By Harrison Atta
The clash between USW 3rds and their UWE counterparts in BUCS Western Tier B turned farcical after the home side lost their goalkeeper early on to a dislocated shoulder.
Finlay James was taken to hospital to have the injury attended to, leaving right-back Jake Hastings to to take the role of emergency stopper.
James’ loss was the latest mishap in a disappointing season that had condemned USW to relegation before this encounter.
The final score here, against their Varsity rivals, will have done little to lighten the mood.
USW fielded something of an experimental side, but ended up regretting it after James’ misfortune disrupted all their plans.
They were 0-3 in arrears early on after UWE goals from Nathan Briggs, Will Beville and Ollie Tucker arrived courtesy of some shambolic defending.
It was 0-4 by half-time after Hastings had allowed a corner kick to sail over his head and UWE defender Logan Cornock to head home.
Unable to make any impression, the encounter degenerated as the second half wore on as USW appeared to all but throw in the towel.
This allowed UWE to score almost at will, a situation which caused tempers to flare at times.
UWE’s Jacob Wratten had the last word, scoring after a length of the field run on a day the USW players will want to forget.