CITY TURN IT ON

Minehead 0
Exeter City 3
Kellow, Randell 2

Attendance 3,050

Gordon Hines reports

MINEHEAD'S interests in this season's FA Cup is over. It was good while it lasted, but Exeter City were in no mood to become a non-League chopping block.

The Third Division side took their cue from Tony Kellow's 10th minute goal -and never once looked back. Minehead, frankly, were disappointing; a shadow of the side that threatened beforehand to unhinge Exeter and march into the third round. All the ballyhoo about Dave Durbin ruling midfield was just wishful thinking. Exeter, in the industrious shapes of Colin Randell and Bowker, were the kings of midfield. Randell, in fact, went on to dominate the score sheet. He scored Exeter's second after 67 minutes with a stunning 30 yarder that caught goalkeeper John Macey by surprise.

He followed it up ten minutes from time with an impudent direct free kick that was arrowed over the Minehead defensive wall and crept between Macey and the goalkeeper's right hand post. It was all so simple for the Devon side. Minehead flickered into life only at odd moments, although they could point to an Andy Leitch header that might conceivably have changed the structure of the match. Exeter were a goal to the good at the time and Jim Jenkin's 27th minute cross from the right wing was met with a fine header from Leitch.

But Richard Key made the most amazing of saves with a huge leap across his goalline. A goal then might have stirred Minehead out of their surprising lethargy, but with Exeter maintaining possession for long periods the Southern League side were never allowed much feel of the ball.

Jenkins, if anyone, was their only threat. He menaced the Exeter defence a couple of times. with solo first half runs yet it was never going to be enough for one man to break down Exeter's solid defence. Leitch also promised much in patches but found Exeter centre half and player-manager Bob Saxton a much too wiley character. When Leitch did get the better of Saxton - mainly in the air there was also Peter Hatch behind to collect the pickings and clear the line.

Exeter's tactics were also more than Minehead could cope with. They used Harry Holman and Nicky Jennings as orthodox wingers and the width they created left big holes in the Minehead defence. Holman had an especially rousing first half but died a little in the second when Minehead finally cot- toned on to what was happening. By then, however, Exeter had found other means by which to open up the


Minehead defence and the last 20 minutes could have been misconstrued as a practice match for Exeter in the art of possession football and going forward. Randell's two goals were splendidly taken, yet the real knock-out blow was delivered when Kellow scored early on for his tenth goal of the season. Jennings' cunningly flighted corner was headed across goal by Lee Roberts at the near post and Kel- low's powerful downward header smashed its way past Macey. That gave Exeter just the start they were looking for. But for Minehead it was the beginning of the end.

Exeter Team 
KEY, TEMPLEMAN, HORE, BOWKER, SAXTON, HATCH, JENNINGS, KELLOW, RANDELL, ROBERTS, HOLMAN

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