every challenge — when they won possession they had pace and width that Tap struggled to contain.
Within ten minutes of the restart, Hatherleigh had conceded twice. Tap attacked Hatherleigh from the off, which seemed to unsettle them. For both goals, a player in a defensive position had the opportunity to clear, but lost possession and left the Tap striker clear through on goal.
The home side did recover and create chances, most notably missing a penalty after 20 minutes.
However, failure to clear the ball from defensive positions on two more occasions resulted in Tap taking a 4-1 lead and their striker being presented with probably his easiest ever hat-trick.
Although Hatherleigh pulled one back through Stuart Dymond, the damage was already done.
Manager Jon Hayman said after the match: 'Tap and Barrel deserved the three points today.
'They worked hard and pressured our defence into making basic errors and then took their opportunities.
'We have progressed so we can now compete with the top sides in the league, but a distinct gap remains. It is vital that we learn to beat these sides if we wish to continue our progression.'