Hopes and Expectations 1
2022/23
Pre-Season
Pre-Season
Tiverton Town 2
City 1 1 July 2022
Exeter City’s pre-season schedule kicked-off with a 2-1 defeat to Tiverton Town at the Ian Moorcroft Stadium.
Two debutants scored in two minutes for the hosts as Tom Purrington and Joe O'Loughlin converted before Jevani Brown scored with the last kick of the game.
The kick-off time was delayed by 15 minutes due to havoc on the Motorway as the Grecians named three teams that would play over the 90 minutes. The City team playing the first third was a blend of youth and experience and in true pre-season style, City’s Jack Arthur played in goal for Tivvy as their number one is currently on holiday… to add to that, the Grecians lined-up without any numbers on their shirts. After a banging set from Tiverton’s resident DJ, it felt more like Ibiza than mid Devon, the Ian Moorcroft Stadium truly is the place to be on a Friday night.
City started on the front foot, moving the ball quickly and the lively Iseguan, who had a productive spell at Tiverton last season would win the first corner of the night, which was well defended by the Yellows.
The first true effort of the night would fall to the feet of midfielder Borges, who hit an effort low but wide of the goal from thirty yards. At the other end, Tivvy went close to opening the scoring as defender O’Loughlin drilled a fierce effort wide of the post from the edge of the box.
The Grecians should have taken the lead of fifteen as Hartridge worked hard down the left to get a cross in which Billington connected but his effort was comfortable for Arthur. Sam Nombe powered through the midfield and sent a ball through to Sonny Cox who pulled a strong save out of Arthur, moments later Tim Dieng found space in the box but uncharacteristically sliced the ball wide.
Former Grecian Louis Morison came close to breaking the deadlock as his wide free-kick sailed through the penalty area and just wide of Harry Lee’s dive. After thirty minutes, team two took to the field made up of City’s promising under-18s, with Harry Lee remaining in goal.
The deadlock was almost broken and it would have been a wondergoal from Alfie Clark, as he won a strong challenge in his own half, marauding through midfield, beating a couple challenges before he drilled a shot wide from just outside the box. Minutes later another strong run from Joe Wragg saw him move just inside the box before his shot took a deflection taking it just over the bar.
Team two returned to the pitch for the first fifteen of the second half and Tiverton would strike first as Tom Purrington on his debut picked up the ball in midfield before driving forward and sending a low shot into the bottom corner. One would quickly become two. A 50/50 challenge in the middle of the park from Daniels fell kindly for Tiverton and Joe O’Loughlin, another debutant made no mistake in drilling the ball under Harry Lee to make it 2-0 after 56 minutes.
A more experienced team, led by captain Matt Jay came on for the final thirty minutes and were quickly on the attack, City missing the chance to pull one back as Archie Collins’ corner sailed through the six-yard box untouched.
Jevani Brown found himself in space inside the box, twisting and turning he dug out a cross, which was well defended before Josh Coley fired towards goal, but his shot was well blocked. Minutes later Jevani Brown fired against the crossbar with a superb effort as City really put on the pressure. Tiverton almost put the game to bed on 72 as Louis Morison whipped a fantastic free kick towards the corner from just outside the box, but Harry Lee got fingertips to it to pull out a great save.
Jevani Brown would score with the last kick of the game as he converted Matt Jay's pull back from the touchline to make it 2-1, but the match was all about getting minutes under the belt.
The Grecians are next in action on Tuesday night as pre-season continues at the Optima Stadium against Weston-Super-Mare AFC in a 7:45pm kick-off, you can find the details here.
Team 1: Harry Lee; Josh Key, Harrison King, Alfie Pond, Alex Hartridge, Nelson Iseguan, Gabe Billington, Pedro Borges, Tim Dieng, Sonny Cox, Sam Nombe
Team 2: Harry Lee; Aamir Daniels, Ed James, Sam Joce, Max Edgecombe, Joe O’Connor, Tom Dean, Joe Wragg, Alfie Cunningham, Alfie Clark, George Spencer
Team 3: Harry Lee, Jake Caprice, Cheick Diabate, Jonathan Grounds, Alfie Pond, Jack Sparkes, Harry Kite, Josh Coley, Archie Collins, Jevani Brwown, Matt Jay
Tiverton Town: Arthur, Lam, O’Loughlin, Down, Richards, J.Jones, Morison, Purrington, Vowle, Thompson, Woodman
Subs: Belsten, D. Jones, Parramore, Warren, Aams, McCue, Heon Jin, Woodman, Saunders
The attendance was 1128
Match 2
Tuesday 5th July 2022
Weston Super Mare v Exeter City
Report by Derek Baker
Exeter City continued their preparations for life in League One with a convincing 5-0 over Weston-Super-Mare AFC at the Optima Stadium on Tuesday evening. Despite chances falling for both sides in an even first half, the contest remained goalless with both goalkeepers coming to the rescue of their respective sides. City upped the ante in the second half, and in particular, forward Sam Nombe, who grabbed himself four of the five Grecian goals, with defender Alfie Pond bagging the other on the night.
With pre-season prep still in mind, City boss Matt Taylor opted to play two different XI’s in either half to give his players more minutes against another strong and competitive opponent. The Grecians included youngsters Gabriel Billington and Harrison King in their starting line-up, while returning to the Optima Stadium following last season’s loan spell, Sonny Cox led the Exeter attack.
While the opening minutes saw some nice passages of play from City’s players, particularly down the right side involving Jake Caprice, the first pause in play came after five minutes when Cox required treatment following a hefty challenge on the edge of the box.
Taylor brought Cox off and Aamir Daniels entered the fray, which caused a little team reshuffle that saw King move into midfield and Josh Coley join captain Matt Jay in attack. Coley’s bright surge forward on 10 minutes unfortunately led to nothing. On the quarter of an hour mark, Harry Kite’s intelligent pass saw his team move forward down the right during a swift counter-attack. Jay’s powerful cross was deflected out for a corner, which in turn saw Jonathan Grounds send a tame header goalwards, but that was easily dealt with by the Seagulls defence.
Jordan Bastin’s 25th minute through ball to former Grecian, Reuben Reid, created the best chance of the opening period for the hosts. The powerful striker charged clear and let fly from 20 yards out, but the ball flew over Harry Lee’s crossbar.
City’s best opportunity came when they went more direct a few minutes later. A Grounds long ball fell nicely for Coley, who teed up his skipper for a shot from the left side. MJ’s low drive saw Luke Purnall dive to his right to tip the ball onto the post, causing a round of rapturous from the fans behind the goal.
Coley saw a long-range shot deflected wide moments after, before Jay tried his luck with a cheeky chip, but the effort was just a few inches too high.
Chances continued to come at either end, and Daniels’ slip in the 35th minute saw Bastin dance his way into a shooting area. Diabate couldn’t stop the wide-man, before his curled effort was denied by Lee’s diving save in what became a frantic few minutes.
The Seagulls kept the pressure on when Scott Laird’s centre was met by Reid in the six-yard box. The forward climbed highest and saw header was well stopped by the feet of Lee.
Lee came to the rescue again almost seconds later, before WSM should have scored when Reid played in Bastin down the right. The winger dribbled into the area and tried to link up with Reid once again for a tap in, however, Daniels made a desperate sliding challenge to stop the ball getting across to keep things goalless in the lead up to half-time.
The final action of the first 45 came when Jay spread play to the right following a counter-attack from a corner. Caprice arrowed an effort towards goal, but the ball sailed into the Alto Digital Stand, meaning matters remained goalless when referee Craig Scrivens blew for the break.
Taylor changed eight men for the second half, with only Harry Kite, Daniels and Lee staying on the pitch. The first opportunity after the interval came when Archie Collins’ powerful run through the middle saw him play in Nombe, however, the striker was unable to get a real shot away at goal despite having two attempts at it.
Josh Key started his cameo strongly with a few scurries down the right, and his cut back almost led to the games opener, if it wasn’t for some desperate WSM defending.
Two of Weston Super Mare’s replacements created a wonderful chance when Ellis Watts’ inswinging ball fell to Marlon Jackson just a few yards out. His volley was miscued however, and the ball went over.
That kickstarted the Grecians into life however, and in the 52nd minute, the deadlock was finally broken in some style. Nombe combined with Jevani Brown, before receiving the ball again on the edge of the 18-yard box. The attacker whipped the ball beyond the reach of Purnall and inside the post to hand his team the lead. With confidence high, Nombe tried his luck in similar circumstances just a few moments later, however, his effort was easily smothered on that occasion.
