Poole started brightly and things could have been so different as early as the fifth minute. Matt Welsh delivered a good cross from the right and after controlling the ball Leigh Cornick fired a shot wide of the keeper only to see the ball come back off the post to safety. On 12 minutes a headed clearance from James Wood fell to Cornick just outside of the box. Cornick found Lee Manning in the area but his shot was wide of the target.

Lymington began to come more into the game and on 26 minutes a certain goal was avoided when the excellent Ollie Cherrett made a superb last ditch tackle with the forward clean through. Two minutes later and Cornick produced a fantastic overhead kick which flashed past the post after a good cross from young Carl Chivers on the left.

Chances were now falling to both sides and some good passing by Lymington saw the ball drop to the right back and his shot with the outside of his right foot only narrowly went past the far post. A minute later and the visitors scored the only goal of the game. A shot was badly mis-hit and as the ball careered across the box another Lymington player ran in slot the ball home. Spillane needed to pull off a fine save just before the break to keep the deficit down to one. Half-time: 0-1.

The Dolphins lost all shape in the second half and the two strikers were left isolated as ball after ball was thumped downfield from the back. Another great tackle from Cherrett on 57 minutes prevented another likely goal and although Killick made three substitutions the end result remained the same. Certainly the forward line looked more potent with Lee Manning pushed up front and Poole's final chance fell to him. Cherrett passed the ball into Manning but his shot caught the trailing leg of the diving keeper and the ball bounced away just wide of the post.

A disappointing performance and result which, if different, could have seen Poole go top of the league.

Poole: Spillane, Cherrett, Woodward, Welsh, Wood (P. Manning), Funnell, Fletcher, Reeks (A. Morris), L. Manning, Cornick, Chivers (G. Morris)

After the mediocre performance at Bishops Waltham last week the team were obviously up for this game and they got off to a storming start when they took the lead on just five minutes. Some neat passing on the edge of the box saw the ball out to Leigh Cornick and after controlling the ball with one-touch he fired in a half volley which rocketed into the top left corner of the net for a stunning goal.

Poole continued to play good football throughout the half but this was matched a lot of the time by some slick passing and interplay from the Portsmouth team. They finished the season very well last campaign and on this form they will be up in the top six again come next April. Although few other chances were created in the first half it was a very entertaining 45 minutes with both sides playing some cracking soccer. As US Portsmouth grew in confidence so the Poole players got a little frustrated resulting in Funnell, Richardson and, in the second half, Cornick all being booked. On the stroke of half-time Cornick teed up Taffy Richardson in the box but his volley was well saved. Half-time: 1-0.

Again Poole started the half on top and a series of corners and freekicks around the Portsmouth penalty area saw the pressure mount on the visitor's goal.Eventually Poole doubled their lead when a superb freekick wide on the right by Gary Funnell was met by the head of Ollie Cherrett as he got up above the defence to nod the ball into the far corner.

As the half wore on Paul Manning replaced Darren Reeks and Karanjit Aujla came on for Carl Chivers. Without really threatening to score Chivers had looked particularly lively up front and some of his touches and lay-offs for other players had been great to watch for Poole supporters. He is, indeed, going to be a big talent.

On 76 minutes another Funnell corner was met by Richardson but this time his volley whistled narrowly over the bar. A blow for Poole on 83 minutes when a mistake by Spillane in goal led to Portsmouth pulling a goal back. The defence had looked solid all afternoon but instead of playing a simple ball out to either full back, Spillane opted to kick but his mis-kick fell to the opposition just outside the box. Whilst Spillane pulled off a great save to deny the player, the rebound dropped to another Portsmouth player and he steered the ball into an empty net.

Having worked so hard to carve out a two goal lead the Poole players dug deep in the last ten minutes to ensure the three points stayed in Poole. The final chance fell to Matty White on 86 minutes but his volley from inside the box was wide of the mark.

A much better performance and a good three points against quality opposition.

Poole: Spillane, Cherrett, Woodward, Welsh, Wood, Funnell, Richardson, White, Reeks (P. Manning), Cornick, Chivers (Aujla)

From the start it was clear that this was the best Bishops Waltham Town team that Poole have ever faced and whilst Poole controlled possession for much of the game it was the home side who defended very well and were well organised right across the park.

