Frome found the perfect response to Saturday’s dramatic defeat to AFC Totton with a battling 1-0 victory against Plymouth Parkway at Badgers Hill on Tuesday night.
A first-half strike from Jon Davies earned the Robins all three points, ensuring Danny Greaves’ side maintained their 100% home record across all competitions this season.
A bright opening spell for the Robins was interrupted by an injury to George Rigg that forced Greaves into an early change. Fortunately, he was not forced to bring himself on as he had in Saturday’s FA Trophy defeat at Totton, replacing Rigg with Alex Monks.
The visitors enjoyed long spells of possession after the substitution without really threatening James Carey in goal, although Sam Teale was well positioned on one occasion to clear a goal-bound effort off his own line.
The Robins found a second wind with the half hour approaching. First Jack Witcombe saw a shot deflected onto a post and away, and then James Ollis somehow failed to hit the target from close-range with the goal gaping.
The breakthrough did arrive before half-time though, and it came through a typical Davies strike. The forward cut inside from the left wing before dropping a shoulder to beat his man, and he then fired an effort at goal that was too powerful for Plymouth ‘keeper Kyle Moore to keep out.
Frome very nearly doubled their advantage with the last kick of the first half, but Ollis could only bend a shot against the far post after being played in on goal by Davies.
A fast start to the second 45 saw a Marcus Mapstone header cleared off the line by a Plymouth defender, but the away side again managed to slow down the tempo of the game with some composed passing moves.
William Pafrey whistled a shot wide of goal from distance but Carey remained largely untested for the remainder of the second period.
It was in fact Frome who looked more likely to find the next goal, looking dangerous on the counter-attack when opposition moves broke down and keeping a bumper crowd of 433 people entertained on a wet and windy evening.
Davies’ goal was enough to clinch the three points in the end though, and it kept the gap between the league leaders and second-placed Totton at five points with 12 games played.
The Robins are in league action again on Saturday afternoon with a trip to Highworth Town.