Bedford Town were brought back down to Earth with a shuddering bump on Saturday as they lost 8-1 at home to Tamworth on a harrowing afternoon for Gary Setchell’s side.
The Eagles had enjoyed a serene start to life in the seventh tier of English football and while Gary Setchell admitted there would be difficult days, he was not prepared for a day like this.
“I knew we’d take a couple of beatings, but I didn’t expect that”, said Setchell after a game that was a result of Town mistakes and clinical finishing from an impressive Tamworth side who jump to 4th in the league table.
It all started to go wrong as early as the 2nd minute, with Tamworth striker Dan Creaney scoring his first of four for the afternoon as he latched on to a long ball to slot home past Alex Street.
He added his second on the half hour mark but with Tamworth going into the interval 2-0 up, the Eagles faithful still harboured ambitions of a second half comeback.
Three goals in five minutes unravel the Eagles
Instead of coming out on the front foot however, Bedford Town conceded three goals in the first ten minutes of the second half as Tamworth ran riot.
Ty Deacon scored Tamworth’s third before Creaney completed his hat-trick a minute later and with Kyle Finn adding a fifth before the hour mark, the Eagles turned to damage limitation.
Things went from bad to worse for Town, as Kai Phelan received a red card for a late tackle on Deacon – his second red card in as many games – leaving Bedford Town to defend with ten men.
Dan Creaney added his fourth shortly after followed by a penalty for Alex Jones to make it 7-0 before James Hurst rubbed salt in to the wounds with an eighth late on.
Joe Butterworth’s late consolation was roundly cheered by a faithful Bedford Town crowd of 565 who stayed on until the end, but it would have done little to cheer up Setchell who will now be keen to move on to Hednesford Town this coming weekend.
Kempston Rovers through in FA Cup
Kempston Rovers have enjoyed a wonderful start to their season, combining two league wins with a pair of victories in the FA Cup, with Kempston now through to the first qualifying round.
They will host Bedford Town in a mouth-watering local derby on 3rd September after goals from Ben Baker and Ben Stevens secured a 2-0 win against Wisbech Town on Saturday in the Preliminary Round.
An impressive 2-1 win at Waltham Abbey was followed up by a thumping 5-0 rout of Welwyn Garden City to leave the Walnuts top of the table after two rounds of fixtures.
Baker also scored two goals in the Welwyn victory, along with Ben Stevens while James Hatch also scored a brace with Rovers hoping to improve on their 18th place finish from last season.
Elsewhere in the FA Cup, Shefford Town and Campton – making their debuts in the competition – face a replay against Southend Manor after a 1-1 draw, with the winners travelling to Dunstable Town.
Biggleswade Town coasted past Whitton United 4-1 and travel to Dereham Town next, but Potton United also face a replay against Soham Town with the winners hosting Hendon next.
Real Bedford make it three from three
Real Bedford’s perfect start continued at the weekend with a 2-1 victory at Burton Park Wanderers.
Dan Walker, who has joined from Bedford Town, scored his third brace in as many games as he adapts to life at McMullen Park quickly with Real securing nine points from nine in a season they are expected to do well.
Real Bedford’s Women’s side also made their long-awaited debuts and secured a 2-0 win at Harlow Town.
The fixtures come thick and fast for Real Bedford, as is the nature of non-league football, as they host Letchworth Garden Eagles at McMullen Park.