In the 61st minute, Jack Sparkes produced some bright play down the left to get to the byline. His dinked cross found Brown at the far stick, and the midfielder’s header set up Pedro Borges nicely. The youngster saw his low effort repelled by a superb defensive block, before Tim Dieng flashed the rebound high over the crossbar.
But at the midpoint of the second period, a cross from the right flank saw the Grecians finally double their advantage. Alex Hartridge climbed highest, and his header saw Purnall produce a wonderful low save, but on hand, fellow centre-back, Pond, tapped home from close range to make it 2-0.
Borges began to look bright in the offensive third during the final quarter, and in the 70th minute his shot was turned away. The young playmaker then saw another effort saved moments later, before Dieng saw a stab at the near post turned away from Purnell once again.
City really looked to turn the screw, and a loose Weston Super Mare back pass saw the visitors carve open another chance. Nombe intercepted the pass and saw his shot parried away, before the ball fell to Brown, whose curling strike was tipped around the post by Purnell’s save of the game.
The score became 3-0 in the 77th minute thanks to another smart finish. Despite the ball being fizzed into Nombe, his sharp turn and finish was too good for the Seagulls goalkeeper, and the ball found the bottom corner bringing more cheers from the Exeter fans.
In the 79th minute, Nombe completed his hattrick after some neat build-up play found Sparkes in a pocket of space on the left. The wing-back’s teasing cross found the poacher in front of goal, and he bundled the ball home despite Purnell’s best efforts to make it a four-goal game. Sparkes, ever prominent going forward, set Brown down the left with eight minutes remaining. Jevani’s low ball looked like it would be tapped home by Nombe once again, however Jason Pope’s heroic challenge meant the ball escaped the danger area.
On 88 minutes, the result was rounded off nicely with a fifth goal for Taylor’s men. Sparkes moved the ball onto Brown, who in turn fed Nombe inside the box. The striker held his nerve and coolly slotted the ball past Purnell for his fourth, and his team’s fifth, to complete what became a productive day at the office for the Grecians.
Exeter City
1st Half: Harry Lee, Harrison King, Cheick Diabate, Jonathan Grounds, Jake Caprice, Nelson Iseguan, Harry Kite, Gabriel Billington, Josh Coley, Matt Jay, Sonny Cox
Subs: Aamir Daniels, Pedro Borges
Match 3
Friday 8th July
Taunton Town 1 City 2
Derek Baker reports on a pre-season win for the Grecians Exeter City’s pre-season regime continued on an upward curve courtesy of a 2-1 victory over Taunton Town on Friday night.
Despite a goalless, and largely uneventful first half, Tim Dieng’s 76th free-kick broke the deadlock at the Cygnet Health Care Stadium, before the Peacocks levelled moments later through Harry Warwick.
City continued to pile forward however as time ran down, and Dieng bagged his second, and won the game for his team in the 87th minute after he linked up nicely with Nelson Iseguan. City boss Matt Taylor once again opted to play two different XI’s in either half as his playing squad continued their quest in getting up to speed for their upcoming League One campaign.
The Grecians started with captain Matt Jay and Academy youngster Alfie Clark in attack, while midfielder, Pedro Borges, was included from the beginning following his bright showing on Tuesday against Weston Super Mare.
Despite the kick-off being delayed by 10 minutes, the excitement and expectation that was contained inside the four sides of the stadium were evident, with numerous Exeter supporters parking themselves and starting their chants behind the Taunton goal.
The opening exchanges were rather even, with both teams having rather prominent spells with the ball; Archie Collins looking the most tidy in possession from those in a City jersey.
It was the Peacocks though that created the contest’s first real opportunity after quarter of an hour. Alfie Pond’s loose touch was seized upon by the home attack, before a low cross came from the right hand byline; Josh Key’s recovery challenge, however, stopped Taunton’s Nick McCootie converting from close range. While the Grecians had some encouraging signs down the flanks, another positive note from Town came in the 25th minute when some direct play saw them charge towards Harry Lee’s goal, but some poor ball retention meant the chance came to nothing.
Bright moments from Borges released Jay for a footrace against Taunton goalkeeper Will Buse in the lead up to half-time, however, the Bristol City loanee won the chase against the Exeter skipper before the ball was cleared to safety. A minute later, Key won possession high up for Taylor’s men, but the wideman could only fire his effort into the side netting.
The away side tried to go through the gears in the final few minutes of the opening 45, and an inventive short corner routine saw the ball moved onto Jack Sparkes. His teasing deep ball somehow avoided everyone in the danger area, and the ball went out harmlessly.
The final opening before the interval came from an attack down the right hand side. Key slipped a through ball into the path of replacement Aamir Daniels. The defender’s cross found it’s way to Sparkes, but he could only poke the ball over the crossbar and into the foliage keeping things goalless when referee Carl Peters blew his half-time whistle.
Taylor gave the armband to Dieng as he rotated his team for the second period, while Iseguan and Jake Caprice were given the wing-back roles for the remainder of the game.
While Town applied some pressure early on after the restart with a wide free-kick, the best chance of the opening exchanges of the second half came City’s way. Harry Kite and Caprice combined, which saw the latter dig out a cross to the back post. Iseguan stole ahead of his man before his diving header went wide of Buse’s upright.
Another promising moment for the hosts came when they sprung forward on a counter-attack just after the hour mark, but the lineman’s flag came to the rescue of the Grecians. That sparked Taylor’s men into life, and almost immediately after Jevani “Giovanni” Brown knocked a through ball to Caprice. Again, like before, the full-back’s cross located Iseguan, who almost inadvertently sent a header past Buse, but his defender came to the rescue with a block to spare the goalie’s blushes.
As we entered the final quarter, some encouraging Exeter play down the left between Iseguan and Harrison King brought about a corner. The resulting set-piece saw Caprice link up with Dieng, however, the midfielder could only volley the ball off-target.
More Grecian positivity came in the 74th minute when Daniels’ ball down the line found Josh Coley. Some neat footwork, and an intelligent chip, looked to have played in Brown, but the ball was scrambled out of play by some desperate defending.
But for all their endeavour, City did finally make a breakthrough 14 minutes from time, and in some style too. After Dieng was fouled 25-yards from goal, the playmaker picked himself up and set the free-kick into the top corner, much to the delight of the travelling support behind the goal.
But their opponents never went away, and to their credit, the Peacocks responded with a score just two minutes later. Ollie Chamberlain tried his luck from the edge of the penalty area, which saw Lee deflect the ball away. But on hand, Warwick reacted quickest to bundle home the rebound to level the scores.
Both sides continued to trade opportunities, with Brown the latest culprit to shoot over from the visitors’ point of view. But the Devonians picked up the pace once again as the contest reached the final five minutes. With the ball played into Dieng as City entered the final third, the cultured Frenchman fed play wide to Iseguan and stormed into the box. Iseguan found Dieng with a low ball, and he placed the ball inside the far post to hand his team the lead once again.
Again, Town came back at Taylor’s men, with a long-range swirling effort troubling Lee, but ultimately, City were good for their victory, and when full-time sounded, it was they who took home the victory.
Exeter City
1st Half: Harry Lee, Harrison King, Alfie Pond, Jonathan Grounds, Josh Key, Jack Sparkes, Harry Kite, Pedro Borges, Archie Collins, Matt Jay ©, Alfie Clark Exeter City
2nd Half: Harry Lee, Harry Kite, Cheick Diabate, Alex Hartridge, Jake Caprice, Nelson Iseguan, Gabriel Billington, Tim Dieng ©, Pedro Borges, Jevani Brown, Josh Coley
Subs: Aamir Daniels Taunton Town FC: Will Buse, Jay Foulston, Jake Wannell, Dan Ball, Nick Grimes ©, Zac Smith, Lloyd James, Joe Budd, Joe Guest, Jared Lewington, Nick McCootie Subs: Lloyd Irish, Ollie Chamberlain, Ioan Richards, Harry Warwick, Will Tunnicliff, Freddie Hinds, Lewis Smith, Eli Collins, Ross Staley, Ross Stearn Referee: Carl Peters
Attendance: 901
Match 4
12th July 2022
Exeter 3-0 Truro
(At the Cat and Fiddle training ground)
Behind closed doors Goals from Sam Nombe, Josh Key and a trialist (Kgaogelo Chauke) handed Exeter City a 3-0 win over Truro City to give the Grecians their third pre-season win in a row.
