Lyme Regis were thrashed 7-0 by Sidmouth Town Reserves in the Morrison Bell Cup on Monday, then answered with a five-goal surge of their own two days later to beat Colyton 5-2 at the Davey Fort. Ethan Matthews put Lyme ahead after 12 minutes, Corey Leisk levelled for Colyton, and Mattie Loader-Coupland restored the lead after an effort had been cleared off the line and Daley Holmes had hit the crossbar.
Marcus Symonds made it 3-1, Matthews struck again before the break, and Loader-Coupland completed his second goal of the afternoon in the second half. Tom Olive’s long-range finish gave Colyton their second, but Cody Bowditch was named Lyme’s man of the match after a result that steadied the club after the cup loss.
The cup defeat had been brutal. Scott Hughes scored three times for Sidmouth Town Reserves, Charlie Roberts added two, and Frank Long and Jamie Salter were also on target in a game that left Lyme four goals down at the break. For a side that had just been cut apart, the response came fast and in the right place: a local rivalry match that carried more than ordinary league points.
That revival continued on Saturday, when Lyme Regis met Sidmouth Town Reserves again in a league fixture and came away with a 3-2 win that was built around Mika Mamanta. He headed in the opening goal from a throw-in flick-on, Hughes replied with a long free kick, and Jack Drew Cull put Sidmouth Town Reserves 2-1 ahead on the counter attack. Toby Fowler bundled in the equaliser from one of Mamanta’s corners, then Mamanta scored the third after a Marcus Symonds break as Lyme held on under heavy late pressure to record their tenth league win of the season.
Mamanta was given Lyme’s man of the match award for his goal and assists, and the sequence of results left the club stronger in the Premier Division of the Devon and Exeter League after a week that began with a heavy cup setback. It was a sharp reminder that one bad night had not broken them, and that the response was already on the board.
Lyme Regis Reserves also had a difficult week, losing 4-1 away to City Raiders in Exeter in Division Four of the Devon and Exeter League, with six players from the Rovers squad stepping up because of unavailability. The first team, though, answered the question raised by Monday’s defeat: they recovered quickly, scored freely, and turned a 7-0 humiliation into a run that put points back in hand.
