Fleet like scoring three, Dominic Poleon likes scoring two and the fans like what they’re seeing as a seventh win extended the club record start to a season.
Poleon matched Fleet’s wins column to score his seventh goal of the campaign and Darren McQueen provided the icing on the cake to ease any worries after Bath fought their way back into the game with a goal to reduce the arrears.
Fleet made three changes to their starting lineup after Monday’s win against Dover. In came Kieran Monlouis, Omari Sterling and Craig Tanner, with Josh Wright, Darren McQueen and Toby Edser the outgoing men in red.
Bath began with a spell of possession football and Fleet only really got a solid first touch when Haydn Hollis found Dominic Poleon on two minutes for a run into the box but he was outnumbered. The visitors continued to play Fleet at their own game with a methodical passing strategy for the opening period.
But it was some awry passing that got them in trouble on seven minutes when a mistake from a loose pass gave Sterling the opening to run at goal and he passed inside where in-form Poleon needed little invitation in slamming it low into the corner.
Fleet should have had a second on 16 minutes, an excellent counterattack after a little bit of quick passing on the edge of the home box, then Poleon fed Craig Tanner. His swift back-heel for Bingham was superb but the Fleet No.9 pulled his shot wide from 12 yards.
And the home side continued to probe, coming even closer two minutes later when Tanner’s fine shot sailed over Joe Wright in goal and bounced back off the post.
Another opportunity presented itself just before the half-hour when neat link-up between Poleon and Bingham saw the goalscorer turn and release his striker partner but Wright was behind Bingham’s shot.
Bath struggled to create any solid chances but had the ball in the net – disallowed – on 36 minutes when a quick throw-in allowed Dan Hayfield to play a ball through the Fleet defence for Cody Cooke to cross and Scott Wilson to slide home but there was an offside in the build-up. Joe Raynes then slung over a useful cross that Sterling had to be alert to or Bath were in at the far post.
Tanner was finding himself in great positions with space in the middle and he presented a constant threat to Bath. He was brought down for a free-kick that he fired over and then found Greg Cundle with a run down the middle which the Fleet wide man fired at Wright.
The two sides were content to take a slower pace into the second-half but it livened up on 50 minutes when Hayfield fired over after a spell of Bath pressure before Bingham flicked Sterling’s cross from the right just across goal and wide. And two minutes later an almost carbon-copy opportunity saw Monlouis swing one over from a similar position for Bingham who just couldn’t quite connect.
The Bath bench were up in arms on 57 minutes when a ball into the Fleet box was met by Luke O’Neill who went down under a challenge as Cooke headed past Cousins but the referee had pulled play back for a foul.
And it was the Fleet bench who were up but for different reasons as the hour mark rolled around, Christian N’Guessan on to a ball in midfield, his extra turn of pace and long stride getting him through his chasers and he slipped a ball into Poleon’s path that the Fleet striker in his current form was never going to do anything with other than slot it home.
Fleet enjoyed the two-goal cushion for only 12 minutes when Scott Wilson was able to take a bouncing ball upfield under control and as Alex Fletcher and Harding attacked the ball in the box, the latter stole in ahead of Hollis to fire home.
Any anxious moments were dispelled five minutes from the end in traditional Darren McQueen style. The substitute was supplied by Poleon, chesting the ball down in midfield to release the winger wide on the right. McQueen got the ball on to his left foot, cut across and inside and fired into the top corner through a crowd to bring the ground to its feet.
That ended Bath resistance and the final five minutes plus time added on was a chance for the Fleet choir to raise their voices ahead of next week’s first v second clash at Havant.
EUFC: Cousins, O’Neill, Hollis, Solly, N’Guessan, Monlouis, Sterling (McQueen 64), Cundle, Tanner (Edser 81), Bingham (Coulthirst 71), Poleon. Subs: Wright, Jombati
BCFC: Wright, Raynes, Greenslade, Dyer, Parselle, Fletcher, Hayfield (Frear 84), Cooke, Lines, Spokes (Smith 68), Wilson. Subs: Batten, Bell, Clarke
Attendance: 1,289
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