The first half saw the Grecians take control of the contest from the off, and they deservedly went two goals ahead thanks to some precise passing and neat build up play.
Second half replacement, Nelson Iseguan, provided a lively cameo, and he and Alfie Clark played a massive hand in City’s third, which was eventually driven home by an Exeter trialist.
Grecians boss Matt Taylor looked to increase the minutes in the legs of several members of his first-team squad, with his starting XI down to play until the midway point of the second half as the start of the League One campaign draws ever closer.
Key and Josh Coley provided the width for the team in wing-back roles, while Nombe returned to partner Jevani Brown in attack. City were quick to get onto the front foot, and just three minutes in they went close when Jevani Brown’s corner was met by Alex Hartridge, however his header was eventually cleared by the away defence.
Coley looked prominent in the early stages, and his surge down the left side saw the wing back get deep into the Truro half. His pull back found Nombe, and the striker’s front post strike was turned away by goalkeeper Morgan Coxhead. Coley was at the heart of everything good from the hosts, and when he received the ball from the resulting corner, he whipped an effort just past the far upright.
Nombe, in his first showing since his four-goal haul against Weston-Super-Mare, was the next in an Exeter jersey to try his luck. Josh Key’s low ball located the poacher, but he scuffed an effort into the hands of the Truro shot-stopper. Despite the visitors giving a good account of themselves, the Devonians continued to carve open the better chances, and on 18 minutes, Coley came within a whisker of breaking the deadlock when his cross-shot cannoned off the Truro crossbar.
Moments later, Harry Kite’s deflected effort was the next shot of the contest, but that proved to just be a warning sign because at the midpoint of the first period, the opening goal arrived. Kite once again received the ball within shooting distance, and his low drive was saved onto the post by the left foot of Coxhead. On hand, Nombe displayed his sharp instincts by reacting first and converting from close range to make it 1-0.
However, despite being in the supremecy, Taylor’s men were close to conceding from a free-kick a few minutes later. Former Exeter man, Will Dean floated the ball into the danger area, and Tyler Harvey rose highest to divert the ball towards the near post, however, the linesman flagged an offside just when it looked like the ball would be bundled home.
But just just sparked the home attack back into life, and in the 29th minute, the Grecians doubled their advantage. Coley, once again showing his hunger and desire sustained the pressure onto the Truro goal with another forward run, before he linked up with Key. The right wing-back powered the ball home from 15 yards, much to the jubilation of everyone watching on.
As the hosts attempted to turn the screw, Tim Dieng saw a header disallowed after the assistant flagged for another offside, while Nombe might’ve done better when the ball fell his way inside the six-yard box following good work from Hartridge and Key.
Truro looked dangerous from set-pieces, and following a corner, Harry Lee denied Truro captain Connor Riley-Lowe when he volleyed from the edge of the box.
But in the lead up to half-time, the best opportunity for the match’s third goal fell the way of the hosts when a strong run from Archie Collins saw the midfielder move the ball onto Nombe, but the forward could only fire over.
With the Exeter players looking good for their two-goal lead, Taylor made just the one change at half-time with Matt Jay coming on for Nombe. And the club captain played a part in the second half’s opening opportunity when Brown’s precise first-time ball found MJ. The Exeter number seven laid it to his right into the path of Dieng, who shot flashed past the post.
Seconds later, the visitors felt hard done by when they capitalised on a blocked clearance by the home defence. Rocky Neal stole in and looked to round Lee, however, as he put the ball into the back of the net, he was given offside.
Jay looked to swing the momentum back in his side’s favour a few minutes later when he combined with Brown, but the skipper saw his strike tipped round by Coxhead. But while Taylor’s men continued to dominate proceedings, the away side were once again unfortunate not to get themselves on the scoresheet when a corner led to a bit of a scramble inside the Exeter penalty area, before Neal smuggled the ball past Lee, but again, the offside flag denied the Cornish club.
Coley saw a low shot tipped round the post as the game ticked into the final quarter, before Taylor turned to his bench to change the majority of the team. Introduced, the likes of Jake Caprice, Iseguan, and a trialist entered the fray, but it was in fact Academy player, Clark, who had the game’s next opening. Iseguan flew down the left, before he sent a deep ball towards MJ. Jay showed tremendous composure by teeing up his strike partner, but Coxhead was equal to Clark’s shot.
The young frontman made amends minutes later though when the Grecians scored with their next attack. Iseguan, who looked lively since his introduction got to the byline before finding Clark. Clark laid the ball back to the trialist on the edge of the box, and his powerful strike was too good for the visiting goalie, to give his team a three-goal cushion late on.
The home team continued with the initiative with Jay and Gabriel Billington both going close, while, up the other end, Lee was merely a spectator for the most part. While City looked for another goal late on, when the referee blew for full time, Taylor’s men had to settle for the 3-0 win, which overall offered plenty of encouragement for the coaching staff, and those watching on the YouTube channel.
The Grecians are next in action on Saturday when they play against Yeovil Town away from home in a 3:00pm kick-off.
Exeter City
1st XI: Harry Lee, Cheick Diabate, Alfie Pond, Alex Hartridge, Josh Key, Josh Coley, Harry Kite, Tim Dieng, Archie Collins, Jevani Brown, Sam Nombe
2nd XI: Harry Lee, Pierce Sweeney, Sam Stubbs, Jonathan Grounds, Jake Caprice, Nelson Iseguan, A.Trialist, Harrison King, Pedro Borges, Matt Jay, Alfie Clark
Truro City FC: Coxhead, Egan, Riley-Lowe, White, Rice, Dean, Harvey, Sullivan, Knowles, Grange, Neal Subs: Edlin, Newton, Horton, Perrow, B.Rowe, K.Rowe
Match 5
Yeovil Town 1 City 1
City draw at Huish Park report by Harrison Beer.
Exeter City's fifth pre-season fixture ended in a draw as Matt Jay cancelled out Tom Knowles strike on a sweltering afternoon at Yeovil.
The Glovers' Knowles pounced on a defensive error midway through the first half, before the Grecians captain made the most of a fortuitous deflection inside the six yard box to level the scores before the break.
Matt Taylor named a strong starting line up, with nine other members of the squad introduced to the field throughout the afternoon. An early mishap in defence lead to a threat from the hosts, however Harry Lee was poised and cleared the ball at the edge of the box.
A chip from Pierce Sweeney found Harry Kite in plenty of space on the right flank of the pitch, coming to no avail however as a shot from the midfielder drifted wide of the far post. Then, cross from Jake Caprice into the centre of the opposition box failed to result in a goal with Yeovil applying enough pressure to prevent the awaiting partnership of Tim Dieng and Sam Nombe from putting the Grecians in front.
Sharp movement and quick passing from Trialist provided plenty of options - as he did in Tuesday's win over the Truro - for the Grecians as they tried to break the deadlock, with the midfielder appearing as one of the brightest players in the early minutes.
City’s first shot on goal came in the form of a well worked team effort that found the feet of Sam Nombe just outside the penalty area, with a low driven shot finding the gloves of the Town keeper. However, opening goal came for the hosts after a loose pass from from Sam Stubbs, gifting Yeovil’s Knowles, who found himself in plenty of space on the left side of the Grecian penalty area, with a low shot towards the bottom right corner of goal squeezing past young academy goalkeeper Lee.
City were knocking on the door, with the Town keeper parrying a dangerous ball away from goal and keeping the hosts narrowly in front. Minutes later, academy graduate Jack Sparkes was given the chance to make use of his shooting boots, with a powerful shot flying just wide of the left post.
City’s equaliser came in the 33rd minute as a mix-up at the back from Yeovil defenders resulted in captain Jay being gifted a golden opportunity to pull the teams level, with a low shot in the bottom left corner of the goal proving too much for the goalkeeper after great work from Sparkes with the delivery.
Two changes at the beginning of the second half saw Archie Collins and Cheick Diabate replacing Dieng and Stubbs in an effort to spread the gametime throughout the squad. Fancy footwork from Jack Sparkes on the edge of the box allowed him to work forward and play a dangerous cross in towards the opposition goal, with the ball being fumbled and eventually cleared by the Yeovil backline as they attempted a counter attack which ended with a strong challenge from trialist, and the first booking of the game for the youngster.
