BOSS Matty Holmes felt the ugly scenes which marred the end of Wimborne’s stormy Southern League South clash against Frome could have been avoided had the visitors shown more restraint.

Goals from Matt Oldring, Franklyn Clarke and Luke Burbidge last night earned the Magpies a 3-2 win over the Robins as Holmes’s team made it back-to-back victories at the Koolpak Stadium.

However, an X-rated tackle by Wimborne defender Sam Davidson on Frome substitute Dan Whitley sparked a mass brawl involving players and staff from both camps as tempers flared in added time.

Davidson and Frome striker Ryan Bath both received straight red cards, while Magpies goalkeeper Gerard Benfield, who sprinted 60 yards to join the melee, was booked along with the visitors’ Alex Monks.

Several other players were fortunate to escape unpunished after the incident had got out of hand with Bournemouth-based referee Alex James issuing the cards having consulted his two assistants.

Earlier, Frome midfielder Connor Roberts had been sent off for two yellow cards, while frontman Bath and Wimborne duo Stefan Penny and Scott Arnold had also received cautions for fouls.

Asked for his take on the Davidson tackle and the ensuing incident, Holmes told the Daily Echo: “It was a red. Sam went in rashly and could have hurt the lad. I will be having a word with him about it. He is an honest kid but he caught him and it was wrong.

“But I didn’t like the reaction and don’t like it when teams do that. When Toby Holmes got caught on the head (for Roberts’s second yellow card), our boys didn’t surround their player.

“You can protect your team-mate and make sure he’s alright but, when you start grabbing hold of heads and physically manhandling and pushing people, I thought those days had gone.

“The referee saw the offenders and dealt with it fine. But you don’t want to see it. If our lads did that, I would be the first to have a dig at them and fine them because you don’t manhandle and grab people.

“These lads all work for a living and it is not nice. We try to encourage children to watch us so I will be speaking to Sam about the challenge and what we have to be careful of. You want to promote your football club in the right way.”

Oldring paved the way for victory when he headed home Burbidge’s 16th-minute corner before Clarke doubled their lead with a tap-in on 32 minutes, his second goal since returning to the club.

A stunning strike from Bath halved the arrears before the break but Burbidge quickly restored Wimborne’s two-goal lead when he fired through a crowd of players after 53 minutes.

Kris Scott’s goal on 57 minutes set up a thrilling finish with the hosts holding on to add to their emphatic 5-0 victory over Kings Langley on Saturday.

Magpies: Benfield, Davidson, Penny, Arnold, Oldring, Stokoe (Kellaway, 60), Clarke, L Holmes, T Holmes, Burbidge, Young. Unused subs: Lee, Owen, Shepherd, Collins (g/k).