The first bank holiday of 2017 saw Regents run of festive fixtures come to an end with a home league game against bottom side Wroxham who had made the long road trip down from Norfolk for this Ryman North clash.

Brightlingsea were looking to gain another three points to end the Christmas period on a positive note and to re ignite a league campaign interrupted by a glut of cup games.Games in hand are never the same as points on the board and Regent would be keen to build on Saturdays victory over Heybridge Swifts.

Wroxham were firmly anchored to the bottom of the league but The Yachtsman had beaten The R's last season during a hectic run in. A game like today Brightlingsea were favourites to win. James Webster would surely have emphasised the need for patience calm heads and be clinical in taking any chances that came Regents way. And what chances there were for the boys in red and black as time and again Brightlingsea put the Wroxham defence under pressure.

The hard running Tom Richardson caused problems for the visitors back four with his strength and desire to win his battles against the Wroxham Centre halves. This tenacity produced two fantastic chances for Richardson but he failed to convert and his obvious frustration was soon shared by other Regent players as shots whistled past the Wroxham post or bounced off it and into the arms of a grateful keeper. The chances kept coming as Wroxham struggled to get any real grip on the game and Brightlingsea managed to win possession and threaten with almost every attack.It could only be a matter of time before Regent finally got a well deserved first goal. But the R's fans had seen this sort of dominance before only for the opposition to make a smash and grab raid on the counter and nick a goal themselves.

Robbie Rees was the next to miss a great opportunity to open the scoring when he found himself unmarked in the Wroxham box as a fantastic ball was whipped in from the Regent left. Rees seemed to misjudge the flight and get under the ball seeing his header fly over the bar from close range.Regent did have the ball in net after a cross from Aaron Condon was met at the near post and bundled into the net by Robbie Rees. A raised flag indicated an offside and once again Brightlingsea were left wondering when they would finally get a reward for all their pressure.

Wroxham managed to create one or two half chances of their own during rare forays into the R's half but Dan Beeson dealt with anything on target and Matt Cripps marshalled the back four confidently winning possession and getting the ball into the Regent midfield whenever possible. This midfield were getting real joy running at a Wroxham defence that were really struggling to cope with this direct approach and as space opened up in front of them George Doyle and Robbie Rees were able to get shots off. Ricky Griggs got in on the action from Right Back during one of his runs forward he unleashed a strike which beat the keeper and seemed to be heading for the far corner only for the ball to hit the post and bounce back into the arms of a relieved Wroxham goalie. As the players trooped off at half time the 118 fans at North Road were left wondering how The R’s weren’t at least a couple of goals to the good.

The second half kicked off and it was more of the same as Brightlingsea went looking for goals and three points that could lift them back into the play off spots.Chances were still coming thick and fast and the visitors were starting to look a little leggy not surprising given the constant pressure they had been put under. With a little under half an hour to go Webster made a couple of changes to make one final push for victory. On came Jake Turner and Harry MacDonald replacing Josh Gould and Tom Richardson. Then on seventy six minutes the breakthrough finally came. Phil Kelly fired in a low shot which was parried by Callum Robinson in the Wroxham goal into the path of Jake Turner who struck a cross shot which was once again saved by the keeper. The ball fell to Phil Kelly who struck the ball through a crowd of players past Robinson and into the net.1-0 Brightlingsea.

This goal seemed to finally knock the stuffing out of Wroxham and just two minutes later Aaron Condon scored a quite wonderfully taken goal. The Wroxham centre half Adam Plumstead took and swing and a miss at an attempted clearance and the ball fell to Condon who moving away from goal and being closely shadowed by a Wroxham defender stopped almost dead dragged the ball back with the sole of his boot leaving the Wroxham player having to pay to get back in the ground before calmly side footing the ball past recovering defenders and an advancing keeper into the net. 2-0 Brightlingsea.

There was still time for a third and this came on ninety minutes when Aaron Condon met a Phil Kelly cross at the near post. Reacting quicker than the Wroxham defender marking him Condon smashed the ball in from six yards out.3-0 Brightlingsea.

In the end a convincing victory on a day which saw James Webster receiving his manager of the month award. Brightlingsea receiving the award for best performance for the victory over Met Police in the FA Trophy and The R's moving back into the play off spots. A best start to the New Year.

C’mon you R's

Report By Gavin Aplin