ST ALBANS CITY strolled to their biggest win at Clarence Park for more than six months on Tuesday night as Wisbech Town after conceding an own goal inside 67 seconds were comfortably dispatched from the FA Trophy.

The Saints players were focused on the job in hand, and once Chris Dear had scored his unfortunate own goal, there was little doubt as to which club was going to win the dubious honour of going through to visit Trophy holders Canvey Island in the second round on Saturday, December 1.

City brought back skipper Derek Brown after suspension in place of Steve Cook, who suffered a broken toe at the weekend.

Brown wasted no time in making his presence felt as he battled to win possession outside the Wisbech penalty area, and then clipped the ball into the box where Dear inadvertently sent a glancing header over keeper Ian Pledger, and into the back of the Hatfield Road net with just 67 seconds gone.

Around the half hour mark, Rob Smith sent a glorious curling shot from a Gary Ansell pass just inches wide of the keeper's left-hand upright, while a misunderstanding between Dear and Gary Pawson gifted possession to Martin, but from his low cross, Nabil's night of woe continued with a first time shot just past the target.

But any fears of City not turning their obvious superiority into goals prior to the break were dispelled just moments before the interval, when a measured pass down the right by Richard Evans was latched onto and crossed by Danny Honeyball for Martin to head home his seventh goal of the season.

With five minutes remaining, City finally secured their biggest home FA Trophy win for four years when Darren Fenton and Honeyball combined down the right, and from the latter's cracking drive, Pledger beat the ball out, but only to Evans the only player to have featured in all three games between the two sides over the past five years who, from 15 yards, beat the keeper with a crisp shot for his first goal in more than a year.

November 8, 2001 15:30