By Ethan Harris
USW 1sts remain at the foot of the BUCS Men’s Premier South after a spirited display against Hartpury ended in a 3-1 defeat.
The hosts went behind after 15 minutes thanks to Jake White’s goal, and Niro Gowran’s splendid equaliser was cancelled out by Luca Robinson.
The game was sealed with a second goal for White after half-time, as he poked home from a free-kick to ensure yet another defeat for USW.
Having already lost to Hartpury, and struggling at the wrong end of the division, there was a sense that USW needed to drastically improve their performance here to turn their season around.
But it was the sharper visitors who started brightest, with the effervescent Ethan Dunbar making early inroads.
The opener came after Hartpury’s early pressure finally saw Renato Prifti advance down the wing, and White scrambled the ball past Sven Marnot in the USW goal.
Pic: Max Drinkwater-James
USW needed something special to bring them back in the game, and that was exactly what arrived when Gowran picked up the ball in midfield and drove into the area before confidently burying a low strike past Seth Locke.
The hosts seemed to gain confidence, as moments later Laquay Coleman tested Locke from the edge of the box.
However, Hartpury were back in front before the interval, as another rapid Dunbar break on the wing led to a point-blank finish from Robinson.
Adrian Harvey‘s USW came out firing for the second-half, as Laurent Ngunjoh placed his angled shot just wide from a counter-attack.
But it was Hartpury who decisively turned the tide on the hour mark as White wedged a watertight shot through a jammed penalty area.
Hartpury forced some sharp saves following that, including a ferocious effort from Kian Kang, as the game was eventually put of reach – a result which saw the away side haul themselves level with leaders Chichester.
USW, meanwhile, remain winless and have just a solitary point after seven games.