Following Alex Hartridge’s replacement of Jonathan Grounds in defence, the Grecians broke forward this time in the form of Collins as he spread the ball onto trialist, who found Sparkes on the edge of the box. A low cross from a tight angle followed and was met with a block from the Glover’s back line.
As the hour mark rolled by, Matt Taylor replenished his squad with the additions Josh Coley, Jevani Brown and Pedro Borges as the visitors battled to put themselves ahead in the tie. Lee shone in the 72nd minute as a low driven shot from the hosts was caught by the young goalkeeper, keeping the match level and allowing The Grecians to embark on another counter attacking chance, with a precise cross from academy player Borges finding the gloves of the home keeper.
As the final ten minutes came into sight, a well worked move between Borges and Coley gave striker Brown his first shot of the game, with the ball meeting the outstretched leg of a Yeovil defender, allowing the ball to be cleared from goal. Following this move, Taylor continued his trend of giving as many opportunities to academy products with the addition of Iseguan, Billington and Clarke to the field.
Despite promising passing moves from the Grecians in the latter stages of the game, Yeovil defended stoically to prevent further goals.
Exeter City XI: Lee, Caprice, Sweeney, Stubbs, Grounds, Sparkes, Kite, Trialist, Dieng, Nombe, Jay.
Subs: Collins, Diabate, Hartridge, Coley, Brown, King, Borges, Iseguan, Clark, Billington.
Match 6
19 July 2022
Bristol City 2 City 2
Grecians held to draw in penultimate pre-season match. Exeter City continued their preparations for life in EFL Sky Bet League One with a hard-fought 2-2 draw against Bristol City. As temperatures in Bristol soared to 30 degrees, the Grecians faced their toughest test of pre-season so far against Championship opposition. Goals from Josh Coley and Alex Hartrige would give City a two-goal lead before a quick-fire double from Conway meant the match ended in a draw.
After a slow opening ten minutes where both teams got used to the heat, City forced the first opening. Clever work from Jevani Brown down the right won the first corner, but it was well defended by the Robins. City then fashioned a decent chance to go ahead as Josh Key travelled to the touchline before sending in a cross that Tim Dieng could only divert wide.
The Grecians took the lead which their bright start deserved. Harry Lee’s clearance found Jake Caprice in space down the left, after moving the ball forward he delivered a sublime outside-of-the-boot lofted ball through to find Josh Coley in space just inside the area, he took a touch and fired home. The goal gave City confidence and a couple minutes later it should have been two as Josh Coley played a ball out to Caprice who sprinted into the box and crossed low, just behind Tim Dieng.
Bristol City had the chance to level after seventeen minutes as captain Andy King twisted and turned inside the box before sending a clever chip towards the top corner but it whistled just over the bar.
On twenty minutes City went close as neat play outside the box lead to Jevani Brown turning and sending a shot just inches over the bar with the ‘keeper stranded. Bristol City created their best chance to level after half hour. Tim Dieng was dispossessed in the centre and the ball was fed through to Sam Bell who found himself one-on-one with Harry Lee. Bell shot low but Harry saved well with his legs.
City caused the Robins all kinds of problems down the left, Caprice and Hartridge combining which allowed Alex to whip in a ball just ahead of Sam Nombe that was well cleared. City were the happier of the two sides going into the break with a one goal lead.
The second half started in much the same way as the first, with City doing the pressing. After winning the ball back, Josh Coley played in Jevani Brown down the right who sent a low cross in that Sam Nombe just couldn’t connect with, with the goal at his mercy.
In the 53rd minute City had the golden chance to double the score, a loose pass back was intercepted by the rapid Sam Nombe who raced forward but sent his shot just wide of the post. City continue to create all the chances, just before the hour mark the lively Jake Caprice found space down the left before cutting back and whipping a ball onto the head of Tim Dieng, who connected well, and his header crashed against the post.
Bristol City came close to levelling the scores as substitute Scott worked some space in the box with quick feet but his shot fell just wide of the far post.
City finally got the second goal their play deserved as Pierce Sweeney found space down the right on seventy minutes before whipping a fantastic cross across the face of goal that found Alex Hartridge free at the back post to nod home. And it was almost three moments later as Josh Key was found on the edge of the box, he hit the ball on the half volley, and it was narrowly wide of the Robins goal.
Five minutes later and the Robins were back in the match as Scott feeds the ball through to Wells who cuts it back for Conway to slot home from close range. In the 85th minute the match was level. Bristol City pounced on a defensive error by Diabate and the ball is played to Conway who fired home from just inside the box.
Despite both teams looking for a winner the match would end in a hard-fought draw.
Starting XI: Lee, Key (Sparkes ’80) Sweeney (Jay ’80), DIabate, Hartridge, Collins, Dieng (Borges ’80), Coley (Pond ’80), Brown, Nombe (Iseguan ’80)
Bristol City XI: O’Leary, Klose, Towler Idehen, Wilson, Meassengo, King, Taylor, Bell, Conway, Wells Subs: Casa-Grande, Araoye, Scott, Taylor-Clarke, Henry
Match 7
Torquay United 1 City 0
23rd July 2022
Exeter City finished their preparations for life in EFL Sky Bet League One with a narrow 1-0 defeat to Torquay United as Brett McGavin's close range finish and heroics from Halstead in the Torquay goal was enough for the win.
Manager Matt Taylor named a strong starting XI with Jevani Brown, Josh Key and Harry Kite missing out with slight niggles. The experienced Scott Brown started in goal for City.
The first chance of the game went to Torquay, as Sam Stubbs soft pass was intercepted by Hanson who shifted into the City box but fired high and wide over Scott Brown in the City goal.
The Grecians first chance of note came after 13 minutes, as Archie Collins picked up the ball in the centre, after driving forward and evading a couple challenges he found Josh Coley who quickly switched to Jack Sparkes, his low cross was diverted into the post by a Torquay defender and was then cleared.
Dylan Crowe tested Scott Brown in the 27th minute as he turned on the edge of the box and hit a half-volley, but it was a comfortable save. Moments later, a well worked free-kick routine saw Jake Caprice find space down City’s right, he sent a cross to the back post which Tim Dieng headed down towards the bottom corner, but Halstead was equal to it.
The chance kicked City into gear and Jack Sparkes dipped and weaved past a pair of challenges before swapping passes with Tim Dieng, his cross into the six-yard box was so close to the boot of MJ but was well collected by Halstead. Minutes later a fast and fluid counter saw Archie Collins move forward before finding Tim Dieng just outside the box, he quickly moved the ball on to Sam Nombe who was quickly closed down by Halstead to smother his shot.
City should have been ahead just before the break. Jack Sparkes found space inside the box and chipped a cross towards the back post, Sam Nombe connected with the header and Halstead reacted quickly to push the ball onto the post.
The first chance of the second half fell to the feet of Jack Sparkes who fired wide from a tight angle just inside the Torquay area. Jack Sparkes was at the heart of the Grecians strong start to the second half, and he whipped a flat cross in to the six-yard box which Halstead again did well to save with his feet, Sam Nombe was denied on the follow up with another reaction save, but the flag was up for offside. Just before the hour mark Sweeney whipped a ball into the box which Tim Dieng sent towards goal, Halstead again pulled out a brilliant stop.
The ball was eventually sent in again by Sweeney and Tim Dieng headed wide. Pierce Sweeney continued to deliver great crosses into the box and on 73 minutes he found Josh Coley in space in the area, but he headed wide. Moments later, former Grecian Dean Moxey found space down the left and sent a low cross which was just ahead of the Torquay attacker.
The hosts took the lead after 80 minutes after a free-kick was delivered into the box, Scott Brown made a superb reaction save but the follow up was poked home by Brett McGavin.
City pushed for an equaliser but were unable to create any real chances with Torquay taking the 1-0 win.
Exeter City: Brown; Caprice, Sweeney, Stubbs (Diabate ’60), Grounds, Sparkes; Collins, Dieng, Coley (Borges ’81); Jay © Nombe
Subs not used: Lee, Pond, Hartridge, Clark, Iseguan
Bookings: Sweeney, Coley
Torquay United: Halstead; Crowe, Omar, Marshall, Evans, McGavin, Donnellan, Goodwin, Moxey ©
Subs: Quinn, Bishop, Thomas, Koszela, Lovett, Tomlinson, Brooks, Winsor, Trialist
Bookings: Marshall
Attendance: 2634 (inc 911 away)
Tiverton Town 2
City 1 1 July 2022
Exeter City’s pre-season schedule kicked-off with a 2-1 defeat to Tiverton Town at the Ian Moorcroft Stadium.
