SEVEN GOALS AT ST. JAMES'S PARK

Rovers Have Two Thirds of the Play and Lose

Saturday, November 16th 1929.

EXETER CITY 5 (Guyan 2 Hemingway 2 Houghton)
BRISTOL ROVERS 2 (Phillips Forbes)

Half-time City 3 Rovers 1.

Exeter City: Alderson; Baugh and Shanks; Clarke, Ditchburn, and Dennington; Purcell, Houghton, Guyan, Hemingway, and Doncaster.

Bristol Rovers: Densley; Barton and Haydon; Britton, Plenderleith, and Hamilton; Reay, Forbes, Phillips, Murray, and King.

Referee:- Mr A.G. Price, of London.

Bristol Rovers, who have only won two matches this season, had Fred Forbes, transferred from Plymouth Argyle during the week, at inside right. Exeter fielded the side which has come to be regarded as their regular team. Unfortunately, the damp weather was all against a large attendance. The rain started again just before the kick-off, and with the ground already saturated it was fairly evident that the match would be a gruelling one on the heavy going.

THREE GOALS IN SIX MINUTES.

Exeter City's forwards gave another capital display in this free-scoring game at St James's Park, there being no fewer than seven goals. The City got into their stride almost immediately, the start being sensational with three goals scored, all by Exeter, in the first six minutes. Guyan netted the first two and Hemingway the third. Three minutes later Bristol opened their account through Phillips, who took a pass from Britton and worked his way in to finally beat Alderson with a shot of the "unstoppable" description. After this Bristol did a great deal of attacking right up to the interval and on several occasions the Exeter goal escaped very luckily. The Rovers on the run of the play certainly did not deserve to have three goals against them.

SECOND HALF.

The second half opened very much as the first had done, and the Grecians got two quick goals through Hemingway and Houghton. Houghton's goal, the City's fifth, was one of the cleverest ever seen at St James's Park. The Evertonian beat the Bristol defence single-handed. Man after man was tricked in a long dribble from the half-way line until Densley was the only one left to be dealt with. Houghton, with the ball perfectly under control, drew him out, tapped the leather to one side and coolly drove it into the empty goal. After nineteen minutes of the second half Murray manoeuvred cleverly for an opening and slipped the ball through perfectly for Forbes to run on to, and the former Pilgrim made no mistake. Alderson was beaten by the speed of the shot. Bristol were handicapped during the latter part of the game, owing to King being injured. It was one of the most remarkable games imaginable, for the Rovers had most of the play, and were generally the better side, yet Exeter had the match winning forwards. Exeter's fifth goal, scored by Houghton, was worth going a long way to see.


Southern League
BRISTOL ROVERS RESERVES 0
EXETER CITY RESERVES 0.

The City Reserves did exceedingly well to gain a point in this afternoon's Southern League match at Stapleton Road from the Rovers' Reserves, who head the League. Until today the Rovers have averaged three goals per game.

City Reserves: - Holland; Howson and Bright; Sheffield, Gurkin, and McMullan; Armfield, McDevitt, Gumm, Henderson, and Corrigan.

• EXETER CITY'S INJURED PLAYERS. Charlie Miller is doing some light training now, but he is still under the treatment of Doctor Wayland-Smith. Billy Death is now attending St James's Park again after his operation for cartilage trouble at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, but it is thought that about two months will elapse before he is fit for match duty. Thomas is on the high road to recovery from his leg injury and should shortly make an appearance again on the field of play.