For Wimborne it was another away game, another first-half lead, another disappointing second-half performance, another defeat. But it all started so promisingly with Josh Carmichael sweeping home Matt Neale’s early free-kick. Basingstoke piled on the pressure after the interval and scored from two set pieces with Ross Flitney denying the hosts a bigger winning margin.

Manager Tim Sills made two changes bringing in Ross Flitney in goal, and Jez Bedford in midfield. The returning Toby Holmes was part of a strong bench.

Seeing keeper Grant off his line, Josh Carmichael launched the game’s first goal attempt from the centre-circle from the kick-off, only for the retreating keeper to catch his effort. Sam Jackson stopped Reid on the edge of the box, and his defensive colleagues dealt with two Dragons’ corners before Wimborne opened the scoring on five minutes. With most people anticipating a floated free-kick from wide on the left, Matt Neale played it low for Carmichael to run across his marker and cleverly turn the ball into the far top corner.

Wimborne’s fifth free-kick of the first 13 minutes was headed goalwards by Jackson before being scrambled away. Chances were coming at both ends: Reid picked up a loose ball, cut inside and shot wide; Billy Walker acrobatically cleared a cut-back in Basingstoke’s next attack; Peart’s central 30-yard free-kick was well held by Ross Flitney; at the other end Carmichael’s free-kick from the left of the “D” fizzed over the bar; and Matty Burrows appeared to be bundled over inside the area as he chased Jackson’s perfectly weighted through ball. On 40 minutes Flitney’s long leg denied Ferdinand, then the big stopper used his hands to save the follow-up shot; and moments later he saved Gallagher’s drive.

Then, in the last minute of normal time, slick Magpies one-touch passing through midfield ended with Cam Munn drawing the keeper and rolling the ball to Burrows on his left five yards out – inexplicably the winger shot wide of the open target. Flitney caught a lofted free-kick under pressure, before the half ended with Jez Bedford chasing a high through ball and being on the receiving end of the keeper’s high boot in his chest as Grant jumped for the ball with his leg outstretched. Referee Davenport, who had started the game penalising every misdemeanour, deemed it a fair challenge. Fortunately Bedford was able to walk off after treatment.

The second-half began with both teams putting one-touch passes together, but it was the home side who began to dominate possession. Just after the hour mark, a free-kick from wide on the left deflected off a defender forcing the flying Flitney to finger-tip the ball round the post. In their next attack, Jackson blocked the elusive Ferdinand’s cross from the right by-line for a corner. And when that was delivered to the far post, central defender Ball rose highest to send a thumping header into the net.

Tails up, the Dragons found even more energy and roared forwards. A seeming lost cause down the left wing was retrieved, centred, and hit goalwards from six yards only for Flitney to make another brave but brilliant save from Nwachuku. Then, on 72 minutes, Basingstoke scored the winner. In the chase for a long ball, the referee gave a free-kick on the edge of the area to the left of the “D”. Although the defensive wall was carefully lined up, Brown rifled the ball into the far top corner, it was a cracker.

With Tim Sills restricted to watching from the grandstand, interim manager Chris Senior had sent on first Toby Holmes and now Jack Lovell to join Will Fletcher. Time and again attempts to thread the ball through or over the top were thwarted by energetic blocks in midfield, interceptions, or lack of quality, and on the odd occasion when we did succeed, Basingstoke’s central defenders, Ball and Upton, were in commanding form. Wimborne did get the ball into the net in the ninth minute of the ten added-on, but it was ruled out for off-side. When the final whistle came, the home team and their supporters wildly celebrated a first league win for nine games.

It was a disappointing afternoon for The Magpies after that promising start. Anything positive to add? Well, the boys didn’t concede from open play, and, despite all their possession, we limited Basingstoke to just five goal attempts in the second-half, which is testament to the way the defenders, with Billy Walker and Harvey Wright at the heart of the action, gave everything for the cause. But the telling statistic is that we didn’t trouble the Dragons’ keeper in the second-half – we mustered just a single shot, from Carmichael from distance which was blocked before it reached the penalty area, in the fourth minute of added-on time. There’s plenty to be worked on before next Saturday’s home game with Winchester, which now seems even more important.

Wimborne: Flitney, Biss (Scorey 72), Walker, Wright, Jackson, Carmichael, Neale, Bedford (Lovell 75), Burrows (Morgan 75), Munn (Holmes 64), Fletcher

Unused sub: Roberts

Attendance: No figure given.

Match stats: