LEDBURY FC eased to a 3-0 win over nine-man Worcester United in a scrappy encounter that featured six yellow cards and two reds.
A brace of penalties from Craig Howell and a goal direct from a corner by Josh Burns sealed the points for Ian Merrick’s side in the second half, after a disrupted and disjointed opening 45 minutes.
The home side carved out the better chances in the first period. Ben Miller delivered a dangerous free kick into the box which Howell met well, but his header lacked direction and went straight at Worcester 'keeper Wesley Garfield.
The visitors’ best chance of the half came early on, when Callum Gascoigne rose to meet a cross, but his header lacked power and was comfortably dealt with by Oscar Bignell in the Ledbury goal.
Ledbury rallied just before the interval. Josh Burns forced a smart save at the near post and Rory Wilkinson saw his close-range effort deflected behind by a scrambling Garfield.
On the stroke of half-time, Howell thought he had broken the deadlock after another pinpoint Miller delivery, but his effort drifted narrowly over the bar, as Worcester weathered a late flurry to go in level at the break.
The hosts started the second half brightly and were quickly rewarded for their pressure. Burns’ in-swinging corner caught Garfield out at his near post, putting Ledbury ahead.
Burns continued to cause problems for the United defence and was brought down on the edge of the area after exploiting a gap in the back line. Howell’s subsequent free kick was deflected off the wall, and Ledbury’s advantage remained a single goal.
Moments later, the game took a dramatic turn. Gareth Williams-Howells was adjudged to be the last man when he brought down Joe Thomas in the area and was shown a straight red card. Howell stepped up to calmly convert the resulting penalty, doubling Ledbury’s lead and putting them firmly in control.
Tensions began to rise as United’s Ben Watkins and Thomas Edwards were both booked for late challenges, with the visitors growing increasingly frustrated.
Ledbury looked to put the result beyond doubt and almost did so when Dean Lee struck the post from distance. Their pressure soon told again, when Miller cut inside from a short corner and was hacked down by Edwards just inside the box.
Howell confidently dispatched his second penalty of the afternoon, smashing it high into the roof of the net to make it 3-0 and put any hopes of a Worcester comeback to bed.
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Things went from bad to worse for the visitors as substitute Rorie Hanbury was dismissed late on for a second bookable offence – a reckless lunge on Burns – reducing United to nine men with six minutes left.
Worcester’s only meaningful effort of the second half came from range, as Mateusz Klich’s speculative strike was comfortably collected by Bignell – a moment that summed up a dismal half for the visitors.
Ledbury almost added a fourth in stoppage time, with Burns skipping past his man down the touchline and poking a shot goalwards, only to be denied by a strong save from Garfield.
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