Wivenhoe Town 0 Tiptree United 5 On a bitterly cold afternoon at Broad Lane, the Tiptree contingent arrived to find the pitch bumpy, but in surprisingly good condition and perfectly playable despite the fact that other games in the area had fallen victim of the heavy overnight frost.

Manager Colin Wallington was forced to make the usual changes to his side with Judd Coe, Johnny Watson and Darren Skudder unavailable, Paul Shave absent after his debut the previous week and Nathan Clarke still a couple of weeks away from fitness.

However, he was able to welcome back Ben Cross and Lee Underwood, with new signing Andy Taylor making his debut in a strong-looking side.

The home supporters didn’t have to refer to the programme to identify the visitors as no fewer than six of the Tiptree line-up had previous links with the Dragons.

Wivenhoe kicked off in bright sunshine, but it was Tiptree who were immediately on the attack, winning a freekick on the edge of the home penalty area when Ricks was pushed off the ball.

Lee Townrow’s freekick was deflected wide and George Lay’s corner was confidently taken by keeper Alex Galbally.

Tiptree were having the majority of the early possession and after seven minutes they took the lead when Andy Taylor won possession with a powerful header on the halfway line and the ball found its way to Lee Underwood. He went through the centre of the Wivenhoe defence unchallenged to beat the advancing keeper with ease.

Wivenhoe were taking time to settle but Ben Cross had to be alert to clear from Lee Johnson after 14 minutes and then, on 17 minutes, Lee Townrow lost possession on the edge of his own penalty area and Rob Czara headed over the bar from Wivenhoe’s first corner. On 22 minutes the dangerous Underwood fired high and wide after good interplay with Jamie Arlick and then Galbally had to be quick to leave his line after Jamie Ricks had been put through on goal but, despite all their possession, Tiptree were guilty of showing a casual approach and were giving the ball away all too easily.

More chances followed in the remainder of the first half but there were no more goals.

Tiptree made a tactical switch at the start of the second half with Liam White taking up a more accustomed central defensive position, Lee Townrow moving into midfield and the balance of play was the same as the first period with the visitors looking the more dangerous side.

First Arlick put Ricks through on goal after 55 minutes but Galbally advanced quickly to block the Tiptree striker’s effort with his legs.

A minute later Lee Underwood’s acrobatic overhead kick from George Lay’s cross flashed narrowly over the bar.

Wivenhoe were now being pinned in their own half for long periods and restricted to the occasional breakaway.

On 62 minutes Tiptree deservedly increased their lead when George Lay’s original cross from the right was blocked but he latched on to the rebound, beat defender James Raby and crossed to the far post where Underwood scored his second goal with an unchallenged header from close range.

In an isolated Wivenhoe attack after 63 minutes, Lee Townrow cleared a loose ball from the edge of his own penalty area and appeared to be challenged late by Lee Johnson which started a minor scuffle involving a number of players.

After consulting his assistant, referee Mr Hayto issued a yellow card to Johnson for the tackle and Tiptree’s Paul Rutherford received similar punishment for his remonstrations.

This incident was totally out of character with the rest of the game and, as one or two questionable challenges followed, Tiptree’s Lee Underwood was booked for clattering Wivenhoe’s Raby on 65 minutes.

Tiptree remained well on top and extended their lead on 69 minutes when Lee Townrow ignored easier options and played an impressive pass to Ben Cross who arrived late at the far post to score with a powerful close-range header. The goal demoralised the youthful Wivenhoe side and it just seemed a question of how many goals Tiptree would score.

On 71 minutes an impressive run by George Lay saw him beat three defenders to release Ricks with a one-on-one with keeper Galbally and the Tiptree striker scored with ease.

On 75 minutes Tiptree replaced Jamie Arlick with youngster Henry Brown who made his first-team debut and he took his place on the right, with George Lay switching to the left flank.

Tiptree should have increased their lead further a minute later when Ben Cross fired wide of the far post when it seemed easier to score.

Anthony Mills replaced the impressive George Lay with five minutes remaining and Tiptree got the goal which their second-half performance deserved after 89 minutes when the hard-working Ricks again beat the home defence, put the ball wide of the keeper and followed the ball into the net to give the visitors a comfortable 5-0 victory.

Attendance: 180.