Up the creek: Pagham's comeback is far too late at Fareham

But to give the Creeksiders, aka Fareham Town, a five-goal lead was a bit too generous to bear. And give was the right word in every way, as all five of the goals came directly from Pagham mistakes.

The Lions actually started the brighter of the two sides, but their attacks didn’t come to anything, other than a lob over the keeper by Ryan Hallett which drifted narrowly wide.

The game turned on an error by keeper Maciek Kason after 24 minutes as he somehow let the ball through his hands for Wilcox to score the easiest goal he could wish for.

Eight minutes later he scored another simple one, tapping home from close range after the Lions failed to clear the ball. His hat-trick came three minutes later when, totally unmarked at the far post, he headed home with ease, not a bad effort from a player who lined up at right-back.

To be fair to Kason he did make two startling saves in between these goals or it could have been worse! But it was 4-0 a minute before half-time when Austin was left all alone to volley home five yards.

Salt was rubbed into the wound three minutes into the second half when the Lions midfield gave the ball away to Bartlett-Scott, who was allowed to run into the penalty area and score easily.

A sixth disallowed for offside was just about the end of the Fareham dominance, however, as Pagham started their comeback.

First Tom Atkinson latched on to a spectacular overhead kick by Jake Heryet to power a header into the net. Two minutes later Heryet notched his fourth goal of pre-season when his shot from the edge of the box bounced back off the post only to see him lash in the rebound.

Pagham almost made it three when the Fareham keeper pulled off a good save to stop the rampaging Grant Radmore.