Two debutants scored in two minutes for the hosts as Tom Purrington and Joe O'Loughlin converted before Jevani Brown scored with the last kick of the game.
The kick-off time was delayed by 15 minutes due to havoc on the Motorway as the Grecians named three teams that would play over the 90 minutes. The City team playing the first third was a blend of youth and experience and in true pre-season style, City’s Jack Arthur played in goal for Tivvy as their number one is currently on holiday… to add to that, the Grecians lined-up without any numbers on their shirts. After a banging set from Tiverton’s resident DJ, it felt more like Ibiza than mid Devon, the Ian Moorcroft Stadium truly is the place to be on a Friday night.
City started on the front foot, moving the ball quickly and the lively Iseguan, who had a productive spell at Tiverton last season would win the first corner of the night, which was well defended by the Yellows.
The first true effort of the night would fall to the feet of midfielder Borges, who hit an effort low but wide of the goal from thirty yards. At the other end, Tivvy went close to opening the scoring as defender O’Loughlin drilled a fierce effort wide of the post from the edge of the box.
The Grecians should have taken the lead of fifteen as Hartridge worked hard down the left to get a cross in which Billington connected but his effort was comfortable for Arthur. Sam Nombe powered through the midfield and sent a ball through to Sonny Cox who pulled a strong save out of Arthur, moments later Tim Dieng found space in the box but uncharacteristically sliced the ball wide.
Former Grecian Louis Morison came close to breaking the deadlock as his wide free-kick sailed through the penalty area and just wide of Harry Lee’s dive. After thirty minutes, team two took to the field made up of City’s promising under-18s, with Harry Lee remaining in goal.
The deadlock was almost broken and it would have been a wondergoal from Alfie Clark, as he won a strong challenge in his own half, marauding through midfield, beating a couple challenges before he drilled a shot wide from just outside the box. Minutes later another strong run from Joe Wragg saw him move just inside the box before his shot took a deflection taking it just over the bar.
Team two returned to the pitch for the first fifteen of the second half and Tiverton would strike first as Tom Purrington on his debut picked up the ball in midfield before driving forward and sending a low shot into the bottom corner. One would quickly become two. A 50/50 challenge in the middle of the park from Daniels fell kindly for Tiverton and Joe O’Loughlin, another debutant made no mistake in drilling the ball under Harry Lee to make it 2-0 after 56 minutes.
A more experienced team, led by captain Matt Jay came on for the final thirty minutes and were quickly on the attack, City missing the chance to pull one back as Archie Collins’ corner sailed through the six-yard box untouched.
Jevani Brown found himself in space inside the box, twisting and turning he dug out a cross, which was well defended before Josh Coley fired towards goal, but his shot was well blocked. Minutes later Jevani Brown fired against the crossbar with a superb effort as City really put on the pressure. Tiverton almost put the game to bed on 72 as Louis Morison whipped a fantastic free kick towards the corner from just outside the box, but Harry Lee got fingertips to it to pull out a great save.
Jevani Brown would score with the last kick of the game as he converted Matt Jay's pull back from the touchline to make it 2-1, but the match was all about getting minutes under the belt.
The Grecians are next in action on Tuesday night as pre-season continues at the Optima Stadium against Weston-Super-Mare AFC in a 7:45pm kick-off, you can find the details here.
Team 1: Harry Lee; Josh Key, Harrison King, Alfie Pond, Alex Hartridge, Nelson Iseguan, Gabe Billington, Pedro Borges, Tim Dieng, Sonny Cox, Sam Nombe
Team 2: Harry Lee; Aamir Daniels, Ed James, Sam Joce, Max Edgecombe, Joe O’Connor, Tom Dean, Joe Wragg, Alfie Cunningham, Alfie Clark, George Spencer
Team 3: Harry Lee, Jake Caprice, Cheick Diabate, Jonathan Grounds, Alfie Pond, Jack Sparkes, Harry Kite, Josh Coley, Archie Collins, Jevani Brwown, Matt Jay
Tiverton Town: Arthur, Lam, O’Loughlin, Down, Richards, J.Jones, Morison, Purrington, Vowle, Thompson, Woodman
Subs: Belsten, D. Jones, Parramore, Warren, Aams, McCue, Heon Jin, Woodman, Saunders
The attendance was 1128
Match 2
Tuesday 5th July 2022
Weston Super Mare v Exeter City
Report by Derek Baker
Exeter City continued their preparations for life in League One with a convincing 5-0 over Weston-Super-Mare AFC at the Optima Stadium on Tuesday evening. Despite chances falling for both sides in an even first half, the contest remained goalless with both goalkeepers coming to the rescue of their respective sides. City upped the ante in the second half, and in particular, forward Sam Nombe, who grabbed himself four of the five Grecian goals, with defender Alfie Pond bagging the other on the night.
With pre-season prep still in mind, City boss Matt Taylor opted to play two different XI’s in either half to give his players more minutes against another strong and competitive opponent. The Grecians included youngsters Gabriel Billington and Harrison King in their starting line-up, while returning to the Optima Stadium following last season’s loan spell, Sonny Cox led the Exeter attack.
While the opening minutes saw some nice passages of play from City’s players, particularly down the right side involving Jake Caprice, the first pause in play came after five minutes when Cox required treatment following a hefty challenge on the edge of the box.
Taylor brought Cox off and Aamir Daniels entered the fray, which caused a little team reshuffle that saw King move into midfield and Josh Coley join captain Matt Jay in attack. Coley’s bright surge forward on 10 minutes unfortunately led to nothing. On the quarter of an hour mark, Harry Kite’s intelligent pass saw his team move forward down the right during a swift counter-attack. Jay’s powerful cross was deflected out for a corner, which in turn saw Jonathan Grounds send a tame header goalwards, but that was easily dealt with by the Seagulls defence.
Jordan Bastin’s 25th minute through ball to former Grecian, Reuben Reid, created the best chance of the opening period for the hosts. The powerful striker charged clear and let fly from 20 yards out, but the ball flew over Harry Lee’s crossbar.
City’s best opportunity came when they went more direct a few minutes later. A Grounds long ball fell nicely for Coley, who teed up his skipper for a shot from the left side. MJ’s low drive saw Luke Purnall dive to his right to tip the ball onto the post, causing a round of rapturous from the fans behind the goal.
Coley saw a long-range shot deflected wide moments after, before Jay tried his luck with a cheeky chip, but the effort was just a few inches too high.
Chances continued to come at either end, and Daniels’ slip in the 35th minute saw Bastin dance his way into a shooting area. Diabate couldn’t stop the wide-man, before his curled effort was denied by Lee’s diving save in what became a frantic few minutes.
The Seagulls kept the pressure on when Scott Laird’s centre was met by Reid in the six-yard box. The forward climbed highest and saw header was well stopped by the feet of Lee.
Lee came to the rescue again almost seconds later, before WSM should have scored when Reid played in Bastin down the right. The winger dribbled into the area and tried to link up with Reid once again for a tap in, however, Daniels made a desperate sliding challenge to stop the ball getting across to keep things goalless in the lead up to half-time.
The final action of the first 45 came when Jay spread play to the right following a counter-attack from a corner. Caprice arrowed an effort towards goal, but the ball sailed into the Alto Digital Stand, meaning matters remained goalless when referee Craig Scrivens blew for the break.
Taylor changed eight men for the second half, with only Harry Kite, Daniels and Lee staying on the pitch. The first opportunity after the interval came when Archie Collins’ powerful run through the middle saw him play in Nombe, however, the striker was unable to get a real shot away at goal despite having two attempts at it.
Josh Key started his cameo strongly with a few scurries down the right, and his cut back almost led to the games opener, if it wasn’t for some desperate WSM defending.
Two of Weston Super Mare’s replacements created a wonderful chance when Ellis Watts’ inswinging ball fell to Marlon Jackson just a few yards out. His volley was miscued however, and the ball went over.
That kickstarted the Grecians into life however, and in the 52nd minute, the deadlock was finally broken in some style. Nombe combined with Jevani Brown, before receiving the ball again on the edge of the 18-yard box. The attacker whipped the ball beyond the reach of Purnall and inside the post to hand his team the lead. With confidence high, Nombe tried his luck in similar circumstances just a few moments later, however, his effort was easily smothered on that occasion.
