After some positives at Little Common and defeat by a goal that was not, this performance was a disappointment but not without more poor officiating. Chace Hanmer had won the ball and cleared it up against former Linger Carl Brown, the players collided and the referee considered this a penalty. The kick was despatched and Wick took the lead. Heading toward the break and we had a genuine penalty but Jeff Duah-Kessie tried to be too cute with the kick and it was saved. Midway through the half a scruffy goal from a corner gave Wick a two goal lead. Ten minutes from time they added a third with a near post header from a corner and that was a win for Wick.

Jack McDonnell returned to the team following suspension, Jeff Duah-Kessie was back in the side, it was a first start for Hussein Mohammed and a debut for Mackenzie Richardson. McDonnell signalled he was back with a break down the right three minutes in, riding a couple of tackles before cutting into the edge of the box. He played the ball into the box for Duah-Kessie to battle for but it ran behind. A first corner of the game for Wick from the left after five minutes was headed clear by Noah Agbinone and following up he won a goal kick. The ball was lost from the goal kick and Wick were able to break down the left and attack the goal. Jack Webb-Olley was out to narrow the angle and the shot across the goal was wide of the right post. A minute later Webb-Olley made an easy catch and then sent the ball long to Duah-Kessie to hold up and provide Richardson with a shot that hit the outside of the post.

Webb-Olley was seeing plenty of early action and on 8mins did well to take a high ball coming out of the sun. His ball downfield came to Mohammed who was fouled on the edge of the box on the right and in a good spot for Conor Wilford to take. Wilford duly struck it well but it skidded off the top of the bar. Ten minutes played and Richardson won a free kick on the left corner of the box but Jason Stripp's delivery was poor as the ball in went out for a goal kick beyond the far post. Wick were making good breaks and a decisive foray out from his area by Webb-Olley stopped a break on the left by putting the ball out. Just past the quarter hour and a Stripp free kick found Richardson in the box but Wick cleared it long and it needed a strong challenge by McDonnell to stop them breaking clear. A neat passage of play a few minutes later saw the ball forward find Duah-Kessie and having controlled it he played in Raheem Sterling-Parker. His pass to Richardson was under hit and Wick cleared. Bailey Neil-Gray was up against ex-Linger Carl Brown and blocked him on the byline at the expense of a corner. The corner from the right ended up with a shot going wide of the left post.

On 23mins an under hit back pass gave Duah-Kessie a sniff of a chance as he closed down the keeper but he could not reach the ball. Strong defending at the back was keeping Wick out as Agbinone made a good block and then McDonnell made a second one before breaking away down the touch line. It looked more of the same as Hanmer went shoulder to shoulder with Brown into the box and put the ball behind. The players collided and Brown went down injured which seemed to make the referee think he had been fouled and gave Wick a penalty. A dubious decision but Wick made no mistake from the spot to take the lead on 27mins. We were on the attack soon after but in their first game together Duah-Kessie, Sterling-Parker and Richardson were not yet fluent to make something of possession. Neil-Gray was able to push forward down the left just past the half hour and crossed to find Duah-Kessie in the box. The ball came back to Stripp and his ball into the box was cleared. Neil-Gray and Richardson had the ball on left again minutes later but could not work an opening.

Inside the last ten minutes and a Stripp free kick from the right was cleared. Neil-Gray gathered the loose ball and was clattered for his efforts. From the free kick we won a corner that was a short routine with Stripp putting Richardson into the box where he went down with a reasonable penalty claim that was not given. Wick's long ball clearance was well covered by Neil-Gray who held Wick up until support arrived. With possession of the ball on the right of their box, McDonnell took the ball and drove into the box and was fouled with a penalty awarded this time. Duah-Kessie stepped up to take the kick and went for the fashionable dummy the keeper routine which resulted in a soft shot the keeper turned around the post. A crucial miss just before the break. The corner from the left by Stripp was headed behind but the referee decided to give a goal kick. With two minutes to go, we lost the ball in their half on the right and Wick were quick to break and fire a shot that hit the outside of the post. A fine save by Webb-Olley kept us in the match and then breaking forward the ball came to Duah-Kessie for a shot that required a save at the bottom of the left post. The corner was followed by a second and in virtually the last kick of the half, Stripp set the ball back to Sterling-Parker for a shot he could not keep down.

The second half was scrappy at the start as we struggled to really get going. There was frustration as Richardson put Duah-Kessie clear only for him to be caught offside. He was then driving into the box from the left on 48mins, holding off tackles and then adjudged to have fouled. Agbinone was having a strong game at the back and won two physical challenges to stop Wick. From a foul on Duah-Kessie on the centre spot, Stripp sent the ball to Neil-Gray on the left. He delivered the ball in for Wilford but Wick were given a free kick. On 55mins Mohammed had the ball out to the right of the box and had drawn the keeper out alongside a defender. He found McDonnell with the ball but he could not get a shot at the empty goal. A pair of changes on 57mins as Hanmer and Sterling-Parker were replaced by Charlie Gee and Jack Tickle. Gee was in action just before the hour as a short corner with Stripp gave him a shot that was blocked. Tickle had a chance to push into the box on 62mins for a shot that was blocked and Duah-Kessie picked up the loose ball and won a corner. From the corner Tickle got the ball again for a shot that just skimmed the bar.

With us still not really testing their keeper and creating good chances, a second goal for Wick would likely be game over. On 66mins a corner from the right found a Wick head and then from the loose ball it was turned in for 2-0. There was another frustrating ball forward that found two players offside followed by on 75mins a ball into the box by Richardson just went straight into the goalkeeper's arms. Mohammed was replaced by Stephen Hodge and then another frustrating offside followed. On 77mins Webb-Olley made a brilliant save to divert a shot at his right post. Neil-Gray headed the corner behind but from the second corner a header at the near post made it 3-0. Skipper Wilford in querying the award of an obvious throw for us to Wick was sin-binned for the rest of the game. A bit of play acting earnt Hodge a yellow card for a slight brush of the player's leg.

On 84mins Stripp was replaced by David Heaton. On 85mins a great block on the line by Neil-Gray saved a goal and then Webb-Olley gathered the follow up under the bar. A minute later a typical driving run down the right by McDonnell gave him the chance to play Gee in but the pass was intercepted. With the game in added time McDonnell went to clear the ball on the right touchline and caught their player in the process. The mass eruption of outrage from the Wick players pressured the referee into giving McDonnell the red card where a yellow was correct but now after a two game suspension he will have a three game one. I guess at the moment if we did not have bad luck we would not have any luck at all.

As with the Little Common game, we rarely troubled the opposition keeper and did not look fluent around the box. This was only a third game for the manager and he is still working with the players as some were only available for the first time and there are new faces coming in too. There is no match next Saturday so more time before we host Guernsey a week on Tuesday to work in training. Wick have gone above us in the table as they claimed their first points so we are eighteenth. Guernsey sit in sixth and are not involved in the FA Vase so have no game next Saturday either.