Basingstoke Town registered their fifth consecutive league win on Saturday, as they comfortably dispatched Sholing 4-0, writes Jacob Wilkinson.

Fresh off the back of a 2-1 Hampshire Cup second-round victory over Alresford, Dan Brownlie’s side headed to Southampton for yet another away game – ‘Stoke’s fourth in as many matches, a run spanning across three different competitions.

While Basingstoke were in red-hot form, Sholing came into the game having lost their last four games in all competitions, and it translated on the pitch as the visitors took the lead just 10 minutes in.

Midfielder Luis Le Paih picked up a misplaced Sholing pass, before looping a clever ball over the backline to set Brad Wilson free down the left-hand side. Wilson drove towards goal then showed brilliant composure to take the ball around ‘keeper Ryan Gosney before tapping home from close range.

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Le Paih, who was making just his second league start of the season, added a goal to his assist as he doubled the lead inside 17 minutes. The Boatmen failed to clear a Basingstoke throw-in on the right flank and, after a succession of headers, Dan Isaiah Rowe nipped in – catching the defence unaware – before rolling the ball back to Le Paih, who made no mistake with the finish.

The Frenchman could’ve had another assist in the first period, as he picked out Dan Rowe with an excellent cross, but Gosney made an impressive stop to deny ‘Stoke a third and keep the score 0-2 at half-time.

Basingstoke moved into relative comfort shortly after the break, however, as they found the back of the net for the third time in the match – Dan Rowe becoming the second player to follow an assist with a strike of his own.

Rowe intercepted Marcus Johnson-Schuster’s somewhat lacklustre shot from outside the box, before firing a stinging shot at Gosney – who parried it out. Scott Armsworth was the quickest to react, prodding the ball back through to Basingstoke’s No.9, who this time smashed it into the bottom right corner.

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The visitors became the league’s joint-second top scorers with around five minutes left on the clock, as substitute Ashleigh Artwell bagged his first goal of the season. Johnson-Schuster played a neat one-two with George Reid before lifting a clever pass between two Sholing defenders to set Artwell in behind, who coolly slotted a first-time finish into the bottom left corner.

The clean sheet on the South Coast is just Basingstoke’s second of the season, but they are rewarded for a fantastic team display by moving up to sixth – level on points with the play-off places.

Focus now turns to next weekend, when last season’s foes Walton & Hersham come to town in what is set to be a thrilling encounter.