Petersfield Town manager Connor Hoare felt his side had room for improvement, despite picking up an emphatic 4-0 win at Blackfield & Langley in the Wessex League Premier Division last Tuesday night (December 19).

Charlie Merritt gave the Rams the lead in the tenth minute, and Tommy Tierney doubled Petersfield’s advantage on 29 minutes.

Declan Seiden made it 3-0 from the penalty spot in the 83rd minute, and Seiden completed the scoring when he grabbed his second in stoppgae time.

Hoare was delighted with the result, but felt his side could have played better on the night.

“We’ve probably played better and lost games,” said Hoare.

“I actually thought we played better against Stoneham than we did against Blackfield.

“However, the quality difference between Stoneham and Blackfield meant we were able to come away with a win – even if we weren’t really at it.

“We didn’t have full control of the game, but it’s a tough place to go – the pitch is massive.

“People don’t realise how big it is. It really does take it out of you. There was probably a bit of fatigue in the lads from a tough game against Stoneham.

“They put a lot in and had to put a lot in again on Tuesday so it was a really good win, but the performance wasn’t as in control as what we would have liked.”

Hoare was pleased that his side had taken an early lead.

“We start quite fast in a lot of games,” said Hoare.

“There’s numerous games this season where we’ve scored in the first ten minutes, but sometimes we then take our foot off the gas.

“We got the goal from a move we work on in training, so that was pleasing to see.

“Halfway through the first half we took control of the game. We completely dominated and could have scored a lot of goals in the second half of the first half.

“It was just about us, how good we wanted to be on the night and if we wanted to do the things we worked on consistently.

“We knew if we were patient we would create openings and Tommy’s goal summed him up.

“He chopped back, cut back on to his left foot and smacked one into the top corner. That is the quality he has. He is a top player and we’re lucky to have him.

“The message at half-time was for us to take control of the game like we had in the second half of the first half. We wanted to completely dominate and not allow Blackfield to have any success in the game. Unfortunately, it didn’t quite pan out like that.

“We probably allowed them to get on top a little bit, but we ended up winning the game.

“It was a great penalty by Dec – really composed. That sums him up, and his second goal was excellent. Callum Kimber slipped a ball through, Dec ran on to it and caused a bit of chaos for the defender. He got the ball, chopped in the box and produced a really good finish into the far corner.”

Goalkeeper Ellis Grant was Petersfield’s man-of-the-match at Blackfield, and Hoare was delighted with his performance.

“Ellis has been absolutely outstanding since he’s come in,” said Hoare. “He’s so calm and composed on the ball – but it’s his communication and leadership. He’s a top goalie and is another I feel we’re lucky to have.”