Manager Adam Hinshelwood shuffled his pack for the club’s first ever visit to The Bob Lucas Stadium, with Skipper Aarran Racine unavailable. Dan Bowry came in for his debut as both Cam Tutt and Reece Myles-Meekums kept their places after climbing off the bench during the weekend win at Welling. Mo Jammeh made his maiden start for the Senior Xl and Danny Barker was named from the beginning for the first time this term, while Lewis White, Marvin Armstrong, Nodirbek Bobomurodov and James Beresford all commenced proceedings amongst the replacements.

Weymouth, relegated from the top division last season, made their intentions clear from the off.

Joe Rye cut out a Claudio Ofosu left wing cross at the front stick, at the expense of a corner that Dan Matsuzaka flicked behind for a goal-kick, just two minutes in.

Then, around the quarter-hour mark Joel Colbran’s foul on Cam Murray wasn’t punished by Tom Blair’s subsequent free-kick on the arc of the ‘d,’ as it sailed over the top.

In between those chances for the Terras, Colbran had engineered the Reds opening opportunity of the evening, seeing his right flank delivery met with an overhead kick from Jammeh but comfortably into the hands of goalkeeper Bert White.

That would prove to be a rare bright attacking moment for an under the cosh visitors, as the hosts, without a point so far, threatened again via Harry Kyprianou. His driving run through the inside-left channel finally ended by Harrison Male’s low, near post save.

A quick counter-attack approaching the midway point of the first period led to Keelan O’Connell slipping in Blair, only for his effort to miss the rear upright by a whisker.

No let up by a wounded Weymouth meant that O’Connell pounced in an instant, when Jammeh ran into trouble. Some neat one touch interchanges culminated in the home seven being kept out by Male, before the same player endured further frustration after seeing his follow-up effort hit the post in the very next breath.

The Dorset side’s constant pressure forced the guests to remain patient and Jammeh’s lay-off to Colbran that the wing-back bent narrowly behind from the edge of the box, at the end of a good build-up, brought a welcome respite.

It also acted as a warning, which had an exclamation mark added on the end when, against the run of play, Colbran made no mistake five minutes before the break.

A foul on Joe Rye, tight to the left hand touchline resulted in a free-kick that Tutt sent into the danger zone and JC crashed home via the underside of the crossbar.

That goal took the Red Men top of the table (temporarily) and they nearly had another moments later; an unmarked Ollie Pearce lobbing his attempt agonisingly close to the far upright.

Xander McBurnie’s burst through the middle of the park and spread out to the left for the ever-dangerous Ofosu to pick out O’Connell, hovering around the eighteen yard line, might have produced a last minute equaliser but the midfielder couldn’t keep his shot down.

The early exchanges following the half-time interval began with Kane Wills firing a twenty yarder harmlessly wide before being beaten by Bearwish, who evaded his challenge and soon supplied O’Connell. He played in Ofosu but the winger was rebuffed by Male.

However, Worthing were a different prospect in the second forty-five and the legs of (Male’s) opposite number White stopped Myles-Meekums making even more of Barker’s knockdown, prior to another Tutt set-piece causing problems. A lucky ricochet falling ideally for Colbran and only marginally missing the target.

White was at it again with an outstretched leg to thwart Jammeh, while a combination of Rye and Barker put an end to ex-Bognor striker, the recently introduced Dan Gifford’s hopes of levelling the score.

Fellow sub Bradley Ash teamed up with Blair to carve out an opportunity that somehow stayed out shortly afterwards, before the woodwork came to the visitor’s rescue once more.

O’Connell’s dead ball went all the way through the penalty area and hit the back stick but the struggling seasiders would find themselves further behind in a flash.

A crossfield pass was missed by Ofosu, allowing Jammeh to scamper clear to the byline and pick out Pearce who’s back post connection was chested in by the unfortunate Nathan Carlyle, although our Ollie’s strike was deemed to have already crossed the line.

Two may have turned into three, only the assistant’s raised flag to disallow Cal Kealy’s finish and Wills’ assist for offside and stop the forward adding to his Saturday double.

Although nothing could get in the way of Pearce completing a brace ten minutes from time. Cutting in off the left and calmly stroking across White into the far side of the net.

Not that he was quite finished there though; spraying the ball out to recent replacement Bobomurodov to pull off a similar piece of skill – on the right on this occasion – releasing a rocket marginally above it’s intended target.