SKIPPER Scott Arnold praised Luke Stone after the Dorset Premier League hotshot made his Wimborne Town debut on Tuesday.

Stone came on as a second-half substitute as Magpies drew 1-1 at Bridgwater Town in Southern South & West.

The dual-registered frontman is only available for Wimborne’s midweek matches as he plays for DPL leaders Merley on Saturdays.

Stone had a hand in Sam Griffin’s second-half equaliser after Tom Knighton had put the hosts in front eight minutes after the restart.

And Arnold told the Daily Echo: “Luke Stone came on and looked really bright. Considering he stepped up all those leagues, he did brilliantly. That was a major plus for us.

“You could see he was used to scoring goals and had a lot of confidence. He’s a stocky little lad but was holding off six-foot centre-halves.

“It’s a shame we haven’t got him on Saturday because him and Gambo (Mark Gamble) up front would be brilliant.”

Arnold said Magpies had been worthy of victory on a pitch that was far from conducive to passing football.

He added: “We were disappointed to come away with only a point because it was a brilliant away performance.

“They scored the only chance they had but we created quite a few opportunities. It just didn’t run for us.

“It was a difficult night as the pitch was probably the worst we’ve played on all season, which didn’t help matters in terms of getting the ball down.”