Ivan Forbes celebrates his opening goal
DORCHESTER TOWN
1	Ryan Northmore
2	Mark Jermyn
3	Jake Smeeton
4	Tom Mitchell
5	Gary Bowles
6	Kevin Hill
7	Neil Martin
8	Jamie Gleeson
9	Ryan Moss		75
10	Phil Walsh
11	Ivan Forbes
Substitutes
12	Matt Groves		75
14	Ashley Vickers
15	Harry Montacute
16	Connor Flood
17	Regan Coward
ST ALBANS CITY
1	Paul Bastock
2	Alex Bailey
3	Adam Everitt
4	Luke Thurlbourne
5	Jason Mitchell		60
6	Ryan Frater
7	Solomon Shields
8	James Fisher
9	Gary Cohen
10	J. O'Donoghue		55
11	Danny Green		43
Substitutes
12	Drew Roberts		43
14	Daniel Chillingworth		55
15	James Quilter		60
16	Jamie Thurlbourne
17	Darren Quinton
Referee
Andy Newell (Bristol)

Saturday 8th August 2009
		Dorchester Town	3
		Forbes 35, 73, Martin 49
		St Albans City	0

Flying Forbes

by Adam Summers

Winger Ivan Forbes exorcised the demons of 12-months ago by helping the Magpies get off to a flying start in Blue Square South.

The 21-year-old suffered a knee-ligament injury on the opening day of the 2008-09 campaign, which kept him out for much of the season, but at the Jewson Stadium on Saturday he experienced very different emotions by netting a brace in a fine 3-0 win.

Sandwiched between those two strikes was also a debut goal for new-signing Neil Martin as Town rode out St Albans’ early pressure to run out deserved winners.

Magpies’ boss Roy O’Brien also handed a competitive debut to goalkeeper Ryan Northmore but there was no place in the starting XI for striker Matt Groves, who began as a substitute.

Ryan Moss, who was taking part in his first competitive game of his second spell at the club, and Phil Walsh were the preferred partnership up front, with Jamie Gleeson and Tom Mitchell joining forces in central midfield.

Skipper Kevin Hill and Gary Bowles began at the heart of the defence with assistant-manager Ashley Vickers settling for a place on the bench where he was joined by youth-team product Connor Flood. Nick Crittenden missed out through suspension.

St Albans, who started with veteran goalkeeper Paul Bastock, formerly of Boston United, between the posts, fielded three debutants in Jason Mitchell, Jamie O’Donoghue and Danny Green.

The visitors finished seven places above the Magpies in 12th spot last season and following an immaculate minute’s silence in honour Bobby Robson, it was indeed the Saints that made the more encouraging start with Green heading a cross directly at Northmore as early as the fourth minute.

However, thanks to the endeavour of Moss, Dorchester won a corner shortly afterwards, which ended with Walsh firing over from 15 yards after some indecisive defending.

Despite that response the Magpies were still looking edgy and on 10 minutes they seemed to stand like statues in their own penalty area as O’Donoghue swivelled on a miss-hit cross and sent a shot over the bar from close range.

The Saints continued to pin Dorchester in their own half and moments later a great cross from the right by O’Donoghue ended with Green seeing his diving header fall just wide of the far post.

An unsuccessful penalty appeal at the other end, which saw Forbes go down under the attentions of Adam Everitt, quickly followed but it was still the away side who were dominating possession and looking the more likely team to break the deadlock.

The Saints were switching the play from flank to flank effectively, which was clearly stretching Dorchester’s shape, and on 19 minutes they went within a whisker of taking the lead.

The ball made its way from right to left and when Gary Cohen cut inside and unleashed a drive from just outside the box the home supporters had their hearts in their mouths as the effort deflected just wide of the target.

Tom Mitchell and Gleeson were seeing very little of the ball in the centre of the Magpies’ midfield, and it was becoming clear that the home side were at their most threatening when they went a little more direct.

On 32 minutes the hosts created a fantastic opening when right-back Mark Jermyn sent in a wonderful cross to the near post but Moss could only head the ball over when he should have done better.

However, St Albans had gone quiet, and on 37 minutes the Magpies took advantage of a lapse in concentration from their opponents to take the lead.

Moss poked the ball through to Walsh and when he helped it across the box to Forbes, the winger tapped it into the net as Bastock stood like a statue and held aloft his hand in Fabien Barthez style to try and claim offside.

Unfortunately for the 39-year-old stopper the flag stayed down much to his disgust as Forbes ran away in celebration.

The hosts were now full of confidence and in the closing stages of the half they began to get the ball on the deck and string together some fine moves, one of which saw Gleeson have a shot hacked away from inside the six-yard box by a covering defender.

St Albans must have been delighted when the half-time whistle went and they came out in the second period and immediately went on the offensive with substitute Drew Roberts dragging the ball inside his marker and sending a left-foot shot inches wide of the far post.

The call from the Town dugout was to ‘switch on’, and on 50 minutes the Magpies did exactly that by making it 2-0 with another tap-in from close range, this time from Martin, after a low diagonal ball from Tom Mitchell.

As soon as that goal went in the visitors’ heads dropped and it was not long before the Magpies were searching for a third with Walsh heading just wide after another fantastic delivery from Mitchell, this time from a free-kick.

The away side responded with a couple of speculative efforts that failed to trouble Northmore before Forbes rounded off a superb individual display by skipping past Saints’ skipper Ryan Frater and sending a shot across Bastock and into the corner of the net on 74 minutes.

By now the visitors had lost their discipline and moments later Everitt took his frustration out on Forbes by clattering into him on the sideline. Referee Andy Newell had no other option but to wield the red card.

A huge round of applause for O’Brien’s men greeted the final whistle and on this performance the county town side look like they are going to be a much stronger proposition than in recent campaigns.