FOOTBALL: Frome Town 2 Merthyr Town 1 (From Wiltshire Times)

FOOTBALL: Frome Town 2 Merthyr Town 1

10:02am Tuesday 7th August 2012 in Football

AN entertaining, competitive friendly eventually saw Frome run out 2-1 winners, thanks to a 25 yard free kick into the top corner from Alex Lapham.

An even start saw Frome with the first chance as Dean Evans chested the ball down into the path of Claudio Herbert, but the young striker put the ball wide of the far post.

Merthyr’s left back Ian Traylor had caused Frome problems at the back as he twice got behind them, but Frome took the lead in the 22nd minute as Tom Evans smashed home a penalty after a clear handball from a defender.

Frome doubled their lead in the 33rd minute as Lapham brought back memories with a 25 yard free kick that curled into the top corner, to give him his first goal for a couple of years.

Merthyr made it 2-1 in the 40th minute as Ryan Bennett was somewhat harshly penalised for pushing Luke Jones as he shepherded the ball out of play, and Ryan Prosser hit the penalty hard and straight down the middle to give Darren Chitty no real chance.

After a couple of flashes of brilliance from Matt Smith at the start of the second half, Merthyr very nearly equalised as a Prosser shot hit the underside of the Frome bar, but then bounced down and back into play without crossing the line.

The usual mass substitutions halfway through the second half made little real difference to the pattern of the match and Frome had a chance to extend their lead in the 82nd minute as Carl Foster shot straight at Giles Cutlan from 10 yards.

Merthyr almost snatched the equaliser right at the end as Dean Flockton cleared off the line and a Merthyr header went just past the post from the resulting corner.

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