After the early exchanges there was little between the sides but Poole looked the more likely to score. However, against the run of play, the home side took the lead on 21 minutes. A harmless cross from the right came off the top of Cherrett's head and with keeper Spillane already committed the ball dropped at the back post for a simple tap in. Poole continued to work hard as they looked for the equaliser. On 30 minutes the excellent Funnell sent Cornick away down the right but his shot was well saved by the keeper who tipped it away for a corner.

As half-time approached Poole got their deserved equaliser. Some slick passing on the edge of the box involving White and Funnell saw the ball through to Cornick and the striker fired low into the right hand corner of the net for his second in as many games. Half-time: 1-1.

From the start of the second half it was clear that Bishops Waltham would settle for the draw as they proceeded to waste as much time as possible at every opportunity. On 58 minutes a poor clearance from the home keeper saw the ball drop to Lee Manning but his attempted right foot curl around the keeper was well saved.

On 67 minutes the home keeper had to go off injured so an outfield player took his place in goal. If this made Poole think a goal was more likely then their hopes were dashed as the replacement keeper handled everything superbly right through the remaining 30 minutes. Whilst Poole continued to waste good opportunities by trying to complicate things when a simple pass would do, they were punished on 87 minutes when Waltham broke down the right and when a cross was not dealt with a home striker was on hand to lash home and leave Poole supporters stunned.

Rightly the referee played nearly ten minutes of extra time and it was in the ninth of these that Cherrett gained a dubious penalty for Poole. With the last kick of the game Funnell stepped forward and coolly slotted the ball home to grab a share of the points for Poole.

Whilst it would have been harsh for Poole to lose the game, they certainly did not deserve anything more than the point and manager Killick will need to get the players to step up a gear or two in the next two matches when they face the tricky combination of United Service Portsmouth and Lymington Town over the Bank Holiday weekend.

Poole: Spillane, Cherrett, Woodward, Spalding, Wood, Funnell, Richardson, P. Manning (Harris), White, Cornick, L. Manning

This was very much a game of two halves as Poole played some good football in the first half to wrap up the game and then let things slide in the second period as they played out the match in cruise control.

On 5 minutes a Cornick shot was well saved and Carl Woodward's follow up shot could only find the side netting. The Fawley keeper looked all at sea in the opening minutes as he made a miss of two consecutive clearances. On 6 minutes Taffy Richardson picked up one of the mis kicks and his audacious 40 yard lob dropped just wide of the left hand post. A couple of minutes later and Fawley created their only chance of the game. Some good skill from their striker saw him beat a defender and his volley easily beat Spillane in the Poole goal but the ball grazed the top of the bar before going for a goal kick.

A goal looked certain on 16 minutes when the ball dropped just 2 yards out for Lee Manning but his fierce volley cannoned back off the bar when it looked easier to score. A minute later and a quick free-kick saw the ball played to Richardson but his volley again whistled just wide of the post. On 24 minutes Funnell flicked the ball onto Lee Manning but again the striker's shot was well saved by the keeper.

Nerves were finally settled on 32 minutes when dead ball specialist Funnell stepped up and struck a 20 yard free-kick low into the far corner to score on his debut. Years after the record goalscoring exploits of his father Tony at Poole Town, it was especially sweet for supporters to see the Funnell name appear on the scoresheet again. Two minutes later and the points were safe. Lee Manning broke clear on the left and his left foot volley was thumped past the keeper to double the lead.

Just prior to half time another good move saw Richardson break down the right and as his cross swung in Cornick allowed the ball to bounce before heading past the keeper to make it 3-0. Half-time: 3-0.

The second half was a fairly poor affair as Town went through the motions, leaving manager Tommy Killick annoyed at the second half performance. The returning Garry Morris replaced the injured Paul Manning and Anthony Warrington replaced Funnell for the last 20 minutes.

Poole: Spillane, Robbins, Woodward, Fletcher, Bartlett, Funnell (Warrington), Richardson, P. Manning (G. Morris), White, Cornick, L. Manning