Evesham Utd 2, Clevedon Town 3

POINTLESS, patched-up and in dire need of a pick-me up, that is Phil Mullen's side after Tuesday night's defeat, writes Mervyn Collins.

The performance was 100 per cent better than the one at Sutton last Saturday but again deficiencies in defence proved costly.

Mark Shepherd showed he hasn't lost his goal touch, while the spirit within the side is to be applauded after Clevedon went 3-1 up after 57 minutes.

It could so easily have ended 5 or 6-1 against a side that had never lost to Evesham, but Shepherd's second with 23 minutes remaining prompted a frantic climax and Paul Oakey should really have earned United a point but sliced a late effort wide.

An action-packed opening half saw shots rain in on Damien Beattie's goal but it remained intact until the 34th minute when full back Oliver Price reacted quickest to poke in a loose ball after Arthur Appleton's shot was half-blocked.

Evesham had taken the lead seven minutes earlier when Shepherd's control and finish from Grant Pinkney's centre was a delight to witness.

The impressive Craig Ball had seen an earlier effort blocked on the line, while Beattie was kept busy as Town's lively forwards threatened frequently.

They were handed an open invitation to score when the back line went missing a minute before the break and Shane Hobbs made it 2-1 after Beattie had blocked his initial strike.

A ball over the top undid the United rearguard 12 minutes after the restart and Marc Burrow shoved Ryan Wiesberg in the box as he prepared to shoot. The striker confidently fired in the resultant spot-kick.

Oakey replaced Scott Mullen ten minutes later and, like last weekend, the change worked a treat as Shepherd found the corner of the net courtesy of a clever pass from Nathan Jukes.

A similar lay-off by Simon Marsh gave Oakey a glorious chance to level but it wasn't to be United's night.