Falmouth Town manager Andrew Westgarth was thrilled to see his side end their winless run with a confident 5-0 thrashing of Launceston in their FA Vase second qualifying round tie on Saturday.
Tim Nixon and Charlie Edney scored within a minute of each other as Town raced into a two-goal lead at Bickland Park after just seven minutes, with Luke Brabyn making it three before quarter of an hour had elapsed.
Bray-Evans came off the bench early in the second half and scored twice in ten minutes to complete the scoring midway through the second period.
Town are now through to the first round proper of the Vase for the fifth season running, and Westgarth was pleased to get back to winning ways after a run of four games without a win in the Western League.
“We’ve found wins difficult in this last month or so, so for us to get a win was the most important thing,” Westgarth said after the game. “The clean sheet is a massive bonus and Jack Bray-Evans getting two off the bench was great and he got some more important minutes and I’m delighted for Charlie [Edney] who had a great game. I’m absolutely pleased.”
He added: “I said to the lads that regardless of who you’re playing against, a win’s a win and you’ve got to enjoy these moments, and at the end of it we’re in the next round of the cup and the FA Vase is a competition that we really want to do well in.
“We’re looking forward to the draw, and that’s one of the great things about cup football, the draw on a Monday, it’s something to look forward to and hopefully we get a nice home draw.”
Bray-Evans made a big impact from the bench, scoring two goals to cap off a fine victory for his side and mark his return to Bickland Park in style.
The former Newquay man replaced Charlie Edney in the 51st minute to make his first appearance at Bickland Park since limping out of Town’s 4-0 victory over Clevedon Town on August 13, and wasted little time in getting back among the goals.
Bray-Evans had fellow substitute Luke Barner to thank for both goals, with Barner delivering the ball for the freescoring forward to rifle past Clarets goalkeeper Lewis Slade on both occasions, and Westgarth was delighted with the impact his returning frontman made.
“You’ve got to resist the temptation to throw him straight back in because he’s been injured for such a long time and you’re mindful of him coming straight back in and getting injured again,” Westgarth said.
“The plan was always to build him up and it’s going to take a bit of time for him to get back up to full speed, it’s like having a pre-season again, but I thought that’s what we’ve missed, he didn’t do a lot but what he did do was score two goals.
“If you’re in the right areas you score goals. Barner’s put two on a plate for him and he couldn’t really miss, so perfect goals for him to score after a lengthy time away.”
Another pleasing name on the scoresheet was that of Luke Brabyn, who gave Town a commanding three-goal lead after quarter of an hour with his first goal of the season.
Brabyn scored 30 goals in all competitions during an excellent 2021/22 campaign but had failed to find the net before Saturday, but the hardworking forward, who was given the man-of-the-match award after the game, broke his duck in style on 15 minutes when he met Tom Annear’s raking pass and slotted it under Slade.
“He needed that today,” Westgarth said. “I think Brabyn will be the first to admit he hasn’t started the season how he wanted to for multiple reasons, either holidays, being away or out of form, so for him to get 90 minutes today and score his goal, he’ll be delighted with that.”
The victory was a continuation of Town’s fantastic home form this season, with Westgarth’s side winning five and drawing two of their seven matches in all competitions at Bickland Park this term.
It was also a continuation of Town’s excellent unbeaten home run in the FA Vase, with Town having won all seven of their home FA Vase ties since they returned to the competition in 2018.
“We’re on a good home run in the Vase; the only times we’ve lost in the Vase recently have been away. It’s a good omen for us, and as I said, hopefully we can get a good home draw and see where it takes us.”