In the 61st minute, Jack Sparkes produced some bright play down the left to get to the byline. His dinked cross found Brown at the far stick, and the midfielder’s header set up Pedro Borges nicely. The youngster saw his low effort repelled by a superb defensive block, before Tim Dieng flashed the rebound high over the crossbar.
But at the midpoint of the second period, a cross from the right flank saw the Grecians finally double their advantage. Alex Hartridge climbed highest, and his header saw Purnall produce a wonderful low save, but on hand, fellow centre-back, Pond, tapped home from close range to make it 2-0.
Borges began to look bright in the offensive third during the final quarter, and in the 70th minute his shot was turned away. The young playmaker then saw another effort saved moments later, before Dieng saw a stab at the near post turned away from Purnell once again.
City really looked to turn the screw, and a loose Weston Super Mare back pass saw the visitors carve open another chance. Nombe intercepted the pass and saw his shot parried away, before the ball fell to Brown, whose curling strike was tipped around the post by Purnell’s save of the game.
The score became 3-0 in the 77th minute thanks to another smart finish. Despite the ball being fizzed into Nombe, his sharp turn and finish was too good for the Seagulls goalkeeper, and the ball found the bottom corner bringing more cheers from the Exeter fans.
In the 79th minute, Nombe completed his hattrick after some neat build-up play found Sparkes in a pocket of space on the left. The wing-back’s teasing cross found the poacher in front of goal, and he bundled the ball home despite Purnell’s best efforts to make it a four-goal game. Sparkes, ever prominent going forward, set Brown down the left with eight minutes remaining. Jevani’s low ball looked like it would be tapped home by Nombe once again, however Jason Pope’s heroic challenge meant the ball escaped the danger area.
On 88 minutes, the result was rounded off nicely with a fifth goal for Taylor’s men. Sparkes moved the ball onto Brown, who in turn fed Nombe inside the box. The striker held his nerve and coolly slotted the ball past Purnell for his fourth, and his team’s fifth, to complete what became a productive day at the office for the Grecians.
Exeter City
1st Half: Harry Lee, Harrison King, Cheick Diabate, Jonathan Grounds, Jake Caprice, Nelson Iseguan, Harry Kite, Gabriel Billington, Josh Coley, Matt Jay, Sonny Cox
Subs: Aamir Daniels, Pedro Borges
Match 3
Friday 8th July
Taunton Town 1 City 2
Derek Baker reports on a pre-season win for the Grecians Exeter City’s pre-season regime continued on an upward curve courtesy of a 2-1 victory over Taunton Town on Friday night.
Despite a goalless, and largely uneventful first half, Tim Dieng’s 76th free-kick broke the deadlock at the Cygnet Health Care Stadium, before the Peacocks levelled moments later through Harry Warwick.
City continued to pile forward however as time ran down, and Dieng bagged his second, and won the game for his team in the 87th minute after he linked up nicely with Nelson Iseguan. City boss Matt Taylor once again opted to play two different XI’s in either half as his playing squad continued their quest in getting up to speed for their upcoming League One campaign.
The Grecians started with captain Matt Jay and Academy youngster Alfie Clark in attack, while midfielder, Pedro Borges, was included from the beginning following his bright showing on Tuesday against Weston Super Mare.
Despite the kick-off being delayed by 10 minutes, the excitement and expectation that was contained inside the four sides of the stadium were evident, with numerous Exeter supporters parking themselves and starting their chants behind the Taunton goal.
The opening exchanges were rather even, with both teams having rather prominent spells with the ball; Archie Collins looking the most tidy in possession from those in a City jersey.
It was the Peacocks though that created the contest’s first real opportunity after quarter of an hour. Alfie Pond’s loose touch was seized upon by the home attack, before a low cross came from the right hand byline; Josh Key’s recovery challenge, however, stopped Taunton’s Nick McCootie converting from close range. While the Grecians had some encouraging signs down the flanks, another positive note from Town came in the 25th minute when some direct play saw them charge towards Harry Lee’s goal, but some poor ball retention meant the chance came to nothing.
Bright moments from Borges released Jay for a footrace against Taunton goalkeeper Will Buse in the lead up to half-time, however, the Bristol City loanee won the chase against the Exeter skipper before the ball was cleared to safety. A minute later, Key won possession high up for Taylor’s men, but the wideman could only fire his effort into the side netting.
The away side tried to go through the gears in the final few minutes of the opening 45, and an inventive short corner routine saw the ball moved onto Jack Sparkes. His teasing deep ball somehow avoided everyone in the danger area, and the ball went out harmlessly.
The final opening before the interval came from an attack down the right hand side. Key slipped a through ball into the path of replacement Aamir Daniels. The defender’s cross found it’s way to Sparkes, but he could only poke the ball over the crossbar and into the foliage keeping things goalless when referee Carl Peters blew his half-time whistle.
Taylor gave the armband to Dieng as he rotated his team for the second period, while Iseguan and Jake Caprice were given the wing-back roles for the remainder of the game.
While Town applied some pressure early on after the restart with a wide free-kick, the best chance of the opening exchanges of the second half came City’s way. Harry Kite and Caprice combined, which saw the latter dig out a cross to the back post. Iseguan stole ahead of his man before his diving header went wide of Buse’s upright.
Another promising moment for the hosts came when they sprung forward on a counter-attack just after the hour mark, but the lineman’s flag came to the rescue of the Grecians. That sparked Taylor’s men into life, and almost immediately after Jevani “Giovanni” Brown knocked a through ball to Caprice. Again, like before, the full-back’s cross located Iseguan, who almost inadvertently sent a header past Buse, but his defender came to the rescue with a block to spare the goalie’s blushes.
As we entered the final quarter, some encouraging Exeter play down the left between Iseguan and Harrison King brought about a corner. The resulting set-piece saw Caprice link up with Dieng, however, the midfielder could only volley the ball off-target.
More Grecian positivity came in the 74th minute when Daniels’ ball down the line found Josh Coley. Some neat footwork, and an intelligent chip, looked to have played in Brown, but the ball was scrambled out of play by some desperate defending.
But for all their endeavour, City did finally make a breakthrough 14 minutes from time, and in some style too. After Dieng was fouled 25-yards from goal, the playmaker picked himself up and set the free-kick into the top corner, much to the delight of the travelling support behind the goal.
But their opponents never went away, and to their credit, the Peacocks responded with a score just two minutes later. Ollie Chamberlain tried his luck from the edge of the penalty area, which saw Lee deflect the ball away. But on hand, Warwick reacted quickest to bundle home the rebound to level the scores.
Both sides continued to trade opportunities, with Brown the latest culprit to shoot over from the visitors’ point of view. But the Devonians picked up the pace once again as the contest reached the final five minutes. With the ball played into Dieng as City entered the final third, the cultured Frenchman fed play wide to Iseguan and stormed into the box. Iseguan found Dieng with a low ball, and he placed the ball inside the far post to hand his team the lead once again.
Again, Town came back at Taylor’s men, with a long-range swirling effort troubling Lee, but ultimately, City were good for their victory, and when full-time sounded, it was they who took home the victory.
Exeter City
1st Half: Harry Lee, Harrison King, Alfie Pond, Jonathan Grounds, Josh Key, Jack Sparkes, Harry Kite, Pedro Borges, Archie Collins, Matt Jay ©, Alfie Clark Exeter City
2nd Half: Harry Lee, Harry Kite, Cheick Diabate, Alex Hartridge, Jake Caprice, Nelson Iseguan, Gabriel Billington, Tim Dieng ©, Pedro Borges, Jevani Brown, Josh Coley
Subs: Aamir Daniels Taunton Town FC: Will Buse, Jay Foulston, Jake Wannell, Dan Ball, Nick Grimes ©, Zac Smith, Lloyd James, Joe Budd, Joe Guest, Jared Lewington, Nick McCootie Subs: Lloyd Irish, Ollie Chamberlain, Ioan Richards, Harry Warwick, Will Tunnicliff, Freddie Hinds, Lewis Smith, Eli Collins, Ross Staley, Ross Stearn Referee: Carl Peters
Attendance: 901
Match 4
12th July 2022
Exeter 3-0 Truro
(At the Cat and Fiddle training ground)
Behind closed doors Goals from Sam Nombe, Josh Key and a trialist (Kgaogelo Chauke) handed Exeter City a 3-0 win over Truro City to give the Grecians their third pre-season win in a row.
