Yate Town 0 Portishead Town 3
Murray 39, 60, Feltham 65
Pre-season friendly Tuesday 22nd July 2025
Yate Town, with seven players missing either through illness, injury or unavailability, hosted a Portishead side full of confidence and momentum after two successive promotions has led them to be playing in Step 4 next season. In the Portishead were ex-Bluebells Jamie Adams and Sean Keet.
With their 2 main striker missing Yate Town manager, Darren Mullings, had to field a different side than he had planned for and with defender James Taylor and forward Dave Sims-Burgess out through injury, this added to his selection problems.
The game started brightly and it soon became obvious how well organised and constructive Portishead were in their play but after a slow start Yate Town dominated much of the possession in the first half and played some excellent passing football, keeping possession and the ball on the floor, but the Portishead side was always a real threat on the counter attack.
Following a free kick on the edge of the Yate Town penalty area Jack Witchard was forced to push away the ball at full stretch but in a half of few chances both Rex Manning, who was a constant danger to the Portishead defence, and Lucas Tomlinson went close, as did one of the trialists.
Jack Witchard goes full length to push this free kick away to safety.
However, after 39 minutes, the visitors took the lead when their leading goal scorer for the past two seasons, Ethan Feltham, kept possession well in the Yate penalty area before passing to Jay Murray, and the son of the former Bristol City favourite Scott Murray, who fired home form around 12 yards.
The opening period of the second half saw Yate Town in control but a shot from Murray from the edge of the penalty area, on the hour, found the net, for his second goal of the game as the hosts doubled their lead.
There followed a number of substitutions from both sides but the result was decided on 65 minutes when Ethan Feltham struck a long range shot from the left that flew into the Bluebells net.
Despite Tomlinson bringing a fine save form Portishead goalkeeper, Ryan Thacker, and Rex Mannings shot from an angle just clearing the far post, this was the closest that the Bluebells came to scoring a consolation goal.
New signing Dan Ball in possession, with Lewis Hall in support.
Portishead Town should do well next season in the Southern League Division One South next season on this showing. With two pre-season games to go before the Bluebells start the League campaign, with a home game against Sholing FC on 9th August, Yate Town manager, Darren Mullings, will be hoping that with all his players available and with the possible addition of a striker to the squad, the side is more than capable of performing at the higher level following their promotion at the end of last season. New signings Dan Ball and Rex Mannings stood out in this display and despite the result, Darren Mullings will have learned lessons from this game as he continues to formulate his squad for the coming season.
The Bluebells host a Bristol Rovers X1 on Tuesday evening, 29th July (7.45pm) this being their penultimate pre-season friendly.
Yate Town: Witchard, Dempsey, Trialist, Hall, Ball, James, Tomlinson, Guest, Trialist, Britton Manning.
Subs: Jeremy, Trialist, Nderemani, Trialist, Felix, Sainsbury
Portishead Town: Thacker, Winter, Robbins, Adams, Murray, Osmond, Feltham, Thorne (J), Quick, Scadding Keet
Subs: Hedges, Thorne (D), Griffiths, Vow, Leadbury