Goals from Marlon Jackson, Keiran Thomas and Dayle Grubb saw Weston come away from Poole Town with a 3-1 win after going behind early on.
The hosts were to take the lead first however when Toby Holmes was fed into the box by a great pass down the right channel. Looking up, he had Weston defender Sam Avery for company but he managed to find the right pass across goal for winger Marcus Daws, who hammered a first-time shot into the roof of the net from 12 yards to break the deadlock.
Weston were to equalise just four minutes later though when a pass was held up by Reuben Reid 25 yards from goal. He flicked the ball over the top for the overlapping Jackson, who took the ball in his stride as he bore down on goal and slid the ball beyond Luke Cairney.
The rest of the half mainly saw Weston controlling the tempo of the game, Reid smacking an effort off the crossbar after being found by Grubb on the counter-attack. Cairney tipped Jackson’s strike from 18 yards over the bar after Reid’s lay-off, before the No.19 had two shots pushed away by the Poole keeper within a minute from similar angles.
In the second half, debutant Will Tunnicliff had a shot saved by Cairney’s legs after being played in by Jordan Bastin.
After a couple of consecutive corners, the third one was made to count when Bastin’s delivery bounced around the area which lead to Sam Avery backheeling towards goal. Cairney denied the attempt with his legs, but the resultant clearance clattered off Thomas’ heel and bounced over the line to hand the Seagulls the lead.
The second half mainly saw Weston try and withstand Poole pressure, with Tunnicliff’s shot from 30 yards flying over the bar and Poole having a couple of headers from set pieces down the other end held by Max Harris.
The traveling fans could breathe a sigh of relief though when a pass into Jackson saw him take the ball beyond Jamie Whisken with his first touch, but the dangling leg brought the No.9 down inside the area. Captain Grubb stepped up to the plate, and his low effort just creeped into the net despite Cairney getting his feet to the attempt.
As the game opened up, Whisken’s header from a goalmouth scramble struck the post and Weston could clear the danger, while down the other end Bastin’s lob over Cairney from a long pass just landed on the roof of the net.Reid had the game’s final chance with a diving header from Bastin’s cross, but he couldn’t direct the attempt on target and headed wide.
FT: Poole 1-3 Weston (Daws 11 – Jackson 15, Thomas 49, Grubb pen 75)
Weston XI: Harris, Thomas (Jones 73), Tunnicliff, Jagger-Cane, Humphries, Avery, Dodd, Jackson (Watts 90+3), Grubb (C), Bastin, Reid (Griffith 83). Unused substitutes: Murray, Purnell.
MOTM: Marlon Jackson.