The first half saw the Grecians take control of the contest from the off, and they deservedly went two goals ahead thanks to some precise passing and neat build up play.
Second half replacement, Nelson Iseguan, provided a lively cameo, and he and Alfie Clark played a massive hand in City’s third, which was eventually driven home by an Exeter trialist.
Grecians boss Matt Taylor looked to increase the minutes in the legs of several members of his first-team squad, with his starting XI down to play until the midway point of the second half as the start of the League One campaign draws ever closer.
Key and Josh Coley provided the width for the team in wing-back roles, while Nombe returned to partner Jevani Brown in attack. City were quick to get onto the front foot, and just three minutes in they went close when Jevani Brown’s corner was met by Alex Hartridge, however his header was eventually cleared by the away defence.
Coley looked prominent in the early stages, and his surge down the left side saw the wing back get deep into the Truro half. His pull back found Nombe, and the striker’s front post strike was turned away by goalkeeper Morgan Coxhead. Coley was at the heart of everything good from the hosts, and when he received the ball from the resulting corner, he whipped an effort just past the far upright.
Nombe, in his first showing since his four-goal haul against Weston-Super-Mare, was the next in an Exeter jersey to try his luck. Josh Key’s low ball located the poacher, but he scuffed an effort into the hands of the Truro shot-stopper. Despite the visitors giving a good account of themselves, the Devonians continued to carve open the better chances, and on 18 minutes, Coley came within a whisker of breaking the deadlock when his cross-shot cannoned off the Truro crossbar.
Moments later, Harry Kite’s deflected effort was the next shot of the contest, but that proved to just be a warning sign because at the midpoint of the first period, the opening goal arrived. Kite once again received the ball within shooting distance, and his low drive was saved onto the post by the left foot of Coxhead. On hand, Nombe displayed his sharp instincts by reacting first and converting from close range to make it 1-0.
However, despite being in the supremecy, Taylor’s men were close to conceding from a free-kick a few minutes later. Former Exeter man, Will Dean floated the ball into the danger area, and Tyler Harvey rose highest to divert the ball towards the near post, however, the linesman flagged an offside just when it looked like the ball would be bundled home.
But just just sparked the home attack back into life, and in the 29th minute, the Grecians doubled their advantage. Coley, once again showing his hunger and desire sustained the pressure onto the Truro goal with another forward run, before he linked up with Key. The right wing-back powered the ball home from 15 yards, much to the jubilation of everyone watching on.
As the hosts attempted to turn the screw, Tim Dieng saw a header disallowed after the assistant flagged for another offside, while Nombe might’ve done better when the ball fell his way inside the six-yard box following good work from Hartridge and Key.
Truro looked dangerous from set-pieces, and following a corner, Harry Lee denied Truro captain Connor Riley-Lowe when he volleyed from the edge of the box.
But in the lead up to half-time, the best opportunity for the match’s third goal fell the way of the hosts when a strong run from Archie Collins saw the midfielder move the ball onto Nombe, but the forward could only fire over.
With the Exeter players looking good for their two-goal lead, Taylor made just the one change at half-time with Matt Jay coming on for Nombe. And the club captain played a part in the second half’s opening opportunity when Brown’s precise first-time ball found MJ. The Exeter number seven laid it to his right into the path of Dieng, who shot flashed past the post.
Seconds later, the visitors felt hard done by when they capitalised on a blocked clearance by the home defence. Rocky Neal stole in and looked to round Lee, however, as he put the ball into the back of the net, he was given offside.
Jay looked to swing the momentum back in his side’s favour a few minutes later when he combined with Brown, but the skipper saw his strike tipped round by Coxhead. But while Taylor’s men continued to dominate proceedings, the away side were once again unfortunate not to get themselves on the scoresheet when a corner led to a bit of a scramble inside the Exeter penalty area, before Neal smuggled the ball past Lee, but again, the offside flag denied the Cornish club.
Coley saw a low shot tipped round the post as the game ticked into the final quarter, before Taylor turned to his bench to change the majority of the team. Introduced, the likes of Jake Caprice, Iseguan, and a trialist entered the fray, but it was in fact Academy player, Clark, who had the game’s next opening. Iseguan flew down the left, before he sent a deep ball towards MJ. Jay showed tremendous composure by teeing up his strike partner, but Coxhead was equal to Clark’s shot.
The young frontman made amends minutes later though when the Grecians scored with their next attack. Iseguan, who looked lively since his introduction got to the byline before finding Clark. Clark laid the ball back to the trialist on the edge of the box, and his powerful strike was too good for the visiting goalie, to give his team a three-goal cushion late on.
The home team continued with the initiative with Jay and Gabriel Billington both going close, while, up the other end, Lee was merely a spectator for the most part. While City looked for another goal late on, when the referee blew for full time, Taylor’s men had to settle for the 3-0 win, which overall offered plenty of encouragement for the coaching staff, and those watching on the YouTube channel.
The Grecians are next in action on Saturday when they play against Yeovil Town away from home in a 3:00pm kick-off.
Exeter City
1st XI: Harry Lee, Cheick Diabate, Alfie Pond, Alex Hartridge, Josh Key, Josh Coley, Harry Kite, Tim Dieng, Archie Collins, Jevani Brown, Sam Nombe
2nd XI: Harry Lee, Pierce Sweeney, Sam Stubbs, Jonathan Grounds, Jake Caprice, Nelson Iseguan, A.Trialist, Harrison King, Pedro Borges, Matt Jay, Alfie Clark
Truro City FC: Coxhead, Egan, Riley-Lowe, White, Rice, Dean, Harvey, Sullivan, Knowles, Grange, Neal Subs: Edlin, Newton, Horton, Perrow, B.Rowe, K.Rowe
Match 5
Yeovil Town 1 City 1
City draw at Huish Park report by Harrison Beer.
Exeter City's fifth pre-season fixture ended in a draw as Matt Jay cancelled out Tom Knowles strike on a sweltering afternoon at Yeovil.
The Glovers' Knowles pounced on a defensive error midway through the first half, before the Grecians captain made the most of a fortuitous deflection inside the six yard box to level the scores before the break.
Matt Taylor named a strong starting line up, with nine other members of the squad introduced to the field throughout the afternoon. An early mishap in defence lead to a threat from the hosts, however Harry Lee was poised and cleared the ball at the edge of the box.
A chip from Pierce Sweeney found Harry Kite in plenty of space on the right flank of the pitch, coming to no avail however as a shot from the midfielder drifted wide of the far post. Then, cross from Jake Caprice into the centre of the opposition box failed to result in a goal with Yeovil applying enough pressure to prevent the awaiting partnership of Tim Dieng and Sam Nombe from putting the Grecians in front.
Sharp movement and quick passing from Trialist provided plenty of options - as he did in Tuesday's win over the Truro - for the Grecians as they tried to break the deadlock, with the midfielder appearing as one of the brightest players in the early minutes.
City’s first shot on goal came in the form of a well worked team effort that found the feet of Sam Nombe just outside the penalty area, with a low driven shot finding the gloves of the Town keeper. However, opening goal came for the hosts after a loose pass from from Sam Stubbs, gifting Yeovil’s Knowles, who found himself in plenty of space on the left side of the Grecian penalty area, with a low shot towards the bottom right corner of goal squeezing past young academy goalkeeper Lee.
City were knocking on the door, with the Town keeper parrying a dangerous ball away from goal and keeping the hosts narrowly in front. Minutes later, academy graduate Jack Sparkes was given the chance to make use of his shooting boots, with a powerful shot flying just wide of the left post.
City’s equaliser came in the 33rd minute as a mix-up at the back from Yeovil defenders resulted in captain Jay being gifted a golden opportunity to pull the teams level, with a low shot in the bottom left corner of the goal proving too much for the goalkeeper after great work from Sparkes with the delivery.
Two changes at the beginning of the second half saw Archie Collins and Cheick Diabate replacing Dieng and Stubbs in an effort to spread the gametime throughout the squad. Fancy footwork from Jack Sparkes on the edge of the box allowed him to work forward and play a dangerous cross in towards the opposition goal, with the ball being fumbled and eventually cleared by the Yeovil backline as they attempted a counter attack which ended with a strong challenge from trialist, and the first booking of the game for the youngster.
