BAMBOOZLED boss Matt Welsh endured mixed emotions as 10-man Wareham Rangers were held to a 3-3 draw in a rollercoaster second half against Mere Town.

Welsh admitted his side had been “very poor” during a drab, goalless first half at the Purbeck Sports Centre and matters quickly worsened as the visitors marched into a two-goal lead within five minutes of the restart thanks to Terry Thorne’s double.

Dan Godwin pulled a goal back but the joy was short-lived as Rangers defender Aaron Merredew was given his marching orders for denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity.

However, Wareham rolled up their sleeves and belied the numerical disadvantage to move in front through goals from top scorer Richie Parsons and Adam Frohlich.

The depleted hosts seemed destined for an unlikely victory but were pegged back with three minutes to play when Scott Martin levelled for the Moonrakers.

Welsh described as “a real kick in the teeth” Mere’s last-ditch leveller but was quick to praise his charges for their stirring second-half recovery.

“Mere were much better than us and created a number of chances in the first half,” said Welsh. “So after shipping two poor goals and going down to 10 men, the lads deserve a lot of credit for turning it round.

“It was almost as if they suddenly woke up and, when we went in front, despite being a man light, I thought “happy days”. We were so determined and for a spell they could not live with us.

“I was disappointed at how we lost a goal at the end but happy with the response. It is never easy to kick back into action after starting slowly.”

The result denied Wareham the chance to leapfrog their opponents in the Dorset Premier League standings ahead of Saturday’s trip to Tintinhull (2pm).

Wareham: Lillington, Thompson, Merredew, Godwin, Gregory, Best, Harding (Monk, 60), Parsons, Basing, Finch, Frohlich. Unused subs: Beard, Carpenter.

  • Elsewhere, Swanage Town & Herston returned to winning ways with a hard-fought 1-0 victory at Cranborne. Adam Richards bagged the only goal of the game as Swans ended a three-match losing streak in the DPL. Alan Lay’s men travel to Westland Sports on Saturday (2pm).