Civil Service held firm against a resilient Withington FC side in their opening cup match of the season. A goal early in the second half from Chris Gaywood was enough to earn a home tie with Ledbury Town Reserves in Round 2.

This victory was the result of a strong defensive performance especially at the heart of defence with Simms and Johnson both excellent and helped by a match winning display from Dan Gay in the Service goal. Service were the better team throughout and wasted several chances throughout the game with Judd, Jones, Gaywood, Parrett, Kaye and Chapman all missing opportunities to seal the win. Withington were a constant threat in attack and earned a second half penalty after a foul by Terry Calder but Dan Gay not only saved the initial penalty but was up quickly to stop the rebound. Although Withington pushed for a late equaliser Service held firm.

Although still showing the sort of performance they showed in preseason, this earned the Servicemen a third straight victory but they will hope to add an improved performance to go with the win in their next game.

Team: Gay, Morris, T. Calder, Johnson, Simms, Judd, A.Atkin, Jones, P.Atkin, Day, Gaywood

Subs: Parrett, Chapman, Kaye, Ridley, Sadler