Following Alex Hartridge’s replacement of Jonathan Grounds in defence, the Grecians broke forward this time in the form of Collins as he spread the ball onto trialist, who found Sparkes on the edge of the box. A low cross from a tight angle followed and was met with a block from the Glover’s back line.
As the hour mark rolled by, Matt Taylor replenished his squad with the additions Josh Coley, Jevani Brown and Pedro Borges as the visitors battled to put themselves ahead in the tie. Lee shone in the 72nd minute as a low driven shot from the hosts was caught by the young goalkeeper, keeping the match level and allowing The Grecians to embark on another counter attacking chance, with a precise cross from academy player Borges finding the gloves of the home keeper.
As the final ten minutes came into sight, a well worked move between Borges and Coley gave striker Brown his first shot of the game, with the ball meeting the outstretched leg of a Yeovil defender, allowing the ball to be cleared from goal. Following this move, Taylor continued his trend of giving as many opportunities to academy products with the addition of Iseguan, Billington and Clarke to the field.
Despite promising passing moves from the Grecians in the latter stages of the game, Yeovil defended stoically to prevent further goals.
Exeter City XI: Lee, Caprice, Sweeney, Stubbs, Grounds, Sparkes, Kite, Trialist, Dieng, Nombe, Jay.
Subs: Collins, Diabate, Hartridge, Coley, Brown, King, Borges, Iseguan, Clark, Billington.
Match 6
19 July 2022
Bristol City 2 City 2
Grecians held to draw in penultimate pre-season match. Exeter City continued their preparations for life in EFL Sky Bet League One with a hard-fought 2-2 draw against Bristol City. As temperatures in Bristol soared to 30 degrees, the Grecians faced their toughest test of pre-season so far against Championship opposition. Goals from Josh Coley and Alex Hartrige would give City a two-goal lead before a quick-fire double from Conway meant the match ended in a draw.
After a slow opening ten minutes where both teams got used to the heat, City forced the first opening. Clever work from Jevani Brown down the right won the first corner, but it was well defended by the Robins. City then fashioned a decent chance to go ahead as Josh Key travelled to the touchline before sending in a cross that Tim Dieng could only divert wide.
The Grecians took the lead which their bright start deserved. Harry Lee’s clearance found Jake Caprice in space down the left, after moving the ball forward he delivered a sublime outside-of-the-boot lofted ball through to find Josh Coley in space just inside the area, he took a touch and fired home. The goal gave City confidence and a couple minutes later it should have been two as Josh Coley played a ball out to Caprice who sprinted into the box and crossed low, just behind Tim Dieng.
Bristol City had the chance to level after seventeen minutes as captain Andy King twisted and turned inside the box before sending a clever chip towards the top corner but it whistled just over the bar.
On twenty minutes City went close as neat play outside the box lead to Jevani Brown turning and sending a shot just inches over the bar with the ‘keeper stranded. Bristol City created their best chance to level after half hour. Tim Dieng was dispossessed in the centre and the ball was fed through to Sam Bell who found himself one-on-one with Harry Lee. Bell shot low but Harry saved well with his legs.
City caused the Robins all kinds of problems down the left, Caprice and Hartridge combining which allowed Alex to whip in a ball just ahead of Sam Nombe that was well cleared. City were the happier of the two sides going into the break with a one goal lead.
The second half started in much the same way as the first, with City doing the pressing. After winning the ball back, Josh Coley played in Jevani Brown down the right who sent a low cross in that Sam Nombe just couldn’t connect with, with the goal at his mercy.
In the 53rd minute City had the golden chance to double the score, a loose pass back was intercepted by the rapid Sam Nombe who raced forward but sent his shot just wide of the post. City continue to create all the chances, just before the hour mark the lively Jake Caprice found space down the left before cutting back and whipping a ball onto the head of Tim Dieng, who connected well, and his header crashed against the post.
Bristol City came close to levelling the scores as substitute Scott worked some space in the box with quick feet but his shot fell just wide of the far post.
City finally got the second goal their play deserved as Pierce Sweeney found space down the right on seventy minutes before whipping a fantastic cross across the face of goal that found Alex Hartridge free at the back post to nod home. And it was almost three moments later as Josh Key was found on the edge of the box, he hit the ball on the half volley, and it was narrowly wide of the Robins goal.
Five minutes later and the Robins were back in the match as Scott feeds the ball through to Wells who cuts it back for Conway to slot home from close range. In the 85th minute the match was level. Bristol City pounced on a defensive error by Diabate and the ball is played to Conway who fired home from just inside the box.
Despite both teams looking for a winner the match would end in a hard-fought draw.
Starting XI: Lee, Key (Sparkes ’80) Sweeney (Jay ’80), DIabate, Hartridge, Collins, Dieng (Borges ’80), Coley (Pond ’80), Brown, Nombe (Iseguan ’80)
Bristol City XI: O’Leary, Klose, Towler Idehen, Wilson, Meassengo, King, Taylor, Bell, Conway, Wells Subs: Casa-Grande, Araoye, Scott, Taylor-Clarke, Henry
Match 7
Torquay United 1 City 0
23rd July 2022
Exeter City finished their preparations for life in EFL Sky Bet League One with a narrow 1-0 defeat to Torquay United as Brett McGavin's close range finish and heroics from Halstead in the Torquay goal was enough for the win.
Manager Matt Taylor named a strong starting XI with Jevani Brown, Josh Key and Harry Kite missing out with slight niggles. The experienced Scott Brown started in goal for City.
The first chance of the game went to Torquay, as Sam Stubbs soft pass was intercepted by Hanson who shifted into the City box but fired high and wide over Scott Brown in the City goal.
The Grecians first chance of note came after 13 minutes, as Archie Collins picked up the ball in the centre, after driving forward and evading a couple challenges he found Josh Coley who quickly switched to Jack Sparkes, his low cross was diverted into the post by a Torquay defender and was then cleared.
Dylan Crowe tested Scott Brown in the 27th minute as he turned on the edge of the box and hit a half-volley, but it was a comfortable save. Moments later, a well worked free-kick routine saw Jake Caprice find space down City’s right, he sent a cross to the back post which Tim Dieng headed down towards the bottom corner, but Halstead was equal to it.
The chance kicked City into gear and Jack Sparkes dipped and weaved past a pair of challenges before swapping passes with Tim Dieng, his cross into the six-yard box was so close to the boot of MJ but was well collected by Halstead. Minutes later a fast and fluid counter saw Archie Collins move forward before finding Tim Dieng just outside the box, he quickly moved the ball on to Sam Nombe who was quickly closed down by Halstead to smother his shot.
City should have been ahead just before the break. Jack Sparkes found space inside the box and chipped a cross towards the back post, Sam Nombe connected with the header and Halstead reacted quickly to push the ball onto the post.
The first chance of the second half fell to the feet of Jack Sparkes who fired wide from a tight angle just inside the Torquay area. Jack Sparkes was at the heart of the Grecians strong start to the second half, and he whipped a flat cross in to the six-yard box which Halstead again did well to save with his feet, Sam Nombe was denied on the follow up with another reaction save, but the flag was up for offside. Just before the hour mark Sweeney whipped a ball into the box which Tim Dieng sent towards goal, Halstead again pulled out a brilliant stop.
The ball was eventually sent in again by Sweeney and Tim Dieng headed wide. Pierce Sweeney continued to deliver great crosses into the box and on 73 minutes he found Josh Coley in space in the area, but he headed wide. Moments later, former Grecian Dean Moxey found space down the left and sent a low cross which was just ahead of the Torquay attacker.
The hosts took the lead after 80 minutes after a free-kick was delivered into the box, Scott Brown made a superb reaction save but the follow up was poked home by Brett McGavin.
City pushed for an equaliser but were unable to create any real chances with Torquay taking the 1-0 win.
Exeter City: Brown; Caprice, Sweeney, Stubbs (Diabate ’60), Grounds, Sparkes; Collins, Dieng, Coley (Borges ’81); Jay © Nombe
Subs not used: Lee, Pond, Hartridge, Clark, Iseguan
Bookings: Sweeney, Coley
Torquay United: Halstead; Crowe, Omar, Marshall, Evans, McGavin, Donnellan, Goodwin, Moxey ©
Subs: Quinn, Bishop, Thomas, Koszela, Lovett, Tomlinson, Brooks, Winsor, Trialist
Bookings: Marshall
Attendance: 2634 (inc 911 away)
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